Skimmer for 90 Gallon Reef

[GTAaquarist]

Hi i have a 90 gallon reef heavy stocked with a 30 gallon sump. i was looking at the Reef Octopus Diablo XS 160 and the SWC xtreme 160 cone skimmers. i was wondering if you think those will have enough skimming power to maintain a heavy stocked 90 or if its worth going up to a Diablo XS 225. Thanks

[JPMagyar]

Skimmer research has shown that all skimmers take out the same "stuff" and they do it within a couple hours. The difference is the speed with which "stuff" is removed. If you plan on running your skimmer 24/7 then the type of skimmer you get doesn't matter all that much so long as you clean it out weekly and keep it running well. The biggest factors for me when I look at skimmers are ease of cleaning, pump durability, and intake maintenance. The ideal skimmer should have a long lasting pump, be easy to clean, and have an intake that does not get fouled too fast.

Having said all that I think both of those would make excellent choices. For what it's worth I am setting up a 90 as well and I bought an:

AquaC EV-120 (http://www.marinedepot.com/AquaC_EV_120_Protein_Skimmer_In_Sump_Spray_Injection_Protein_Skimmers_For_Tanks_Up_to_150_Gallons-AquaC-AC1131-FIPSISSIUH-AC1131-vi.html)

and I'm pairing it with a Tunze Silence for quiet easy cleaning dependability, but again either choice you made would be great.


Joe

[FreakFish]

+1 for aquac

[KCombs]

I got a HEAVILY stocked and HEAVILY fed 90G and use a Reef Octopus NW-150....
(waaay too many fish, SPS, LPS, softies, Clams, et)

I can see the reasoning in investing in the best equipment possible, but my tank looks pretty good with phos between .05-.03

....I can't envision needing a more efficient skimmer

[Mussin]

Hands down the SWC X 160 cone.. Skimmer is a BEAST!! I have one in my 90. Smallish footprint and silent. Mine been running for 6 months with no issues just dump and clean the cup about every 4-5 days. Really well built, everything comes apart for easy cleaning.


Jeremy

[Dexters Reef]

Gotta put my vote in for the diablo 160...I have one with about 80g of water volume and Reef Octopus told me Im on the light side for it and to stock heavy. I think it would be perfect for a 90. I have nothing but good things to say about this skimmer. Do note it needs to be in 8-10" of water to operate correctly. My skimmer section on my sump is 10", so I used 1" of eggcrate to raise it to the middle of the "happy zone"

[cd823]

Reef Octopus NW-150 = +1

[garydan]

I have a 90, and I love my Avast CS1 in recirc mode with a swabbie. I don't have much opinion on the skimmers themselves, i've read some skimmer test articles that supported what JPMagyar said, all skimmers take out the same "stuff" and they do it within a couple hours, some just do it a bit faster than others, but in the end they all reach the same stopping point. The articles i read also showed that the time differences were at the tail end of skimming, they all removed something like 90% within a very short time (all roughly equal), then some were just a bit faster to get that last 10%.

My experience is that having a regularly cleaned skimmer neck has greatly improved the skimming because the stuff that used to get stuck on the neck between cleanings now goes into the cup. I haven't seen anyone talk about it, but it seems to me that crud that collects on the skimmer neck is still in the water and is still going to rot and release phosphates and nitrates back into the water. IMHO you need to get it completely out of the water column to prevent that, collecting it up on the skimmer neck isn't enough. No matter what brand skimmer i have in the future, i'm always going to have a neck cleaner, not just to simplify maintence, but also because i can see a water quality difference too.

[Cstaricansrfer1]

Gotta put my vote in for the diablo 160...I have one with about 80g of water volume and Reef Octopus told me Im on the light side for it and to stock heavy. I think it would be perfect for a 90. I have nothing but good things to say about this skimmer. Do note it needs to be in 8-10" of water to operate correctly. My skimmer section on my sump is 10", so I used 1" of eggcrate to raise it to the middle of the "happy zone"

Have one as well and love how well it works and how east it is to clean.