protein skimmer`s

[CASHCRZZY]

i have the 75 gal tank 10 gal sump , i am going looking for a skimmer today and was wondering if i would be able to find a good skimmer locally or if i need to go online and shop ,,
what are the best skimmers ???
JJM i took your advice on gettin a ro unit , but i did not go cheap i went to www.airwaterice.com and bought their typhoon3 ro/di
i should have it by wed . im still trying to figure out "in my head "how to plumb this thing so it looks good . i need my skimmer before i set up baffles in my sump . i have never done this before so its all a puzzle to me but coming together !
a friend at work was talking to a friend of his about my tank ,his friend said he had a 100 gal acrylic custom all drilled and set up that was given to him , he has offered it to me may be going to get it this weekend . this may change everything ..
So now a good question is when i buy this protein skimmer should i go overboard and buy a skimmer for say a 150 tank ?? could i use that in my 75 if all doesent work out ?? !!
JJM please pencil me in for the club meeting on the second
thanks Greg

[Scout]

That's also the RO/DI I went with. I've been running it almost a year and have had no problems.
I'm sure everyone has their favorite skimmer. I'm using a Excalibur, seem to work fine. I got mine at the Hidden Reef. It's also carried at Newark tropicals and Fishermans.


Mike

[Scout]

Here's the link to the skimmer I got at hidden reef.

http://www.thehiddenreef.com/saltwater_aquarium_supplies/aquarium_supplies_reef_products/advanced_aquaria_proteinskimmers.htm

Mike

[CASHCRZZY]

hey mike that has the reo pump on it right ? Have you had any problems with it ??? i have seen alot of posts saying those pumps are a problem !! ??

[grunstad]

I sent you e-mail

[Scout]

Yeah, I keep seeing those RIO threads also. I have never had a problem with them. I also ran a cpr bakpak for 3 years that also had a rio. Again, no problems.

Mike

[jayke]

Hey Guys,

I have a similar skimmer to the excalibur you are using. I have a 72 gallon tank and my skimmer is rated for a 150 gallon setup. I think the bigger the better, don't think you can overskim unless you get an industrial size one. You can uder skim though. I got mine at That Pet Place. It was the exact same one they had at Newark Tropicals at one point in time, only half the price.

Jay

[MadTownMax]

I guess I went way overboard with a skimmer, I got a model for a 250G, it's pretty big. It works very well though. My intentions were to use this as a skimmer if/when I get a bigger tank. I also knew that this wasn't a top-of-the-line unit, so I wanted to make sure that it did a good job. Right now I run my skimmer at night and it pulls out as much gunk as it would if I ran it all day long.

Most people on here consider the Euro-reef skimmers to be the best, and there are also many on-line companies with Euro-reef "clones" that are said to work very well also.

skimmers to stay away from are Red Sea Prizm's and Sea Clones, just for the fact that the inside parts are hard to get to for cleaning.

Most problems with the Rio pumps are from powerheads that leak stray voltage into the main tank, or short out after some time (year(s)). I have a rio on my skimmer and haven't had any problems yet - it is only a year old.



While you're planning your system out, one important factor to remember is to have the first chamber in your sump (where the water enters) to keep a constant water level, otherwise your skimmer performance will vary as water level fluctuates

one more thing to add is to get a collection cup that has a drain to a larger container, so that you don't have to clean it out often - for some extra $$ you can buy a system that will shut down when the "extra" collection cup is full.

[MadTownMax]

OK, as of 6:45 PM I would like to confirm my statement about rio pumps (and retract the statement about my RIO) The pump running my skimmer (Rio 1200) in my sump gave me a shock in the tank that has my hand still tingling:mad2:

(I don't usually put my hands in the side of the tank near the overflow, but I had a piece of rock fall.... )

[JJM]

MadTownMax
you got a ground probe in your tank , there $20 bucks !!!

[jayke]

I really like the Mag pumps. There expensive around here, but relatively cheap online, like That Pet Place.

[MadTownMax]

Originally posted by JJM
MadTownMax
you got a ground probe in your tank , there $20 bucks !!!

no, no ground probe. I'd rather stick to not having any current running through my water;) . I've read mixed results with those - having an "open" circuit (like when I got the shock and completed it) versus using a ground probe and completeing the circuit (glowing fish perhaps ? :eek1:.

Now that I need a new one (the plumbing was already cracked from some after-market tinkering on my part :D), I'm going to go with an external skimmer, to avoid having a powercord running into the water, along with an external return pump (think an ampmaster 3000 would be too much for my 72, lol - guess that should be another thread). That should avoid the stray voltage issues all togather.

After I move to my new place I'm going to run everything off of a GFCI powerstrip, just to avoid anything *really* bad happening

[CASHCRZZY]

hey mad max i have requested from bill at williams green bank
to try to aquire me a aqua -c skimmer the ev180 he may give a better deal if 2 people were interested !! give him a shout

[MadTownMax]

REALLY! that would be perfect, I'll drive over there when the roads are no longer covered in ice, lol.

-Nick

[dvlhzdu]

I guess I did go industral on my last skimmer selection. My Reef Creations is a great site and I am really pleased with their product. http://www.myreefcreations.com/ They use Beckett foam heads and I should be able to use this in any future system. Very easy to clean and another nice feature is it can be used in the sump or external so changing your configuration does not mean you need a new/different skimmer.