Protein Skimmers: SWC vs. Reef Octopus

[snow_boarder151]

I am in the process of picking out a skimmer and have narrowed my choices down to between the SWC Extreme 160 Cone and the Reef Octopus 4" Recirculating Skimmer OCT . Can anyone give me some insight into which would be the better choice taking into account all criteria i.e. price, function, noise, lifetime. I will be running it in a 30 Gallon sump/fuge with 90 Gal. DT. Any advice would be much appreciated as this is one of the components of the system that i want to get right on the first try!
TIA

[sneaton]

ive had the swc for 1.5 years and turn it on and off everyday......it skims so much crap its unbelieveable....its almost silent...i say almost cause if your close to it you can hear the air sucking and bubbles popping...the quality of skim is unmatched in my eyes....plus if you order from reef filtration he will sell you new pumps for 35 bucks if it should ever fail.....

[kieffer_5]

I have heard nothing but good news for the swc. That's what I would go with

[snow_boarder151]

Thats what i have been hearing as well, just needed the confirmation. So you would suggest buying from Reef Filtration? i realize i will be spending in the ball park of $300 but i would like to find it as cheap as possible.

[Saltwatercoral2]

if ur ball park price is 300 get a sro 2000int, its like 360 but u can find a 10% coupon code for it. Ive owned the swc skimmers and the pumps are complete junk, The sro 200int has a 3 year warranty on the pump.

[sneaton]

the sro pump has a 3 year warranty because its loud and rusty.....if the pump fails on the swc its 35 bucks so who cares....mine has been working great for 1.5 years so i think i got my 35 worth....sometimes big als has a 10% off coupon making the swc $246 shipped

[Stupidhatmatt]

I would take the SWC 160 over the RO 4 but to me the equal comparison would be the XP1000. Keep in mind, there have been some legal issues with SWC and it seems to me (in my area) these skimmers are getting harder and harder to find.

[Stupidhatmatt]

Originally Posted by sneaton

the sro pump has a 3 year warranty because its loud and rusty.....if the pump fails on the swc its 35 bucks so who cares....mine has been working great for 1.5 years so i think i got my 35 worth....sometimes big als has a 10% off coupon making the swc $246 shipped

Yeah, you are pretty much wrong. The Bubble Blaster pumps are amongst the best in industry. Further more, the Atman pump that the SWC uses has huge problems and fails often. Even further more, the rust issue was with a small run of defective screws that has since been rectified. But hey, this is the internet and anyone can spread misinformation whenever they want.

[k.tran]

+1 the SWC owner has been having legal troubles. I would look into a different option

[jason2459]

I would personally choose anything but SWC considering long running moral/ethical and now legal issues. If you really want an Atman pump because they are cheap I would go with the bubblemagus or the eBay SC skimmers. They are a cheap pump but are fairly quite and with the right body have a decent production. I'm a big fan of the SRO line as the non-cone versions are a great bang for the buck and the bubble blaster pumps are more expensive but have a great warranty, comes with good customer services, and the bubble blaster pumps produce a nice balance of air/water flow which are matched up nicely with the bodies they are paired up with. Otherwise other good deals are the Vertex In series, JNS skimmers, Avast peg leg, and Aquamax.

[wildman926]

Originally Posted by jason2459

I would personally choose anything but SWC considering long running moral/ethical and now legal issues. If you really want an Atman pump because they are cheap I would go with the bubblemagus or the eBay SC skimmers. They are a cheap pump but are fairly quite and with the right body have a decent production. I'm a big fan of the SRO line as the non-cone versions are a great bang for the buck and the bubble blaster pumps are more expensive but have a great warranty, comes with good customer services, and the bubble blaster pumps produce a nice balance of air/water flow which are matched up nicely with the bodies they are paired up with. Otherwise other good deals are the Vertex In series, JNS skimmers, Avast peg leg, and Aquamax.

Good info!

[drummereef]

I'd go with the Octopus product any day over SWC. Long story but... I went through a battle with them a couple years ago over a manufacturing issue with an original SWC skimmer I owned. SWC was completely unwilling to fulfill their own factory warranty because I live in the States and it would have cost them too much to replace. Marine Solutions (MSX- former US dealer of SWC products) came through and allowed me to return the skimmer and was replaced (upgraded) with a 250A - Askoll pump. Now that Marine Solutions no longer deals SWC I would stay far away from them. Luckily for me the guys at Marine Solutions were accommodating to my situation even though it wasn't their battle to fight. That's not to say my SWC250A isn't a good skimmer, it's very good... just the company behind them is worthless.

CoralVue Tech- manufacturer of Octopus skimmers is located in Louisiana so if you have a warranty issue they are close by. And their tech support and parts availability is second to none. I just ordered some metric PVC from them a couple weeks ago. They were the only place in the country that had it.

[Saltwatercoral2]

Originally Posted by sneaton

the sro pump has a 3 year warranty because its loud and rusty.....if the pump fails on the swc its 35 bucks so who cares....mine has been working great for 1.5 years so i think i got my 35 worth....sometimes big als has a 10% off coupon making the swc $246 shipped

The pump is cheap for a reason....

[jbannick18]

Love my swc no issues for a year and no start up issues

[sirreal63]

Originally Posted by sneaton

ive had the swc for 1.5 years and turn it on and off everyday......it skims so much crap its unbelieveable....its almost silent...i say almost cause if your close to it you can hear the air sucking and bubbles popping...the quality of skim is unmatched in my eyes....plus if you order from reef filtration he will sell you new pumps for 35 bucks if it should ever fail.....

Actually you have had it for just a few weeks past a year.

OP no question I would get the SRO, CoralVue is a top notch company who isn't in a legal battle like the SWC guy.

[Buzz1329]

Kinda reluctant to comment given the heated comments in this thread, but I hey I'm game. I can't compare the SWC 160 with the RO as I've only used the SWC. But FWIW, after a month of use on my 75, I'm happy with the SWC. I am now getting a cup of dark crud 2x a week. It's quiet and easy to adjust. But that's just me. Maybe if I had a dog in the fight, I'd feel differently. [insert Abe Lincoln icon here]

[sirreal63]

Most of the skimmers on the market give results that are very close to the same. Pick what works for you based on your needs. :-)

[Retired Reefer]

I've never owned a Reef octopus but i've owned a SWC. Go with the Reef Octopus.

[sneaton]

Originally Posted by sirreal63

Most of the skimmers on the market give results that are very close to the same. Pick what works for you based on your needs. :-)

if you want light tea colored skim get the RO....if you want "Epic" dark diarrhea then the SWC is the way to go.......plus the SRO is kinda ugly IMHO

[sneaton]

Originally Posted by sirreal63

Actually you have had it for just a few weeks past a year.

OP no question I would get the SRO, CoralVue is a top notch company who isn't in a legal battle like the SWC guy.

SWC is in a legal battle over paper work....

[sirreal63]

Originally Posted by sneaton

SWC is in a legal battle over paper work....

Actually it is a lot more than paperwork, but a simple google search will enlighten you on the issues. I am curious, with all of the SWC pushing you do, do you have a poster of the 160 with the words "Seth, SWC is your Father" written under it? :-)

[sneaton]

i just love to push what works,everytime i stink the whole house up with 2 days of skim i feel i should post about it ... and ive seen alot of bubbleblaster/RO complaints....everyone loves to push bubble magus too,it uses the same pump and its not up to par with the build of the swc

[sirreal63]

I do understand that, but they all work, and you cannot compare a newer skimmer with the one you had before the 160, vastly different technologies. You basically have used one real skimmer, that isn't really enough to claim it is the best thing ever made. There is very little differentiation between skimmers any more. Almost everyone uses the same technology with only slight changes in equipment. Once upon a time SWC and Octo were the exact same skimmer, made by the same Chinese mfg. The only way to tell them apart was the sticker. They are both good skimmers, but neither is superior by any large amount.

[Reefnut2010]

I have a SWC180 xtreme cone with Sicce pump and it has proven to be a great skimmer. Skimmate is dark and thick on a daily !! I am unaware of any problems with this co. What's the deal ? i have also owned an Octopus skimmer and though it great for the $$$. Either of this skimmers will work nicely if in the right size system.

[KafudaFish]

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