Skimz SK181 Review

[gregzz4]

Ya that makes sense.

If you really want to know how much power it uses, all you need is a clamp meter and a line splitter.

I bought a Fluke 334 and an Extech 480172. You can also make a line splitter with an extension cord by cutting a slit in the cord, but I don't know if you'll get a true reading that way.

Really handy if you want to know how much power you're using. My clamp meter is overkill for the price. Any cheap one will do ya.
All you do is multiply the reading; Amps X Voltage.
Test your house's voltage where the unit is plugged in to get a true usage calculation.

[apexifd]

Quick update.. it's definely skimming a lot better, I am getting more than before...

[Motorfranco]

I have the same tank size as yours,just wondering if sk181 is a little bit oversized? You don't worry about stripped the water too much for a Sps tank?
Anyway I ordered one already,cos my cabinet is only 22" inches tall,sk181 is the perfect size skimmer for me,just a little bit concerned about over skimed.

[apexifd]

Originally Posted by Motorfranco

I have the same tank size as yours,just wondering if sk181 is a little bit oversized? You don't worry about stripped the water too much for a Sps tank?
Anyway I ordered one already,cos my cabinet is only 22" inches tall,sk181 is the perfect size skimmer for me,just a little bit concerned about over skimed.

it's rated for 300 gallon with light bio load... so realistic number should be 1/2 of that. 150gallon for $500 skimmer sounds about right.

Having the extra skimming power lets me feed the the fish more often, and broadcast feed corals at night.

[gregzz4]

I replaced the stock impeller today in my SK181 with the upgraded one to stop the re-start issues
So far I'm happy with it

Only issue I have is that I can no longer rid myself of the pump humming noise by unplugging and replugging the pump until it goes away

I'm going to mess around with the pump some more to see if I can make it quieter

[gregzz4]

The noise I heard from my pump back in June went away pretty quickly after replacing the impeller ...

I believe the OP has since sold his unit so I want to add some info for others looking through this thread

I've had this unit running for 7 months with a light bio-load on my 75g, with a total of 110g water
Since I bought it, I've installed the upgraded impeller
The new impeller resolves the re-start issues with older production releases
This is the impeller that came with the unit I bought that was sold around May 2011, and had re-start issues

Note how the tips are uniformed



This is the upgrade impeller that stops a re-start issue
Note the changes in the tip design









I've not been disappointed with this skimmer's performance, but I made one mistake with my sump
My DT drains to my skimmer section, before my filter socks. This causes the skimmer to become dirty enough to impede it's performance
Today, after wondering why my skimmer would only run 9 turns on the gate valve ( instead of 10 ) without overflowing, I cleaned out all the detritus etc and it's back to pulling as it should
I did not find anything inside, so suffice it to say this unit is sensitive to buildup

I am very happy with it and have no plans to replace it, unless I come across a very cheap Vertex Alpha Cone

[gregzz4]

Next time I'll get a pic of how much nog it collects, but here it is about an hour after a cup cleaning

[Aqua-Digital]

SK181's can be upgraded to CSC-150 using Sicce PSK1000 pumps we will have new bases available next year to retrofit.

[gregzz4]

Kinda off track here, but I'll bite

I asked you about the upgrade earlier this year when you first mentioned it, but you did not respond ...

What is involved in the upgrade ... is it just a matter of replacing the base, besides the pump ?
Is the pump complete, or are old parts re-used ?
And hows availability for replacement parts ?
And, of course, what's the upgrade cost ?

All good things to know if I ever would like to replace my Skimz ES2000 (Eheim 2000) pump, but I'm happy with it for now
I can pick up a new pump locally so, for now, I will stay away from a Sicce as no local to me vendors carry them

[Aqua-Digital]

What is involved in the upgrade ... is it just a matter of replacing the base, besides the pump ?
Just base and Pump is required

Is the pump complete, or are old parts re-used ?
The PSK1000 pump is supplied complete with new volute

And hows availability for replacement parts ?
Excellent, unlike Eden, all Sicce spares are available through us and they have a base in the USA (Sicce USA)

And, of course, what's the upgrade cost ?
Not sure yet, but affordable

I will stay away from a Sicce as no local to me vendors carry them.
There are NO Eden dealers in the whole of North America, but you have Sicce available right here any local dealer has access to spares

Of course there is no reason to upgrade all the time you are happy with the Eden pump, but for those that wish to upgrade to gain the performance jump they will have an option to do so