Skimmer Q&A Thread

[azjohnny]

Unless you have size restrictions I would stay away from the SSS models, they are more of a PITA for maintenance.

I believe in over skimming so my vote goes for a SRO 2000, I really like the EXT model

if you ever plan on carbon dosing get the bigger skimmer since that will double your skimmate production

 

[swcc]

Hello MoJo,

I have spend part of 2 days looking at this thread for my question and have not found it.

Simple one.
I have a 75 G w/40g sump...less usual rock and such. No corals yet , just 2 clowns , cleaner crew, sifter, urchin, star and one long tent. small anem.
I plan to have one more tang and then the rest corals. Tank is 8 months and I have been using a cheap coral life skimmer that has an air line pump. UHG, I have been putting this purchase off patiently knowing that I did not need to make a rash decision.

I have wanted to buy a SRO XL1000sss and am about to buy one any day but wanted to ask here if I will be ok or should I step it up a little.

Thank you for your time.

not a bad choice but I would get the external pump version if you can. A skimmer with a psk 600 sicce will work well.. good choice would be the seaside aquatics cs7 or maybe an octo diablo 160. Also a great choice is a vertex in100. It has less of an air rating, but, it moves a good amount of water and will skim very well. Heck, It might be the best choice of those I mentioned as it will skim just as well and save ya plenty of money too. If you step it up, really all that will end up happening is you get less concentrated skimmate. 400 to 600lph air and about 150 to 250gph water draw is plenty for a 75.

 

[markaren]

Wow very quick response.

I actually have serious space restriction since this is a half circle (i should have mentioned , sorry) I knew skimmers could be internal (my sump does have a plugged exit however wife is not for holes in the wall for sump room ...yet )

Anyway...I have lots to learn about dosing and actual proper care for corals and benefits of carbon. I read a lot here over the months but have no application yet. You have perhaps helped me think about the 2000 more and have nailed my second thought. I like this make and know it costs a bit and yet I think other some other makes have a better build too. Some times we have to make a decision and not look back. I have decided to make my decision by the end of the month. and will stay tuned here till then.

 

[swcc]

Was looking at this skimmer because of the small footprint i will be useing on a 34gal with a 10gal sump.
http://www.cadlights.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=48&products_id=235

not bad... looks like a skimz skimmer to me... not sure about the pump(the critical component). a 10 gal sump will fit plenty of skimmers, I use one for my 60 cube. this is what I would get for your size tank...sicce pump is a nice safe bet... http://www.saltysupply.com/Sea-Side-Aquatics-CS3-5-Protein-Skimmer-w-Sicce-SK-p/ssa1161.htm

 

[markaren]

I am very very much appreciating the input. I could if needed , place the external next to the tank stand (would that be dorky )?

 

[azjohnny]

I don't think so but your wife might think otherwise...LOL

I use a bio pellet reactor for my carbon dosing and its the most trouble free method. Some people prefer running BPs and others like vodka/vinegar

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[malawinovice]

How much should you oversize a skimmer when carbon dosing?

 

[azjohnny]

I went the next size up...I have a 5000 on my 180

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[swcc]

How much should you oversize a skimmer when carbon dosing?

it depends really... the catch 22... get the skimmer/sump relationship right and there should not be any need for carbon dosing in the first place.

 

[maysorum]

I'm thinking about changing my skimmer. I currently have a SRO XP2000 and I like it, but I'm wondering if there is something better?

System details:
I have a 90g display with about another 50-60g split between sump and refugium. I'm not sure if I have a high bioload. I have 8 fishes, 2 bubbletip anemones, 8-10 mini maxi anemones, small assortment of lps (dendro, torch, hammer, and acan) and maybe 20 sps frags and mini colonies. I would like to add another few fish eventually and want to feed a little more without worry.

What BK, ATB, or Vertex skimmer would you suggest? Are they really worth the money? If you have other suggestions I'd like to hear those as well. Many thanks!

 

[edwin-orellana]

I'm thinking about changing my skimmer. I currently have a SRO XP2000 and I like it, but I'm wondering if there is something better?

System details:
I have a 90g display with about another 50-60g split between sump and refugium. I'm not sure if I have a high bioload. I have 8 fishes, 2 bubbletip anemones, 8-10 mini maxi anemones, small assortment of lps (dendro, torch, hammer, and acan) and maybe 20 sps frags and mini colonies. I would like to add another few fish eventually and want to feed a little more without worry.

What BK, ATB, or Vertex skimmer would you suggest? Are they really worth the money? If you have other suggestions I'd like to hear those as well. Many thanks!

I ran the same skimmer you are talking about the internal SRO XP 2000 since last year on my 125 mixed reef and I was never satisfied with it.....it was very inconsistent and would randomly overflow...I switched over to Sea Side Aquatics CS8 w/ psk1000 Cone Protein Skimmer(CS2) since last week and it has consistently done way way better than the xp 2000. It is a little bit smaller and the quality is not like the xp 2000 but I'll take performance over quality any day. Plus the SSA CS8 was on sale for $249 shipped from Salty Supply so it was a deal that I didn't want to pass up. I'm totally happy with the change, specially since it performs better and It doesn't need to be on any type of stand because the water level is 9-11 and my sump water level is at 10...

 

[swcc]

I'm thinking about changing my skimmer. I currently have a SRO XP2000 and I like it, but I'm wondering if there is something better?

System details:
I have a 90g display with about another 50-60g split between sump and refugium. I'm not sure if I have a high bioload. I have 8 fishes, 2 bubbletip anemones, 8-10 mini maxi anemones, small assortment of lps (dendro, torch, hammer, and acan) and maybe 20 sps frags and mini colonies. I would like to add another few fish eventually and want to feed a little more without worry.

What BK, ATB, or Vertex skimmer would you suggest? Are they really worth the money? If you have other suggestions I'd like to hear those as well. Many thanks!

it should be working very well on your system...I think this is more of a sump flow and adjustment of skimmer issue.
If you must buy something better.... bubble king mini180, vertex alpha 170 or atb 840 will do you well. These skimmers will pull close to the same air as the sro, but they move much more water through them and run a lot more stable and consistent. All three should be set and forget after the usual first month break in period.

 

[maysorum]

I think this is more of a sump flow and adjustment of skimmer issue.

Can you explain in greater detail? The SRO has never pulled very dark skimmate for me. I have the water line set to the base of the collection cup. This seems to keep the skimmer running steady.

These skimmers will pull close to the same air as the sro, but they move much more water through them and run a lot more stable and consistent.

Do you think I'll notice the difference? More skimmate and darker?

 

[maysorum]

I ran the same skimmer you are talking about the internal SRO XP 2000 since last year on my 125 mixed reef and I was never satisfied with it.....it was very inconsistent and would randomly overflow...I switched over to Sea Side Aquatics CS8 w/ psk1000 Cone Protein Skimmer(CS2) since last week and it has consistently done way way better than the xp 2000. It is a little bit smaller and the quality is not like the xp 2000 but I'll take performance over quality any day. Plus the SSA CS8 was on sale for $249 shipped from Salty Supply so it was a deal that I didn't want to pass up. I'm totally happy with the change, specially since it performs better and It doesn't need to be on any type of stand because the water level is 9-11 and my sump water level is at 10...

Thanks for the info, I'll check it out.

 

[swcc]

Can you explain in greater detail? The SRO has never pulled very dark skimmate for me. I have the water line set to the base of the collection cup. This seems to keep the skimmer running steady.



Do you think I'll notice the difference? More skimmate and darker?

well the sro has a very high air draw to water draw, so it foams up quick and wet. now this means in essence unless there are enough organics in the water, the skimmate will be lighter in color when running the bubble break up the neck as the bubbles are too large and wet coming off the top of the bubble column. now on to the more balanced skimmers... the skimmate will have a better water to air balance and as such smaller bubbles are produced up the neck and this will concentrate skimmate a little more. Thus, you get darker skimmate as the skimmer does not remove as much extra foam(water) so to speak. With the bubbles more condensed, you can pick up finer organics/bacteria/microfauna and perhaps will pull more skim as well. If you wanted dark skimmate from the sro, you can run the water level low and the bubble break below the neck and the foam gets a chance to drain as it moves up to the cup, this of course means you basically waste half the skimmer contact time. Also, the more the foam can drain the more of a chance of draining back unskimmable phosphate and other organics that are trapped in skimmed bacteria and microfauna. As they die, they release their nutrients which can drain back into the tank with the draining water. Balance skimmers can be run with the bubble break 1/2 way up the skimmer neck or more and still produce dark nasty deep green to black skimmate by virtue of concentrating organics with tiny bubble up the neck.
By adjustment and sump flow, I mean the bubble break line your set at and also you have to be careful to not run too much flow through a sump or the water from the display mostly bypasses the draw of the skimmer.

I have found that the easiest skimmers to set and forget as well as produce great skimmate are skimmers that tend to say move twice the LPH air as GPH water... so for example the psk1000 on the cs8 will move like 350 gph water and 700 or so lph air. as the air draw increases and the water draw decreased, skimmers tend to become less stable and more finicky and many find a hard time striking a balance with water level and good consistent skimmate... or they just run them really low and loose a lot of the contact time up the skimmer neck to get some dark foam.
it is not all about the air it is about balance.. a skimmers combination of air and water balanced to best utilize the body and neck of the skimmer. This balance provide the most contact time and produce the best skimmate.
On a balanced skimmer, the difference between dry and wet skimmate is about an inch or two bubble break difference up the neck of the skimmer.

 

[jfeva0049]

need some advice

need some advice

hi guys i could use a little help. im not sure if my skimmer is to small and im trying to figure out if i need to upgrade or not. i have a 90 gal with around 40 gal sump. my skimmer is basically a reef dynamics ins100 (euro-reef rs-100 with up grade outlet). any input would help, thanks.

 

[maysorum]

well the sro has a very high air draw to water draw, so it foams up quick and wet. now this means in essence unless there are enough organics in the water, the skimmate will be lighter in color when running the bubble break up the neck as the bubbles are too large and wet coming off the top of the bubble column. now on to the more balanced skimmers... the skimmate will have a better water to air balance and as such smaller bubbles are produced up the neck and this will concentrate skimmate a little more. Thus, you get darker skimmate as the skimmer does not remove as much extra foam(water) so to speak. With the bubbles more condensed, you can pick up finer organics/bacteria/microfauna and perhaps will pull more skim as well. If you wanted dark skimmate from the sro, you can run the water level low and the bubble break below the neck and the foam gets a chance to drain as it moves up to the cup, this of course means you basically waste half the skimmer contact time. Also, the more the foam can drain the more of a chance of draining back unskimmable phosphate and other organics that are trapped in skimmed bacteria and microfauna. As they die, they release their nutrients which can drain back into the tank with the draining water. Balance skimmers can be run with the bubble break 1/2 way up the skimmer neck or more and still produce dark nasty deep green to black skimmate by virtue of concentrating organics with tiny bubble up the neck.
By adjustment and sump flow, I mean the bubble break line your set at and also you have to be careful to not run too much flow through a sump or the water from the display mostly bypasses the draw of the skimmer.

I have found that the easiest skimmers to set and forget as well as produce great skimmate are skimmers that tend to say move twice the LPH air as GPH water... so for example the psk1000 on the cs8 will move like 350 gph water and 700 or so lph air. as the air draw increases and the water draw decreased, skimmers tend to become less stable and more finicky and many find a hard time striking a balance with water level and good consistent skimmate... or they just run them really low and loose a lot of the contact time up the skimmer neck to get some dark foam.
it is not all about the air it is about balance.. a skimmers combination of air and water balanced to best utilize the body and neck of the skimmer. This balance provide the most contact time and produce the best skimmate.
On a balanced skimmer, the difference between dry and wet skimmate is about an inch or two bubble break difference up the neck of the skimmer.

Wow, thank you! This is a very helpful explanation! Can you recommend some further reading about skimmers?

Also, what is your most balanced skimmer recommendation? Which skimmers work well with low and high amounts of organics?

Thank you!!

 

[swcc]

hi guys i could use a little help. im not sure if my skimmer is to small and im trying to figure out if i need to upgrade or not. i have a 90 gal with around 40 gal sump. my skimmer is basically a reef dynamics ins100 (euro-reef rs-100 with up grade outlet). any input would help, thanks.

size is plenty fine for your tank. you could look for skimmers about the same size (6" with a 3.5" neck) and a little more air and water draw.. for instance, the reef dynamics ins135, , the seaside aquatics cs7.
How long did it take for the skimmer to produce that skimmate in your cup? If that took more than a day, you have plenty of skimmer for your tank. If that took a day, your right sized... if that is just half a day, well, yeah you might want a more powerful or larger skimmer. Also, your running the bubble column a tad low on the skimmer, the small bubble column should go up and break to foam just above the bottom of the collection cup in your neck.

 

[swcc]

Wow, thank you! This is a very helpful explanation! Can you recommend some further reading about skimmers?

Also, what is your most balanced skimmer recommendation? Which skimmers work well with low and high amounts of organics?

Thank you!!

well, with a 90 gallon tank, the atb 840 or a bubble king mini 160(maybe the180 but probably little too big) would be perfect on the higher end... if you want killer skimming at a lower price, a reef dynamics ins135, the new vertex omega due out in december, the seaside aquatics cs7 all are good choices. you could even run a reef dynamics ins100, vertex in100 or reef octo NWB-150 and, unless you feed super heavy and are overstocked fish wise, not be maxed out skimmer wise.
jfevva above is running a skimmer with about 420lph air and moves about 220gph water(ins100 reef dynamics/euro reef)...look at the skimmate he gets with it on his 90. That is typical of an euro-reef/reef dynamics skimmer sized properly(sized the way they recommend which have proven to be good realistic ratings).

 

[RoscoPColtrane]

To adjust the water to air ratio could one simply install a valve to fine tune air intake? This would essentially "balance" the skimmer if dialed in properly.