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Unread 06/10/2010, 02:53 PM   #1
bvoss
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Cool New Skimmer Cleaner

I travel a lot and my wife hates cleaning the skimmer. I never thought I would find a self-cleaning skimmer head on anything less than a high-end Deltec.

Fortunately I came across this new device from AVAST Marine Works (formerly Grey Seas Aquatics). It is called a Swabbie and they make it to fit just about any skimmer.





Your existing skimmer cup just drops into a CNC channel that is either a standard size or specified by you.



Once you get your skimmer cup on, you just loosen this little screw on the wiper and adjust it to fit snugly up against the inside neck of your skimmer. If you have a cone skimmer, you can just tilt it to match.



Once you tighten it up, you are good to go...



Here it is in action...



Here it is after a few days dealing with the nasty skimmate I get from NP pellets and vodka dosing. The inside of the neck is perfectly clean. All the gunk is in the cup.



I drain everything down into an external waste container with a float switch installed. It stops the skimmer and sends me an email before I get an overflow.

I think this is my first reef purchase that actually make my wife happy.


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Unread 06/10/2010, 03:01 PM   #2
thebanker
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That's seriously rad! And the brand name is quite piratey, an added bonus!


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Unread 06/10/2010, 11:18 PM   #3
moondoggy4
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Nice, it should fit my I-Tech 200 skimmer, since they make a similar skimmer.


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Unread 06/11/2010, 08:38 AM   #4
pencil3
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I have one on my swc xtreme 160 cone skimmer, love it so far.


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Unread 06/11/2010, 10:32 AM   #5
Maximus
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How long is the blade?


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Unread 06/11/2010, 12:14 PM   #6
solitude127
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That's pretty cool and about 1/10 of the price of some of the other ones I've seen.


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Unread 06/11/2010, 05:06 PM   #7
ZurichOne95
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Do you have a link? This would help me tremendously!!


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Unread 06/11/2010, 09:31 PM   #8
bad santa
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pencil3 View Post
I have one on my swc xtreme 160 cone skimmer, love it so far.

can you post of pic of yours? TIA


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Unread 06/11/2010, 09:34 PM   #9
bad santa
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heres the linky:
http://www.avastmarine.com/ssc/do/ca...roteinskimmers


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Unread 06/11/2010, 10:53 PM   #10
colotl
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Where does all the gunk go?? Does it fall back into the main body of the skimmer and out the outlet?


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Unread 06/11/2010, 11:05 PM   #11
noobtothereef
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i would think that would hinder the performance of the skimmer, i could be wrong, all the sharp edges would braek the surface tension on alot of bubbles........


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Unread 06/11/2010, 11:06 PM   #12
au01st
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I would think that the squeegee runs often enough that no "gunk" builds up, only a light coating of stuff that will remain on the foam because it's not dense enough to sink.

A member of my local club ordered one and should have a good objective review coming up soon.


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Unread 06/12/2010, 06:44 AM   #13
bvoss
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The silicone blade gets a little gunk on it at the top. The rest just falls off into the bubble column. I run it 4 times/day so you never really get big chunks of stuff. It is just wiping off a thin film,

It works best when skimming a little wet (which I prefer anyway). I have not noticed any change at all on skimmer performance. I was concerned it would interfere with the head of bubbles, but that has not been the case.


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Unread 06/12/2010, 08:16 AM   #14
mray
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Does the blade reach the top of the neck because height on the blade doesn't look like it's adjustable?


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Unread 06/12/2010, 08:11 PM   #15
bvoss
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The blade extends a about 1/4" above the top of the neck on my skimmer. It has about and 1 and 1/2" of extra reach on the bottom end.


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Unread 06/12/2010, 10:51 PM   #16
Maivortex
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Wish i had head room for that. How much height does it add to the skimmer?


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Unread 06/12/2010, 11:19 PM   #17
Fishamatank
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Looking forward to some objective reviews.


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Unread 06/15/2010, 02:46 PM   #18
mikesommers
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mray View Post
Does the blade reach the top of the neck because height on the blade doesn't look like it's adjustable?
There site states they will custom make them for an extra 20 bucks. Thats $154.00 for all most any skimmer out there!!


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Unread 06/15/2010, 03:24 PM   #19
bvoss
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I missed the question on the height. It increases the total height of the skimmer about 2 inches.

The unit is still working real well for me though I can't tell if I have any skimmer production because I am playing with NP pellets and vodka at the same time.


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Unread 06/15/2010, 05:15 PM   #20
SnowManSnow
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Quote:
Originally Posted by au01st View Post
I would think that the squeegee runs often enough that no "gunk" builds up, only a light coating of stuff that will remain on the foam because it's not dense enough to sink.

A member of my local club ordered one and should have a good objective review coming up soon.
get offa this board n back home where u belong haha


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Unread 06/15/2010, 05:17 PM   #21
catman78
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They have a demo cone skimmer for sale for $250.
Make em an offer with the swabbie and it looks like you would have
a nice setup.

http://www.avastmarine.com/ssc/do/pr...mmers/GS1-2010


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