Which skimmer to get?

[reeferJ]

Looks like I'll be getting a new skimmer from That Pet Place for Christmas this year. Any thoughts on which skimmer is best? 175G with a little bit of everything in it. The candidates:

C-Skim 1200
Bullet 2
Fission Power
Fission Recirculating
Nautilus TE Turbo
Marine Series Advanced
ASM G Series

Any and all comments are welcome! Thanks.

 

[Sea Turtle]

I have an ASM G series on my tank and absolutely love the thing. It's easy to empty, cleans well, and doesn't make much noize. Don't know much about the other models though. What are you currently using on the tank?

 

[reeferJ]

Currenlty using a Berlin Turbo XL, not real happy with it.

 

[Sea Turtle]

What is so bad about it?

 

[reeferJ]

It just doesn't get a lot of gunk, they're a little tricky to adjust and from what I've been reading, the trend now is toward shorter skimmers with a bigger radius instead of tall and skinny like the Berlin.

 

[Sea Turtle]

Gotcha. The smaller wide ones are a bit better for storing under your tank also. Mine really fills up the cup in about a week with a thick black/brown gunk. Seems to work very well. The only down side is that it sometimes throws out some microbubbles into the display but this comes and goes. I think that it has something to do with the foam bubble trap setting that slips over the outflow tube. Overall, I'm happy though.

 

[Ben1]

I used a G3 for a few years, they are nice for a cheaper skimmer, and work well for what they cost. Of your options I would go with that. The bullet 2 is very nice also but require a larger pump.

 

[Sea Turtle]

I had to replace the sedra needlewheel pump on mine once. It just stoped working.

 

[Unarce]

I'd go with the ASM, too.

 

[Sea Turtle]

The Fission Recirculating skimmer really seems like it has a little too much going on for me. I like to keep it as simple as possible with the skimmer. The bullet 2 I think is a good one also. I have never used it but I know that the guy at my lfs likes it because he carries them in stock. It's a very upscale reef store so I'm sure he only sells quality stuff.

 

[Katfsh]

asm g3 is what I have on my ninty my tank is very lightly stocked and I only have to clean the cup every 2 1/2 to 3 weeks.
Great skimmer IMO

 

[Sea Turtle]

How thick is the crap that it skims off into the cup on yours? Does it have a very watery consistency or is it thick? I am not sure if I have mine set properly.

 

[Katfsh]

not much thicker than water, but there is a dark goo yhay builds up on the throat and the underside of the top. I only have three fish in a 90 gal tank too.

 

[Sea Turtle]

Ok. That sounds like I hav emine set up properly. I just want sure if it was supposed to be real thick or just a dark water. Thanks.

 

[Anonymous]

I had a G3 on my sps tank and it did a pretty bang up job, granted only had 4 fish, but hey they were big fish

I'm assuming you're ordering online? Or is that store local to you? If you're ordering online, why restrict yourself to that companies skimmers only? If you throw out a price range, I'm sure there are other options.

 

[Ben1]

He is in York, and that store in in lancaster, so close.

FWIW, its a big warehousy type pet store but they dont carry any high end skimmers. I go there on weekends some times, but for me its just over an hour drive.

 

[Anonymous]

Gotcha, me personally I would pay the extra bucks on a skimmer I'd want rather than one of the choices of a particular store. But I realize there are may reasons why you'd want to keep things local.

 

[Ben1]

I mostly order online myself, its just easier IMO.

 

[Anonymous]

Plus the selection is greater than any one store

Don't get me wrong, I'll ask my LFS what price they can get it for me (if they can) but if they don't, then I go online.

 

[Sea Turtle]

I bought mine onlie also. The lfs was selling the same one at a much higher price. 8O