Skimz...

[cbonito]

Anyone have experience with this brand?

I've been looking at skimmers and while I dont want one the size of a minuteman ballistic missile, I dont want a piece of junk either.

I have a cube tank and very little space under the stand. I have a small sump under there, but I can't fit a skimmer like I want to have down there, so I've been looking at external skimmers. This makes quality extremely important as I dont want some rickety cheap glued together deal leaking on the floor.

I am going to build a box next to my stand disguised as a plant stand and then have the skimmer in there next to the system.

Anyway, I was looking at this one which appears to be a nice deal.



SKIMZ SM 122 Monzter E-Series - External Protein Skimmer - AquaCave.com

I was thinking once the system becomes dense with stuff, I will have no problems keeping up. The only questions that remain are the quality of the brand.

Whattya think?

The only other alternative is to put a sump out of the stand and that is not what I want to do. It wont work where the tank is located.

Thoughts? Opinions?

[Jim_Dont_Care]

never used one but seen some videos on youtube it seems to make alot of foam couple on rc for sale maybe ask someone over there

[cbonito]

I have a thread up over there. Mainly, I asked what skimmer is pretty good for around 350ish bucks. Seems that price point has a lot of options. But many of them dont give you a lot for your money along the lines of quality.

Honestly, I'll pay upwards of 500-600 for something really nice.
But not if I dont have to.

I definitely want to go with something good and these skimmers seem to be very nicely made and functional like you say. Unfortunately, I am an oddball who does everything in an unconventional manner so I need an external skimmer now and this is something that not near as many people do. I asked on RC about skimmers and I got 100 different suggestions.

Sometimes you're better off not even asking. hehe

I think I'm just going to have to order it and give it a try.
They warranty thhe skimmer body for 2 years and the pump for a year which is more than most. The pumps are Sicce (I'm pretty sure) which are supposed to be pretty good and then I have to use a separate feed pump, or a gravity feed from my overflow. Since it's a small tank I'm skimming I think gravity feeding it would work fine as there isnt much necessity to move so much volume through it.

I can plumb one of my overflows into it and have it exhaust into my sump.

I'm going to order that, and I absolutely MUST buy a vortech pump as well.

[Jim_Dont_Care]

aqua c ev series are pretty good i beleive you can run those externally or reef octopus external now that they use new pumps hy series
my older reef octopus has a sincce pump creates alot of foam as well b ut i think their newer hy pumps make more

[wilco1rd]

Hello,

Ive ran a Skimz for about a year with very good results. Mine was a the 161 model and I recently took it down but plan on using it for my next build.

The only difficulty I had was initial set up. Because mine was the internal skimmer the water height was critical. Other than that the thing was really impressive.
If you choose to get it, loosen the air valve completely for a couple days while its in the initial break in period.

[cbonito]

Originally Posted by wilco1rd

Hello,

Ive ran a Skimz for about a year with very good results. Mine was a the 161 model and I recently took it down but plan on using it for my next build.

The only difficulty I had was initial set up. Because mine was the internal skimmer the water height was critical. Other than that the thing was really impressive.
If you choose to get it, loosen the air valve completely for a couple days while its in the initial break in period.

Thank You.

I might as well just order the thing and stop flapping my jaw. LOL
I could sit here and spend 6 months talking about skimmers and get nowhere.
I'm just going to give it a try and as always, i'll have to share my observations.

It appears to be exactly what I need.

I like a lot of the other skimmers on the market as well, but not many of them meet my narrow criteria is the problem since they wont fit under my stand.

[wilco1rd]

Originally Posted by cbonito

Thank You.

I might as well just order the thing and stop flapping my jaw. LOL
I could sit here and spend 6 months talking about skimmers and get nowhere.
I'm just going to give it a try and as always, i'll have to share my observations.

It appears to be exactly what I need.

I like a lot of the other skimmers on the market as well, but not many of them meet my narrow criteria is the problem since they wont fit under my stand.

Yea I agree, I was super happy with it. I was actually talked into it by someone else when I had my mind set on the new reef octopus but it was out of stock. I know skimz is a fairly new brand not many people are familiar with as well.
Anyways, Goodluck!

[cbonito]

Originally Posted by wilco1rd

Yea I agree, I was super happy with it. I was actually talked into it by someone else when I had my mind set on the new reef octopus but it was out of stock. I know skimz is a fairly new brand not many people are familiar with as well.
Anyways, Goodluck!

I'm ordering it tomorrow. I think it's going to prove to be a great skimmer. At least for me.

And I have to get me one of those mp10s as well. This tank will have a good 1 inch wave in it. I think having as good wave is necessary in a reef tank, and nothing seems to do it like a wavebox, or a vortech.

[Jim_Dont_Care]

watching the movment of corals sway is worth the wave lol not sure if there are beafits though besides it will knoch deter loose

[jamesbellottie]

I run the SKIMZ SM 201 Monzter E-Series its a great skimmer but it is very touchy when setting.

[cbonito]

Originally Posted by jamesbellottie

I run the SKIMZ SM 201 Monzter E-Series its a great skimmer but it is very touchy when setting.

And that's an internal sump skimmer....I'm wondering if the external will be the same.

One thing I plan to do is put a valve on the output of the feed pump to get a little better adjustment. I dont know what flow I really need, but I'm guessing something around 200-250 gph would be fine for my system.

I was going to gravity feed this off an overflow, but then I thought if I have a 1 inch wave in the tank from a vortech, the flow from the overflow might be erratic and also affect the water level in the skimmer....

I'm just going to have to find out.

Glad to hear you like yours. I have been told by a couple others they are a bit touchy. That's ok though. As long as it does a good job. It's light years ahead of whats there now. I dont even want to talk about that. lol

I'm ordering it right now.

With a 2 year warranty on the body and the 1 year on the pump, I can't lose.

[cbonito]

Originally Posted by jim48442

watching the movment of corals sway is worth the wave lol not sure if there are beafits though besides it will knoch deter loose

One observation i have made is coral growth. I've always had a unidirectional flow and corals have grown in an odd manner because of it.

Thsi is why I want a wave. Plus polyps seem to extend a lot better with a back and forth motion. And lastly, yep, it keeps crap off all the corals. I have caps for example that I have to blow off regularly to keep stuff off them.

I think it will be a great addition to my system and an aesthetic one as well.
230 bucks is a cheap price to pay for something that does all that.

[jamesbellottie]

it also nice because it has a low power consumption. Aqua caves site says 20 watts for the skimmer I have and when I got it, it says 17 watts on the pump.

[cbonito]

Originally Posted by jamesbellottie

it also nice because it has a low power consumption. Aqua caves site says 20 watts for the skimmer I have and when I got it, it says 17 watts on the pump.

Awesome.

yeah, my systems were serious power hogs in the past with 400 watt halides, overpowered pumps etc...

Now, I'm using LEDs for light, and enjoying all this new stuff that uses a lot less electricity.

My electric bills have been between 250 and 300 bucks a month for years.

I've switched to LED lighting throughout the house as welll and I like it. Took about 100 bucks off there alone, and the tanks will be icing on the cake.

[cbonito]

Ordered.