The Lifereef draws air from the skimmer cup where it is very humid, which prevents water from evaporating at the inlet to the venturi and leaving behind the salt.
The Life Reef Skimmer Club
- Thread starter d2mini
- Start date
Yogre
Cheesehead Reefer
Jeff has said he has to pick one pump to sell as a combo with the skimmer, but many different pumps will work.
Without rereading the thread, I think I remember that Jeff is running one Mag Drive model above what he recommends on his own skimmer.
Plus, I just like to tinker.
JarahFroski
New member
Love my vsv3-36! Going to run it on my 220g DT, which will be around 280g total. I put it on my 55 with a 20 long so just to see it run. This things keeps the nitrates undetectable on the baby system lol
jcolley
Member
Bayoupr's VS3-36 arrived yesterday and I finally started piecing it together today. Impressive build quality!
I have the stock venturi and two Mazzeis, a 978-3 and a 1078-2.
The definition of overkill will be running this on my 20L frag tank with 20L sump until I finish my 220 DT rebuild.
I plan to use a mag12 internal to the sump, not really sure what I'll use when I shift it over to the DT.
Which venturi to use
I have the stock venturi and two Mazzeis, a 978-3 and a 1078-2.
The definition of overkill will be running this on my 20L frag tank with 20L sump until I finish my 220 DT rebuild.
I plan to use a mag12 internal to the sump, not really sure what I'll use when I shift it over to the DT.
Which venturi to use
EvMiBo
VictoriaConcordiaCrescit
So this is 5 days of skim. Currently lightly stocked 135g display. dc9000 pump, water line about 2" below collection cup rim. I'm contemplating sticking with this for a little while. I was planning on setting up the mag18 but not sure if I need to. What do you guys think???
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azjohnny
Active member
I was thinking the same thing
EvMiBo
VictoriaConcordiaCrescit
The Life Reef Skimmer Club
Okay I've opened the gate valve a little bit...
Fwiw that was about 38-40 oz. (5 days on a 135g lightly stocked system).
I think with skimmers we don't talk about skimmate volume enough. I know every system is different, but in general what do you try to achieve volume wise on a daily basis?
Also, based on this, do you LR experts think the dc9000 is a good fit for the 30" body? Do you think the mag18 would create better skimming?
Okay I've opened the gate valve a little bit...
Fwiw that was about 38-40 oz. (5 days on a 135g lightly stocked system).
I think with skimmers we don't talk about skimmate volume enough. I know every system is different, but in general what do you try to achieve volume wise on a daily basis?
Also, based on this, do you LR experts think the dc9000 is a good fit for the 30" body? Do you think the mag18 would create better skimming?
Every tank will produce different volumes.... skimming wet will remove salt water and as you add top off your salinity will drop over time... this is a slow process though but still worth knowing. I think the consensus is to have about coffee looking skimmate...
I don't get OCD on how dry/wet I skim. I want my foam head to have a light brownish/dirty tint to it. If it's completely white I'm skimming to wet.
I don't get OCD on how dry/wet I skim. I want my foam head to have a light brownish/dirty tint to it. If it's completely white I'm skimming to wet.
EvMiBo
VictoriaConcordiaCrescit
I agree every tank will produce different volumes. I hesitated asking. I've always liked to be on the wet side, so I'm pulling out more. Salinity isn't an issue really, I test once a week during waterchanges and can add saltwater if needed. Pulling out 8oz. a day as opposed to 4-6oz is barely going to change salinity on a weekly basis for my total volume.
My most recent picture is tea colored which I like, but agree could be a little darker tea colored.
My most recent picture is tea colored which I like, but agree could be a little darker tea colored.
azjohnny
Active member
White foam still have lots of organics in it. I feel when the foam has a dirty look it is pulling residual sludge off the inside of the neck.
I like to skim on the dry side and the foam is usually white. In the past when I have skimmed wet I have gotten overflows, sometimes things can happen in the DT that causes the organics level to raise
EvMiBo
VictoriaConcordiaCrescit
d2mini
Premium Member
Looks good to me.
It's a small cup, too so there is more light penetration.
Skimming wet removes more junk over time than skimming dry so I always err on the side of wet.
EvMiBo
VictoriaConcordiaCrescit
Quite interested to see your results with the external pumps in comparison to what you've already tried.
Thanks for the input Dennis. I've tweaked it down ever so slightly so that the waterline is about 2.5-3" below the collection cup rim (instead of 2"). It's funny you say that (that it's a narrow cup and allows more light penetration), I was thinking that at work.
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