Yep, another skimmer recommendation thread...

[DustinB]

So my precision marine rl-150 is driving me nuts with having to clean the entire thing every 3 to 4 weeks. If I don't I end up with a few cups of very dark skimmate in my tank and foam everywhere. The skimmer functions great, but the maintenance is driving me crazy, especially when this happens every time I forget.

I've been doing a lot of reading and I have a few I'm looking at, but am open to an suggestions. I've been eying the BM NAC7, Octopus Extreme 200, and Vertex IN-180.

I've got a budget of around $300 +/-, I was a good low maintenance skimmer with a decent pump. I was kind of leaning towards the octopus for that reason. I'm a little confused on those though, I know they have the standard octopus extreme which shows to come with the sicce 2500, and they have the extreme xs which only comes with the sicce 1000.

What would you guys recommend? Must have: good pump, low maintenance, pulls dark dry skimmate easily, easy to adjust, and quiet(if possible). I don't want to buy another skimmer after this.

 

[Takitaj]

I had a RL-150 too and it was a good skimmer, just a little small for my tank. The rating is a little generoius I think, maybe better for a 55-75 instead of 150.

Depending on your tank size, out of the ones you listed I would (did ) choose the sx200. Should be good for 100-150g tank. The new Sicce psk1000 pump is a great pump and lacks only the issues the psk2500 had. The cup holds close to 1/2 gallon and has a built-in drain. There is allways going to be some maintence with a skimmer though.

There are a bunch other good options and it would help if you can list the tank size and the size of the area in the sump for the skimmer (LxWxH) and maybe even your bio-load or planned future bio-load.

 

[DustinB]

I know there will always be maintenance with a skimmer, but every 4 weeks pulling it out of the sump is ridiculous. Plus having it go nuts and dump skimmate in the sump and foam everywhere when I forget is really irritating. Other than that I really love the skimmer. Great, black skimmate.

Sorry, that probably would have been a good idea. I have a 90g with a 20g sump, roughly 90g true water volume. 100+lbs of rock, 5 small to medium fish, and a good stock of coral. Mostly SPS. I believe my skimmer chamber is about 12.75" x 13". I'll need to measure again to make sure. I'm also vodka/vinegar dosing so I need a skimmer rated to 150-200% water volume.

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm also open to any suggestions, not just what I listed.

 

[DustinB]

Well I think I'm going to go with the XS200. Is the base really 15"x9" like the coralvue site says?

Also, did you end up adding a pipe to the output? I know it mentioned it uses metric threads.

 

[James404]

I would go with the SRO-1000INT all day over that. Bubble blaster pumps have way better performance then the sicce. I use it in my 80g+30g system and its a beast. Right in your price range too.

 

[re-fin-away]

I had the sro-1000sss on my 72 as well. It ripped, best for the $ IMO.

 

[DustinB]

I was looking at the super reef line, but I read several reviews that said they were loud. I was really looking at something rated to twice the capacity as well. Everything I saw showed the SRO-2000INT was loud and the XS-200 was nearly silent with the new pump.

 

[James404]

From my experiences the bubble blasters arent loud at all. I would seriously consider the 1000 or 2000. The sicce's are known to have startup issues commonly.

 

[DustinB]

Even the new model psk-1000? This is supposed to have been made to address all issues encountered with the other pumps. This one is electronic. Supposedly ATB is now using these pumps on their skimmers.

So many choices!

 

[solitude127]

Ever think about the SWC 160 cone? I've seen this on a buddy's 90 fully stocked tank it was working really well. I have the smaller version(120) and it works well on my frag tank. It's definitely one of the quieter pieces of equipment in my tank

 

[DustinB]

I had looked at them but I think I'd rather have a gate valve over a wedge pipe. Thanks for the input!

 

[NyReefNoob]

love the vertex in180, is their best model, the new octo extreme looks very promising, and the newer sicce doesnt have the same issue as the 2500 did. and what size tank is this going on ?

 

[DustinB]

90g with a 20g long sump. Looking at roughly twice the volume due to carbon dosing.

 

[Takitaj]

Just an FYI the Extreme sx200 comes with completely different pump. The NEW Sicce psk1000 which does not have the problems the old psk2500 had and is a bigger pump (880 vs 660 gph). It's very quiet and has no startup problems. It uses a new star pinwheel, different venturi, etc. and has some circuitry that controls the startup direction.

The Bubble Blaster has shown to be a good pump too and I wouldn't suggest anything negative about going with a skimmer with that pump either but I like the body and slightly smaller footprint of the sx200 better than the SRO's. The Vertex IN180 had some pump issues in the past and I think they might have fixed that but the footprint dimmensions are even larger and they use a wedge pipe instead of a gate valve.

BTW the sx200 foot print is 13.5 x 8.5 x 21.75 with an 8" body. Given your sump dimmensions you might be able to angle it in there but you may have to go to an sss version with the pump in the body instead. I used a smooth 1 1/4" elbow and slid it into the gate valve output to re-route the waterfall. I can post a pic if you like.

 

[DustinB]

Sure, a pic would be great. I'm pretty much set on the XS200 as we speak.

Are you sure the psk-1000 is 660gph? There glassbox site is claiming 880gph.

In case you missed it the PSK600 pushes 1 gph more (661 gph v 660 gph) than the PSK2500 pump, meanwhile the 60w, 880gph PSK 1000 is a much larger model that should be capable of fulfilling the needs of medium size skimmers (200g range) that have suffered from limited options–think between an Askoll / Laguna and the original Sicce 2500.

The dimensions should be fine. I have a refugium chamber I've been meaning to take out. After carbon dosing all my chaeto died so it's been running empty with a powerhead to keep water moving in and out of the chamber.

BTW, how would you rate the sound of yours? Did you do anything special to get rid of vibes or anything? My tank is running very quiet in my bedroom with a herbie overflow setup.

Thanks for all the input everyone.

 

[Takitaj]

The psk600 is 661gph the psk1000 is 880gph, the sx200 has the psk 1000. Here are some pics..

About 12 hrs after cleaning the cup and changing the filter sock.

Shows the elbow I stuffed in there

The only other thing I did was to turn the pump on it's side. I made it a little quieter. It does seem to pump a little more on end but negligable. Splitting hairs. The main noise you'll hear is just the roar of bubbles. I stuffed some cotton in the silencer to help that. Less vibration & noise than the RL150.

*Edit: The bubble plate is removeable too.

 

[solitude127]

Does anyone have air number for the PSK1000?

 

[DustinB]

Fantastic, thanks! If it's quieter than my RL-150 then I'm sure it'll be quiet enough as the RL-150 isn't too bad as it is. You don't have any issues with the elbow being under the water like that? I was under the impression if you put the drain in the water you had to have a vent out the top keep the flow unrestricted. Do you know offhand what the water level is?

Also, just for future reference. When it's not foaming, where is the water level in the neck set?

 

[Takitaj]

Fantastic, thanks! If it's quieter than my RL-150 then I'm sure it'll be quiet enough as the RL-150 isn't too bad as it is.

The pump is definetly quieter, the roar of the bubbles maybe a little more but your moving a whole lot more air & water.

You don't have any issues with the elbow being under the water like that? I was under the impression if you put the drain in the water you had to have a vent out the top keep the flow unrestricted.

I tried it both ways, with a tee and without. With the tee in there it was louder than with nothing. I didn't notice any difference in bubble height with just the elbow and it's noiseless now with practically no bubbles.

Do you know offhand what the water level is?

My water level is about 7 1/2"

Also, just for future reference. When it's not foaming, where is the water level in the neck set?

I washed it out with soapy water and rinsed it good before putting it in the sump. I initially set the water level right at the base of the neck. It was too dry so I kept raising it until I got it to about 1/2 way up the neck inside the collection cup. For me that seems to be the butter zone. Not too dry, not too wet Your's may vary depending on your water level.

 

[polyp02]

I was eyeing the XS200 as well. I want to upgrade my current skimmer, a Berlin from Red Sea, because it is not performing well. I however was thinking of buying the PM with the 8" chamber which is rated at 200gal, I think. I am getting little skimmate(about 1/6th of cup) every week but having to constantly adjust it. I even modified it by adding a ball valve in order to raise or lower the water level. I had to do this because after cleaning, it would foam constantly and after 1 day it would stop and nothing would flow over onto the cup. I will try and do one more modification but if nothing works I'm just going to get a new one.

I was initially going to get the Aqua Euro, but am now leaning towards the Precision Marine 200 or the XS200. What do you guys suggest? I have a 75g with a 30 gal sump, 5 smallish fish and 2 small frags(sps). I will eventually stock it with lots of coral. a little of everything sps, lps...