Tunze DOC 9020

[RedEyeReef]

I love my Tunze Streams and I'm thinking of testing a DOC 9020 skimmer beside my ASM 4 and 38" DIY Air stone skimmer.

Anyone have experience with the 9020? Can this small of a skimmer really keep up for a 250 gallon SPS tank (50% of rated 528 gal)?

Likes/Dis-likes?

 

[jamesdawson]

I LOVE mine. I have pictures in my gallery and I did a review on it in the equipment forum.

James

 

[RedEyeReef]

Your tank is a 90, right? What kind of bio load do you have and did you have a skimmer on your system before this one? If so what, and how do they compare?

What size tank do you think this skimmer can handle? 528gal seems really big for such a small skimmer, even half that at 250 seems high? Is it really that efficient?

 

[jamesdawson]

My tank is about 90-100 gallons and my sump is another 30. I have a moderate bioload in corals since mine are mostly still frags. I do have a heavy fish load and I feed very heavily (3-5 times a day). The skimmer is so effecient that the dark skimate is almost all gone within 2-3 hours of feeding and the skimate is very clear until I feed again. My ammonia readings are always zero now. I did not have a skimmer on my system before and relied solely on my algae filter so I always had high nutrient levels.
This skimmer (and a new denitrator and phosban reactor) had the levels down to zero in less than a week!

I would think that if you were to run a 250G SPS system with few (or better--no fish) that a 9020 would be o.k. However, you would be at the upper limit of this skimmer for SPS since Tunze states that the 528G rating is for LPS/Softies.