Skimmer Question

[Jamie]

OK...I'm not trying to harass everyone about what the best skimmer is/what brand I should get. That's been done a few times and I think I've got a handle on the "good" brands.

Well, my 150 is finishing up its cycle. I'd like to get a skimmer running, but I don't have a lot of cash at the moment. I want to get a quality skimmer like a euroreef, but can't dish out the cash for one rated for my tank. I've come across a few used ones that are rated for less than my tank...that I can afford...like an RS80. Is having a skimmer that's not rated for your tank better than no skimmer at all? I'm thinking yes...but I'm not sure.

Does anyone have any thoughts to share? I could just go with something like a Corallife Super Skimmer, but I'm half wondering if it'll even do as good a job as one of the smaller Euroreefs...hmmmm.

Thanks for any input,
Jamie

[PeeJ]

Nautilus: budget skimmer with serious bang for the buck.


OK...I'm not trying to harass everyone about what the best skimmer is/what brand I should get. That's been done a few times and I think I've got a handle on the "good" brands.

Well, my 150 is finishing up its cycle. I'd like to get a skimmer running, but I don't have a lot of cash at the moment. I want to get a quality skimmer like a euroreef, but can't dish out the cash for one rated for my tank. I've come across a few used ones that are rated for less than my tank...that I can afford...like an RS80. Is having a skimmer that's not rated for your tank better than no skimmer at all? I'm thinking yes...but I'm not sure.

Does anyone have any thoughts to share? I could just go with something like a Corallife Super Skimmer, but I'm half wondering if it'll even do as good a job as one of the smaller Euroreefs...hmmmm.

Thanks for any input,
Jamie

[erikharrison]

I did that and spent alot more money. If you are close to having enough, just wait it out. You don't want to stock your tank that fast anyway!! :)

[apedroza]

Looking on the for sale thread of this site or on bigger sites will also save you a lot of money??? Be patient and eventually you'll come across someone trying to sell one off cheap. Do more water changes to keep your tank clean until you do get one. Also Ace has been know to make a nice skimmer at a good price!!!

[Jamie]

OK...maybe waiting is the best bet. I won't be adding any corals for several months anyway. I'm guessing the few fish I stock until that time will be alright.

Sir Hobo, is it true that you make skimmers?

Also, despite the fact that I live in Corpus...I'd really like to contribute to the association. Maybe I could catch a couple meetings. Does the board take paypal?...(sorry to get off topic).

Thanks, Jamie

[erikharrison]

Ace makes everything! Treasurer@maast.org is the paypal if I remember correctly, but you may want to pm Sherri as last I heard they were having PayPal issues. You should be alright adding a few fish, have you added alot of LR and how deep is your sand bed?

[Jamie]

Thanks for the info Eric. I'll PM Sherri to be sure.

My tank has 100lbs of LR and another 80lbs of previously dried LR that will be seeded. My sand bed is about 2 inches deep.

I started my initial cycle 9 weeks ago. In week 6, I decided to go FOWLR as a step towards a reef. When I added the LR, I had a buch of die-off and hence a subsequent rise on everything again. Right now my params are: 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 40ppm nitrates. SG is 1.025 and pH is right around 8.2-8.3. I tried to test for phosphate but the test kit didn't give me an accurate reading...i.e. yellow on a blue scale???

I plan on doing a large water change today to get my trates down. One flaw with the tank is that I've got about 9 gallons of bioballs in the sump...which I've heard harbor nitrates...I'm thinking by the time I'm ready for my lights and skimmer, I'll have removed them slowly since the skimmer's going in that portion of the sump anyway. The LR should be spreading as well. :wink_smile:

[hobogato]

Sir Hobo, is it true that you make skimmers?


yep. single beckett up to 30" tall for $250. you would still need a pump to run it, i use a mag12 on mine.

btw - this is the skimmer i run on my 400gallon heavily stocked system.

[caferacermike]

The RS80 is an awesome little skimmer. I had to clean mine on my 75g about once a week, so on a 150g you may need to clean it more often.

Skimmer ratings are difficult for me to understand as it seems like witchcraft to me. Are the manufacturers saying a smaller skimmer won't work on a larger tank or is that they are more hassle. I've had several ER skimmers, from the smallest to the largest (over 5 feet tall) and what I found was that my RS80 worked better on my 75g than the RS180 I now have on it. The RS180 seems to dirty the neck and lose performance way faster than the RS80 did. That or it's done such a bang up job of removing waste that there is no more to remove, yeah right with my algae?

What ever you pay for the RS80 used, you should be able to recover quickly when it's time to sell it and upgrade.

Look for ASM as they are basically ER clones (ER swears that their design is much different and better of course) and are about half the price.

Check out what I found on Ebay NEW for $260, an ASM G2 rated for 200g.. http://cgi.ebay.com/ASM-G-2-Protein-Skimmer-G-Series-Sump-G2-FREE-S-H_W0QQitemZ300165448705QQihZ020QQcategoryZ46313QQr dZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

If I was on a budget this is probably what I'd shoot for.

[apedroza]

Here's a decent skimmer for sale in the forum.
http://maast.org/forums/showthread.php?t=39603

[Jamie]

apedroza, I saw that one...but it falls in the "not rated for my tank" category.