Which skimmer

[gary504504]

Have a change to pick up a bubble king supermarin 250 older non RD3 version or vertex alpha 250,which would you choose

[slief]

Originally Posted by gary504504

Have a change to pick up a bubble king supermarin 250 older non RD3 version or vertex alpha 250,which would you choose

SM250 for sure. It will be more stable and more consistent than the Alpha 250 and is a far better design. And the older non RD3 pump is still a great pump. We have customers who have been running the same pump for well over 10 years. Break it down and clean it ever 4-5 months and that pump will last damn near forever.

Hopefully you have a decent load in your tank because that’s the same skimmer I run on my 700 gallon system though I do have the RD3. Those skimmers like heavy loads and are very conservatively rated.

Take a look at this thread for proper mainteance on those pumps. Post 2 applies to all Red Dragons including the AC pump. Post 2 discusses the bearing on the AC pump which is the most often overlooked part of the maintenance on that pump. I would suggest you do the full breakdown and cleaning before putting it into service. This assuming it’s previously used.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2573406

[gary504504]

Yes im getting it used,but in great condition, i have a 710 gal tank and 200 gal sump so about 900 gallons total,no fish yet,its going to be a fowlr for now but will probably do lps,and maybe a birdsnest and a digitata or 2 not many sps only a few hardy ones,but i have a list of about 50 fish most small like anthias wrasse,i do have about 4 tangs that i plan to buy small but will get big,yellow tang, black tang,powder blue,and a yellow eye kole,but everything else small,will this skimmer handle that load,is it too big or to small of a load,my sumps huge so i was planning 2 skimmer the sm250 and maybe a sm 200 or the bubble king 180,but it sounds like this may be the only one i need,what do you think

[gary504504]

Question directed at slief

[slief]

Originally Posted by gary504504

Yes im getting it used,but in great condition, i have a 710 gal tank and 200 gal sump so about 900 gallons total,no fish yet,its going to be a fowlr for now but will probably do lps,and maybe a birdsnest and a digitata or 2 not many sps only a few hardy ones,but i have a list of about 50 fish most small like anthias wrasse,i do have about 4 tangs that i plan to buy small but will get big,yellow tang, black tang,powder blue,and a yellow eye kole,but everything else small,will this skimmer handle that load,is it too big or to small of a load,my sumps huge so i was planning 2 skimmer the sm250 and maybe a sm 200 or the bubble king 180,but it sounds like this may be the only one i need,what do you think

The SM250 will be a great fit for that size display and load. I don’t think 2 skimmers will be needed as the SM250 will be more than up for the task. These skimmers are very conservatively rated. I have upwards of 70 fish in my system and my SM250 has no issues handling the load.

And should you ever need any parts for the pump (motor and impeller) we stock them in Ft. Myers but like I said, if you take good care of that pump, it will take good care of you with many years of reliable service. The skimmer itself if built like a tank too and made with VERY heavy high quality acrylic and PVC!