Help Outfitting My Tank

[smatter]

Good morning,

I am setting up a 16g tank on my kitchen counter and am trying to decide how to outfit it. It measures 18x16x13. I have two 6040s and a nano osmolator. I'm interested in the 3162 so I can run chemical and mechanical with surface skimming. The heater compartment is a nice feature too. On the other hand I've run plenty of successful tanks without any mechanical filtration and just a good skimmer so a 9004 would fit the bill well. I would still have surface skimming with the 9004, my only concern is the recommendation to install it in a low flow area. With one or two 6040s in there there won't be any low flow areas really. I'm not opposed to a Reefpack 250 either.

Jason

 

[rvitko]

I would use the 9001, the surface skimmer isn't the best, it is a simple snorkel tube, but it can be modified with an Eheim surface extractor so it is auto adjusting for the depth (the extractor floats and is not fixed like ours). I think the Reefpack and 9004 might take up too much real estate in such a small tank and are not needed since water changes are easier on small tanks. FWIW, there is a rumor a 9001 sized filter will be coming in the summer.

 

[smatter]

I like that rumor Perhaps I will just run the 2 6040s for now. They do a pretty good job of mitgating any surface film on their own. Maybe I should consider one of your wave controllers instead at this point for more random switching than I get with the 2 6040s in anti sync mode.