Need a new skimmer......need advice

[steveoutlaw]

Ok, the skimmer that came with my tank is a piece of *@. I can't get it to work right and from everything I've read nobody else can get theirs to work right either. I need a decent skimmer for a 120 gallon but don't want to break the bank. I was looking at ASM skimmers and then came across a thread on RC that was talking about the Coralife Super Skimmer. Anyone heard of these?

 

Anyway, I need to order one this afternoon so I can get it here by this weekend. I'd appreciate any and all advice on this matter.

 

Thanks.

[Guest alex wlazlak]

whats wrong with your skimmer.....i have a seaclone 100 and a cyclone bak-pak2 in a 55 gallon tank, just starting to add some soft harty corals. i cant get my skimmers to not spit out so many darn little bubbles. do you or anybody else know what the dealio is????im mad because there are like billions of tiny bubbles when i turn the skimmer on!! the problem is rediculous. could the salt content being too high have somthing to do with it?

[dchild]

No recommendation on the skimmer. As far as the bubles go - are you running those skimmers on the back of your tank? Unfortunately a skimmer's job is to create bubbles cause the more and the smaller the bubbles, the more gunk it can skim out. Do you have a sump? The way I deal with bubbles is positioning of the skimmer return and the overflow return within my sump so the bubbles have a chance to dissipate. People commonly add baffles to their sump so the water has to go over, then under, then over etc to give the bubbles have time to dissipate before they are returned to the main tank.

[fishface]

www.wetwebmedia.com is a very helpful site if you haven't been there yet. Fenner, Calfo and many others are the moderators (and possibly the owners). The rest of the staff is nationwide. That helps when issues come up and they often can make recommendation of places nearby. Steve Pro, who spoke at our last meeting is also a frequent contributor. In addition, it appears that the e-tailers that sponsor their site have to pass muster on products and knowledge.

 

The format is that they paste emailed questions and responses into their site to give a wealth of knowledge. They cover every aspect of Marine care, and it's also helpful to know others are having frustration with the same issues...

 

In the end, if you can't find a good resolution, you will be able to pickup on recomended replacements for the skimmer that you are unhappy with.

 

P.S. If you don't have a sump, that's a good direction to consider now if you are making changes. They increase water volume, are a good place to put skimmers and other equipment, and maybe later on in a later stage you might use it as a refugium.

 

FF

[fishface]

Here's the link to the section on the Seaclone:

 

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/seacloneskimfaqs.htm

 

FF

[Guest alex wlazlak]

the problem is that i do not have a sump...:( i herd that if your tank isnt drilled than it really isnt worth it to get a sump or wet/dry. like it had somthing to do with the power going off and at my house unfotunitly it happens a little too often to screw around with it. but if you have any sugestions towards a sump that i could probly do or somthing reply.thanks

[Guest jonho1998]

The tank I'm breaking down right now doesn't have a sump. I've had a seaclone in the past and I hated it - it leaks after a while and it's pretty much crap in my humble opinion.

 

You can spend a little more and get a prizm skimmer. I've found that for the money, this skimmer does a bang up job.

 

I'm actually going to be getting rid of my prizm because when I set up my tank again after I move, I will be converting to a sump. The skimmer needs a couple of replacements parts. The pump is still good as is the main skimmer body.

 

The replacement parts would be a new holding cup for the skimmed crap and a piece of thin rubber tubing that apparently shrunk over time.

 

Let me know if you're interested. I can show it to you and sell it you for cheap (like $20 basically the price of the pump). They're $80+ brand new (mine is the higher end model that has the surface skimmer and stuff).

 

 

 

the problem is that i do not have a sump...:( i herd that if your tank isnt drilled than it really isnt worth it to get a sump or wet/dry. like it had somthing to do with the power going off and at my house unfotunitly it happens a little too often to screw around with it. but if you have any sugestions towards a sump that i could probly do or somthing reply.thanks

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[HowardofNOVA]

Alex,

There are a bunch of folks WITHOUT bulkheads running beautiful tanks with overflow boxes! Don't use that as an excuse to not join them.

When trying to increase flow in your tank, your choices are basically:

#1 Add/increase more internal powerheads

#2 Add an overflow box

#3 Empty tank, take to LFS and have them drill a bulkhead hole

#4 Drain water down enough to drill hole where tank stand, not recommended but has been done numerous times. Very risky!

Each has their own advantages/disadvantages. Choice is yours, but they all work.

Howard