Which skimmer?

[robertpower3]

I have just finished moving my 80 gallon and am going to buy a skimmer. I wanted to get some opinions about which one I should buy. i have an 80 gallon with a tide pool 2 sump. i am debating between aqua c ev 120, euroreef, or e.t.t.s. skimmers. I would appreciate any comments or suggestions?

[Jimnorris]

I wish I could help but I am skimmerless. Are you going to use a skimmer tie into your sump or hang on?
Jim

[Tim Marvin]

I run only a refugium also.

[captexas]

Robert -
I have been going through the skimmer dilemma myself recently looking for a new one for my 75 that I am setting up. I just bought a Lifereef VS2-24 skimmer from a guy that was going to sell it on Ebay. Lifereef, Euroreef, Precision Marine, and some of the AquaC models are known to be the top skimmers out there. Of course, there are several additional brands that are simply knock-offs of these and can produce good results also. I have not read much on the ETSS skimmers but I have noticed there are a ton of them listed for sale on RC, which to me is not a good sign. Lifereef and Precision Marine have several different models depending on your needs. A good friend of mine that has been in the hobby for years and has many large tanks, suggested for my size tank that for the PM skimmers, a Bullet-1 and for the Euroreefs, a CS6-2 model would work well along with any of the Lifereefs.

From my research, I have found that Lifereef and Euroreefs are pretty much "plug-and-play", requiring little if any adjustment. If you have the money, these are the two brands that are best. But again, there are many other skimmers out there that do well also for less money. Another issue besides what brand of skimmer you need to look at is the tank size rating of the skimmer. This varies greatly and it is unsure how the companies compute these ratings to begin with. It is usually recommended to get a skimmer rated for atleast twice the size of the tank you will be setting it up on.

As with many facets of this hobby, there is no clear-cut answer on which is best. There are many solutions that will work, just some better than others. Everyone that has been in the hobby for many years has their favorites. As far as going skimmerless, many have had success with this, usually after the tank is already established. It definately takes a well established refugium and low bioload in the main tank for it work. My opinion is that for any tank with a heavy bioload (many fish), for someone new to the hobby, or for starting a new tank, a skimmer is very important in keeping a tank healthy.

Chris Parker

[MikeP]

I really like Aqua C's products - not having owned them but having heard nothing but good things about Lifereef, ETSS, and EuroReef. Some people also swear by www.myreefcreations.com who has nice affordable skimmers.

[TexasState]

Euro-reef might not be as plug and play as you think. You have to play w/ the water level that the skimmer sit on(the skimmer should be in about 10 inches of water.) It can make some noise from the venturi. The instruction suggest that you should clean it monthly. All in all, it's still one of the better skimmer out there. If you can afford the CS series, they cost about $350 for a CS6-2. If you can't afford it, try to find scratch and dent ES-3 series on ebay from skimmerman. You probably don't want to run a Euro skimmer on your Marineland sump. You might run into micro bubble issues from the return of the skimmer.

IMHO, Lifereef skimmer are nice and easy to use, but it might not be as powerful as a Euroreef. Lifereef are more maintenant friendly then the Euro-reef.

I don't like to mess w/ the PM Bullet skimmer. IMHO, it's too loud. Those skimmer that uses a becket valve are a pain to clean.

Yes, I plan running a refugium as my main filtration, but I do have a hang on bak pak skimmer attached to it emergency skimming too. When you run the refugium, the Macro algae(caulerpa) grow to outcompete the micro algae (hair algaes.) The bigger caulerpa sump you can stick under your stand, the better.

[TexasState]

Lifereef have good features such as:
*Self Cleaning Venturi(you should still pour warm water through to clean it once in awhile.)
*The skimmer have a build in muffler to quiet down the noise from the venturi sucking the air in.

[RedDragon]

if you want I have a Berlin Skimmer for sale, It skimms up to 240g and comes with a kent marine Self Cleaning Venturi, I will sell it to you for $60 ;)

[matt]

Someday, if this MACO class ever gets started, I hope to build a skimmer which should be pretty burnin' I think it will look something like this: http://www.reefsciences.com/smallskimmer/pages/justen.htm

I'm using Troy's aquacEV 120, and it's okay. Nothing special, for the $400 you'd have to pay for it new with a decent pump. Troy let me borrow it (thanks Troy!) because it was pulling almost nothing from his 125. It's getting some junk out of my 45 breeder, but for a big system, like 100 gallons or more, I think I'd want more skimmer than this.

Matt

[TexasState]

Hi,
If it's not skimming, it's might needs to be cleaned. Or it might be the skimmer is too big for your tank size. Or it could be....

[Richard]

I use an Aqua C EV120 and have been very happy with it. It pulls about half a cup of pitch black(as in can't see ANY light through it) effluent every 3-4 days. It took about 4 or 5 weeks of break in before it pulled any effluent. Also it doesn't pull much if the water level is too high - use a flashlight to see through the black plastic and keep the water level 1/4 - 1/2" below the divider thingy (technical term). Also it does not constantly pull effluent - seems to pull some out then stop for a few hours then pull a little more out then stop again...

I think an ev120 would be a bit much for an 80 gallon tank. I would go with a Remora Pro (Hang on) or the Urchin Pro (sump version). Not sure how the urchin would work out since the tidepool sumps aren't too spacious.

Richard

[matt]

I cleaned the ev120 before using it. As I said, it's pulling some skimmate, maybe about 1/2 cup a week, from my overstocked 45. I had used an urchin skimmer, and I found that it simply could not keep up. Granted, my system is pretty crowded (only 3 fish, but LOTS of corals) and I'd get rid of several animals and some live rock if I wasn't getting a new system very soon. Maybe the urchin pro with the mag3 would be okay for an 80 gal, but I don't think the ev120 would be too much.

Matt

[Bigreefer]

I use the Aqua C urchin. I've had this skimmer running for 5 months with out having to clean anything other than the sludge bowl. I used to have a Berlin which pulled a lot of scum but had to be cleaned out every three weeks to keep it running.

[robertpower3]

Thanks for all the replies. I went ahead and got the EuroReef Cs6-2. It should be here by this coming Monday. I'll let you all know how it turns out.