OMG! Thinking of Getting Remora Skimmers, Need Advice Please

[Delphinus]

Didn't I read about this in Revelations ????

1 And I saw in the right hand of Bev, a protein skimmer that fitteth within a confined space and on the backside, sealed with O-rings or other;
2 And I saw a strong thread proclaiming with a load voice, Who is worthy to skim my tank, and to fractionate the foam thereof?
3 And no sump in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the tank, was able to hide other tank equipment, neither to look thereon,
4 And no leaks were to happen in the condo,
5 And the count shall be Three, not Two, nor Four,

... Oh never mind.

[fkshiu]

The skimmate in Remoras cannot overflow because when the collection cup is full, any additional skimmate will simply fall back down into the skimmer. You'll stop skimming but you'll still have a dry floor. There's a drain cup that AquaC sells that allows you to attach tubing that drains into another container so that you'll always be skimming.

You have to remove that whole unit to clean the insides. Just use a little vinegar and a long brush. I've only cleaned mine once after more than a year of continuous use. The only parts that you having to maintain on a regular basis are the collection cup (just take it off the top) and the injector nozzle (accessible from the top with an included brush).

There are some issues with amount of skimmate, noise and microbubbles but there are simple fixes. Having the pump inside the tank is unsightly but easily dealt with by hiding it behind some rockwork.

AquaC has fantastic customer service as well. I've even gotten freebies from them such as when the elastic around the collection cup broke.

[G1GY]

IMO, the only way the Remora is going to let any water go......... Is if it's broken! (See: cracked or smashed)

By design, it will allow all water, skimate and foam to be put right back in the tank if the collection cup is over filled. Trace amounts of foam will appear around the hole in the collection cup when the foam isn't turning into liquid fast enough. (By trace amounts, I mean not even enough to drip off of the lid.)

There is no possible way for this skimmer to leak onto the floor without actualy breaking the body of it. (Works very good for a hang on also.)

[Beverly]

Wow! Very glowing testimonials Except for Tony's soooooo funny quasi-quote from Revelations

And, no, I'm not having a stroke because I can still type

Moving along.... A few I have questions brought up some of the discussion....

Microbubbles:
- am thinking of getting Maxi Jet and Mag Drive pump Surface Prefilter Boxes (http://www.proteinskimmer.com/surfaceprefilter.pdf ) to combat microbubbles and to help remove the surface scum we have in all three tanks. Any pros or cons to these pre-filters? Will they help remove the surface scum?

Noise:
- we are really used to very little noise coming from our tanks. The only noise we currently have is a wee bit of vibration from the powerheads in the tanks, which is still very quiet. How can I reduce noise from the skimmers, if there is any after the break in period?

Intake Protection for BTAs in 37g and 67g tanks (using Remoras and Maxi-jets)?:
- Gotta protect my BTAs in the event they decide to move after introducing the skimmers. Will the pre-filter box do the trick or do I have to cover the pre-filter box with something? Describe the something, if you know. (Not a trick question!)
- if we don't get the pre-filter boxes, what can we use to cover the pump intakes?

Tank Molding Size:
- the molding of these three tanks is 1 3/4" from front to back. Will these skimmers fit this non-standard molding size? If not, is there a modification we can make to the skimmers so they will hang onto the tanks?


Those are all my questions for now. Glad to hear that these skimmers will not leak or overflow water (unless broken), and that the skimmate will not overflow either.

Thank you all very much for responding

[OCDP]

I can only help with the noise factor.

If you take the collection cup out, and on the left side where the injector is, you place some paper towel in there and it muffles it right up. Sure, there is some noise... but it's not that bad at all.

[marie]

The mag 350 pump that comes with the pro, comes with a foam covering that would keep anemones safe. The noise isn't too bad, a lot less then a back pack skimmer anyway.

If you don't want flooding DON'T get the prism pro. Mine was constantly dropping water on the floor the instant my back was turned

[Osiris]

Never had my Remora overlow. I had a Prizm and there is no comparison. When My tank was too close to the wall for my CS-90 overflow, I took a 4 ft. Maple dowl I have, sat down on the floor, put said dowl between baseboard and bottom of stand and pulled towards me. This was done to a 65 gallon tank with a 30 gallon sump/fuge. Moved aquarium out 3 inches.
It worked for me. *shrug*

[seashells]

Sorry to tell ya this...The skimmer may leak from time to time. I have had a remora pro with the preskimmer. Most of the time it works great. Where the hose attaches to the body of the skimmer, I have had it slip off 3 times shooting water out of the tank. Each time emptying 4 to 5 gallons on the floor. Luckily we were home at the times it happened. It may not shoot water out if the pump can drop to the bottom. I tried using a stainless steel hose clamp but the screw begins to rust in a couple of days. I found air conditioner hose clamps similar to that which comes with the skimmer. Much heavier and stronger. I sent an email to Aqua C regarding the problem and they did ship me replacement clamps at no charge.

I was also told by Aqua C that the pump can be upgraded to a Mag 5 for better perfromance.

As for the cleaning it is fairly easy and straightforward. When we do a water change I usually siphon out the skimmer picking up any accumulated sediment .

Hope this helps.

Cheers, Doug

[Beverly]

Originally Posted by seashells

Sorry to tell ya this...The skimmer may leak from time to time.

I was also told by Aqua C that the pump can be upgraded to a Mag 5 for better perfromance.

Doug,

Don't like the sound of anything leaking. From where has yours leaked? What causes the leaking and how can the leaking be prevented, in your opinion?

I'm guessing that by using a bigger pump you also get more water moving through the tank? A bigger pump may not work for us, if this is the case.

[G1GY]

Originally Posted by Beverly

Doug,

Don't like the sound of anything leaking. From where has yours leaked? What causes the leaking and how can the leaking be prevented, in your opinion?

.

Same thing I pointed out in a previous post. Use heavy duty clamps, or you can double wrap with 304 or 316 stainless steel wire and twist with pliers to tighten.(Maybe use the stock clamps and back them up with stainless wire?)

Very minor issue and nothing to prevent you from buying this skimmer.

304 and 316 stainless wire isn't the easiest stuff to find, but if you need some just PM me and I'll send as much as you could ever need for what the shipping will cost.