protein skimmer question

[xsdbs]

my tank is 150 gallons and I am currently not using a protein skimmer on it, however I am seriously thinking that this is the next most important piece of equipment that I need to add to the system. There are some many different ones out there so I am looking for advice so that I don't spend wasted money. Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[fsn77]

How heavy of a bioload in the tank?
Space limitations -- any potential footprint or height issues?

 

[Ace25]

:iagree: Need more information. Are you looking for HOB, in sump, or external skimmer? How many fish and how big/often do you do waterchanges. If your going "in sump" what is the biggest footprint you have in your sump to place a skimmer?

 

[xsdbs]

I only have 2 fish right now, a 3-3.5 in coral beauty and a smaller tomato. I had a couple others but have lost them as well as several corals due to a loss of electricity a short while back and with things being tough I just haven't really added to the tank. However I am wanting to start restocking my tank and just got done with my CL system earlier in the week and it needs a little adjusting. As for water changes I was doing about 30 gallons every 2-3 weeks. I have asked about this in the past and it was mentioned to do more frequent smaller changes. ( life just makes this difficult @ times).
I have a sump that has a lip that I can open up a bit that will give me about a 8x10 footprint if I need to go that large. Height limits is about 15- 18 inches. I could do some slight massaging to get to 24 inches if needed. My main thought is getting the system set up so I won't be kicking myself in the tail when it does start to get stocked. I have heard that a skimmer is one of the more important items to have in a reef tank.

 

[Ace25]

I have heard that a skimmer is one of the more important items to have in a reef tank.

I used to tout that line as well for a while.. but my own experience definately tells me the opposite. Just like the common answer to "is a tank that has been treated with copper safe to use?" question... you always get the same misinformation that is repeated over and over and it simply isn't true, my opinion on skimmers goes against the normal answer as well. I do not believe it is nearly as critical as people seem to make you believe. Yes, a decent skimmer is a great idea, but I see absolutely no reason to spend $1200+ on something like a BubbleKing skimmer or even $800 on a WarnerMarine K2 Cone skimmer.

There are 2 camps... the "ULN" camp (Ultra Low Nutrient), and the complete opposite of "Follow nature" were nutrient levels are fairly high around coral reefs. I lean towards the follow nature side, although I think having a decent skimmer like an AquaC Remora or Deltec skimmer is a good idea, I see no reason to get a skimmer so big and expensive that it takes 20 gallons to fill it and a pump larger than your return pump to run it just to get your tank a little cleaner. I have seen a few peoples tanks that fall into the ULN camp and I have never been impressed. Good growth on their corals, but horrible coloring, almost to the point everything looks nearly bleach white.

8x10 @ 24" is a very tight fit for an AquaC Remora or Urchin. I don't think that is even enough room for the "Pro" version which is what I would call bare minumum for your size tank. I run the regular, smaller non Pro version of the Remora on my 75G and I love the thing. I know it isn't even close to being "rated" for my tank according to most reefers, but my results speak for themselves and when others see my tank and see my skimmer, they never say another word about it.

 

[Ace25]

Here, let me point you to something that backs up my thinking about skimmers. It is a VERY long, boring, mostly over your head article, but if you can manage to get through it you can get the meaning of the study. lol. Or skip to the bottom and just read the conclusion. I always said to others, I don't care if my skimmer takes 10 passes to do the same job your $1200 skimmer can do in one pass, just means more food for my corals.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2009/1/aafeature2

Here is a great quote when comparing 4 similarly rated but very different in cost and function, yet, they all end up doing the same amount of skimming for the tank.

Thus, all skimmers tested remove around 20 - 30% of the TOC in the aquarium water, and that's it; 70 - 80% of the measurable TOC is left behind unperturbed by the skimming process. It may be possible to develop a rationalization for this unexpected behavior by referring back to Fig. 1. Perhaps only 20 - 30% of the organic species in the aquarium water meet the hydrophobic requirements for bubble capture, whereas the remaining 70-80%, for whatever reason, don't.

Four skimmers having four different reaction chamber volumes and representing four distinct types of bubble generation (needlewheel, venturi, airstone, and downdraft) were tested under the manufacturers' specified conditions. These tests revealed that there was no demonstrable difference between the Euroreef CS80 needlewheel skimmer, the Precision Marine ES100 venturi skimmer, the Precision Marine AP624 airstone skimmer, and the ETSS evolution 500 downdraft skimmer with respect to the rate constant for either TOC or BSA removal. Thus it is fair to conclude that, at least for the skimmers tested under the specified conditions, the individual manufacturers' claims of superior performance are without merit. Whether this conclusion can be extended to other skimmers remains to be seen.

 

[xsdbs]

thanks Ace for the link, I started reading and I did jump to the bottom of the page where I found your quotes also. I guess I will need to think about this a little more before just jumping in. I have in the past spent money on unnecessary items. As well I will need to reconsider placement of the unit.

 

[Almondsaz]

You are certainly going about it the right way. I wasted a lot of money finding the right one for me and my system.