LifeReef skimmer question?

fireanthodge · 05/04/2012, 10:40 AM

Is anybody out there currently using a skimmer made by Jeff at lifereef have seen some testimonials on his site but wanted to here some unbiased opinions here.

Fishbulb2 · 05/04/2012, 10:49 AM

I've used some of his other equipment such as overflow boxes and the quality is very high. The issue that you will have to come to grasps with regarding his skimmer designs is a high energy cost. Just look at the pumps he recommends using with his skimmers and make sure you understand that you can likely get similar air draws from other skimmer designs for probably about a quarter of the wattage. Wattage and energy conservation aren't always the end all be all of everything but this is a device which will run 24/7 for many many years. That can really add up. My guess is that these are very nice skimmers but you could get the job done on a small fraction of the wattage on another design.

FB

fireanthodge · 05/04/2012, 10:52 AM

Thanks fish his work looks really clean and that is what attracted me to his products and the fact he has been in business for almost 30 years he must be doing something right.

muskiewade · 05/04/2012, 11:06 AM

I own quite a few pieces of Lifereef equipment, including overflows, float switches, a wet/dry filter and a VS3-24 skimmer.

The construction of his equipment is top notch, but to be honest with you, I would not purchase another Lifereef skimmer. The venturi design is outdated and the performance isn't all that great. Simply better design options to look at, such as with the Reef Octopus skimmers.

Just my 2 cents.

pwreef · 05/04/2012, 11:16 AM

I bought a used setup with his skimmer and sump 1 year ago. This is my first reef tank so I have nothing to compare to unfortunately. The skimmer produces nice thick goo that I clean out every week. It does use a pretty powerful Mag 9 pump that adds a significant amount of heat to my tank. I don't really have a very heavy bioload with only a few fish and I feed very little.

Yogre · 05/04/2012, 11:29 AM

I've been running the Lifereef SVS3-30 (30" tall) skimmer in my sump for over 2 years now, and I'm happy with it. It's very well built, and pulls out some nasty nog. I did replace the Mag Drive pump with a Water Blaster pump in an effort to reduce energy consumption/heat addition, and that seems to have worked out well.

Jeff is also great to work with, my venturi got gunked up, and Jeff returned my call within minutes to help me disassemble and clean the venturi.

I should note that the only skimmers I've used are Lifereefs. I must confess I'd like to try one of the newer designs such as the Reef Octopus, but funds are a little tight right now.

muskiewade · 05/04/2012, 11:58 AM

Yogre does have a good point that Jeff is great to work with, excellent customer service and you are talking to the person who is making the equipment. Also, it's made in the USA, something of which you can't say with many of the other options out there.

fireanthodge · 05/04/2012, 12:26 PM

Thanks for everybodys input so far I am on his waiting list to have my sump built so I will have to give some consideration on wheter or not to use his skimmer also.

swanny · 05/04/2012, 03:17 PM

You won't regret having Jeff build you that sump. He's building me a frag tank as I write this.

bradam · 05/04/2012, 05:26 PM

I've been running one of his sumps and skimmer for years. Excellent craftsmenship. Very visually apealing and he has a real eye for detail.

The skimmer has done it job over the years but as others mentioned there's alot better designed ones these days. I have never managed to get the skimmer adjusted "just right" either. Always tweak it a tad every water change it seems.

With that said I really want to replace the whole setup lol It's just way to small for my 240 tank. It'd be perfect for a 90-120 imo. My main gripe is the fuge is actually a seperate box that sits in the sump, which I thought was neat at first, but then after years of gunk buildup between the sump inner wall and the fuge outer wall it just looks plain terrible. It is impossible to clean short of breaing down the entire setup and pulling it all out from under the tank.

Shaun120 · 05/08/2012, 04:09 PM

People will bad mouth Lifereef products because the design is outdated (skimmer) but I bought a complete setup for a 120 I set up years ago. It was the most successful system I ever ran. I think the sum of the parts equaled a pretty great system.

I still use the calcium reactor and the skimmer on another tank. The sump was the best design I ever came across and was easy to do maintenance which is the success to any tank imo. His skimmers may not be the edge of technology but they work and keep working without fiddling with it all the time which is important also.

He does awesome work, the skimmer may suck some juice but you don't have to mess with it, the calcium reactor is the bomb...best design out there, sumps awesome.

londonloco · 05/08/2012, 04:48 PM

I purchased a Life Reef sump/skimmer combo from Jeff in 2004 for my 120g reef. It ran for 6 years, the skimmer produced nasty nasty chit, really bad. Stunk the whole house up when I emptied the cup. The system sat in a closet for a year, last year I set up a 125g freshwater tangy tank with the sump. At the same time I gave my friend the skimmer for her 125g reef. Skimmer is pulling out that nasty crap again. If you buy quality, it will last forever.

Lucifa68 · 02/12/2013, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by londonloco

I purchased a Life Reef sump/skimmer combo from Jeff in 2004 for my 120g reef. It ran for 6 years, the skimmer produced nasty nasty chit, really bad. Stunk the whole house up when I emptied the cup. The system sat in a closet for a year, last year I set up a 125g freshwater tangy tank with the sump. At the same time I gave my friend the skimmer for her 125g reef. Skimmer is pulling out that nasty crap again. If you buy quality, it will last forever.

hi londonloco, do you remember what the water level should be in the skimmer????.
thanks lucifa

Yogre · 02/13/2013, 10:36 AM

In the Lifereef skimmer owner's guide, Jeff advocates starting the skimmer out with the water/foam interface about 1/2 inch below the top of the main skimmer body.

Once the skimmer has broken in, you can tweak the gate valve open or shut to adjust how wet you want the skimmer to skim.

I personally like to skim a little wetter, so I have the water/foam interface pretty much right at the bottom of the skimmer's neck.

chiefifd · 06/01/2013, 11:07 AM

Has anyone with a Lifereef skimmer used a Diablo DC 5500 Pump or similar pump with the Lifereef VS3-24? The Diablo 5500 has a max flow of 1450 gph and a max head of 10.5 feet, power consumption looks like 50 watts. This seems like a good combination, with the exception that the Diablo 5500 is kinda expensive @ $219.00

Yogre · 06/01/2013, 11:20 AM

I know it's not exactly what you asked, but I'm running an Octopus Water Blaster HY7000 on my Lifereef SVS3-30 skimmer.

I wanted to get rid of the energy hog/heat generator that the Mag Drive 11 was, that came with the skimmer.

I've been running this way for at least a year now, seems to be working just fine.

chiefifd · 06/01/2013, 12:06 PM

I appreciate the information. I want to get the Lifereef VS3-24 skimmer for my 75 gallon reef build but would like a different pump other than the Mag's. I'm sure the Mag's are a good pump but they do seem to be a bit loud and give off excess heat.
Looking at the Octopus Water Blaster line of pumps they do seem to be quite energy efficient and powerful. The Octopus Water Blaster 5000 is rated @ 60 watts.....sounds like just what I need. The smaller Octopus Water Blaster should work for my return pump as well.....
Thanks...

05/04/2012, 10:40 AM	#1
fireanthodge Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 21	LifeReef skimmer question? Is anybody out there currently using a skimmer made by Jeff at lifereef have seen some testimonials on his site but wanted to here some unbiased opinions here.

05/04/2012, 10:49 AM	#2
Fishbulb2 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Bethesda, MD Posts: 1,807	I've used some of his other equipment such as overflow boxes and the quality is very high. The issue that you will have to come to grasps with regarding his skimmer designs is a high energy cost. Just look at the pumps he recommends using with his skimmers and make sure you understand that you can likely get similar air draws from other skimmer designs for probably about a quarter of the wattage. Wattage and energy conservation aren't always the end all be all of everything but this is a device which will run 24/7 for many many years. That can really add up. My guess is that these are very nice skimmers but you could get the job done on a small fraction of the wattage on another design. FB __________________ Just getting back in, but trying to do it right! Current Tank Info: 40 gallon tank. SPS, LPS, few softies

05/04/2012, 11:16 AM	#5
pwreef Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: New York Posts: 585	I bought a used setup with his skimmer and sump 1 year ago. This is my first reef tank so I have nothing to compare to unfortunately. The skimmer produces nice thick goo that I clean out every week. It does use a pretty powerful Mag 9 pump that adds a significant amount of heat to my tank. I don't really have a very heavy bioload with only a few fish and I feed very little. __________________ Since May 2011: OLD: 57G rimless NOW: ELOS 120, DIY LED using reefll.com 12-up boards

05/04/2012, 11:29 AM	#6
Yogre Cheesehead Reefer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,351	I've been running the Lifereef SVS3-30 (30" tall) skimmer in my sump for over 2 years now, and I'm happy with it. It's very well built, and pulls out some nasty nog. I did replace the Mag Drive pump with a Water Blaster pump in an effort to reduce energy consumption/heat addition, and that seems to have worked out well. Jeff is also great to work with, my venturi got gunked up, and Jeff returned my call within minutes to help me disassemble and clean the venturi. I should note that the only skimmers I've used are Lifereefs. I must confess I'd like to try one of the newer designs such as the Reef Octopus, but funds are a little tight right now. __________________ "Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow." ~ Albert Einstein Current Tank Info: 215 gal TBS Reef

05/04/2012, 03:17 PM	#9
swanny Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: denver Posts: 406	You won't regret having Jeff build you that sump. He's building me a frag tank as I write this. __________________ 120 gallon soon to be (hopefully) sps dominant. Current Tank Info: 120g rr

05/04/2012, 10:52 AM	#3
fireanthodge Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 21	Thanks fish his work looks really clean and that is what attracted me to his products and the fact he has been in business for almost 30 years he must be doing something right.

05/04/2012, 11:06 AM	#4
muskiewade Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Minneapolis Posts: 68	I own quite a few pieces of Lifereef equipment, including overflows, float switches, a wet/dry filter and a VS3-24 skimmer. The construction of his equipment is top notch, but to be honest with you, I would not purchase another Lifereef skimmer. The venturi design is outdated and the performance isn't all that great. Simply better design options to look at, such as with the Reef Octopus skimmers. Just my 2 cents.

05/04/2012, 11:58 AM	#7
muskiewade Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Minneapolis Posts: 68	Yogre does have a good point that Jeff is great to work with, excellent customer service and you are talking to the person who is making the equipment. Also, it's made in the USA, something of which you can't say with many of the other options out there.

05/04/2012, 12:26 PM	#8
fireanthodge Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 21	Thanks for everybodys input so far I am on his waiting list to have my sump built so I will have to give some consideration on wheter or not to use his skimmer also.

05/04/2012, 05:26 PM	#10
bradam Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Temple Terrace FL Posts: 196	I've been running one of his sumps and skimmer for years. Excellent craftsmenship. Very visually apealing and he has a real eye for detail. The skimmer has done it job over the years but as others mentioned there's alot better designed ones these days. I have never managed to get the skimmer adjusted "just right" either. Always tweak it a tad every water change it seems. With that said I really want to replace the whole setup lol It's just way to small for my 240 tank. It'd be perfect for a 90-120 imo. My main gripe is the fuge is actually a seperate box that sits in the sump, which I thought was neat at first, but then after years of gunk buildup between the sump inner wall and the fuge outer wall it just looks plain terrible. It is impossible to clean short of breaing down the entire setup and pulling it all out from under the tank.

05/08/2012, 04:09 PM	#11
Shaun120 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Springfield, MO Posts: 259	People will bad mouth Lifereef products because the design is outdated (skimmer) but I bought a complete setup for a 120 I set up years ago. It was the most successful system I ever ran. I think the sum of the parts equaled a pretty great system. I still use the calcium reactor and the skimmer on another tank. The sump was the best design I ever came across and was easy to do maintenance which is the success to any tank imo. His skimmers may not be the edge of technology but they work and keep working without fiddling with it all the time which is important also. He does awesome work, the skimmer may suck some juice but you don't have to mess with it, the calcium reactor is the bomb...best design out there, sumps awesome. __________________ I'm givin' er all she's got Captain! Current Tank Info: 225 Reef + 120 FOWLR in-wall system, and 68 FOWLR

05/08/2012, 04:48 PM	#12
londonloco Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: virginia Posts: 261	I purchased a Life Reef sump/skimmer combo from Jeff in 2004 for my 120g reef. It ran for 6 years, the skimmer produced nasty nasty chit, really bad. Stunk the whole house up when I emptied the cup. The system sat in a closet for a year, last year I set up a 125g freshwater tangy tank with the sump. At the same time I gave my friend the skimmer for her 125g reef. Skimmer is pulling out that nasty crap again. If you buy quality, it will last forever. __________________ All I seem to do is water changes........ Last edited by londonloco; 05/08/2012 at 04:49 PM. Reason: wasn't done and hit enter...lol

02/13/2013, 10:36 AM	#14
Yogre Cheesehead Reefer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,351	In the Lifereef skimmer owner's guide, Jeff advocates starting the skimmer out with the water/foam interface about 1/2 inch below the top of the main skimmer body. Once the skimmer has broken in, you can tweak the gate valve open or shut to adjust how wet you want the skimmer to skim. I personally like to skim a little wetter, so I have the water/foam interface pretty much right at the bottom of the skimmer's neck. __________________ "Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow." ~ Albert Einstein Current Tank Info: 215 gal TBS Reef

06/01/2013, 11:07 AM	#15
chiefifd Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Upper Michigan Posts: 312	Has anyone with a Lifereef skimmer used a Diablo DC 5500 Pump or similar pump with the Lifereef VS3-24? The Diablo 5500 has a max flow of 1450 gph and a max head of 10.5 feet, power consumption looks like 50 watts. This seems like a good combination, with the exception that the Diablo 5500 is kinda expensive @ $219.00

06/01/2013, 11:20 AM	#16
Yogre Cheesehead Reefer Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Madison, Wisconsin Posts: 1,351	I know it's not exactly what you asked, but I'm running an Octopus Water Blaster HY7000 on my Lifereef SVS3-30 skimmer. I wanted to get rid of the energy hog/heat generator that the Mag Drive 11 was, that came with the skimmer. I've been running this way for at least a year now, seems to be working just fine. __________________ "Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow." ~ Albert Einstein Current Tank Info: 215 gal TBS Reef

06/01/2013, 12:06 PM	#17
chiefifd Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Upper Michigan Posts: 312	I appreciate the information. I want to get the Lifereef VS3-24 skimmer for my 75 gallon reef build but would like a different pump other than the Mag's. I'm sure the Mag's are a good pump but they do seem to be a bit loud and give off excess heat. Looking at the Octopus Water Blaster line of pumps they do seem to be quite energy efficient and powerful. The Octopus Water Blaster 5000 is rated @ 60 watts.....sounds like just what I need. The smaller Octopus Water Blaster should work for my return pump as well..... Thanks...