ATB Conical Shape Skimmer Club

[flipteg]

Originally posted by ATB USA
Heres some pics of new nano skimmer

how come the T for the output are so low on these skimmers...? does this mean that the water level is only as high as the rim of the inner tube where the bubble plate diffuser is attached to, and it's just foam all the way to the top...?

[hahnmeister]

The standpipe sitting in the top of the 'T' twists which changes the opening size in the 'T'... a valve. Very similar to Bubbleking mini's.

[USC-fan]

Originally posted by ATB USA
Hi scotmc
The max rating for the nano cone is 198 gallons. It would work really well on a tank with 120 gallons total.

How do you come up with these ratings?

[uhuru]

Originally posted by hahnmeister
The standpipe sitting in the top of the 'T' twists which changes the opening size in the 'T'... a valve. Very similar to Bubbleking mini's.

the water level is definitely way lower though on the ATB at least with the original nano body

[Canarygirl]

the water level is definitely way lower though on the ATB at least with the original nano body

I've got mine sitting in 7.5" water in my sump. I have the original nano, too. Seems to be working fine and no microbubbles are getting into the sump, either. My only wish is that it would be easier to do small adjustments of the internal water level but the wedge pipe is not as easy to do that with as for example, a gate valve.

[flyingphish]

can i plumb off of the 'T' and route it via pvc into a filter bag?

a la elos sump?

thanks

[woz9683]

As promised, I left the skimmer set the same for a third full day. Here are a couple of pictures from the end of third day.

1. Three days worth of pretty dry skimming


2. Backlit to show how dark the skimmate is (no flash)


3. Again backlit, this time with a flash


I think I found my setting

[ATB USA]

These ratings come from Anton's recommendation and also from a few dealers that are testing the product.
Thanks

[ATB USA]

Plumbing off the T should be fine as long as the water flows freely so make sure the bag is not clogged. Also please remember its all metric.

[mr294]

Originally posted by flyingphish
can i plumb off of the 'T' and route it via pvc into a filter bag?

a la elos sump?

thanks

I'm planning on switching the sump setup around so the drain line drops into the filter sock and the skimmer just sits in the main sump compartment so that I don't have to extend the plumbing from the skimmer. I also figure I will get more flow through the media chambers this way.

[uhuru]

Originally posted by Canarygirl
I've got mine sitting in 7.5" water in my sump. I have the original nano, too. Seems to be working fine and no microbubbles are getting into the sump, either. My only wish is that it would be easier to do small adjustments of the internal water level but the wedge pipe is not as easy to do that with as for example, a gate valve.

I meant the water level in the skimmer body not the sump

[chadfarmer]

woz9683

great pics

can you tell me what skimmer did you have before?

how many fish?

what and how often you you feed?

i am just trying to get an idea of your tank for the skimmate pics

[ATB USA]

Chadfarmer
Heres his post earlier
Yeah, the skimmer has been impressing me more and more. My bioload is actually pretty light; 2 tangs (4" and 6"), a maroon clown (4"), and a mandarin fish (3"). I do try to feed twice a day, but never more than the fish can quickly consume. The tank is well developed, so their's a pretty substantial amount of micro fauna and flora as well. Unfortunately, I lost most of my sps in a move from another tank earlier this year (a cucumber hidden in a rock in the same bucket as a lot of coral did not move well) so my coral load is almost nonexistent, but the ones I still have are looking better by the day. They are coloring up very nicely as the skimmer pulls more gunk out of the water. It's definitely making me look forward to repopulating my corals!

I took more pics and I'll get them posted sometime this evening.

[ATB USA]

Canarygirl
Yes
I am having a manual done for the US version. I will send you one when its done if you like.

[Canarygirl]

That would be awesome. Ed Lum has my name and address as he is going to forward to me a needlewheel impeller to try and a replacement O ring as well (I bought his demo model).

[woz9683]

chadfarmer,

I think the post Victor quoted answered most of your questions, but I'll try to elaborate on a couple.

1) My previous skimmer was an external DIY recirc. 8" ID cylinder with a 3" neck. It pulled a very similar volume of air (25-27scfh) and the pump's impeller was mesh-modded and the volute opened up as much as possible. It did a pretty good job of skimming my tank (although nothing like the ATB), I'd say it could pull a similar volume of skimmate in about twice the time.

2) 4 fish (see description in previous post)

3) 2x a day, just a cube of frozen food each time. I also try to keep a sheet of nori available in the tank as much as possible for the tangs to graze.

Frankly, I'm surprised at the skimmate I'm seeing from the ATB. Obviously my bioload is relatively light, but I'm getting more skimmate and the skimmate has an oily consistency to it that I hadn't seen before. I've always skimmed dry, so skimmate was generally dark, just not like it is now with the ATB.

For my tank, standard reef parameters are all in line. Very low nitrates, if any. I run carbon and GFO. I've dosed vodka in the past, but not for months now.

I can't really think of any other parameters of interest. I'll try to get a FTS in the next couple days. It's pretty boring due to my lack of corals at the moment, but at least I can show that it's well kept.

[flyingphish]

sounds like a good idea...been thinking about trying that myself.

wouldnt you think itd keep the sump box cleaner anyway?

Originally posted by mr294
I'm planning on switching the sump setup around so the drain line drops into the filter sock and the skimmer just sits in the main sump compartment so that I don't have to extend the plumbing from the skimmer. I also figure I will get more flow through the media chambers this way.

[mr294]

Originally posted by flyingphish

wouldnt you think itd keep the sump box cleaner anyway?

I hope so. Only real downside I'm seeing at this point is that I will likely have to start cleaning/replacing the filter socks a lot more frequently. I'm probably going to make the change sometime this week, so I can just drop the new skimmer in when it arrives. I'll let you know how things go.

[hahnmeister]

Okay, I lost you on that one... why would you be replacing a filter sock more often with the ATB?

I notice the skimmer removes more particles if anything.

[Canarygirl]

Is anyone using a Deltec airvalve on their ATB skimmer? I'm wondering if it might help me dial in the water level so that I can get wetter skimmate without overflowing the skimmer cup.

[mr294]

Originally posted by hahnmeister
Okay, I lost you on that one... why would you be replacing a filter sock more often with the ATB?

I notice the skimmer removes more particles if anything.

I wasn't saying I would be replacing it more often because of the skimmer. Flyingphish and I were talking about changing the plumbing on the Elos sump to accommodate the ATB skimmer. Currently the drain just drops into the main sump compartment and the skimmer drains into a filter sock that then feeds the media chambers in the sump. Since the drain on the ATB is so low, I'm planning on rerouting the plumbing on the sump so that the main drain goes into the filter sock and the skimmer simply drains into the main sump compartment. Kind of reversing the setup used by Elos. In that sort of arrangement, I see the filter sock needing to be replaced more frequently.

[flyingphish]

i got lazy and decided to just throw the skimmer in the sump and continue to let the tank just drain into the sump bypassing the sock. i do have my chiller return dumping into the sock, but its not picking up much debris.

do we even need a sock? thats another debate i know.

either way, ive noticed no difference. no micro bubbles either so no need to baffle the skimmer effluent...

[flyingphish]

woz...

where do you keep the level inside the skimmer? thats nuts.

[ATB USA]

Heres some new pics of the us models
small

[ATB USA]

Medium