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View Full Version : SWC Skimmer Upgrade Neccessary?


Brian Chong
03/12/2011, 12:14 AM
Hello fellow reefers, I have a heavily stocked 50 gallon sps tank with an 18 gallon sump. Don't quite know what the actual water volume is in my tank but I'm sure it's way less. I have 1 yellow tang, 1 bartletts anthias, 1 allardi's clownfish, 1 6 line wrasse, 1 algae blenny, 1 cleaner shrimp, and 1 hermit crab. I feed my fish 3 or 4 times daily.
I have a SWC 120 that pulls out lots of smelly nasty stuff but just recently, I had a cyano outbreak. My phosphates registered at .08. I couldn't figure it out until I noticed my crocea clam's shell empty! I was thinking about upgrading to a SWC 160 to prevent nutrient spikes from unforseen accidents like this. The SWC 160's bioload is rated as following:(light)150g, (medium)120g, (heavy)90g
SWC 120's bioload is rated as following:(light)90g, (medium)70g,
(heavy)55g.
I have been hearing mixed results with the SWC 160. Most complaints about them is that it's too sensitive. Do you guys think the SWC is overkill for my tank and if I use a skimmer that is rated much higher than my tank voluime, will this make the skimmer more sensitive? I apologize for the lengthy post, but I would really appreciate any feedback or advice.
Here is a picture for reference

http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j323/brianchong/IMG_0759.jpg

EleganceMan
03/12/2011, 12:41 AM
Nice tank... I would def. Upgrade!

redwingrob40
03/12/2011, 04:57 AM
I have a 160 on my 55 and it does a great job. I say go for it....

mordibv
03/12/2011, 05:27 AM
Or another option is to contact Luke . I got a new mesh impeller for the 120 . Bubbles are more dense. No startup issues . I thought my twigs on my 70 cube was packed . LOL .Nice tank . What lights are you using ?

Brian Chong
03/12/2011, 04:59 PM
Nice tank... I would def. Upgrade!
Thanks Elegance man. Yeah, i think an upgrade is a definite plus especially for my huge bioload
I have a 160 on my 55 and it does a great job. I say go for it....
Thanks for the advice. I had my doubts about the swc 160's consistency in performance. good to hear urs is doing well. I heard this skimmer takes a while to break in but my 120 started working almost immediately after i bought it.

Or another option is to contact Luke . I got a new mesh impeller for the 120 . Bubbles are more dense. No startup issues . I thought my twigs on my 70 cube was packed . LOL .Nice tank . What lights are you using ?
Thanks for the compliment. My 120 came with a hybrid mesh pin wheel thats working great for me. yeah my tank is packed. The entire sandbed is littered with frags as well. LOL
I'm using a 150w ushio 20k hqi with 2 ati blue plus and 2 geissemann true acitincs bulbs. I bought a Hamilton 250w mogul with 4 t5's fixture with a radium bulb from a friend because I need to take down my rockwork and set the corals lower to maximize space in my tank. This hobby is a sickness:lolspin: