what hang on the back skimmer should I go with

[gobytron]

Originally Posted by Myka

If it were my tank, I wouldn't set it up until it was drilled with an internal overflow installed. You can always put plugs in the holes until you are ready to get the sump hooked up. It is risky to drill it when there is water in it, and difficult to impossible (depending on what type you want) to install an internal overflow. It really takes a lot of work to drill a tank after it has been set up. Those hang on siphon overflows are horrible, so I wouldn't even consider one of those.

If drilling it now isn't an option, I would go skimmerless until the tank gets drilled. I would also run it bare bottom and be sure to not overstock fish until the skimmer and sump are installed. Of course weekly 10-25% water changes will make a big difference too.

Imo, the Remoras aren't worth the cost for tossing them in the trash. I have owned a Remora and a Remora Pro and really think they are quite a waste of money. Imo, those people who think Remoras are good skimmers, have never had a better skimmer to compare to. Sure, they are a better skimmer than a BakPak or a SeaClone, but that doesn't take much! Imo, the only HOB skimmer worth spending money on is a Deltec.

Holy smokes....lol
what a read.

I know you're new to reefing, don't let people like this put you off of it.
People go through a lot of trials and tribulations in reefing and you'll come across extremist views all over the place due to how hard reefers work to get to their ideal set up and also due to lessons learned through their own individual experiences.

Be careful when you are asking general questions like this on sites like this.
The best bet is to do the best that you can with the resources you have available.

My 1st tank was a sumpless 32 gallon bowfront, heavily stocked with a prizm HOB skimmer and no sump, just a rena xp1 packed with live rock.

My next real jump was to a 72 gallon, it was sumpless initially and I was still using that Prizm skimmer but I went out and bought one of those "horrible siphon overflows" and upgraded to a euroreef RS80 to put in my new 15 gallon sump. (as a side note, I have used 2 different siphon overflows, one of which I built myself and BOTH of them have never lost siphon and have never stopped working through power outages and countless maintenance pump shutdowns...plus they take up less realestate and are mch quiter than many internal overflows).

I upgraded from there to a multitude of tanks and finally broke everything down into my main display now, which is a 95 gallon with an external siphon overflow I built and a 60 gallon acrylic sump. I've spent a tonne of money on equipment now, like a wavebox, tunze powerheads, a calcium reactor pakage, a schuran skimmer and an aquacontroller and would I sit here and say that my current system is any better than that first 30 gallon?

NO.

I've learned a lot and paced myself according to the money and time I had to put in to this hobby.
sometimes that meant wasted resources or backtracking on some progress made in order to accomodate a new upgrade that I just couldn't afford or understand the necessity of prior to that but it worked for me and I have enjoyed my genesis through this hobby immensely.

So try and filter opinions from facts and make sure you don't let anyone tell you what you can and can't do...just get out there, get reefing and start learning....