Small DIY Skimmer

[Noonan]

Hey Guys,

I am making a 5 gallon nanoreef for dwarf seahorses. I was just wondering if anyone had plans for a small 5 gallon skimmer...? :D

[MarkS]

First, I would recommend you check out www.seahorse.org

I briefly was going to set up a dwarf seahorse tank, but raising baby brine shrimp and the constant feedings did not fit into my 50+ hour a week work schedule.

What I found out while planning was that most, if not all dwarf seahorse keepers go skimmerless. Most use an air powered sponge filter since it does not effect the flow as much as a power filter. UGF's are another good filter to use, IN THIS CASE ONLY!! Had to stress that... Never use an UGF in any other marine tanks.

If you really want to use a skimmer, I would recommend you get either a Piccalo (sp?), Lee's or Sander's air driven CC skimmer. They are VERY low flow, easy to clean and adjust, small and cheaper than the parts to DIY.

HTH,
Mark

[Heinrich]

I second that. Lees are good for that application.
But all of them would be in tank skimmers.
You could build a skimmer behind the tank and hard plum it. But with little height you'd probably want to go 2-3" dia. You want to use CC air driven so don't remove food for the seahorses.
If you build it out of the tank you'll have to play with height of the reaction column. A lot of hassle but if you want it perfect who knows.
It will be cheaper to buy than diy any day though.
93! Heinrich