so i came across a couple of DIY protein skimmer plans online... look pretty simple... but i'm wondering if a taller, bigger, more powerfull protein skimmer is worth the effort, and the eyesore... lol.. well... it's not going to be visible... i the homeboy that runs a LFS and he said that a heavier/powerfull skimmer in a heavily stocked reef environment would be better than any protein skimmer rated for 300g or more... but since i'm building a 90g setup, i don't have to make a 6' tall protein skimmer...
what do you guys think...?
i also have some question... do protein skimmers still work if the tank is running with live rock, and like two tiny fish...? will it make less foam and not pull out the gross stuff...?
it won't show in my tank... since the back is painted black, and it will be hang on style behind the entire tank... i will mostly likely use a aquaclear 110... 700gph+ with the venturi on... and a whitewater blower with two wooden airstones...
as far as the size of the skimmer goes ....i feel the same as filtration ...."the bigger the better" ...lol could be wrong but it works for me...
as far as your question on how it works with a "light bio load".........again i can't comment on a monster skimmer, but my red sea unit runs a lot of crap when theres crap in the tank and then when it's really clean it basically just runs water through itself...no foam or anything.....i think the matierials and proteins in the water "react" with the air generated by the skimmer and hold the bubbles together and that makes the skimate........so if theres nothing there to hold the bubbles together ........well theres no skimate - - - - --thats the simplton snowboss skimmer 101 theory...lol .....hope it helped............
oh... that was my concern... if there isn't a load or anything what would happen... so cool... i'm going to build a 3' tall hang-on skimmer... well... i'm a ways from building anything, but you'll see...
those skimmers are monsters.they will probably kick some ass.whats the price on that build? where are the plans??? how do you make the colection cup.?..use a skimmer even if you have no fish..a good skimmer will always yeild foam..live rock releses dust or detritus...whatever..but it will dissolve in the aquarium and keep almost any skimmer collecting foam.
if you dont want to look at that skimmer you could get a g2 they are cheap and work good..{compared with euro reef but half the cost}
heres a monster for you - - -to compare cost and effort in building your own . . .i mean if it is going to cost you 400 bucks and a lot of heartache to get it right then here is an example of an out of the box monster size that might actually be affordable in the end,,,,ya know?
but my LFS has made different types... he told me to instead of using an airstone on the bottom, use a recirculating pump with a needle wheel... that sounds freaken awesome, but those are baller, and i'm not running a tank with dolphins or anything hardcore... i just want something that will be slightly overkill for my tank... something that would be rated at about 300 gallon tanks...
i'm also worried about how much GPH to use... they told me to use a slower GPH pump... that way the airstone will have more contact with all of the water inside the skimmer... bah... i wonder if a 300gph would be enough...
my skimmer was like 20 something inches tall with a sedra 3500 with a flowrate of 350 gph..i think a larger pump will be nedded. you could buy a big pump and add a shutoff valve before the pump...i think i am going to build one of these complements of work...lol..thanks boss..
i'm going to start construction soon... this week for sure... well i also have to build the canopy... since the canopy at my LFS is super expensive for the dimensions i want...
