skimmer question

[jasonssandiego]

I have a 90 gallon with 25 gal sump. The skimmer room is 12/12/24 and the water level is no more than 8 inches. What skimmer would anybody recommend for the step up? My wife packed the ap600 deltec wrong for move and once I opened the box it broken in half. So I need to invest in a a new skimmer. I have thought about the newer deltec models, but I don't see the point of spending 1350 on a skimmer for a 90 gal tank. I have read a lot about bubble king, octopus and bubble magus. I can't make a decision on what brand I should invest in. I can see investing up to $800 maybe more if it is worth it.

 

[Jeremy B.]

Jason,

I would take a look at the Vertex IN series for the most "bang for the buck" if you're wanting to keep it cheap, but still get good performance. The pumps on them can be hit and miss, but overall they've fixed the few flaws that they've had. Upgrading the pump on the IN series to a Bubble Blaster is very easy to do as well if you don't mind spending a few extra dollars on it.

Next in line would be the Super Reef Octopus series. You don't get as good of a body design in my opinion as what the IN series has, but you do get the really nice Bubble Blaster pump, and the same good quality of construction, plus a pretty nice gate valve to adjust the water level inside the skimmer with.

Going from there you would start stepping up to the higher end = higher priced skimmers. The Vertex Alpha 170 would do pretty good on that size tank, and still give you plenty of room to move up if you ever chose to do so. The skimmer is also dead silent, and extremely strong!

At the end of the day, I would base it on how much you want to spend. All three of those lines are more than capable of handling your system, it just depends on how much you want to spend on the skimmer, and how much you want left over to spend on corals!

 

[jasonssandiego]

Thanks for the recommendations Jeremy. I decided to go with the bk mini 160 because of the small foot print. I hope that it will do well for the 90 gal. Ordered it and was shipped today. Thanks again for the excellent fast service. I will be returning for future purchases.

 

[Jeremy B.]

Thanks for the order! Let us know if you have any questions on it once received. The Mini 160 will handle your 90gal just fine.

Thanks,
Jeremy