remora vs. bakpak

[blueboy]

who has experience with these? for use on a 60G i'm setting up. i'm concerned with noise, and easy of use. thanks for any input. any other suggestions for a HOB are welcome also.

[caferacermike]

I have the remora on a tank around here. It was modded by it's previous owner and does not seem to work very well. I met another reefer that also had teh remora and he told me that he liked it to a point. His concern was that you need to clean it daily, maybe that's what I'm not doing, as the cone will prevent skimmate from reaching the cup as soon as it gets any slime on it. I will second that as mine stops as soon as it gets a little dirty.

[blueboy]

that's not exactly what i'm looking for.

[prof]

I have always been happy with the CPR BakPak but I think you would be pushing it to run it on 60g.

[jc]

I have a knock-off version of the bak pak. It seems to be identical size. I can't say that I like it. One of the big problems with it is that it throws lots of micro bubbles into the tank and the collection cup is not very big. Also the amount of skimmate collected varies on the height of the cup. The problem with this is that the cup is held in place with a rubber ring. I always had the cup slip out of place and it was hard to adjust even with extra rubber bands around the edge. I used the added surface skimmer and bubble trap. Now I just moved it into the fuge and removed the addons. Mine is the version with the rio pump on it. I read that the maxijet version increases the power. Also, I was unhappy with the noise it made. Since the acrylic body rest on the edge of the tank it made a loud buzzing noise. I can't hear the noise now because
it sits inside the fuge and the cabinet muffles the sound.

[LoneStar]

I had a Bak-Pak on a 45g. It was the one with the maxi 1200 pump. The skimmer worked OK on there. It produced a good amount of skimmate on a medium bio load tank. You have to empty the collection container almost daily or it will overflow. Since it was behind the tank, it was kind of a pain to empty it. Plus the air suction for the 'venturi' of the pump was pretty loud.

[blueboy]

thanks for all the responses, even if they're not what i wanted to hear. better to know that now, than after i bought one. any suggestions?

[TexasTodd]

I've run both, and my Remora Pro would skim circles around the BacPak. I had the Pro with the Mag three for the pump.

Todd

[caferacermike]

The Dude will recommend the new Deltec HOT's. Those are actually affordable. NOt for an HOT but affordable if they were a sump skimmer. Nonetheless I've heard great response to them. If you get the remora you MUST get the optional $50 overflow box or you will not be efficiently skimming the tank.

Blue Boy I'd be willing to make you a nice deal on my remora if you'd like to try it and see if it works better for you.

[Bill S]

I also have a Bak Pak, and wouldn't buy another one.

[Beverly]

I also have a Bak Pak, and wouldn't buy another one.
Ditto....

[Richard]

IMO the remora pro is still the best HOB skimmer all things considered (price, size, ease of use vs skimming ability). I'm sure the deltec HOB would skim much better but personally I would have a hard time paying that price for any HOB skimmer.

Another option is the coralife super skimmer. Affordable and can be used as an HOB. The large one would easily out perfom a remora pro but is very bulky though. I think you need at least 8" behind the tank for it to fit.

Precision Marine HOB skimmer is supposed to work pretty well (better than a Remora I've been told) but I have never personally used one.
http://www.precisionmarine.com/html/hot-1.html

[JimD]

I have all three, Remora pro, BakPak and the PM Hot-1, all in all Im not overly impressed with any of them. The modified BakPak on my 30 I would say is working the best out of all three, I dont consider using a Maxi1200 on this skimmer an upgrade, they seem to work much better with a Rio 800 and the airstone mod, the Remora with a Mag 3 on a 40g trigger tank pulls a lot of green tea but no sludge and is considerably louder than the rest, the PM pulls a fair ammount of sludge out of my 65g sps display but it takes a while to do so. You may want to look into the LifeReef hang on, pricey but worth the investment in the long run. Ill be installing a semi hang on beckett on the display soon, should be an improvement.

[Ram_Puppy]

as the cone will prevent skimmate from reaching the cup as soon as it gets any slime on it. I will second that as mine stops as soon as it gets a little dirty.

are you sure your not talking about a Prizm? That skimmer has an inverted cone structure in it, there is nothing remotely 'cone like' in a remora pro. it's all right angles w/ a single cylinder for the uplift area.

Prizms are beyond a doubt the biggest junkers in the 'skimmer' market and I have never had so many problems w/ a device as i did w/ the prizm I had. (I would not even trade it to someone and relegated it to the trash heap of history.)

Remora Pro's are awesome skimmers. Best bang for your buck.

[blueboy]

sounds like the remora pro is a decent skimmer, but i don't like the comments about the noise. maybe i could set the skimmer on a timer to run during the day, and shut off around 5:30, then come back on around 11-12:00. as i said before, this tank must be silent.

[caferacermike]

as the cone will prevent skimmate from reaching the cup as soon as it gets any slime on it. I will second that as mine stops as soon as it gets a little dirty.

are you sure your not talking about a Prizm? That skimmer has an inverted cone structure in it, there is nothing remotely 'cone like' in a remora pro. it's all right angles w/ a single cylinder for the uplift area.

Prizms are beyond a doubt the biggest junkers in the 'skimmer' market and I have never had so many problems w/ a device as i did w/ the prizm I had. (I would not even trade it to someone and relegated it to the trash heap of history.)

Remora Pro's are awesome skimmers. Best bang for your buck.


I'm pretty sure it is a Remora but I could be wrong.
http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g48/caferacermike/100_1920.jpg
Prizms are garbage. My Remora was not worth the money I spent on it and anyone that wants it can have it for $50. That includes the MJ1200 and the overflow box. the overflow box retails for $50 alone.[/img]

[Ram_Puppy]

and there is a cone in yours?

that is wierd. that is what threw me off.

Remora Pro is MUCH better.

[Bill S]

I feel the same way about those horrible Jebo skimmers. I wouldn't even give mine away - I threw it away.

Several folks have written about how well they like the Coralife needlewheel skimmers.

[Ram_Puppy]

I think needlewheel is where it's at, recirculating skimmers that hit the water over and over before passing it through appear to be far superior.

that being said my HIATT is doing pretty darn nice too!

[Bill S]

I wish I could say the same about my Hiatt...

[Ram_Puppy]

I have been talking to richard about your Hiatt Bill, and I if i understand it, they think the bacteria is using up a micro nutrient that is becoming your limiting factor right?

I expect that we are going to see HIATTs become the dejour system for small systems like mine where large water changes are easy to come by, but not optimal for larger systems like yours.

[Bill S]

How about we not hijack this thread - I'll start another one.

[caferacermike]

By cone I only meant a generic term tha tmost any person could relate to as the riser for the skimmate. True it is not a cone but I think most would get the idea of what I was talking about even if they had never seen a Remora skimmer. If I had said bubble cylinder that could have been even more confusing to someone lookig at their regular sump skimmer.

[thedude]

Haha Mike, you know me too well already!

I've used a Remora in the past and really liked it for a HOB skimmer. It most definitely is loud due to the injector however.

And yes Deltec does make several HOB skimmers ;)

[Ram_Puppy]

hey, I am not trying to argue w/ you mike, sorry if you took it that way. I just remember what a prizm looked like on the insides (inverted cone shape) as opposed to a cylinder in a remora. I can relate perfectly well to what a cone is, (which is not a cylinder. ;) ) my apologies.

[Richard]

Ya'll are funny!



Maintenance
AquaC protein skimmers require very little maintenance. In order to achieve the maximum amount of efficiency from
your skimmer, it is recommended that you clean the foam tower and collection cup at least twice a week. This is
easily accomplished by wiping the foam tower with a wet rag and rinsing the cup thoroughly under warm water. The
collection cup can be quickly removed for hassle-free cleaning. Never use any cleaners, chemicals, or soap to wash
any part of the unit. The thick brown scum which rapidly accumulates along the sides of the foam tower greatly
impedes the performance of the skimmer. Therefore, it is recommended that you clean the foam tower often. If
possible, protein skimmer cleaning should be a daily priority.

[Ram_Puppy]

;) righto richard! :)

I knew they put that scrubby brush in my box for a reason! :) (actually i think to clean the injector)

A wad of wet paper towels does wonders. ;)

[reefguy210]

ive had great results with the coralife superskimmer, both65? and 110? versions. the only thing that bothered me was the high pitched, but quiet, whirr whirr whirr of the needle wheel going. other than that, great skimmer.

[Bill S]

Hmm. Too loud/obnoxious for a master bedroom?

[blueboy]

now ya'll have me curious about these coralife NW skimmers, but i think they require alot of space, ~8", if i remember correctly. the remora pro is under 4". i appreciate everyones input, keep it coming, we've got a good conversation going here.

[reefguy210]

yeah, the coralife superskimmer is big. it requires at least 4-8 inches of space behind your tank. also it has a diffuser box, but thats not very big at all. me personally, tank equiptment and hearing water move around helps me sleep alot easier. might be different for you.