The Life Reef Skimmer Club

[Yogre]

Well i have to post mine. This is my first saltwater tank so i dont know what to compair it too but it works great.

i got the whole set up sump skimmer fuge. Working with jeff was great. 8 months later if i email him with a question he will get back within 24 hrs. Its hard to find that kinda service today.

Nice Lifereef setup! :thumbsup:

 

[jerseypete]

Yes i love it. And i opened my boxes in the living room. I think it took me longer to find all the styrofoam peanuts than it did to set it up..

 

[coffeetwitch]

got mine today, its set up and "breaking in" svs-30. short cup with mag 12 pump. here is a pick of it next to my reef dynamics ins135, i wish i would have given it a vinegar bath. i really want to see this thing in action. my order was placed on monday. paid for it on Tuesday or Wednesday. from co to mo got it on Friday. i didnt get a tracking number but that could have been my bad on my order form i gave him the wrong email. my order arrived in two very well packed boxes. one for the skimmer body and the other for the pump and cup. everything to set up was included, hose, barb fittings, and clamps for pump... full role of teflon tape! not a big deal but ive seen too many companies give you a single serving of whatever when it was no where near enough. cool little quick disconnect on the air line too for convenient cup cleaning.

first impressions are its more impressive looking in person than anything ive seen online. i was excited waiting for it even more so now that its in my sump. i have high hopes...

http://i1034.photobucket.com/albums/a426/coffeetwitch/skimmers/IMAG0220.jpg

 

[EvMiBo]

I'm strongly considering this skimmer. Might run a jebao DC6000.

Dennis,
are you skimming more than your skimmer before? was it a BK250?

 

[ksed]

Interesting two see how the two are going to perform. Are you planning to run them both at the same time?

got mine today, its set up and "breaking in" svs-30. short cup with mag 12 pump. here is a pick of it next to my reef dynamics ins135, i wish i would have given it a vinegar bath. i really want to see this thing in action. my order was placed on monday. paid for it on Tuesday or Wednesday. from co to mo got it on Friday. i didnt get a tracking number but that could have been my bad on my order form i gave him the wrong email. my order arrived in two very well packed boxes. one for the skimmer body and the other for the pump and cup. everything to set up was included, hose, barb fittings, and clamps for pump... full role of teflon tape! not a big deal but ive seen too many companies give you a single serving of whatever when it was no where near enough. cool little quick disconnect on the air line too for convenient cup cleaning.

first impressions are its more impressive looking in person than anything ive seen online. i was excited waiting for it even more so now that its in my sump. i have high hopes...

http://i1034.photobucket.com/albums/a426/coffeetwitch/skimmers/IMAG0220.jpg

 

[coffeetwitch]

i have a question...

the wedge on the bottom of the inlet pipe, does it matter which direction it faces?

also no, the ins135 is out of the sump and back on a shelf. i know how it performed and how finicky it was to keep running halfway right.

still waiting for the svs to break in.

 

[d2mini]

I'm strongly considering this skimmer. Might run a jebao DC6000.

Dennis,
are you skimming more than your skimmer before? was it a BK250?

I had a Vertex Alpha 250.
Before that I had iTech (on my old tank).

This skimmer blows away both of those. Even if it didn't skim MORE than the Alpha... just the fact that it costs half the price, doesn't need a specialized pump, has only one thing to adjust rather than 3, and it's set and forget makes it totally worth it.

 

[rEeFnWrX]

I cleaned my collection cup two weeks ago lol

 

[Yogre]

i have a question...

the wedge on the bottom of the inlet pipe, does it matter which direction it faces?

Not sure what you mean.

 

[Snook65]

Not sure what you mean.

My return pipe has a 45 degree bend, so I assume they all do. I have mine facing down to prevent any additional back pressure and to keep the sound of the return water to a minimum. I believe this is the preferred way to set it up.

 

[d2mini]

My return pipe has a 45 degree bend, so I assume they all do. I have mine facing down to prevent any additional back pressure and to keep the sound of the return water to a minimum. I believe this is the preferred way to set it up.

Mine has no elbow. The outlet is horizontal.

 

[BillFW]

Mine has no elbow. The outlet is horizontal.

I think he's talking the 45 degree cut at the bottom of the input pipe.

 

[azjohnny]

Its on the exit, you can have it set up so it is a vented "T" section coming off the exit pipe it looks like "T" on its side and you have one end in the air and the other end submerged below the water surface. This helps to muffle the sound exiting the skimmer and the vent reduces any back pressure. I did this for my SRO 5000INT skimmer and enabled me to run it in 9" of water depth instead of the suggested 6"

 

[coffeetwitch]

I think he's talking the 45 degree cut at the bottom of the input pipe.

you are correct. there is a 45* cut on the bottom of the inlet pipe that runs the length of the body. there is a cylindrical cup in the body that it goes into. tighten that tube and it will face the wall. loosen it and it can face the open area of the cup.

 

[coffeetwitch]

also 48 ish hours into it with no vinegar bath... ive got foam. i would guess that its still not 100% broken in but getting there. and way more foam than the skimmer it replaced.

this is very neat to me. i truly hope i never feel the need to look at/for another skimmer again.

 

[Brother D]

I had the same question a long time ago.Jeff said he didn't like the look of a 90 straight cut pipe.Your preference of how you want to set that outlet or inlet I guess.

 

[azjohnny]

I get it now, I was focused on the exit and not the inlet

 

[Yogre]

you are correct. there is a 45* cut on the bottom of the inlet pipe that runs the length of the body. there is a cylindrical cup in the body that it goes into. tighten that tube and it will face the wall. loosen it and it can face the open area of the cup.

Gotcha now. I guess I didn't even realize that pipe wasn't glued into the top plumbing!

I think fishcatdog is correct, it doesn't make any difference which way the 45 cut faces, as long as the inlet pipe remains in that standpipe well that's glued to the skimmer bottom.

 

[rounder45]

I had a Vertex Alpha 250.
Before that I had iTech (on my old tank).

This skimmer blows away both of those. Even if it didn't skim MORE than the Alpha... just the fact that it costs half the price, doesn't need a specialized pump, has only one thing to adjust rather than 3, and it's set and forget makes it totally worth it.

the Alpha skimmer actually remove more skimmate? I am interested in trying out my first ever non pinwheel skimmer... but... it has to do more than my current functioning pinwheel can. Lifereef or maybe the new bubble king dc150 is my current decision.

 

[d2mini]

the Alpha skimmer actually remove more skimmate? I am interested in trying out my first ever non pinwheel skimmer... but... it has to do more than my current functioning pinwheel can. Lifereef or maybe the new bubble king dc150 is my current decision.

No, the LR skims better for me. Way better. But the Alpha was also oversized for my system and may have had pinwheel issues too.
I was just saying, even IF the alpha skimmed more... or the same... all the other benefits of the LR blow it away.