Lets talk skimmers!

[andyjd]

Currently running an ASM G3, and it been fairly good, seems consistent, but TBH I'm not convinced its the best out there.

So while I have the opportunity and having got the past the Household Financial Officer, I need to make a decision.

So whats it to be, an ER or one of the ATI skimmers, or perhaps H&S or a Deltec

Although tank is a 90G am upgraded tank is already planned for Jan 08 and I'd like to keep that in mind, so dont mind going bigger than is needed right now, new tank will be 120G min +sump etc, cabinet is 36" high and new tank will be the same height.

So tell me what you think !

Andy

[8BALL_99]

IMO keep the ASM.. Or maybe if you want more skimming get a G4.. I've got a ASM G2 a G4 and I also have an H&S A200 External.. My G4 only has a Sedra 5000 pump.. It is connected to my 92, 40 and a 40 sump fuge.. It works great.. At one time It was on my 180 and 60 with NP..

ER is going to be the same as an ASM for the most part.. But cost a ton more for the same size skimmer body.. ATIs are said to be pretty good but again I don't see them doing much better then a ASM

As far as H&S and Deltec goes.. Well H&S is built alot better but they should perform about the same.. I got my H&S cause I wanted a external skimmer and I really liked the fact that I could get one with a Eheim 1260 pump.. Mine is built really well and skims great.. Was it worth the 1200 dollars compared to my 300 dollar G4 going on performance I would say NO.. They both skim,, Sure the H&S seems to skim a little more but its also on a much larger system by about 130 gallons with much larger fish. It better skim a lil more.

Save your money and buy a bigger tank.. JMO

[buzzbait00]

Don't listen to 8-ball.He's wacked!Get a new skimmer and sell me the peace of crap asm.........CHEAP!

[andyjd]

I've got a G1x you can buy

[andyjd]

Originally posted by 8BALL_99
As far as H&S and Deltec goes.. Well H&S is built alot better but they should perform about the same.. I got my H&S cause I wanted a external skimmer and I really liked the fact that I could get one with a Eheim 1260 pump.. Mine is built really well and skims great.. Was it worth the 1200 dollars compared to my 300 dollar G4 going on performance I would say NO.. They both skim,, Sure the H&S seems to skim a little more but its also on a much larger system by about 130 gallons with much larger fish. It better skim a lil more.

Save your money and buy a bigger tank.. JMO

Thanks for the advice, having an Eheim on a skimmer would be good as I'm a big fan of their pumps.

Andy

[andyjd]

Originally posted by buzzbait00
Don't listen to 8-ball.He's wacked!Get a new skimmer and sell me the peace of crap asm.........CHEAP!

want to be first in-line if i do sell ? it has a gate valve on it also

[JimW]

Do the recirc mod if you haven't already. I am running a Mag 12 mesh mod for feed and the Sedra 5000 recirc, and it fills the chamber with fine white bubbles. Made a huge difference in performance.

Jim

[Philip Root]

ASM is one of the best bang for the buck, but I belive the g3 and g6 stand above the other asm modles. If money is no option the h&s are very nice skimmers. The h&s are much better built than the deltec.

[04mach1]

I bought the Octopus NW-150 and have had no problems with it. It seems to skim preety good, plus the cost was a big+.

[KwajRocks]

Andy,

I have to put in my 2 cents for MY REEF CREATIONS skimmers. They are Becketts and really are the most amazing skimmers I have ever seen. They keep my tanks spotless.

Check out his wesite at myreefcreations.com . He has many other products also (Nilsens and Ca Reactors) and is always improving and upgrading his models. He is always available by email and phone. Superior customer service. Superior quality parts.

I changed from a needle wheel to a Beckett and I have not been disappointed. I loved being able to go with the bigger pump, i.e., more water processed. (Don't get me wrong - I loved my EuroReef and it gave me years of maintainence-free, reliable service.)

JMTC for a great skimmer!! Good luck!

[andyjd]

Originally posted by JimW
Do the recirc mod if you haven't already. I am running a Mag 12 mesh mod for feed and the Sedra 5000 recirc, and it fills the chamber with fine white bubbles. Made a huge difference in performance.

Jim

Thanks Jim

[andyjd]

Originally posted by Philip Root
ASM is one of the best bang for the buck, but I belive the g3 and g6 stand above the other asm modles. If money is no option the h&s are very nice skimmers. The h&s are much better built than the deltec.

Interesting thoughts, do the h&s justify the costs ?

[andyjd]

Originally posted by KwajRocks
Andy,

I have to put in my 2 cents for MY REEF CREATIONS skimmers. They are Becketts and really are the most amazing skimmers I have ever seen. They keep my tanks spotless.

Check out his wesite at myreefcreations.com . He has many other products also (Nilsens and Ca Reactors) and is always improving and upgrading his models. He is always available by email and phone. Superior customer service. Superior quality parts.

I changed from a needle wheel to a Beckett and I have not been disappointed. I loved being able to go with the bigger pump, i.e., more water processed. (Don't get me wrong - I loved my EuroReef and it gave me years of maintainence-free, reliable service.)

JMTC for a great skimmer!! Good luck!

Thanks Lori, something else for me to look at.

TBH I was only thinking about NW skimmers... I don't know why as I had an AquaC before, perhaps its because NW is the latest trend.

Andy

[8BALL_99]

Originally posted by buzzbait00
Don't listen to 8-ball.He's wacked!Get a new skimmer and sell me the peace of crap asm.........CHEAP!

Originally posted by andyjd
Interesting thoughts, do the h&s justify the costs ?

Don't get me wrong.. My H&S is very nice and built like a tank. Its all Heavy Cast Acrylic, Eheim pump.. But that doesn't make it skim anybetter then my ASM thats built with Clear PVC and a Sedra pump.. The material is the main reason for the cost difference between ASMs and H&S. That and H&S is a German company adds to the price to. Now if your talking performance then no.. If you take my G4 with a Sedra 5000 and compare it to my H&S with a Eheim 1260 they are pretty close to one another.. Now ASM offers the G4+ that comes with the Sedra 9000.. I would bet that with the larger pump they would be almost the same.. When you consider pretty much same performance with a cost of twice as much its a little hard to swallow just cause one its built better..

It is a hard choice to figure out what skimmer.. But really if your only going with a 120 a G3 is plenty big enough.. Tomoko has a SPS dominated tank with just a G2 on it.. Her water stays perfect.. She even mentioned that her tank seem to do a little better when she didn't run her skimmer for a few days.. She thinks she over skims it lol.. FWIW I've got a G2 on my 125 at my office.. In two years I've did about 4 water changes Everyone says it looks great.

[8BALL_99]

Originally posted by 04mach1
I bought the Octopus NW-150 and have had no problems with it. It seems to skim preety good, plus the cost was a big+.

I almost got the NW-200 External. But I was scared of the performance. Glad to hear your NW_150 works well

[Tomoko Schum]

Ahh, I do not think that I am overskimming, but shutting my skimmer down for a month did not affect the colors of my SPS's and the microfauna seems to do better in the absence of skimming. I do regular water changes, though. Since my nitrate and phosphate levels are undetectable with Salifert's kit, I think my water quality has been pretty good. My ASM G2 is not even modded. OTOH, I wonder if I could lengthen the interval for GAC and GFO changing frequencies if I do the recirc mod to my ASM G2.

Tomoko

[KwajRocks]

In two years I've did about 4 water changes

Ha Ha Will, Glad someone else admits to that!

[Tomoko Schum]

Don't be fooled with his honesty That's just another excuse for him to add another fancy gadget. He must be scheming for a bigger and better skimmer for that tank so he can get away with less water changes

Tomoko

[edwar050]

I second mach 4 and really like the Octopus DNW 250 I have on my 120. I got about an extra 10SCH of air out of it with a pretty simple venturi mod. I figure if you have a little time you could with this skimmer make it rival an H&S or Deltec at a fraction of the cost pretty easily.

[andyjd]

Thanks guys, I'll keep reading some more.

Quality wise how do the Octopus skimmers compare to the ASM

Andy

[JimW]

Have an ER6-2 (old style with SEDRA 5000) that ran circles around the ASM before the recirc mod. The body on the ASM is now handling air input from both the modded mag and the sedra 5000 without problem. The difference really is amazing. Give it a try before you pop for another skimmer.

Jim

[buzzbait00]

Has anyone ever used a berlin classic?I've heard there not very good but I,ve got one laying in the shed.Was wondering if it was worth getting a pump for.Im useing a Aquac Ramora now.It does ok but Im looking to upgrade.

[JimW]

I have used one, and it skims well but requires constant tinkering and adjusting. Very sensitive to changes in sump level and such. When correctly adjusted it did well on a 55 gal.

Jim

[DrHank]

I've got an Octopus NW-150 that's been running on my 110 gallon for over six months. It does a good job of pulling. I'd say good but not great. The only mod I did was replace the flat washer with an appropriately sized O-Ring. I think that it's a good value for the money and I have friends that are equally happy with ASM G3s.

If you're going 150 gallons or over I'd probably go with a Beckett driven skimmer. Their new injectors foam like crazy. Up to that point, I think that you'd be fine with a good needle wheel skimmer.

[andyjd]

Looks like I will be ordering a custom skimmer from Orca aka www.protein-skimmer.com will be powered by an Eheim.

Over Kill for what I have now, but taking the opportunity to upgrade while i can