In Need of Skimmer

[Kyle]

I currently have a Prizm Skimmer on my 55g and it isnt cutting it, it is a pain to adjust right and I havnt had to empty it in a month. What should I upgrade too? I dont want to spend a fortune maybe around $150-$200 and I'll have to see whats available at my LFS so I can get 30% off. Any suggestions are apreciated, oh and it has to be a HOB

[unleashed]

DELTEC MCE300 is what I use and it's great and not too expensive. Also, DELTEC is a very reliable brand and is one of the top brands in the aquarium hobby

[Dave66]

I use Aqua-C skimmers on all my tanks, thus I recommend them. Not cheap, but like anything, you get what you pay for.

Dave

[NickFish]

I like the Tunze DOC models. Not really cheap though, but they aren't super expensive really.

[cocoa_pleco]

I use the coralife skimmers, theyre good

[oldhead]

I currently have a Prizm Skimmer on my 55g and it isnt cutting it, it is a pain to adjust right and I havnt had to empty it in a month. What should I upgrade too? I dont want to spend a fortune maybe around $150-$200 and I'll have to see whats available at my LFS so I can get 30% off. Any suggestions are apreciated, oh and it has to be a HOB


I just got one of these today and man is it pretty loud. Are they all like this or is it just cause it and my tank are still pretty new? The noise has me ready to send it back already. I thought skimmers would supposed to be silent for the most part??

[cocoa_pleco]

I just got one of these today and man is it pretty loud. Are they all like this or is it just cause it and my tank are still pretty new? The noise has me ready to send it back already. I thought skimmers would supposed to be silent for the most part??

red seas are known to be loud, inefficient, and need to be adjusted regularly

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

Not all Red Sea skimmers are bad, I am running one of the in-sump models and it does a great job. Prizims are cheap and you get what you pay for with them. One of my favorite skimmers is the Octopus, if I can ever see my way clear to upgrade, I will do it in a heartbeat.

[cocoa_pleco]

Not all Red Sea skimmers are bad, I am running one of the in-sump models and it does a great job. Prizims are cheap and you get what you pay for with them. One of my favorite skimmers is the Octopus, if I can ever see my way clear to upgrade, I will do it in a heartbeat.

lol, forgot to mention that in my last post i was talking about prizms

[oldhead]

lol, forgot to mention that in my last post i was talking about prizms


What skimmer would you rec for a 65g tank that's quiet, efficient and won't decimate the pocketbook??? I think I'm gonna go ahead and box this one back up. But I don't know what to get. Sorry for hijacking the thread too. :confused:

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

CPR or a Coralife. The Coralife skimmer is nice because of its versatility, it can be used as a HOB skimmer or as an in-sump skimmer.

[reef12]

I use to use this never had a problem.

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Plus a Berlin one also.

[oldhead]

CPR or a Coralife. The Coralife skimmer is nice because of its versatility, it can be used as a HOB skimmer or as an in-sump skimmer.


I was eying these 2 are they both quiet?

[cocoa_pleco]

I was eying these 2 are they both quiet?

coralife is dead quiet

[oldhead]

coralife is dead quiet


Dead quiet outta the box or will I have to go buy something additional to silence it? Sorry for all the questions, just looking to make sure that I get it right this time.

[Kyle]

Hey I just bought a Coralife last night and it is pretty quiet but for a HOB skimmer its kind of ugly as the pump just kind of hangs in your tank. So I put my prizm back on till I do a sump. Hey one thing you might want to check into is calling redsea (I think makes prizm?) or whoever makes it, I read that they have a new blade for them that is supposed to be quieter and more efficient?

[oldhead]

Hey I just bought a Coralife last night and it is pretty quiet but for a HOB skimmer its kind of ugly as the pump just kind of hangs in your tank. So I put my prizm back on till I do a sump. Hey one thing you might want to check into is calling redsea (I think makes prizm?) or whoever makes it, I read that they have a new blade for them that is supposed to be quieter and more efficient?



I might look into that, thanks. I've heard so many horror stories about the pizm now that I think I may just return it though. I have been eyeing the Coralife but I keep running into threads that say it has problems with overflowing all over the floor. Some people have reported losing 1/3 of the water from their tank :ssuprised:!!! I wish there were an easy way to get some sort of official rating on these things. Or just some unbiased opinion on quality, sheesh. I guess my search continues. Out of all the things I might have trouble finding for my tank the skimmer was the definitely way down the list...

[Kyle]

That is why I havnt put my coralife on the back of my tank. After I got it and read sooo many complaints about overflowing. Mine dont have a spot where I can add a drain line though. But I'm just going to wait to get a sump and put it in there so if it overflows its just right back into the sump.

[oldhead]

Well after hours and hours of reading and reasearch I think I'm going to settle on the AquaC Remora HOB skimmer with the MaxiJet 1200. Nearly everything I've read about them has been positive. I'm gonna continue searching a bit more but right now that line looks to be me.

[mxman311]

I am in need of a protein skimmer as well. I really want one that isnt so ugly though. Im am thinking the prizm skimmer because I can hid it pretty easy. What stealth skimmers are out there?

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

Skip on the prizim, they are garbage. You are going to have to realize that skimmers are not about looks, they are about funcitonality. If you want something that works well then look into either the BackPac skimmers of the HOB versions of the Octopus skimmers.

[unleashed]

How about a Deltec MCE 300 or a MCE 600? Very good quality skimmers

I use the MCE 300 on my 55g

[mxman311]

What about this one? Its in my price range. Still crap?

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[cocoa_pleco]

What about this one? Its in my price range. Still crap?

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jebo is kinda not the best brand, and HOB skimmers suck. coralifes are a little over a hundred bucks but awesome skimmers

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

I agree, don't skimp on the skimmer. Leave the Jebo on the shelf. I've heard a lot of bad things about them.

[mxman311]

While im saving for a good one I bought the Red Sea Prizm for 25 bucks. Figured it could atleast help out untill I get 100 bucks to get a nice one. I guess im gonna have to set up a sump tank because i dont want to see it.

[oldhead]

Not a bad buy for $25 bucks to get you started. You'll defnitely wanna upgrade though later on. The Prizm is good for you to learn on. You'll defnitely be able to see the differnce in things once you upgrade. Check into the Octopus line, I love mine and I get good dark skimmate often. And I have a very low bio-load at the moment as the tank is barely 2 months old and doesn't have much in it.

[mxman311]

Ok so question about the skimmer. Since my tank is only a couple weeks old should I turn it off? I was thinking that maybe I should have a little crap floating around to help feed the corals? Any thoughts?

[unleashed]

just leave it on

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

Yes, leave it on. The only time my skimmer gets turned off is when I feed my corals Phytoplankton, and even then it only gets turned off for about half an hour.

[cocoa_pleco]

yep, leave it on. I clean mine once a month and thats it for turning it off.

GB, i actually didnt know youre supposed to fire it off when you dose phytoplankton, i dose my standard 55g with it. guess i should shut it off then