What is the best skimmer for 100 gallon reef?

[Anonymous]

I just moved my (nominally) 100 gallon reef tank (one Matt helped me with) to a new house, and chucked a bunch of stuff, and am essentially starting fresh except for the corals I kept and one maroon. I'll add more gradually, but the main thing is I don't think I have been skimming adequately. (I used an AquaC remora and a CPR backpack simultaneously, in the sump, where they clearly didn't do a good job).

What is the best skimmer, one I won't regret buying for at least the next five years? I don't want to plough through that five page skimmer list thread.

 

[Len]

Do you have a set budget? A lot of nice needle-wheels are available that will work well on a 100g ... definitely much better than your old skimming

 

[Anonymous]

Euroreef skimmers have been very good to me.

 

[Anonymous]

Octopus Extreme skimmers are all the rage now from what I hear. Not as pricey as Euroreef IIRC. Sold by sponsors such as Premium Aquatics as well...

 

[Anonymous]

Agree on Octopus, basically a knockoff of Euroreef, and on a 100g tank you don't need more. Also look for an ASM Gx1 skimmer.These are in-sump skimmers, make sure you have clearance. Tunze is fine, too. Personally, I think the ASM kicks ASS, and at half the price of Euroreef, its' worth looking into.

 

[Anonymous]

Do you have a set budget? A lot of nice needle-wheels are available that will work well on a 100g ... definitely much better than your old skimming

Well, I think if I go over $35K my wife will get pissy.

 

[Anonymous]

OK, sorry to be stupid, but I need some help here.

There appear to be two types of skimmers listed on this page.

Is the first type one that I stick in between my pump in the sump and the return hose?

Is the second one something I just stick in the sump and it sucks water out of the sump and then deposits it back into the sump after skimming?

If I have this right, is the first type better? Is it a PITA to incorporate this?

 

[Anonymous]

Bill, I have had a lot of success with my Deltec AP 851. Its probably a bit big as my system is near 400GA, but there are smaller versions. The Deltec looks pretty similar to the 1st one you showed, but mine is set up next to my sump, draws water outta the sump and returns it back to the sump. I have never heard or seen a skimmer in line with the return- the amount of water my big Deltec returns is miniscule compared to my return pump volume. Frankly, I cant see it working. Either your return volume is going to be too small, or the skimmer is going to be overpressured and wont have time to function because of the higher volume of water.

 

[Anonymous]

Agree on Octopus, basically a knockoff of Euroreef, and on a 100g tank you don't need more. Also look for an ASM Gx1 skimmer.These are in-sump skimmers, make sure you have clearance. Tunze is fine, too. Personally, I think the ASM kicks ASS, and at half the price of Euroreef, its' worth looking into.

I'll have to check these out...I'm not current on the new stuff.

 

[Anonymous]

OK, sorry to be stupid, but I need some help here.

There appear to be two types of skimmers listed on this page.

Is the first type one that I stick in between my pump in the sump and the return hose?


Is the second one something I just stick in the sump and it sucks water out of the sump and then deposits it back into the sump after skimming?


If I have this right, is the first type better? Is it a PITA to incorporate this?

Bill, I'm not 100% sure about the pros and cons of each, but I think essentially these are both in-sump skimmers (although the recirculating, the first, can also be used as an external skimmer). The difference, as far as I can make out, is that the second one has the baffle plate, which reduces turbulence in the bubbles and therefore increases efficiency (or so I've read). It also has the option of using a mesh wheel impellor (creates an even finer foam than a needle wheel impellor from what I've read). The first one is a recirculating type and I know people say that's also good, but I don't remember why...

Whichever is better, I have read some excellent things about the Extreme series and it appears to be cheaper than the recirculators (especially when you factor in that the extremes come with pumps and the recirculators don't).

One final thing - as you might be able to tell, I'm basing this recommendation on reading, not personal experience. But an Octopus Extreme is currently my first choice for my next tank.

 

[Anonymous]

Do you have a set budget? A lot of nice needle-wheels are available that will work well on a 100g ... definitely much better than your old skimming

Huge fan!

 

[Opsanus tau1]

You may want to check out the new PM Red Line needle wheel skimmer line, I own 3 of them, they are not as good as my ATI or KZ cone, but I think they are a pretty good little skimmer for the money . (IMO)

One down side to these is that any power outage, or even "brown-out" and the pump must be "messed with " to restart, I live in the Florida Keys, where this sort of thing happens on a monthly basis, (weekly during Hurricane Season),..and the only thing I had to "re-start" were these skimmers, I have since hooked them to battery back-ups, and the problem is solved.

 

[Anonymous]

What is your budget?

I plan on a cone skimmer in the future. I was gonna get the Bubble King Cone but $1000 is too much. I think I will get this one:

http://www.marinesolutionsinc.com/catal ... _info.html

http://www.marinesolutionsinc.com/catal ... index.html

Warner Marine has one that is priced a little better as well:

http://www.saltycritter.com/protein-ski ... immers.htm

Euroreef got too big for their britches. They make a good product, but charge way too much IMO. Octopus makes a good skimmer for a good price as well. I wish I got a better skimmer at first as well. Don't skimp on the skimmer.

 

[Anonymous]

Ordered, with Reefs.org properly credited.

 

[Anonymous]

Ordered, with Reefs.org properly credited.

Which one?

Not to be too pushy, but could you post pics of the tank? I'm jonesing for a hit.

 

[Anonymous]

yeah really!

How do you think you can post without telling us which one!

 

[Anonymous]

As for the tank, I will need to take pictures.

 

[Anonymous]

Excellent. Let us know what you think of it once it's been running a while.

 

[Anonymous]

That's a nice skimmer. I am sure it will suit you fine. Good luck.

 

[Anonymous]

That's a nice skimmer. I am sure it will suit you fine. Good luck.

Thanks. I had both budget and space constraints, so I opted for this rather than what you posted, but those looked like conceptually rigorous skimmers.