Aquamaxx: Which one?

Down · 05/07/2013, 09:26 PM

I think I'm about to pull the trigger on a new skimmer and after reading up a bit, I think I may be sold on an Aquamaxx; need to decide between the 200 or the 300. Tank is a 150g FOWLR with a 40g sump. Lightly stocked now but will be running a decent bio load due to planned messy eaters. Any thoughts? Anyone want to convince me to go with something else altogether? After struggling with a finicky skimmer, ease of use and set it and forget it are more important than having every last little bit of performance.

GrimReefer82 · 05/08/2013, 02:03 AM

I have owned almost every skimmer under $400 and the Eshopps psk-150 and psk-200 outperform most others. I wouldn't trade mine for the world. But I've heard eshopps cone skimmers are even better.

I know that wasn't your question but thats the only help I can offer on the subject. Check the link, I would go with the S200

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produc...3&pcatid=23953

Drae · 05/08/2013, 02:58 AM

The 200 would work but the 300 would be better IMHO. I ran the am200 (older model) on the same size setup with great results (sps tank though) but didn't over feed at all. I own eshopps and aquamaxx right now. .. go with the aquamaxx, they're better skimmers.

wildman926 · 05/08/2013, 05:53 AM

From my experience, the EM200 would be all you need. I have the EM300 on my 150g w/30g sump, and it is a bit of overkill. Once it cleaned the tank initially, it sits idle most of the time. I have a medium stocked tank, not many fish, but full of lps. I do plan to add a few more fish, but it would still not justify the EM300 had I known how efficient it was.

coral_lagoon · 05/08/2013, 11:51 AM

Get the EM300..

This is just with 1 XL tang in the tank. 180gallons..

Down · 05/08/2013, 12:16 PM

Thanks for the input everyone. I had actually decided on the 200. I was really on the fence but between saving $80 and some extra space in the sump, I leaned that way. Then I realized that my preferred online retailer had the 200 on back order for several months and the 300 available now, which took the decision making out of my hands. EM300 should hopefully be here Friday.

Honestly, even if this thing doesn't perform half as well as some folks on here have said, if it's easy enough to get dialed in that it doesn't overflow every time I feed frozen food it will be a significant upgrade for me and I'll be happy.

wildman926 · 05/08/2013, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coral_lagoon

Get the EM300..

This is just with 1 XL tang in the tank. 180gallons..

An efficient skimmer is not a substitute for water changes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Down

Thanks for the input everyone. I had actually decided on the 200. I was really on the fence but between saving $80 and some extra space in the sump, I leaned that way. Then I realized that my preferred online retailer had the 200 on back order for several months and the 300 available now, which took the decision making out of my hands. EM300 should hopefully be here Friday.

Honestly, even if this thing doesn't perform half as well as some folks on here have said, if it's easy enough to get dialed in that it doesn't overflow every time I feed frozen food it will be a significant upgrade for me and I'll be happy.

You will be happy with it. What I have found is that feeding does not affect these skimmers as much as others. They will go down after feeding, then after a while, will come back up to where you set it. If there is waste to remove, it will spit it out. I would recommend initially setting the bubble break halfway up the neck in the collection cup.

coral_lagoon · 05/08/2013, 08:36 PM

No overflowing problems on my EM300 at all when feeding. Even Mysis shrimp..

coral_lagoon · 05/08/2013, 08:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildman926

An efficient skimmer is not a substitute for water changes.[/B]

Ha lol man!

GroktheCube · 05/09/2013, 01:34 AM

I opted for the 300 for my 120 with a 40B sump, and I'm glad I did. It fits perfectly, it's dead silent, and it pulls ridiculous amounts of skimmate. Now that it's broken in, it pulls ~10x what my eshopps S-150 did on a daily basis, while making ~1/10th the noise.

GrimReefer82 · 05/09/2013, 03:44 AM

Isn't a fair comparison s-150 versus em300. And even still 10x (1000%) is a ridiculously bold claim. I bet if you compare a psk-300 to the em300 they will perform the same or very darn close.

Truth is carbon does a better job than ANY skimmer.

Down · 05/10/2013, 12:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildman926

You will be happy with it. What I have found is that feeding does not affect these skimmers as much as others. They will go down after feeding, then after a while, will come back up to where you set it. If there is waste to remove, it will spit it out. I would recommend initially setting the bubble break halfway up the neck in the collection cup.[/B]

Glad to hear on the feeding is a bit easier. Just to make sure I'm understanding you correctly, when you say halfway up the neck in the collection cup, you're talking about something just a bit lower than this, right?

wildman926 · 05/10/2013, 05:17 AM

Correct. Or set it like you see there. Once it initially cleans the tank thoroughly, you will see it idle more, and then you can raise the level even more to wet skim if you like.

Down · 05/11/2013, 05:37 PM

I got the skimmer last night. Great looking and great packaging. Ran it in a tub of hot water and some vinegar for an hour or two to clean it up a little bit and noticed that this thing makes some great looking bubbles even in freshwater. Rinsed it off and ran it for several hours in some water change water and the skimmate from my previous skimmer. EXACTLY WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR. Perfect, dry foam came bubbling over. It worked its rear off for about 15 min and then the water was clear and the skimmer was basically idle. nothing left to do.
I then moved it over to the main tank where it's been for about 16 hours or so. Bubbles breaking about halfway up the cup and a depth of about 8.5 inches. I plan to try and raise water level to 9 inches but thought I'd see how this worked. I love the footprint and it's quiet as a church mouse. I noticed this morning that even after running for 10-11 hours, it had accomplished right at about nothing into the collection cup. Well, regardless of last night's performance, it still needs to break in. Bubbles looked fine, just no foam production. Skip to a few hours later and YAY! My first soaked stand from an overflowing skimmer with the new one.

My takeaways:
1. There's obviously some user error here but for the life of me, I don't know what it is. This isn't that complicated.
2. Perhaps I should research running skimmerless?
3. I still believe this is an awesome skimmer.
4. Time to play with bubble break height.

coral_lagoon · 05/11/2013, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Down

I got the skimmer last night. Great looking and great packaging. Ran it in a tub of hot water and some vinegar for an hour or two to clean it up a little bit and noticed that this thing makes some great looking bubbles even in freshwater. Rinsed it off and ran it for several hours in some water change water and the skimmate from my previous skimmer. EXACTLY WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR. Perfect, dry foam came bubbling over. It worked its rear off for about 15 min and then the water was clear and the skimmer was basically idle. nothing left to do.
I then moved it over to the main tank where it's been for about 16 hours or so. Bubbles breaking about halfway up the cup and a depth of about 8.5 inches. I plan to try and raise water level to 9 inches but thought I'd see how this worked. I love the footprint and it's quiet as a church mouse. I noticed this morning that even after running for 10-11 hours, it had accomplished right at about nothing into the collection cup. Well, regardless of last night's performance, it still needs to break in. Bubbles looked fine, just no foam production. Skip to a few hours later and YAY! My first soaked stand from an overflowing skimmer with the new one.

My takeaways:
1. There's obviously some user error here but for the life of me, I don't know what it is. This isn't that complicated.
2. Perhaps I should research running skimmerless?
3. I still believe this is an awesome skimmer.
4. Time to play with bubble break height.

Why did you run it with hot water and vinegar

The instruction says in capital letters DO NOT USE ANY SOAP OR CHEMICALS TO CLEAN SKIMMER.

I just put mine in the sump and plugged it in. It started to work right away..

Down · 05/11/2013, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coral_lagoon

Why did you run it with hot water and vinegar

The instruction says in capital letters DO NOT USE ANY SOAP OR CHEMICALS TO CLEAN SKIMMER.

I just put mine in the sump and plugged it in. It started to work right away..

Well, perhaps I'm wrong but:
1. Hot water and vinegar to remove any manufacturing chemicals is a pretty standard practice (even if it's a bit debatable whether the vinegar really helps THAT much).
2. I don't believe I've ever heard of vinegar being referred to as a chemical in normal conversation? I'd assume the instructions were referring to not using chemicals in the same way everyone says not to use chemicals in this hobby; vinegar does not fall into that category. Again though, may be I'm wrong. Curious though, how do you plan to do the regular maintenance of decalcifying your skimmer if not by using the occasional vinegar bath?

coral_lagoon · 05/11/2013, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Down

Well, perhaps I'm wrong but:
1. Hot water and vinegar to remove any manufacturing chemicals is a pretty standard practice (even if it's a bit debatable whether the vinegar really helps THAT much).
2. I don't believe I've ever heard of vinegar being referred to as a chemical in normal conversation? I'd assume the instructions were referring to not using chemicals in the same way everyone says not to use chemicals in this hobby; vinegar does not fall into that category. Again though, may be I'm wrong. Curious though, how do you plan to do the regular maintenance of decalcifying your skimmer if not by using the occasional vinegar bath?

The instructions basically says that when you get it unpackage it. It's ready to run. Cleaning/maintenance to just use warm water and a sponge..

Down · 05/11/2013, 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coral_lagoon

The instructions basically says that when you get it unpackage it. It's ready to run. Cleaning/maintenance to just use warm water and a sponge..

I don't think that'll work on the pump. I'd be interested to hear other opinions though.

azjohnny · 05/11/2013, 06:31 PM

Nothing wrong with vinegar, its standard practice to use vinegar for breaking in a skimmer. I will use a 4/1 ratio of water to vinegar and room temperature water is fine

Vinegar is not a chemical

Its a good idea to run a lower water height in a skimmer during breakin ( at least the 1st 2 weeks, possibly up to 4).... the bottom or below the bottom of the skimmer cup

GroktheCube · 05/11/2013, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GrimReefer82

Isn't a fair comparison s-150 versus em300. And even still 10x (1000%) is a ridiculously bold claim. I bet if you compare a psk-300 to the em300 they will perform the same or very darn close.

Truth is carbon does a better job than ANY skimmer.

My intent was not to bash the s-150 or eshopps, its a fine product.

wildman926 · 05/11/2013, 09:14 PM

Can you list your tank inhabitants? What all is in your tank? I can't imagine that they all take a massive dump at the same time on que to make another skimmer overflow.

Hellion179 · 05/13/2013, 04:02 PM

Where did you find the skimmer in stock if you don't mind me asking? I can't find one anywhere and am anxious to get my setup going.

Down · 05/13/2013, 09:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildman926

Can you list your tank inhabitants? What all is in your tank? I can't imagine that they all take a massive dump at the same time on que to make another skimmer overflow.

LOL yuck.
It's actually a pretty light load right now, one medium tang and a handful of damsels. My hypothesis, subject to being totally off base, is:
I've noticed that the height of my bubble/foam column can vary by quite a bit. If it was at a "low point" when I sat it, there was nowhere to go when it spiked. I've not had an issue since so I'm going to chalk it up to growing pains.

wildman926 · 05/14/2013, 06:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Down

LOL yuck.
It's actually a pretty light load right now, one medium tang and a handful of damsels. My hypothesis, subject to being totally off base, is:
I've noticed that the height of my bubble/foam column can vary by quite a bit. If it was at a "low point" when I sat it, there was nowhere to go when it spiked. I've not had an issue since so I'm going to chalk it up to growing pains.

You are not off base IMO. You set the skimmer where it normally can pull what little waste there is, and then when you feed frozen food, it goes nuts as there is more of a load to pull. I see that difference when I feed flake and then frozen. Flake foods make the skimmer level go down, and then remove the waste normally. Frozen, it will do the same, but then spike up after about 30-45 min, and remove the extra waste created by the frozen food.

Down · 05/15/2013, 06:48 PM

Well, another day in the saga that is me and protein skimmers. Skimmer had been rock solid until today but it started acting super erratic so I looked a little closer and the bubble plate had popped off of the pump. It turned it off, placed the plate back on (although it sure didn't seem very stable) and the second I turned it back on it shot the bubble plate right off again. I then yanked the skimmer out of the sump, took the cover off and inspected it but can't see anything really wrong with it other than the fact that the plate just won't securely fasten to the output of the pump.

So, until I can figure this out, I'm skimmerless again. Getting a skimmer to work properly for a week really shouldn't be this much of a chore, should it?

05/07/2013, 09:26 PM	#1
Down Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Scotttsdale, AZ Posts: 308	Aquamaxx: Which one? I think I'm about to pull the trigger on a new skimmer and after reading up a bit, I think I may be sold on an Aquamaxx; need to decide between the 200 or the 300. Tank is a 150g FOWLR with a 40g sump. Lightly stocked now but will be running a decent bio load due to planned messy eaters. Any thoughts? Anyone want to convince me to go with something else altogether? After struggling with a finicky skimmer, ease of use and set it and forget it are more important than having every last little bit of performance.

05/08/2013, 02:03 AM	#2
GrimReefer82 Roll Tide!!! Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Tuscaloosa, AL Posts: 341	I have owned almost every skimmer under $400 and the Eshopps psk-150 and psk-200 outperform most others. I wouldn't trade mine for the world. But I've heard eshopps cone skimmers are even better. I know that wasn't your question but thats the only help I can offer on the subject. Check the link, I would go with the S200 http://www.drsfostersmith.com/produc...3&pcatid=23953 __________________ ~Chris~ Current Tank Info: 40 breeder mixed reef Last edited by GrimReefer82; 05/08/2013 at 02:09 AM.

05/08/2013, 05:53 AM	#4
wildman926 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: CTX Posts: 2,904	From my experience, the EM200 would be all you need. I have the EM300 on my 150g w/30g sump, and it is a bit of overkill. Once it cleaned the tank initially, it sits idle most of the time. I have a medium stocked tank, not many fish, but full of lps. I do plan to add a few more fish, but it would still not justify the EM300 had I known how efficient it was. __________________ Beware of recommendations by those who don't actually use their recommendation!! The search function actually works quite well!! Tanks:Planet Aquarium 150g LPS, Planet Aquarium 90g Softie

05/08/2013, 11:51 AM	#5
coral_lagoon Pushrod Powered Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Down The Corkscrew , CA Posts: 1,263	Get the EM300.. This is just with 1 XL tang in the tank. 180gallons.. __________________ Cars and keeping saltwater fish. That's what it's all about..

05/08/2013, 08:36 PM	#8
coral_lagoon Pushrod Powered Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Down The Corkscrew , CA Posts: 1,263	No overflowing problems on my EM300 at all when feeding. Even Mysis shrimp.. __________________ Cars and keeping saltwater fish. That's what it's all about..

05/08/2013, 02:58 AM	#3
Drae RAIDER NATION! Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: City of sin... Posts: 3,476	The 200 would work but the 300 would be better IMHO. I ran the am200 (older model) on the same size setup with great results (sps tank though) but didn't over feed at all. I own eshopps and aquamaxx right now. .. go with the aquamaxx, they're better skimmers.

05/08/2013, 12:16 PM	#6
Down Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Scotttsdale, AZ Posts: 308	Thanks for the input everyone. I had actually decided on the 200. I was really on the fence but between saving $80 and some extra space in the sump, I leaned that way. Then I realized that my preferred online retailer had the 200 on back order for several months and the 300 available now, which took the decision making out of my hands. EM300 should hopefully be here Friday. Honestly, even if this thing doesn't perform half as well as some folks on here have said, if it's easy enough to get dialed in that it doesn't overflow every time I feed frozen food it will be a significant upgrade for me and I'll be happy.

05/09/2013, 01:34 AM	#10
GroktheCube Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Posts: 2,063	I opted for the 300 for my 120 with a 40B sump, and I'm glad I did. It fits perfectly, it's dead silent, and it pulls ridiculous amounts of skimmate. Now that it's broken in, it pulls ~10x what my eshopps S-150 did on a daily basis, while making ~1/10th the noise.

05/09/2013, 03:44 AM	#11
GrimReefer82 Roll Tide!!! Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Tuscaloosa, AL Posts: 341	Isn't a fair comparison s-150 versus em300. And even still 10x (1000%) is a ridiculously bold claim. I bet if you compare a psk-300 to the em300 they will perform the same or very darn close. Truth is carbon does a better job than ANY skimmer. __________________ ~Chris~ Current Tank Info: 40 breeder mixed reef

05/10/2013, 05:17 AM	#13
wildman926 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: CTX Posts: 2,904	Correct. Or set it like you see there. Once it initially cleans the tank thoroughly, you will see it idle more, and then you can raise the level even more to wet skim if you like. __________________ Beware of recommendations by those who don't actually use their recommendation!! The search function actually works quite well!! Tanks:Planet Aquarium 150g LPS, Planet Aquarium 90g Softie

05/11/2013, 05:37 PM	#14
Down Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Scotttsdale, AZ Posts: 308	I got the skimmer last night. Great looking and great packaging. Ran it in a tub of hot water and some vinegar for an hour or two to clean it up a little bit and noticed that this thing makes some great looking bubbles even in freshwater. Rinsed it off and ran it for several hours in some water change water and the skimmate from my previous skimmer. EXACTLY WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR. Perfect, dry foam came bubbling over. It worked its rear off for about 15 min and then the water was clear and the skimmer was basically idle. nothing left to do. I then moved it over to the main tank where it's been for about 16 hours or so. Bubbles breaking about halfway up the cup and a depth of about 8.5 inches. I plan to try and raise water level to 9 inches but thought I'd see how this worked. I love the footprint and it's quiet as a church mouse. I noticed this morning that even after running for 10-11 hours, it had accomplished right at about nothing into the collection cup. Well, regardless of last night's performance, it still needs to break in. Bubbles looked fine, just no foam production. Skip to a few hours later and YAY! My first soaked stand from an overflowing skimmer with the new one. My takeaways: 1. There's obviously some user error here but for the life of me, I don't know what it is. This isn't that complicated. 2. Perhaps I should research running skimmerless? 3. I still believe this is an awesome skimmer. 4. Time to play with bubble break height. Last edited by Down; 05/11/2013 at 06:02 PM.

05/11/2013, 06:31 PM	#19
azjohnny Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Gold Canyon Posts: 2,914	Nothing wrong with vinegar, its standard practice to use vinegar for breaking in a skimmer. I will use a 4/1 ratio of water to vinegar and room temperature water is fine Vinegar is not a chemical Its a good idea to run a lower water height in a skimmer during breakin ( at least the 1st 2 weeks, possibly up to 4).... the bottom or below the bottom of the skimmer cup

05/11/2013, 09:14 PM	#21
wildman926 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: CTX Posts: 2,904	Can you list your tank inhabitants? What all is in your tank? I can't imagine that they all take a massive dump at the same time on que to make another skimmer overflow. __________________ Beware of recommendations by those who don't actually use their recommendation!! The search function actually works quite well!! Tanks:Planet Aquarium 150g LPS, Planet Aquarium 90g Softie

05/13/2013, 04:02 PM	#22
Hellion179 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: South Tx Posts: 164	Where did you find the skimmer in stock if you don't mind me asking? I can't find one anywhere and am anxious to get my setup going.

05/15/2013, 06:48 PM	#25
Down Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Scotttsdale, AZ Posts: 308	Well, another day in the saga that is me and protein skimmers. Skimmer had been rock solid until today but it started acting super erratic so I looked a little closer and the bubble plate had popped off of the pump. It turned it off, placed the plate back on (although it sure didn't seem very stable) and the second I turned it back on it shot the bubble plate right off again. I then yanked the skimmer out of the sump, took the cover off and inspected it but can't see anything really wrong with it other than the fact that the plate just won't securely fasten to the output of the pump. So, until I can figure this out, I'm skimmerless again. Getting a skimmer to work properly for a week really shouldn't be this much of a chore, should it?