Deltec vs Octopus?

[nikonosis]

thanks for all the posts in this thread. It really helped me decide which skimmer to get and it happens to neither be a deltec or octopus. I am either going to get an h&s or a geo. I am leaning towards a geo because it is a little cheaper and everyone says they are great skimmers that perform better than euroreef and asm so they must be pretty good just based on that.

 

[albfelix]

You should have went towards Octopus, they might be related to Seaclones, you never know

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6694882#post6694882 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nikonosis
thanks for all the posts in this thread. It really helped me decide which skimmer to get and it happens to neither be a deltec or octopus. I am either going to get an h&s or a geo. I am leaning towards a geo because it is a little cheaper and everyone says they are great skimmers that perform better than euroreef and asm so they must be pretty good just based on that.

 

[nikonosis]

Click on the red house for my photo gallery.

You don't have a red house

 

[dhnguyen]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6736019#post6736019 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by albfelix
You should have went towards Octopus, they might be related to Seaclones, you never know

That statement really does ring true with what you stated as your occupation.

 

[albfelix]

hey, i have been there, done that

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6736291#post6736291 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dhnguyen
That statement really does ring true with what you stated as your occupation.

 

[Sicklid]

Why don't you guys get a real skimmer?

 

[Alaskan Reefer]

"The best skimmer is the (insert what you own here) because I own it."

Skimmate pictures are pointless, I could skim a 20 gallon with 10 tangs in it with a Prizm and blow all of these shots away. I guess you can prove that one tank has more bioload with a skimmate shot -- woohoo!

I'm happy with my Euroreef, it works great. If the Octupus works just as good, I may have wasted some money. Wouldn't be the first time.

Buy the skimmer that does what you need it to do -- cut the poo out easily, fit a certain space, fill you with self esteem, leave you with extra money for smokes, serve as a weapon in emergencies, vacuum out your truck, whatever. The best skimmer on the market is the one that does what you need it to do. Period.

 

[nikonosis]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6740316#post6740316 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Alaskan Reefer
"The best skimmer is the (insert what you own here) because I own it."

Skimmate pictures are pointless, I could skim a 20 gallon with 10 tangs in it with a Prizm and blow all of these shots away. I guess you can prove that one tank has more bioload with a skimmate shot -- woohoo!

I'm happy with my Euroreef, it works great. If the Octupus works just as good, I may have wasted some money. Wouldn't be the first time.

Buy the skimmer that does what you need it to do -- cut the poo out easily, fit a certain space, fill you with self esteem, leave you with extra money for smokes, serve as a weapon in emergencies, vacuum out your truck, whatever. The best skimmer on the market is the one that does what you need it to do. Period.

Exactly, its just hard to deside what skimmer does what you need.

 

[Philwd]

Wow. I got quoted twice in one thread.

The unit I looked at was the same one Pyrrus and clkwrk were talking about. I should clarify a couple things. First the lower air injection I mentioned is a big deal. From reading the other thread this is a known issue with these skimmers. Because of that I would NOT trust their tank ratings. I really didn't look too closely at the seams but the first impression wasn't wow. When I opened my Deltec WOW was an understatement. I didn't see the skimmer producing any skimmate yet. I'll have to look next time I drop in there. I know when I first hooked up my APF600 it produced 3" in a little over a day. On a very lightly loaded 150.

I do agree that this skimmer does bring better performance than was available before. And I know there are a lot of people who can't afford Deltecs that this might work just fine. I would not trade my Deltec and not because I paid more. Its called peace of mind knowing if I go on vacation its not going to crap out on me. Its knowing Doug will be there if I have a question. Its knowing I have backup capacity to spare in the event of a tank catastrophe. And its knowing now I qualify for that cool t-shirt.

 

[nikonosis]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6743975#post6743975 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Philwd
Wow. I got quoted twice in one thread.

The unit I looked at was the same one Pyrrus and clkwrk were talking about. I should clarify a couple things. First the lower air injection I mentioned is a big deal. From reading the other thread this is a known issue with these skimmers. Because of that I would NOT trust their tank ratings. I really didn't look too closely at the seams but the first impression wasn't wow. When I opened my Deltec WOW was an understatement. I didn't see the skimmer producing any skimmate yet. I'll have to look next time I drop in there. I know when I first hooked up my APF600 it produced 3" in a little over a day. On a very lightly loaded 150.

I do agree that this skimmer does bring better performance than was available before. And I know there are a lot of people who can't afford Deltecs that this might work just fine. I would not trade my Deltec and not because I paid more. Its called peace of mind knowing if I go on vacation its not going to crap out on me. Its knowing Doug will be there if I have a question. Its knowing I have backup capacity to spare in the event of a tank catastrophe. And its knowing now I qualify for that cool t-shirt.

if you said wow about a deltec then why didn't you get an h&s since everyone says they are made way better and out of better materials?

 

[Fliger]

I saw the skimmer pyrrhus mentioned and to be honest its pretty nice for the price. He hooked up an airmeter, the same model I have, and it actually outperformed the Aquabee pumps from what I saw. It was less than an Eheim, but it appeared to beat the 2001 Aquabee. This is TOTALLY unconfirmed since they were two different Dwyer meters, but the same model. Maybe I'll take mine in, which has measured SEVERAL Eheims, and an Aquabee. The bubbles were very fine as well.

There were things about the skimmer that might have been improved, but this is definitely a decent skimmer for the money.

Maybe pyrrhus can confirm which model he showed me. I believe it was the smaller one. But it registered pretty well on the Dwyer meter.

 

[nikonosis]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6744048#post6744048 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fliger
I saw the skimmer pyrrhus mentioned and to be honest its pretty nice for the price. He hooked up an airmeter, the same model I have, and it actually outperformed the Aquabee pumps from what I saw. It was less than an Eheim, but it appeared to beat the 2001 Aquabee. This is TOTALLY unconfirmed since they were two different Dwyer meters, but the same model. Maybe I'll take mine in, which has measured SEVERAL Eheims, and an Aquabee. The bubbles were very fine as well.

There were things about the skimmer that might have been improved, but this is definitely a decent skimmer for the money.

Maybe pyrrhus can confirm which model he showed me. I believe it was the smaller one. But it registered pretty well on the Dwyer meter.

Are you talking about one of the octopus skimmers? I guess its the pacific coast skimmer which is the same as the octopus. He was running this skimmer right?

http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic/itemdetail.asp?itemid=PS-PCRPS-2000

Here is a bigger better version.
http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic/itemdetail.asp?itemid=PS-PCRPS-3000

 

[Philwd]

Nikonosis my decision came down to a H&S and the Deltec. I picked the Deltec for 2 reasons. First because it had to fit in my sump and the footprint was slightly smaller. Second the forum here is a great customer service tool. The ideas everyone generates certainly helped me pick Deltec. Honestly its a resource H&S could use too. I have seen H&S in person and yes they also have the WOW factor. H&S are well built units. If I had the room it would have been a much tougher decision.

 

[Fliger]

LOL, looks like Phil saw the same skimmer. ;-) And I have seen his Deltec and it is awesome. I really like the APF600.

You know, I might have made an error. The meter was different. I have two dwyers and think I'm remembering the wrong one. The bigger one I actually sent to a guy who has a 701 who wants to check out a couple things. BUT - those skimmers are VERY VERY VERY VERY nice for the money. The one I saw was the smaller one. I would say this is an EXCELLENT buy for $300. I mean, probably one of the best deals in skimmers at that price point, period.

I can NOT comment on the durability of the pump, but I do know people who like oceanrunners. As far as heat transfer and longevity, well - Eheim has the best track record in the book. The OR was a little loud for my taste, but for that much less money might be good for some people. I hate the neck union, I had an ER with that and its a real PITA since you really should clean these things twice a week for best performance. But again for $299, thats a great deal. Better than the ER's at that price for sure (IMO).

 

[nikonosis]

i don't know if i will ever be able to figure out what skimmer to get. hs and deltec are probably the best but also the most expensive and on the other hand there is the new octopus and pacific coast skimmers which from what everyone is saying are as good or better than euroreef and asm which are great skimmers also. Its really hard to decide if its worth it to spend more than twice the amount of money on a deltec or hs instead of putting the money into something else on the tank and just going with a cheaper skimmer that still performs really well.

 

[clkwrk]

Where is everyone saying the octopus is better than asm or euro reef? Point me in the dirrection .

BTW this hobby isn't cheap and if you got into it thinking it would be that was a mistake. I enjoy spending the money on my tanks and their inhabitants. I don't even bat an eyelash when I drop a few hundred on something that will make my tank perform better.

 

[Fliger]

I know, it sucks. Personally I think a skimmer is so important, I just didn't want to deal with a gamble. Plus I got an early ER 12-2RC, and had a bad experience so I went with a German import. I travel a lot. I need something overpowered, so if a fish dies and I'm gone, the skimmer can take care of it. Deltec ... H&S ... have been doing this for a very long time. I believe they still share the patent on the needlewheel.

I like what Calfo said once - something like the extra 10-20% performance isn't worth the 50% increase in price (or more) if your kids are going hungry. I just weighed the options and decided I wanted something better than what I could find domestically. A couple years ago there was really only Deltec and H&S. Now the landscape has changed and ER has improved their pumps (even when they basically laughed at me a couple years ago when I wanted bigger pumps on the 12-2) and the PC skimmers are real bargains. But quite frankly, my kids weren't going hungry so I decided I could splurge on the skimmer. It made such a huge difference I never went back. I also love engineering, it goes with the territory of being 50% Asian, 50% German. ;-)

But I hear ya one "putting the money into something else". Recently I was shopping macro lenses, and I got a cheaper one cuz I needed the money for other things. Most everyone else I know has the 100mm and I just couldn't justify it. But isn't every purchase like that?

Maybe just go with that big PC. $500 is a real bargain and if you don't like it you can sell it and not lose too much. Its a recirculating design so I'd imagine it would perform well.

Good luck and just buy one already. ;-)

 

[nikonosis]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6744430#post6744430 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
Where is everyone saying the octopus is better than asm or euro reef? Point me in the dirrection .

BTW this hobby isn't cheap and if you got into it thinking it would be that was a mistake. I enjoy spending the money on my tanks and their inhabitants. I don't even bat an eyelash when I drop a few hundred on something that will make my tank perform better.

Where you get the idea i think this hobby is cheap? Do you think I don't have the money to pay for it, cause I sure enough do... If I didn't I wouldn't be considering getting and H&S. Its funny that I ask questions about skimmers in my local club and most of them tell me to just get an asm g3 and some of them have some super nice tanks. Then I ask in the main section on RC and everyone is like, get a $2000 deltec. I never said everyone was saying octopus is better than asm or euro, did i? I thought I said this "which from what everyone is saying are as good or better than euroreef and asm." And when I say everyone, im actually talking about stores and people that have used asm/euro and octopus. I have a LFS that sells all 3 and actually recommened the octopus over a similar sized asm. I don't know if its true or not, I have no idea. Ive just read alot of threads about all of them and I see people coming onto this thread saying they have prizm skimmers than can produce skimmate that looks like those deltec pictures... Who should I believe? How do I know who to trust?

 

[clkwrk]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6744361#post6744361 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nikonosis
on the other hand there is the new octopus and pacific coast skimmers which from what everyone is saying are as good or better than euroreef and asm which are great skimmers also.

IMO a g-3 is rock soild proven performer.

 

[nikonosis]

to be honest, I would buy an asm right now but I really want an external skimmer and everyone says they leak. I honestly thought about getting one and trying to make it leak proof but I really didn't know if it was possible. It seems, from reading here on RC, the only place they leak is at the collar and i saw someone say they just wrapped teflon tape around it and it stopped the leaking. So that leaves me to find an external needlewheel that i know isn't going to leak and I know is going to work good. I honestly don't care if its the best skimmer on earth as long as it keeps my tank as clean as I want it. I am in the planning stages right now of getting ready to setup my 180g and I don't want to regret what I buy and at the same time I don't want to regret spending the money I spent on something if I don't think its worth it. I will not buy a euroreef because they are insanely expensive and there are better skimmers for the same price which doesn't make much sense to me...