BK 250 too big for 110 SPS tank?

[McCrary]

I have a 110 SPS tank and am currently running a H&S 200-1260 on it. I was hoping to reduce the nutrients further and go to the BK 250 internal, but I noticed it said the rating was between about 200-500 gallons roughly. The H&S is about 300 gallons rating and used to come out with a lot fo stuff but as I have become more stringent with my feeding it has not been as productive. Could I do the BK 250 or should I stick to the smaller 200 model? I would like to go with the 250, but am concerned with the foam not being sufficient on such a nutrient bare tank. Any advice would be appreciated, especially from BK owners.

[120reeferman]

i have a friend running the bk250 on a total tank volume of 200g and it rips...so i say go for it

[USC-fan]

I don't think this is a good idea. I would look into other forms of filtration before buying a new skimmer.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-06/dw/index.php

[CruzinKim]

No, it won't work very well about the first few months, then you have the same situation again. Severely oversized skimmer syndrome (SOSS) leaves more organics saturated in the water than a skimmer that is properly sized, imo.

I would look at the meshwheel skimmers like ATi BM200 or the new ATB Nano as these skimmers would probably strip more waste out of your tank than the H&S 200-1260 only because the 200 is oversized for your tank and once the waste level gets below a certain level, the skimmer can't grab it until enough has built up again. Try feeding a lot heavier.

[Rwinfrey]

if you are looking at the BK wht don't you just go custom you would have a ton of options if you were going to spend that kind of cash go for a spazz skimmer

[sjm817]

Why go from one oversized skimmer to one that is even more oversized? I would stick with the A200 since you already own it and it is a very good skimmer.

[Fishbulb2]

Originally posted by sjm817
Why go from one oversized skimmer to one that is even more oversized? I would stick with the A200 since you already own it and it is a very good skimmer.

I think the problem is that there are too many new fun toys hitting the market. And it's almost xmas to boot. But yes I agree, stick with your H&S. Add more fish or skim wetter if you think it's under performing.

[tjh]

i had a bk 500 on a 180. pic in my gallery. it replaced an ap702. the bk pulled more stuff out, but how much was extra water i dont know. if there is no big tank upgrade for awhile id keep that h&s as someone else suggested. you wont see any major improvement with the bk.

[sditch]

Your skimmer can only take out what is put in I would think the H&S is just alittle over sized for the bioload. You could take advantage of this and feed your fish and coral abit more often (make sure its getting skimmed out and no side effects accur ofcourse)

My SPS love to be fead, but I have to hold back sometimes do to some side effects or unwanted Cyno appearence.

[Detritivore]

i agree with what has been said. i currently have an ap702 on a 125 (~140 with sump) and to be honest, it has not performed well. i have to shut it off and wait for nutrients to build up before it can even produce a decent foam head. granted, i only have a couple of fish right now and a few corals, but i would still say the tank is pretty dirty. i had originally intended to get a larger tank; had i known in the beginning that i would end up with a 125, i would have gotten something smaller than an ap702....so i say, stick with what you have.

[CruzinKim]

Something to think about when turning your skimmer off for part of the day.

Originally posted by hahnmeister
I used to think that was a good idea... just using a larger skimmer and only running it part of the day... boy, was I wrong. The proteins that the skimmer collects can get digested too quickly in the system, so its not like the time that the skimmer is off is 'made up for' 100%. The time that your skimmer is off leaves organics in the system to be digested and those chemicals once digested can no longer be removed by the skimmer.

[sditch]

Detritivore,


Just wourdering why you say its still dirty. Skimmers is just a means to export matter buy certain ones work diffently with diffrent matter.

You have a vasty amount of other ways to improve your water quility like Carbon, Resiens,refugiums,filter socks etc.

[Detritivore]

i say that the tank is visibly dirty (i.e. small brown algae, etc.) to illustrate the point that the skimmer isn't working as well as it could because the skimmer is too big for the tank, not that the tank has no nutrients for the skimmer to remove (sounds like reef heresy, but i am convinced that you can have too big a skimmer).

i also agree with the hahnmeister quote because when i would shut the skimmer off for half the day i noticed no improvement in either skimming or water quality.

[markandkristen]

i agree totally i have a rc500 on my 150 and wonder some times if i was better with my 6-3 skimmer. i think we get skimmer envy or size envy sometimes and it only worsens the problem LOL

[McCrary]

Thanks for the advice guys.