Hi all,
I'm poking around some archives from the old message board system, and am posting any interesting notes I find here...
-- tonmo
==================
skimmer- please help|G:Rudiger:
Hi. Im thinking I might finally buy a protein skimmer. My question: Whats the difference between a $100 protein skimmer and a $25 Lee's protein skimmer? Will the more expensive ones filter the water that much better? Do I need a really nice one versus a cheap one? Thanks.
Re: skimmer- please help|G:OctoMonkey:|
hi Rudiger,
Its the old, "you get what you pay for" scenario!
The cheaper skimmers are air operated, ie through one of those noisey air pumps, they do a good job but only in tanks with small gallonage (is that a word?) and a light bio-stock! They are better than no skimmer at all. One drawback is that the wooden airstone needs changed every month or the skimmer wont perform.
The dearer ones are like putting a turbo on it. By adding a powerhead that draws water into it very quickly and mixes it with air drawn in through a venturi system you get a much better skimmer. Much more turnover and more skimate (the brown stuff).
My first skimmer was £65 (seaclone) it is powerhead operated and i bought it because it was cheap. I wish i hadnt. Read over some of the posts regarding cheaper skimmers at reef sites and you'll see what i mean.
The one i run now is an Aqua medic 5000baby. It is four feet tall and shifts hundreds of gallons an hour. Needless to say, I have no protein in my tank.
EXAMPLE If one or more of my cuttlefish ink in the tank, i reckon it takes my skimmer approx 1-1.5 hours to remove it.
Aqua Medic 5000 baby is at http://www.aqua-medic.de/index0.html
Colin
PS I dont think i could keep the cuttlefish and octopus so healthy without it
=====RELATED THREAD=========
proteine skimmers|G:Octavian:
Ok, here is another question for you all. How much of a neeed is there to have a protein skimmer for an octopus tank. My local pet store said that they don't use one for any of thier marine tanks, but they don't keep any cephs on stock. Does any one keep a tank with out one?
Thanks a lot.
Re: proteine skimmers|G:OctoMonkey:
Hi,
I dont think that i would have a tank set up that didnt have a skimmer for cephs. There are many people like rudiger who have success with marine animals without a skimmer but I prefer to have one becaus eit is like a huge safety net for our water conditions. The skimmer removes lots of stuff, not just protein, that we dont want in there before the filter even has to think about breaking it down. My skimmer removes about 1/2 pint of waste every few days which would otherwise still be in the tank. Remember that a ceph can produce 3 times more waste than a fish of the similar biomass!
Colin
Re: proteine skimmers|G:rudiger
My tank doesnt have a protein skimmer. But my octopus species is Joubini, he is very small and does not eat much, so he really doesn't pollute the water at all. However, most people I know do suggest a skimmer for an octopus tank.
I'm poking around some archives from the old message board system, and am posting any interesting notes I find here...
-- tonmo
==================
skimmer- please help|G:Rudiger:
Hi. Im thinking I might finally buy a protein skimmer. My question: Whats the difference between a $100 protein skimmer and a $25 Lee's protein skimmer? Will the more expensive ones filter the water that much better? Do I need a really nice one versus a cheap one? Thanks.
Re: skimmer- please help|G:OctoMonkey:|
hi Rudiger,
Its the old, "you get what you pay for" scenario!
The cheaper skimmers are air operated, ie through one of those noisey air pumps, they do a good job but only in tanks with small gallonage (is that a word?) and a light bio-stock! They are better than no skimmer at all. One drawback is that the wooden airstone needs changed every month or the skimmer wont perform.
The dearer ones are like putting a turbo on it. By adding a powerhead that draws water into it very quickly and mixes it with air drawn in through a venturi system you get a much better skimmer. Much more turnover and more skimate (the brown stuff).
My first skimmer was £65 (seaclone) it is powerhead operated and i bought it because it was cheap. I wish i hadnt. Read over some of the posts regarding cheaper skimmers at reef sites and you'll see what i mean.
The one i run now is an Aqua medic 5000baby. It is four feet tall and shifts hundreds of gallons an hour. Needless to say, I have no protein in my tank.
EXAMPLE If one or more of my cuttlefish ink in the tank, i reckon it takes my skimmer approx 1-1.5 hours to remove it.
Aqua Medic 5000 baby is at http://www.aqua-medic.de/index0.html
Colin
PS I dont think i could keep the cuttlefish and octopus so healthy without it
=====RELATED THREAD=========
proteine skimmers|G:Octavian:
Ok, here is another question for you all. How much of a neeed is there to have a protein skimmer for an octopus tank. My local pet store said that they don't use one for any of thier marine tanks, but they don't keep any cephs on stock. Does any one keep a tank with out one?
Thanks a lot.
Re: proteine skimmers|G:OctoMonkey:
Hi,
I dont think that i would have a tank set up that didnt have a skimmer for cephs. There are many people like rudiger who have success with marine animals without a skimmer but I prefer to have one becaus eit is like a huge safety net for our water conditions. The skimmer removes lots of stuff, not just protein, that we dont want in there before the filter even has to think about breaking it down. My skimmer removes about 1/2 pint of waste every few days which would otherwise still be in the tank. Remember that a ceph can produce 3 times more waste than a fish of the similar biomass!
Colin
Re: proteine skimmers|G:rudiger
My tank doesnt have a protein skimmer. But my octopus species is Joubini, he is very small and does not eat much, so he really doesn't pollute the water at all. However, most people I know do suggest a skimmer for an octopus tank.
