Skimmer Q&A Thread

[reeftivo]

Does anyone have any good information about this skimmer? I currently am using a Bubble Magnus 3.5 for a 39 gallon with 10 gallon sump SPS tank. Would this skimmer be a better bet? How is this skimmer in comparison to the Skimz 121 for my size tank.

Thanks,
Ken

mojo did a great review a while back with somewhat of a prototype.

From the review, it should be a very good performing skimmer with small footprint

I will be getting mine in december

The prototypes had a different NW and they have changed it since the MACNA show so they are quieter. I'm not sure if the change of the NW has decreased the air numbers though.

I'm sure mojo will chime in with better info.

Tivo

 

[austin93]

So its shopping time and i need a skimmer i think. I am looking to upgrade mine from a 2008 swc 200 with upgraded octopus pinwheel impeller to maybe an avast cs1. I have a heavy stocked 150 sps tank w 40 breeder sump. My problem now is my tank is not heavily loaded currently with 3 tangs & about 8 other small fish. I dont know if this is the reason or not, but i dont get much skimmate. I have the tube all the way up and still dont get much. I am on a tight budget so would appreciate you advice if the avast would improve my tank, if i should keep what i have, or get another skimmer per your recommendation. Thank you for your help.

 

[ken6217]

mojo did a great review a while back with somewhat of a prototype.

From the review, it should be a very good performing skimmer with small footprint

I will be getting mine in december

The prototypes had a different NW and they have changed it since the MACNA show so they are quieter. I'm not sure if the change of the NW has decreased the air numbers though.

I'm sure mojo will chime in with better info.

Tivo

I received it today. Looks well made. I spoke to John Warner yesterday and he said that it draws 720 lph. I believe the Skimz was less.
Ken

 

[reeftivo]

yes, the skimz is in the 500 range so the MF should kick some booty. You may want to start your own thread on it because I believe many are on the fence since there really isn't alot of user experience out there yet.

 

[Treg]

I'm new to RC and Saltwater and need advice. I'm looking at the Vertex Alpha 250 ($1050) for my 210 g but may have the opportunity to get a used Vertex Alpha 200 in mint condition for $550. I intend on starting out with a FOLR but ultimately invision moving into the reef arena. Any suggestions on which route I should take with the skimmer?

Hi Tamw1se, Welcome to RC.

I have been using an Alpha 200 on my 240g display for about the past year and a half, with very good results. It is one of the nicer built skimmers that I have owned and I have owned many. Air production (from my 200 anyway) is well above advertised, Its a great bang for the buck size compared to the 250. Unless you plan on adding large water volume in the future or having a high fish load in your FOWLR, the 200 will work very well for you. I personally feel the line between the two is in the 275g-300g range and would depend even more on the fish load...

I Just added water volume to my system last week, Pushing 320g now and I would also like to add more fish soon. So I feel that I (might) push the limits of the 200 and have a larger skimmer coming in the mail this week... But I still wonder if an upgrade is needed.

 

[Saltwatercoral2]

whats the better pump the bubble blaster or the pumps that the sea side aquatics use?

 

[Esardog]

Sro-3000e

Sro-3000e

I have this skimmer and really need to put it in the sump. Is there a problem with doing this and if not --- do I still need a feed pump or will it maintain the necessary water from the sump? Thanks for the help.

Eddie

 

[bennr]

is anyone running a deltec apf 600??? i am....not bad so far....would like to try a lifereef skimmer....pm me if anyone has experience with either

 

[bprinehart]

Hey mojo~ just wanted to follow up. I ended up going with the SRO 1000int. Wow what a beast! This thing blew my old H&S A110 out of the water. I was pulling some serious gunk out of the water after about a week, with no fish load yet either. I will say it is VERY picky about water depth for consistent production and overflowing etc. 4.5 was the sweet spot for me, but for a > $300 skimmer I am amazed. Anyone hesitant don't be. These skimmers rock.

 

[Treg]

is anyone running a deltec apf 600??? i am....not bad so far....would like to try a lifereef skimmer....pm me if anyone has experience with either

As long as it fits your system OK, keep the Deltec... A Lifereef would be a downgrade. (I've had both)

That Deltec is a great little skimmer.

 

[SunkAA]

Hi Mojo -

A while back ago I posted that my, then 4 week old ATB 840 skimmer, was dumping a ton of microbubbles into the display tank. I since then made a 2" skimmer stand to try and adjust the amount of tension from the pump. Its been running this way ever since, still dumping an unacceptable amount of microbubbles into the tank. The skimmer has been running now for 6 months, pulls out a good amount of skimmate - actually performs great, but still just loves dumping the MBs! I am running biopellets with the output placed in close proximity to the skimmer pump input (running ATB's BPs ironically). Could the chemical reaction from the carbon source cause the MBs from the skimmer? I am running out of ideas, need to remedy this soon - I am going nuts here!

 

[mojo~]

What's the water depth required for the CS2 and the SK2? I think my sump will run 8" - 10". (It's 10" according to the website)

the jnscan run a little deeper than the cs2. around 8 in on the ssa cs2 but the the jns couldprobably go to 10in.

 

[mojo~]

thanks mojo

last question, i promis. if i added a bubbleking mini 180 gen2 would that be a good fit/up grade for my 65 gallon medium stocked tank.

the 180 is way to large for a 65. The 160 would be good if you were heavily stocked. ... they are nice for sure.

 

[mojo~]

Does anyone have any good information about this skimmer? I currently am using a Bubble Magnus 3.5 for a 39 gallon with 10 gallon sump SPS tank. Would this skimmer be a better bet? How is this skimmer in comparison to the Skimz 121 for my size tank.

Thanks,
Ken

Theskimmers are built very well and run well. The pumps are just not proven yet. time will tell.

if your 39 is well stocked then it would be fine.

 

[mojo~]

I just bought and received the Warner Marine MF 121 skimmer. Looks to be well made. It came with no instructions. Does anyone know why it has a thumb screw that you could screw down into the air suction. Is this on purpose to cut back on the air if u wish? Where on the skimmer or neck do you want to water/bubble level to be?

Thanks,
Ken

run it wide open at first. This is there so later after the skimmer is broke in you can dial it back ever so slightly to fine tun the bubble size in the neck. if you close it too much you will hinder perfomance. but if tuned correctly you can improve bubble size a little and actually helps things a little.

 

[mojo~]

I am setting up a 20 long and plan to use a 10g sump. This will be my first sump/skimmer setup, so I need some suggestions on a skimmer for this setup.

I know I am limited with the small sump but have been looking at some HOB skimmer options that will fit over the end of the 10g.

I found a used Reef Octopus BH-100SS but have no idea if this would fit my setup.

What skimmers would you recommend?

with a small tank you will want to make sure whatever skimmer you use has a smaller neck. The best bang for your buck at this size IMO is still the Tunze 9002. Very basic simple to use and tried and true.

 

[mojo~]

I'm new to RC and Saltwater and need advice. I'm looking at the Vertex Alpha 250 ($1050) for my 210 g but may have the opportunity to get a used Vertex Alpha 200 in mint condition for $550. I intend on starting out with a FOLR but ultimately invision moving into the reef arena. Any suggestions on which route I should take with the skimmer?

The 200 is a really good size skimmer. IMO its better balanced than the 250 and would work just fine on your setup. I would save your $$ ad get the 200 over the 250 for sure.

 

[mojo~]

mojo did a great review a while back with somewhat of a prototype.

From the review, it should be a very good performing skimmer with small footprint

I will be getting mine in december

The prototypes had a different NW and they have changed it since the MACNA show so they are quieter. I'm not sure if the change of the NW has decreased the air numbers though.

I'm sure mojo will chime in with better info.

Tivo

Yeap tivo is spot on. And the change wasnt really in the pinwheel itself. it was a larger magnet. ITs longer. I believe it to be the same as the one in the 2800 pump. it works much better.

 

[mojo~]

So its shopping time and i need a skimmer i think. I am looking to upgrade mine from a 2008 swc 200 with upgraded octopus pinwheel impeller to maybe an avast cs1. I have a heavy stocked 150 sps tank w 40 breeder sump. My problem now is my tank is not heavily loaded currently with 3 tangs & about 8 other small fish. I dont know if this is the reason or not, but i dont get much skimmate. I have the tube all the way up and still dont get much. I am on a tight budget so would appreciate you advice if the avast would improve my tank, if i should keep what i have, or get another skimmer per your recommendation. Thank you for your help.

I assume you have the normal swc 200 with the octo 3000 turbine pump. These move a ton of water. The pumps do wear out. So this may be the issue for the lack of performance. But if you have your mind set on the avast It would do great on your tank. It was a little large for my 75g that I have but I have a light load still.

I had the smoked acrylic body on mine... ITs looks really cool but if I would buy it again I would get the clear acrylic. ITs hard to see in the body for adjustment.

Mojo~

 

[mojo~]

yes, the skimz is in the 500 range so the MF should kick some booty. You may want to start your own thread on it because I believe many are on the fence since there really isn't alot of user experience out there yet.

The 2000 pump pulls around 500 to 600 lph of air. It works well but the first ones had some start issues... the newer magnet fixed most to all of this.

The 2800 eden pump was rated at 720 lph. I have found that it pulled more than rated IT was around 1000 lph. But I also found that if I dailed it back with the air adjustment to 700 to 750lph the skimmer performed a little better. As you dial the air down it allows the skimmer pump to pull more water in.

the 5000 pump is the best of the 3 eden pumps out there for sure. IT is quiet and bult really similar to a askol and bubble blaster pump. It has no through shaft. the pinwheel assembly has a bearing on it like the askol pump.

The 500 pump I was using was rated for 960 lph but found mine pulling just over 1200 lph of air. But again peak skimmer performance was around 1000.

I hope this is helpful for some of you. The cone models of the same # use the next size down pump over there cylinder counterpart. For examply the SM201 uses the 5000 pump. The SK 201 uses the 2800 pump. They all work great. Very nice skimmers. With the WM line available now it is nice to have some one in the us to talk too for warranty issues.