@Wolverine - Thanks again for posting the old thread from way back. I read through it all, and it's like a time capsule. There were so many unknowns at that time, and it was really interesting to remember the thought process of designing these systems. Several of the assumptions made turned out to be false, and now so much has changed with the greenhouse.
Anyhow, here are some pictures from last fall of the systems full of coral. Front of the system with the 125-gallon photography tanks:
Back of the system with the grow-out tanks:
Closer view of the grow-out tanks:
One of the skimmers:
I like to experiment with equipment a lot and at the time, I received some money from a business plan competition in NE Ohio. I used some of it to buy this RK2 self-cleaning skimmer. I also have 2 GEO skimmers and an Orca 250 skimmer on the newest system. I don't think there is a ton of difference in terms of performance, but so far I like this big one the best. It is the lowest maintenance because it has its own spray jets and once a month I climb a ladder and hose out the algae that the spray jets can't handle. Later on down the line I might replace the Orca 250 with one of these.