A few questions regarding equipment
 

So i have a person who is a wholesaler for lights called "reef optix" by a company called sunlight supply.

Has anyone heard anything about this company. It looks to be good but i am never sure on proucts like this and thought to ask the experts.

Also: It looks like I MAY be getting a deltec skimmer. Is there any benefit to going with a deltec over say H&S, ASM or Euro-Reef since they all use the needle-wheel technology?

Is it true that they are better quality?
Thanks

Deltec has a better build quality (materials) than ASM for sure, and probably Euro-reef as well, IMO. But you pay out the nose for a Deltec, and unless you beat it up, an ASM will do very well for its price.

What size tank are you setting up?

Sunlight Supply makes some of the best lighting for aquarium use. Their Reef Optix 3+ pendants are tested to be one of the best to use for Double Ended bulbs. I own a pair of Reef Optix 3+ pendants and a Bluewave 7 ballast and I am very happy with the results thus far.

If you can get them for wholesale prices, you are super lucky! Their Marinestar fixtures are suppose to be top knotch as well.

As for the skimmer, it depends on what you want and how much money you have to spend. I think Deltec skimmers come with more toys though (such as the self cleaning head and the wet neck). If you are already considering a big money skimmer, you may also look into Bubble King skimmers which are suppose to be the Rolls Royce of skimmers.

I have bought a Deltec hang on skimmer (thanks Andy) so am waiting for it to arrive. They are supposed to be an excellent skimmer so I am anxious to see how it skims my 44 cube that I am currently using a Remora Pro on.
I have a Bubble King 400 ext. and it is a Rolls Royce. Very impressive skimmer but like the Deltec you will pay dearly for it. No regrets in buying it at all as I am a firm believer in overskimming your tanks if you want to seriously do SPS coral. I am so impressed by this skimmer that I ordered another bigger one - I must be crazy!

TheReefGeek:
I am planning on setting up a 50 gallon main tank with a 40-50 gallon sump. I don't want to go TOO big right now as i am just getting my feet wet in the marine aspect of it all.

I have thought about a bubble king but i don't want to be divorced after recently getting married.

Thanks for the comments on the Reef Optix. I have a price quote of APX $750 - $800 (that is with shipping) for the Marinstar 36" fixture with tek t-5 actinics in it and 2 10,000K 250W HQI ballasts (DE bulbs) --- this is the bulbs, ballasts, hanging fixtures etc.....

As for a Deltec skimmer, i can actually get my hands on a new one that is about $650CDN plus about another 50-100 for shipping ... it is about the cheapest that i have found anywhere.

I could get you an ASM G5 for $750, no GST, and shipping from Edmonton to Calgary is cheap. That would be good enough for a 300 gallons. It depends on the height of your stand though. Check out my site for pricing on smaller models.

The G4+ is a nice model because it is 24" hight, fits under most stands, and is good enought for a 250g tank or so. (350g by ASM's marketing, but all skimmers are overated)

Honestly for your tank i think an ASM G3 is overskimming. But if you can get a deltec for that price, you probably won't regret it. You almost always get what you pay for.

I myself have a G4X and it works great.

Overskimming? there is no such thing:mrgreen:

Steve

Getting a larger skimmer usually saves money in the end, because you just know you will upgrade your tank or add a second one in the future! I learned the hard way, I am on my 5th (and hopefully last!) skimmer.

I would go with ASM but i heard so many sketchy problems with them.

They have great reviews ... but i consistantly see problems when it comes to them.

I'm curious what problems you have seen with them? I currently run an ASM G4X with mods but have also run an ASM G3 and a regular G4. My only complaint would be with the G4 being underpowered by the Sedra 5000 and being too stupid to figure out how to use the gate valve with the G4X mods (I do run it recirculating though). Other than that plug and play and work very well.
I just have never seen anyone relate any problems with them on the boards that I frequent.

What sort of problems have you seen with ASMs?

I do not have an ASM, however from my research it appears these are decent pieces of equipment. Specifically what issues have arisen with these and what is the source of information on the issue?

Most that i have heard is a lot of excess leaking around certain mods that people have gotten, leaking around the neck. There was excess noise caused from the skimmer, there was also a problem with bubbles and even consistantly overflowing the collection cup (no, it wasn't a new skimmer).

There have also been qute a few problems that i have read about when it came to cleaning the skimmer, that when they restarted the skimmer that it was like the first time they fired it up brand new. I dunno, it just seems like a few too many problems.

Are you sure you are not thinking of the coralife super skimmer? All those problems look like the ones I have seen posted all over for that skimmer and not the ASM.

very possitive. I mean, given the THOUSANDS of skimmers that they make, i am sure that they are just a few of the anomolies that may occur.

For those that do have these skimmers, do you notice that there may be some extra crud leaking back into the sump and cause some problems that way or is it so minimal that it can be negated if it got back into your tank?

My only complaints are a slight leak on one of the seals, and they shorted me on the riser tube foam. I only got a 3" piece of foam. Since the foam didn't reach all the way up the riser tube, when the water flowing out of the riser tube was disturbed at the top it would turn into a water fountain, hit the shoulder of the skimmer and deflect out of the sump. I ended up with 10 Gallons of water on the floor of my basement once. This could have been fixed by a) securing the small foam to the top of the riser tube with a tie strap, b) buying a longer piece of foam, or c) adding a gate valve. I went with c) because i end up with one less thing to clean. I even think that I have gotten better production since I added the gate valve, I think because you can fine tune the level perfectly.

As for cleaning the skimmer, I have never had it overflow after cleaning, in fact, it starts skimming right after cleaning, and I never have to adjust the level.

And I am not exaclty sure what crud could leak back into the tank?

I think it might be safe to state that a G5 on a 50 Gallon tank is over skimming! Either that or overcompensating.... :lol:

hmm... so your saying you don't want to see the new skimmer I am putting on the 94gal:mrgreen:

Steve

I don't think you can over skim either. You can go over kill - guilty - but not over skim. If you have a skimmer that is capable of keeping up with your system and put a bigger - over kill - skimmer on it a bigger skimmer is just going to get the job done a lot faster. There is only so much to skim. That being said the bigger skimmer will also get things done quickly if you happen to over feed - increase your bioload - or have a problem like something dieing in your tank.
Personally I like the insurance.
JMO

The ASM does not have as high a build quality, and they are NOT meant to be run out of a sump, because most do leak some water from various connections and joints. But if run in a sump, this is not a problem.

The makers of the Euro-reef and ASM used to be the same company, the technology is identical, they use the same pumps. The ASMs are cheaper because a different (cheaper) plastic is used. To me it is worth the cost savings because I think the risk of breaking the skimmer is very minimal.

A gate valve mod is an excellent additions to an ASM (I have this on mine), as is a re-circulation mod that improves efficiency of the skimmer. If you have a single pump model, you will need a powerhead and to drill a hole to feed water to the skimmer, but with a multi-pump then you can re-circ quite easily. I have yet to do this on mine, but 2 out of my 3 sedra 9000's will soon be re-circed, with one left to feed water in.

With these VERY CHEAP mods (all it is is PVC parts), an ASM is a fantastic deal, IMO.

Ok question for all you people running needle wheel skimmers, where can I buy a needle wheel pump for a reasonable price?

Steve

Here is a site from the states that sells ASM's http://www.asmskimmer.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=23

:lol: No I always like to oogle at monster skimmers.... oh BTW steve that asm site posted earlier sells just the needle wheel pumps if that is what you are looking for.

On the topic of overskimming, I think that we may be getting close with the new larger and more efficient skimmers becoming common. I mean skimmers take out particulates as well as disolved organics. And many of our corals feed in the water column and are not fed directly, so if we take out all particulate matter and free floating microfauna in the tank won't they starve or be undernourished?

I am not taking a side on the overskimming debate but I think there are pros and cons to both sides...

It depends on what your intension is, a large skimmer doesn't remove stuff from the tank instantly. so if you have a 100 gal tank and your sump flow is 10% and you skim from your sump you are probably only realy skimming 10% of your tank per hour at most. so if you like to overfeed like so many of us do the larger the skimmer the better. and if you are growing SPS where you want desolved nutrents at close to 0 to bring out the color more......

I don't think we can get a skimmer that is to big but rather we can spend more on a skimmer than we need to.

Steve

is there any flow ratings on thoes pumps so one can figure out how big of one he needs?

Steve

I believe that in gph it is the first 3 digits of the pump, so a sedra 9000 with no air intake should push 900gph, while the 5000 should push 500.

The word from ASMskimmer.com is that the rumor of ASM being once related to EuroReef is completely false...according to him.

http://www.asmskimmer.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=38

[quote]I believe that in gph it is the first 3 digits of the pump, so a sedra 9000 with no air intake should push 900gph[quote]

I would assume that you would also need to replace the needle wheel impeller to get that kind of flow out of it.

Ok so if some one wanted to add a needle wheel to a dual venturi skimmer just to increase foam quality what do you guys think would be good? it is a 8" main tube that is about 32" tall.

Steve

Interesting, I wonder how/why that rumor, if it is a rumor, got started, because it is very wide-spread.

For an 8" tube, 32" high, you would want the sedra 9000. Or two :)

The ASM G5 is 8.5" tube 36" tall and uses 2 sedra 9000.

ya but I am also running two Mazzie's on it so I am looking to add a recirc loop with the needle wheel.

Steve

Sounds like a killer skimmer. I'd do a Eheim 1260 it's what came on my Deltec, kick as* over the Sedra 9000. A bit spendy and not sure where you'd get it, they seem to only sell to Deltec owners and If you needed I could order one if you can't find it online.

When do we get to see the Skimmer!

Dave

when its done:lol:

Steve

So Steve are you modding an existing skimmer or building one from scratch? Or is that a secret too?

My buddy was looking up sources to buy a needle wheel eheim. The cheapest place he found was $130 for the impellar alone + cost of pump :eek:

nope I think I posted pics befor. I am building it from scratch.. and now I am moding it with a recirc set up.. then I get to finnish it:redface:

Steve