looking for a great protein skimmer

[wolf]

I knew this has been ask before and looking through thread after thread i still ask the same question.

I'm looking to buy a great skimmer for 150 gal tank and i would like to buy the right one the first time!!!!!

thanks

[SeanT]

[welcome]
One quick question.
Do you have a sump to put a skimmer in or are you looking for one to hang onto the back of your tank?
For in sump I would recommend the MR-2 from www.myreefcreations.com

[moonpod]

Need better description of your plumbing situation and where you want to put the skimmer. Personal bias is towards aquac ev units, but my reef creations, aerofoamers, euroreefs (and the knockoffs) among others are probably the most popular and well performing units. The right one for you depends on multiple factors including pump size and noise, in and out of sump and space for the skimmer.

[justgettinstarted]

I love my precision marine bullet 1. I think if you got a big enough pump you could run the bullet 1 but to be safe for a 150 the bullet 2 would defenitly do it. www.precisionmarine.com

[DT's_Reef]

You can't go wrong with EuroReef.

[SeanT]

Originally posted by DT's_Reef
You can't go wrong with EuroReef.
Looks like you can. (http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=179458) :lmao:

[DT's_Reef]

Originally posted by SeanT
Looks like you can. (http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=179458) :lmao:

Of the thousands of EuroReefs sold, someone's bound to get a bad one or have something break. I't happens to every manufacturer.

I've had my EuroReef (CS6-1) over a year and it's run perfectly quiet with no problems whatsoever. Skims like crazy all the time. This is my 10th skimmer (no kidding), and it works the best.

[SeanT]

Originally posted by DT's_Reef
This is my 10th skimmer (no kidding), and it works the best.
I feel your pain. My Myreef MR-2 is my fifth skimmer.
Finally happy. :)

[davr240g]

I love the www.lifereef.com products, they are all hand made and of great quality and come with a 5 year warranty.

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[moonpod]

I think what SeanT's really referring to is ER's reputation for being a bit uhm...draconian when you need replacement parts etc...no doubt they make a great product, but in general, there are A LOT of complaints that have been posted in regards to their customer service in terms of being painful when you need replacement parts--granted for most hobbyists it is few and far between. It's one of the reasons I went w/aquac--Jason's customer service is phenomenal. But back to the original posters question--what are his plumbing parameters, where does he want to put the skimmer, how much space does he have, is noise important, all of those things IMO affect which skimmer is best. For me for instance, I want an external skimmer that doesn't use a mega pump--ER's externals are way pricey, and the beckett's use mongo pumps. AquaC's EV240 on the other hand I'm running on a GRI 510 which is pretty small--only eats 100 watts or so, and is pretty darn quiet.

[justgettinstarted]

Originally posted by moonpod
I think what SeanT's really referring to is ER's reputation for being a bit uhm...draconian when you need replacement parts etc...no doubt they make a great product, but in general, there are A LOT of complaints that have been posted in regards to their customer service in terms of being painful when you need replacement parts--granted for most hobbyists it is few and far between. It's one of the reasons I went w/aquac--Jason's customer service is phenomenal. But back to the original posters question--what are his plumbing parameters, where does he want to put the skimmer, how much space does he have, is noise important, all of those things IMO affect which skimmer is best. For me for instance, I want an external skimmer that doesn't use a mega pump--ER's externals are way pricey, and the beckett's use mongo pumps. AquaC's EV240 on the other hand I'm running on a GRI 510 which is pretty small--only eats 100 watts or so, and is pretty darn quiet.

Mongo Pumps! haha! since when is a pump that does 900gph just for your skimmer a mongo pump? HAHA jk! i was actually thinking of getting a larger pump for mine but running into space issues.

[moonpod]

Actually my biggest gripe about the bullets, MRCs and the aerofoamers would be the hiss through the injector and the low gate valve placement--that low gate valve means you either have to elevate the skimmer above the sump water level, or if you have it in sump--keep a dead steady relatively low water level or you end up dealing w/fluctuating outlet pressure on the skimmer. A Sen900 pushes about 1200gph, and yeah, that's peanuts vs my Sequence for instance, but it's more than the GRI 510--granted, I could also probably use a larger pump on my skimmer as well....

[justgettinstarted]

the hissing sound can easily be stopped by placing a piece of tygon tubing (if that’s not available vinyl will work) on the injector valve, and then placing a very small plug of spun fiberglass (filter floss would also work). This entirely eliminates any hissing noise... then the thing is that the valve needs to be retuned because there is a slight loss in airflow. And as far as the low gate valve placement... that is a kinda crappy thing unless they can be elevated. However if you have auto top off there should be no fluctuation in sump water level and that is a mute point. In my personal opinion, I dislike the Sen 90! it is ok if its gotta be in the sump (minus its like to vibrate, and its kinda noisy). I had mine out of the sump and the stupid thing was leaking at one of the joints and the vibration/noise was intolerable. I would eventually like to replace it by a larger iwaki MD70RLT that will do 1500gph

[moonpod]

beware the noise factor on those larger iwakis...the fan REALLY hums on those babies, but the pump will last forever.....I dunno if I would like the idea of potentially restricting the air flow into the injector like that, but whatever....if it works for you, it works and that's the bottom line.

[justgettinstarted]

are they really that loud? i currently have an Iwaki MD20RLT returning water from my sump to the display, and a MD30RLXT running the closed loop and there is already a noticable humm! do you think it will be substancially louder than this?

[moonpod]

Bigger iwaki's are WAY louder than the small ones. It's the #$!%!@$# fan....

[conundrum]

another lifereef vote.

[Paladin]

Originally posted by moonpod
Bigger iwaki's are WAY louder than the small ones. It's the #$!%!@$# fan....
This is definitely true! I have an Iwaki MD20RLT for my skimmer and an Iwaki MD70RLT for closed-loop circulation, and the 20 is silent compared to the 70. It's like your washing machine or dishwasher constantly on. If you want the power and reliability but don't mind some sound, go Iwaki.

[bounce]

Just bought an AquaC EV-120 with a dolphin 560 pump. Used the regulator valve that came with the pump to cut back the flow of the pump by about 10% for the correct water level...and within a week its producing thick "dry" foam. (I know how can foam be dry) Jason at AquaC responds with 24 hours to all my e-mails. Great product and great service. I would be happy to answer any questions on how I set it up.

[tomatoeclown]

If you are looking for a one time purchase of a quality skimmer look no further than www.Lifereef.com , top of the line skimmers bar none, it is silent and works like a horse, once you set it you forget it, look out for immitators cause there is only ONE Lifereef, call them up and talk to Jeff, you WILL be totaly satisfied with your purchase, you will NEVER have to buy another skimmer EVER, I am not the only one that feels this way, if you have any more questions please let me know, cya.

[Riotfishdude]

"If you are looking for a one time purchase of a quality skimmer look no further than www.Lifereef.com , top of the line skimmers bar none, it is silent and works like a horse, once you set it you forget it, look out for immitators cause there is only ONE Lifereef, call them up and talk to Jeff, you WILL be totaly satisfied with your purchase, you will NEVER have to buy another skimmer EVER, I am not the only one that feels this way, if you have any more questions please let me know, cya"...

he was mixed up in the link there,it is www.reefconcepts.com
the Aerofoamer is the skimmer all else strive to be!,have seen/sold many in my day,none compare to the Aerofoamer.....good luck in your purchase,there are many decent skimmers out there,just avoid the real junk....

while every favored skimmer seems to have mainly good things said about them,and some bad things,there is no Aerofoamer owner ever complaining...:smokin: ....Riot.....
http://www.thereefweb.com/skimmer_comparison.htm

[tomatoeclown]

no I was mot it's www.lifereef.com , :rollface:

[dattack]

haha. :D