Upgrading skimmer

juan jose · 01/08/2007, 12:17 PM

Hi, I have a 100 gallon I upgraded my sand bed to arag alive from carib sea a few months ago(from silica sand). I also included macroalgae in my sump which has grown quickly (IÂ´m supplementing Iron to help the macro grow). I started dosing kalkwasser via a custom made reactor on my evaporation water tank. My phosphates were reduced drastically and have no apparent reading on my salifert tests. My nitrates also have come down drastically (.02). I suddenly started to watch my algae problems disappear but they have returned in small quantities. A little of brown algae and some green hair, I guess my tests are not that sharp since I have algae in the tank or everything is being consumed on the tank by the algae. My corals appear to do fine but some have been affected by the algae. My weak spot I believe is my skimmer. ItÂ´s a redsea which was included when I bought the tank. My question is if a bigger skimmer would make a big difference on the algae problem or I should look elsewhere for the problem. I have to clean the redsea cup every 2-3 days. I was thinking on a g3 from asm. IÂ´m trying to eliminate the problem from itÂ´s origin because I donÂ´t like to add chemicals to the tank. I try to do 2 water canges per month 10-15% each.
I have two seio 1500, 2 rio 800 2 rio600 for flow.
Please advise....

juan jose · 01/08/2007, 12:30 PM

I added a few pics of the tank on my gallery if someone wishes to take a look. I will post also a pics of the skimmer and macro.
Thanks.

luke33 · 01/08/2007, 01:26 PM

Yes a skimmer will help take out the organic waste that converts into nitrates. Are you looking for a HOB or sump skimmer.

juan jose · 01/08/2007, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by luke33
Yes a skimmer will help take out the organic waste that converts into nitrates. Are you looking for a HOB or sump skimmer.

IÂ´m looking for an in sump skimmer my actual redsea is a sump skimmer. I saw the g3 asm skimmer which IÂ´ve heard itÂ´s efficient and cheap. The cylinderÂ´s diameter on the g3 is as big as my redseaÂ´s base. The chamber on my redsea appears to be halve of the asmÂ´s g3. I hope this is the key to my algae problem. CanÂ´t think of anything else.

luke33 · 01/08/2007, 01:54 PM

I hate to ask this but do you use tap water or rodi? And check out the euro reef for sale on the front of premium aquatics page. I think it would work great on your tank. In sump $180 bones I think.

juan jose · 01/08/2007, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by luke33
I hate to ask this but do you use tap water or rodi? And check out the euro reef for sale on the front of premium aquatics page. I think it would work great on your tank. In sump $180 bones I think.

yes I have been using ro water for a long time

bertoni · 01/08/2007, 07:17 PM

I bought a Euro-Reef skimmer for my 75g. They are not cheap, but they tend to get good reviews. There's no objective data, though.

Other brands include ASM, H&S, and Deltec. The last two brands are fairly expensive.

Poorcollegereef · 01/08/2007, 07:33 PM

I really like my Euro-Reef, highly recommend it.

juan jose · 01/09/2007, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Poorcollegereef
I really like my Euro-Reef, highly recommend it.

IÂ´ve read asm and euroreef use the same system but asm is cheaper due to a different material being used. Is this true?

sjm817 · 01/09/2007, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by juan jose
IÂ´ve read asm and euroreef use the same system but asm is cheaper due to a different material being used. Is this true?

ASM and ER used to use the same pumps and have similar performance. ASM used to be much cheaper than ER which made people tolerate the extremely cheap construction.

Things have changed. ER has updated their pumps which now often draw 2x the air of an equivalent sized ASM. They also lowered their prices and ASM raised theirs. Now you can get a ER for ~ the same price as ASM. You get a better performing better built skimmer for a similar price. If you are looking at a G3, the RS135 would be the one to consider.

Edit:
I see you are in Mexico. I dont know how ER and ASM prices compare there.

juan jose · 01/09/2007, 10:30 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by sjm817
ASM and ER used to use the same pumps and have similar performance. ASM used to be much cheaper than ER which made people tolerate the extremely cheap construction.

Things have changed. ER has updated their pumps which now often draw 2x the air of an equivalent sized ASM. They also lowered their prices and ASM raised theirs. Now you can get a ER for ~ the same price as ASM. You get a better performing better built skimmer for a similar price. If you are looking at a G3, the RS135 would be the one to consider.

Edit:
I see you are in Mexico. I dont know how ER and ASM prices compare there.

Thanks for the great info on the ER. I think itÂ´s worthwhile looking at the ER. I found the G3 for 259 dollars. I will let you know for how much the RS135 goes for. I would buy them in the states and have them shipped to my hometown. Here in Mexico the G3 goes for 520 dollars at the lfs. Do you know a store where I can get cheap Er besides premium aquatics.

sjm817 · 01/09/2007, 10:34 AM

I really like Premium Aquatics and do most of my business with them. They have fantastic customer service. It seems the ASM prices have gone down again. $259 for the G3 is pretty cheap.

Also look at the Octopus skimmers NW150 and NW200 (P.A. also has them). A better skimmer than ASM and is cheaper as well.

01/08/2007, 12:17 PM	#1
juan jose Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: guadalajara mexico Posts: 232	Upgrading skimmer Hi, I have a 100 gallon I upgraded my sand bed to arag alive from carib sea a few months ago(from silica sand). I also included macroalgae in my sump which has grown quickly (IÂ´m supplementing Iron to help the macro grow). I started dosing kalkwasser via a custom made reactor on my evaporation water tank. My phosphates were reduced drastically and have no apparent reading on my salifert tests. My nitrates also have come down drastically (.02). I suddenly started to watch my algae problems disappear but they have returned in small quantities. A little of brown algae and some green hair, I guess my tests are not that sharp since I have algae in the tank or everything is being consumed on the tank by the algae. My corals appear to do fine but some have been affected by the algae. My weak spot I believe is my skimmer. ItÂ´s a redsea which was included when I bought the tank. My question is if a bigger skimmer would make a big difference on the algae problem or I should look elsewhere for the problem. I have to clean the redsea cup every 2-3 days. I was thinking on a g3 from asm. IÂ´m trying to eliminate the problem from itÂ´s origin because I donÂ´t like to add chemicals to the tank. I try to do 2 water canges per month 10-15% each. I have two seio 1500, 2 rio 800 2 rio600 for flow. Please advise....

01/08/2007, 12:30 PM	#2
juan jose Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: guadalajara mexico Posts: 232	Re: Upgrading skimmer I added a few pics of the tank on my gallery if someone wishes to take a look. I will post also a pics of the skimmer and macro. Thanks.

01/08/2007, 07:17 PM	#7
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I bought a Euro-Reef skimmer for my 75g. They are not cheap, but they tend to get good reviews. There's no objective data, though. Other brands include ASM, H&S, and Deltec. The last two brands are fairly expensive. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

01/09/2007, 10:34 AM	#12
sjm817 On Yer left! Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Northern VA Posts: 18,777	I really like Premium Aquatics and do most of my business with them. They have fantastic customer service. It seems the ASM prices have gone down again. $259 for the G3 is pretty cheap. Also look at the Octopus skimmers NW150 and NW200 (P.A. also has them). A better skimmer than ASM and is cheaper as well. __________________ - Scott

01/08/2007, 01:26 PM	#3
luke33 Moved On Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Indiana Posts: 8,375	Yes a skimmer will help take out the organic waste that converts into nitrates. Are you looking for a HOB or sump skimmer.

01/08/2007, 01:54 PM	#5
luke33 Moved On Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Indiana Posts: 8,375	I hate to ask this but do you use tap water or rodi? And check out the euro reef for sale on the front of premium aquatics page. I think it would work great on your tank. In sump $180 bones I think.

01/08/2007, 07:33 PM	#8
Poorcollegereef Future Doc Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: DC Posts: 961	I really like my Euro-Reef, highly recommend it.