Skimmer sanity??

[dedex]

OK, I am about to go insane! I have purchased a 75g to set up and I have been trying to figure out which skimmer is the best for it. I have spent countless hours on here and elsewhere, asking questions, reading, etc... It is just so frustrating, there are so many brandsa nd models. I own a business that is open from 5am to 11pm, I have three kids: basketball, wrestling, violin, religion classes, homework; plus have a full time job on top of all of that. After the busy day is done, I sit on the computer. I have lost many hours of sleep, because that is the only time that I can REALLY sit down uninterrupted to research this. I am ready to give the tank to my son for target practice at this point! Can anyone tell me what is the best tried and true skimmer for a 75g for around $400.00. I dont want to have to do "mods" to it. I feel that budgeting this amount should get me a pretty darn good skimmer for a 75g. I just don't know which one...Any suggestions? If not, I'm throwing the towel in!!!

[Ismellikefish]

I got the octopus nw150 for my 75 and it works very well. I have had it almost a year with no problems.

If you are going to have a heavy load in the tank the nw200 might be a tad better for ya

Granted I have a sump as well that it goes into. Are you going to have a sump or do you need a HOB skimmer?

[Ismellikefish]

http://www.octopusskimmer.com/

the link!

[heyfredyourhat]

Check out Fins reef they sell good skimmers. This is sort of an unofficial order 1. Bubble King 2.H&S OR Deltec 3. Well there are just too many to know which one, but euroreef seems decent...

I went with an external H&S for my 120, only sad thing is it took a lot of work to get to stay consistent with it being gravity fed. Also some are recirc and some are not....

I think any skimmer is better than no skimmer, don't stress out about it too much.

[dedex]

I forgot to state that I am going to have a sump...I think it may just be a 20g...Sorry for the oversight...

[dedex]

See what I mean - that is half of my frustration. I was told that I want a recirculating skimmer. UGH! Does that narrow it down any? I have been told many times that the new Octopus skimmers are good. But many people have done "mods" to them to get them where they want them to be. But I have also been told numerous times to not get one because they are not tried and true. Another dilemma: some skimmers come with pumps, some do not. Which pumps are good? Which skimmers come with great pumps? So may questions unanswered...

[Ismellikefish]

The saying " there is more than one way to skin a cat" comes into play here.

There are several diffrent kinds to acomplish the same thing.

Recirc is a good type of skimmer. If you can afford the extra money it cost over the normal needle wheel then go for it.

Most are good " plug and play" some hobbiest like to super fine tune there equipment to get MAX performance out of it ( like the ones where it lets the hobbiest pick there own pump ). You DO NOT have to do that to get skimmers to work. ( minus the ones without a pump obviously, you would need to still get a pump for them )

And yeah if you have a sump the Octo ones will work fine.

[dedex]

Ok, at the risk of sounding totally stupid...is the needle wheel a recirculating skimmer?

[ezcompany]

i'm going to save you some time on your decision making process. get an H&S. Solid skimmer, not as pricey as Bubble Kings or Deltecs, but will perform in the same level. Just decide on the size.

[nmhs2]

Get the aquac ev-120 best skimmer $350 rated for up to 125 gallon check it out at www.marinedepot.com

[warrenm107]

I use an Aqua C Remora Pro on a 65 gallon and it works great. I use a Mag 7 pump, which probably over drives it a little. It is a hang on the back, but $200 cheaper than the $400 you are considering.

[Mike7]

My G2 work great for my 75 gal with a sump.

http://www.reefscience.com/web/skimmers.php

[mouscacha]

I got my euroreef Rs from here: http://www.thepetzone.org/servlet/th...ers/Categories
Found the pricing to be the best.

I then used some large pvc reducers for the skimmer to sit on since my sump water height is 12". I leave the skimmer wide open to get dry skimmate.

One word of caution:
I had excess nutrients in my water which caused my skimmer to foam over. Because this was in sump, the water spilled back into the sump. If the skimmer was a recirc, i'd have water on my floor.
I'm not sure if this ever happened to someone with a recirc, but just something that happened to me...

[an411]

I have a vote in for euroreef I like the recirculating one I am running the RC-180 on my tank. What sold me on the recirculating skimmer rather then the in sump skimmer is the fact that all my water hits the skimmer before entering in the sump I just liked the sound of that. rather then some water not getting skimmed with an in sump skimmer. You could maybe get away with geting the RC-80 if the bioload on the tank is not going to be heavy but I would go with the RC-135 but it may be a little out of your price range. HTH

[an411]

mouscacha same guy I got my skimmer from. Yes I have had my skimmer overflow once before I left the venturi valve open all the way luckily not much water because my dog notified me of the noise by barking at the stand luckily

[heyfredyourhat]

I went to alot of work deciding on my skimmer. But let me save you the hassle, its like "ezcompany" stated get an H&S you wont be dissapointed.

[mouscacha]

can you cut a piece of your dogs nail off and prop him in a frag tank for me? I need one of those "sump overflow notifiers." hehe

[dedex]

heyfredyourhat and ezcompany, which H&S would you suggest?

And if that dog nail thing works, let me know - lol!

The RC135 is a bit out of my price range. I was looking to keep it under $400. Any other suggestions? I haven't decided whether to go in sump or recirc. You do have good points either way, mouscacha.

Any other suggestions?