Drae
RAIDER NATION!
That 70 gallons in your sump actually helps. Get your skimmer based on your display.
Skimmer Q&A Thread
- Thread starter mojo~
- Start date
That 70 gallons in your sump actually helps. Get your skimmer based on your display.
Drae
RAIDER NATION!
That thing looks pretty impressive Drae. The shark fins are a little goofy, but I think I would rather save the $400 over the Aquamaxx without them.
Same exact skimmer. Fins and lighter blue.
I'll be starting my 240g build pretty soon, what skimmer are you currently using? I was looking at the Aquamaxx skimmers and I'm not sure if the Cos-3 will be enough.
Drae
RAIDER NATION!
A 10" skimmer is usually in order for 240's but for mfinn's tank with softies the co-3 would be okay (maxxed out but okay to use). If your planning a med-heavy mixed or stoney tank a cone 5 would be better.
mfinn
Active member
I am planning on a bigger bio-load.
Plus I'm really liking the look of my 50 gallon mixed lps/sps tank.
Thinking about converting the 240 to something similar.
Big jump in price between the co3 and the cone 5.
The EM 300 uses the same pump as the co3 for $30 cheaper.
Which is the better skimmer?
If not the Aquamaxx co3, what else would would work
Drae
RAIDER NATION!
The co and cone series are a little better than the em series imo. There's just more contact time. Once you get up to 10" diameter in skimmers they jump up in price. A cone 5 is an awesome skimmer and would give you a lot of wiggle room ( another display tied in etc...). The cone 3 would work on your tank especially with water displacement and a good size sump but it would be just about maxxed out. It wouldn't be going by the 1 bigger rule of thumb, it would be falling in the good enough category. I personally like 1 bigger rule on tanks larger than 200 gallons. My honest opinion is spend the extra on the cone 5 if your budget allows it but if not the 3 would work until you achieve a heavy bio load which is a lot of livestock in a 240. There's a store in vegas called "blue reef aquatics" they run a cone 5 on a 400 gallon display and it handles it! 702 733- reef is their number I'm sure they'd vouch for these skimmers. They work great.
Drae
RAIDER NATION!
The sea side aquatics as21 at $569 would be the cheapest "1 bigger" skimmer I can think of. It has 2 sicce psk 1000's on it and would easily handle a 240. I've personally never seen one in action but I'd buy one. I have had a couple SSA skimmers and they're great skimmers. They make bubble magus also but the SSA have proven sicce pumps. The psk1000 x2 would skim the hell out of a 240.
mfinn
Active member
new skimmer for a 210 mixed reef
new skimmer for a 210 mixed reef
I need to upgrade my skimmer from an sro xp2000 sss which is currently on my 210 with a 40 gallon sump. Here lies the problems, The new skimmer would have to be close to the same dimensions as the xp2000. the skimmer section is 12.5 x 12.5 and 27" tall. there is 9.5" of water in that section so if i have to raise the skimmer it takes away from the overall height. Worst case scenario, i go with the avast marine cs3 and try to run it external. Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
new skimmer for a 210 mixed reef
I need to upgrade my skimmer from an sro xp2000 sss which is currently on my 210 with a 40 gallon sump. Here lies the problems, The new skimmer would have to be close to the same dimensions as the xp2000. the skimmer section is 12.5 x 12.5 and 27" tall. there is 9.5" of water in that section so if i have to raise the skimmer it takes away from the overall height. Worst case scenario, i go with the avast marine cs3 and try to run it external. Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
I never had that problem when I ran one. I'd call or email them. I contacted them about the little nylon cleaning/adjusting screw being very difficult to remove. They said they had seen this problem and it was due to the screw expanding over time. They redesigned it and sent me a few for free. I was impressed with their customer service.
On another note: I found the oring used to adjust the the height of the collection cup kept breaking very quickly. It's a difficult size to find at some place like a hardware store. LFS's stocked them but were way overpriced. I found a vacuum cleaner belt that was the perfect size and never wore out. I'd look for replacements before you need one. The unit is unusable w/o it.
In your opinion is the cone 5 worth the extra $100 compared to the EM500?
Drae
RAIDER NATION!
Yep. More contact time and a smoother transition of bubbles. Space savers are great when they're absolutely necessary but if you can fit the cone I'd get it. $100 is not that much more money imo.
MellowReefer
New member
I think I want to try a new skimmer, this is for a 125 gallon with 45 gallon sump with 11 fish (mostly very small fish) that I feed usually 2 cubes a day.
I need a somewhat smaller model as I have a short stand with only 24" from bottom of the sump to the top of the cabinet. So I'm looking at the Bubble Magus Curve skimmers because they have a smaller footprint, are reasonably priced and have good reviews. I would like to spend under $300.
Do you think I should go up to the Curve 7 model, which is rated for 185-240 gallons? Or would it be too powerful and I should go with the Curve 5 which is rated up to 140 gallons? I know many say you can't over skim.
I need a somewhat smaller model as I have a short stand with only 24" from bottom of the sump to the top of the cabinet. So I'm looking at the Bubble Magus Curve skimmers because they have a smaller footprint, are reasonably priced and have good reviews. I would like to spend under $300.
Do you think I should go up to the Curve 7 model, which is rated for 185-240 gallons? Or would it be too powerful and I should go with the Curve 5 which is rated up to 140 gallons? I know many say you can't over skim.
Got it. Thanks :beer:
maroonman
New member
So my Upgrade will be coming up soon.
I will be upgrading to a 180 - with a 60"x18" x18" sump. ( roughly 42 Gallons ) if I run the depth @ 9" level in the sump.
While looking for skimmer , Do I Take in Account the ( roughly 200lbs of LR ) displacement?. If so ,, My DT Volume will only be in the 120 gallon range.. add the 42 gallons of sump volume . Roughly 160-180 gallons give or take.
If that is the correct way to get my Total volume of water to be skimmed.If Not , Say 220 Gallons.
This will be a LPS dominate( med. - Heavy coral stock ) Tank with less then 13 fish total. Powder brown, regal-tang,foxface, Flame hawk, royal grama, firefish,3- cardinals, snowflake clown,man. goby, Carp. wrasse.
I have came to a few options. And would like your opinions if you have one or seen one in action. I know you tend to " get what you pay for ". But a few of these Have decent reviews. I'm leaning twards the ROE xs200. not the Diablo
SC Aquariums SCA-302 180 $140 ( have read positive reviews )
Super Reef Octopus 2000 Internal $420 ( 180 gal rating ) ( little pricey for my budget )
Reef Octopus Extreme XS 200 Protein Skimmer $369 ( 200 gal rating )
Reef Octopus NWB 200 8" Classic Protein Skimmer $289 (250 gal rating ) ( I used to own one worked great)
Reef Octopus Diablo DB XS200 Protein Skimmer (250 gal rating ) $370 ( read mixed reviews)
Thanks for any comments & your time.
I will be upgrading to a 180 - with a 60"x18" x18" sump. ( roughly 42 Gallons ) if I run the depth @ 9" level in the sump.
While looking for skimmer , Do I Take in Account the ( roughly 200lbs of LR ) displacement?. If so ,, My DT Volume will only be in the 120 gallon range.. add the 42 gallons of sump volume . Roughly 160-180 gallons give or take.
If that is the correct way to get my Total volume of water to be skimmed.If Not , Say 220 Gallons.
This will be a LPS dominate( med. - Heavy coral stock ) Tank with less then 13 fish total. Powder brown, regal-tang,foxface, Flame hawk, royal grama, firefish,3- cardinals, snowflake clown,man. goby, Carp. wrasse.
I have came to a few options. And would like your opinions if you have one or seen one in action. I know you tend to " get what you pay for ". But a few of these Have decent reviews. I'm leaning twards the ROE xs200. not the Diablo
SC Aquariums SCA-302 180 $140 ( have read positive reviews )
Super Reef Octopus 2000 Internal $420 ( 180 gal rating ) ( little pricey for my budget )
Reef Octopus Extreme XS 200 Protein Skimmer $369 ( 200 gal rating )
Reef Octopus NWB 200 8" Classic Protein Skimmer $289 (250 gal rating ) ( I used to own one worked great)
Reef Octopus Diablo DB XS200 Protein Skimmer (250 gal rating ) $370 ( read mixed reviews)
Thanks for any comments & your time.
Knishfish
New member
While your calculations are correct, conventional wisdom with skimmers is go bigger. You don't want to be at the top of their rating. My opinion is that these days, you're getting a plastic cone with some pumps. The pumps are what makes the difference. I have not had great experience with Atman and Aquabee pumps. I recommend that you buy an extra impeller when you buy your skimmer, particularly if your skimmer only has one pump. The time taken to wait for a mail-order impeller if that's your only pump can hurt your tank. Another consideration is ease to clean the skimmer. While you only need to do this infrequently, some are a lot easier to take apart than others. Finally, I am looking at adding an auto-neck cleaner for my Bubble Magus. This really is most of the maintenance that needs to be done (cleaning the neck) so I'm hoping this will cut back on time required.
LexSkizzle
New member
Calling on the skimmer experts-
I feel that my old school Octopus NW150 skimmer is just not cutting it for my 75g mixed reef with 20g sump. I don't have any other skimmer to compare this to as its been with me for 6 years in three different tanks. I feel the skimmer collects skimmate at a pretty slow rate. For example, it collects about 1/4 of a cup weekly. I want a skimmer that can skim about an entire cub up of dark skimmate a week. Is that possible? Am I being unrealistic? Does anyone own a skimmer that actually continues to skim all day every day and can fill their collection cup with dark skimmate weekly? If so, that's the skimmer I want! :rollface:
By the way, no matter how I feed (light or heavy), the skimmer produces the same amount of skimmate which is why I feel its not really efficient. I have more coral than ever before and want to be able to feed a little heavier without dealing with nitrate or phosphate issues. Any recommendations on a better skimmer for my tank application would be appreciated.
I feel that my old school Octopus NW150 skimmer is just not cutting it for my 75g mixed reef with 20g sump. I don't have any other skimmer to compare this to as its been with me for 6 years in three different tanks. I feel the skimmer collects skimmate at a pretty slow rate. For example, it collects about 1/4 of a cup weekly. I want a skimmer that can skim about an entire cub up of dark skimmate a week. Is that possible? Am I being unrealistic? Does anyone own a skimmer that actually continues to skim all day every day and can fill their collection cup with dark skimmate weekly? If so, that's the skimmer I want! :rollface:
By the way, no matter how I feed (light or heavy), the skimmer produces the same amount of skimmate which is why I feel its not really efficient. I have more coral than ever before and want to be able to feed a little heavier without dealing with nitrate or phosphate issues. Any recommendations on a better skimmer for my tank application would be appreciated.
maroonman
New member
I prefer to go with a single pump system. I don't mind having to order a backup pump.
I was also thinking of the auto cleaning neck. Thanks for the input .
Anyone running the Reef Oct. Extreme Xs2000 with reviews I could get on a 180?
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