Totally confused on skimmer selection

[Fanof49ASU]

OK, I'm trying to find out about skimmers....and there are tons of threads on skimmers, with no concrete answers.....

Deltec, ASM......are they really worth the high $$$?
There's some support for coralife, but just as many comments about them overflowing.....aren't they all prone to overflowing? I plan on using mine in a sump/refugium, so will 'overflowing' be a problem?

I need this for a 75g....I'm finding there are plenty of sizes for skimmers......is bigger better, or will it work too good, and over skim? Should I look for one rated for a 125-150 gallon tank?

Also...I'd like for it to be as much 'plug and play' as possible. The less for me to screw up, the better.

 

[coral_reefer_25]

I love my AquaMedic Turboflotor....It's in my sump. Granted my tank is only a 29g with a 20g sump, but the skimmer is rated or up to 225g.

My original plan was to put it in a 75g setup, but I don't have the space for a tank that size right now.

 

[TitansFan]

As far as Deltec being worth it... Give me 2 more months and I will be able to tell you better then. I have a Deltec for my new 120 gallon. I got a good deal on it and thought I would try it out. I do believe and see how a recirculating skimmer can add much more performance.

I personally think needle wheels like euroreef and ASM are the easiest of skimmers to setup. Some of the guys on here use beckett skimmers like MRC and say they are fairly easy to set. The large pump required for a beckett and the loudness/cost of running it shyed me away from them.

I love my euroreef so far. The build quality seems to be much, much better than ASM. A skimmer is one of the things I believe in buying the best you can afford so you don't have to worry about buying another and selling the old. My wife won't allow me to buy another skimmer after all that I have been through.

The easiest way to recommend a skimmer is to know your budget. I would give this one a look. It is onsale with free shipping as well:
http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merc...OD&Product_Code=EURO-CS080&Category_Code=EURO

Another thing to consider when buying a skimmer is how good are you on water changes? If you do them religously you can skimp abit on the skimmer. If the tank will have a low fish load and you dont overfeed you can skimp abit as well (if you have too).

HTH
-Chris

 

[luckyfish]

Ah the great skimmer conundrum, we've all been there. Concrete answers will be hard to come by but fanatic devotion to a style or brand is easy to find. I'd encourage you instead to think in terms of goodness of fit with your needs. You've already said plug and play is better so that removes the styles and brands that have a history of needing consistant adjusting. Like TitansFans says, needle wheel (Euroreef, ASM) are pretty plug and play but can be $$$. I've owned a Euroreef CS 8-2+ and they are a fine pice of equipment. They also have a history of being fairly accurate with the size tank they'll handle. Many other brands tend to overestimate the skimmer capacity. I've also seen ASM in extended operation and they work well, just not as sturdily made but a skimmer is not something you'll take outside and kick around. If you go with the needle wheel I'd give them a good look. One of the other issues you probably run into is will you up grade the size of your tank and if so, why not buy a bigger skimmer now and move it up to the new tank. And you can probably tell from the posts selling/buying tanks, over time, folks change tanks like hermit crabs change shells. But if you are sure you'll stay with a 75 gal buy a skimmer that will actually handle that size.

Trying to give you my impressions on your other questions:

When people talk about a skimmer overflowing it's not just that it would overflow and spill water but that it would stop performing properly and overflow the skimate back into the sump (this is bad).

Overskimming: I know many folks who would say there is no such thing. You could not pull too much stuff out of a tank. But the counter argument is would it pull out desirable ions. I have heard that LPS do better in "underskimed" water and It would be good to get others opinion but I don't believe overskimming would be a big problem.

This site sells ASM skimer and they give their own tank size rating for each skimer www.asmskimmer.com


good luck.
TJC

 

[ct_vol]

I run mostly ASM's and am not disappointed... Again I want to reitterate that your skimmer is not the place to skimp out funds wise... Look at your sump and determine which footprint will fit, and in heavily stocked tanks you can just about cut most of the ratings in half... For example I have a ASM g4 on my 135... Remember that the less your skimmer is pulling out, the more often you'll have to do water changes... I've heard great things about Deltecs, and one day I'll be happy to try it out... Oh, Fishdoc had one for sale, it was a Euroreef, that would be great for your 75... I'll try and find the thread and add it back in here later... Hope this helps...

 

[doodoobrown]

i have a euroreef and a asm currently. i am extremely happy with both and as far as plug and play goes it definatley doesnt get mucha easier than these. performance vs cost between the two is not noticable to me. you can tell the asm is made with cheaper parts but it works just as well and it is cheaper.

 

[gflat65]

I'm a MRC person. It pulls some nasty stuff out in less than a day's time. Not sure what that says for my water... Easy to run once you get it set and takes about 5 minutes to clean. Mine is mounted outside the sump above water level, which makes it cumbersome, but you can run them in sump, if you can put it in a section where the water level stays constant. Changing water levels are problems for almost any skimmer, though.

 

[boofer]

I have a Euro-reef and a ASM and honestly I like the ASM better. For one its easier to take apart and clean both the collection cup and the interior of the skimmer. The euro-reef with its union takes a while to get the cup off....with the ASM its one slight turn and its off, plus the top of the body comes off the same way to be able to clean the inside of the skimmer with ease. The ER doesnt have that option so its basically a vinegar bath to be able to clean the inside of the body. Another thing is the way the ER has the 90 going into the body for the overflow tube. I was cleaning it one day and my dogs tail hit the skimmer and it knocked over and broke the 90 off right at the body. I had to cut the base off just to get to the 90 on the inside to re-plumb. With the ASM its attached to the base and that wont happen. Plus, even if it did you could get into the body to fix it with no problems. There really basically the same (pump, skimmate, etc) other than the body material used but with the ASM being the better engineered for ease of use (IMO) and the price difference between the 2 with the ASM being cheaper and the better buy IMO.

 

[fishdoc11]

First you have needlewheel vs. beckett.....

Then you have recirc vs. processing more water.....

It goes on and on.......

FWIW Deltecs, Bubblekings and H and S skimmers are not worth what you pay for them. Most owners of those skimmers will tell you that. Are they great skimmers?...sure they are but they are way overpriced due to being imported etc....
That being said most people who purchase them do so because they can and they don't mind spending that much for very nice skimmers.

Overskimming? IMO it's not possible but you will find argument there as well.....

It basically comes down to do you want a needlewheel, (very "plug and play") or a beckett. Becketts are harder to learn to use but it would take a $1000 to $1500 needlewheel to outskim a good $500 beckett including the pressure rated pump IMO.

Then you have to decide if you want a "regular" skimmer or a recirculating model. Some people hold to the theory that by having bubbles contact water for a longer period of time more organics will be removed. This is the jist of recirc skimmers. Others like myself who understand a bit of chemistry(but not a lot :lol: ) understand that hydrophobic molecules (molecules that don't like being in water) will pretty much stick to the air/water interface instantaneously and therefore increased contact time is not necessary. Increased volume of water processed is more desirable if you hold to this theory.

Overflowing is only a problem with externally run needlewheels as becketts can be run with collection containers that shut them off when the container is full and skimmers run in sump will just run back into the sump. Of course this also is a problem depending on your viewpoint.

If you are looking for plug and play for a 75gal tank I would vote for a needlewheel rated for around a 150 gallon tank. ASM or a Euroreef blem would be good fairly economical choices there IMO. Scan the selling forum for used skimmers...you can save quite a bit if you find the right one. You might also be on the lookout for the new ER's that are going to be using Eheim pumps. Eheim pumps are a large reason the Deltecs and H and S's are so desirable...and expensive.

Chris

 

[Fanof49ASU]

Wow.....thanks for the time and thoughts.....I've still got a lot of research ahead of me.

I don't want to get 'cheap' at this point in the game, so I'll keep reading up on these. I don't mind spending $400-600 on a skimmer if it's that important to the system.....though, it'd sure be nice to spend half of that.

Once again, thanks for the replies.