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125gal.Fish Only (Born on 11/25/06)
75gal. Reef Tank (5 yr old)
20gal.Tiny's new home
30gal. Extra high FW angel tank ( 16yr old )I traded for this
5gal. Food tank
Update - 12-14-07 -
Well, I am giving up on the LifeReef skimmer. It works well and I was really hoping that is was going to be big enough for the 140, but it is just not removing enough waste. I am fighting cyno and I have a ton of flow, do not overfeed and change about 20% of the water each month. I am thinking the skimmer would be more appropriate for a 75 gallon instead of a 140.
So, I pre-ordered one of the new ReeFlo Orca 200 skimmers from Premium Aquatics. They are not yet in stock, so I will have to wait until the first shipment comes in. There is still some confusion as to which pump comes with the 200. Some sites say it uses a Dart and some say it uses a Snapper. The Orca 250 uses the Dart, so I am inclined to believe that the smaller skimmer will come with the smaller Snapper.
The stats on the skimmer claims it pulls over 1500lph of air into an 8" chamber - which is a lot! In the pictures I have seen, the skimmer almost looks like it is made of white PVC because the concentration of bubbles in the reaction chamber is so dense.
Anyway, I am hopeful this skimmer works as well as it's big brother, the Orca 250. I have seen nothing but rave reviews on that skimmer.
The specs on the unit are:
-Footprint: 14.5" x 17"
-Overall Height: 26"
-Chamber Size: 8" x 12" with 3.5" bubble plate (diffuser)
-Neck & Riser: 4" x 8" (note prototype has 3" neck, production model will have 4" neck)
Pump: Sequence Reeflo Dart Needlewheel (restricted)
Air Intake: 1575 LPH
Wattage: 95 watts
Water Flow Through: 200gph - 700gph
For tank sizes - 100 through 400 gallons
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150 gal Custom. Born 5/7/07. 50gal, 29gal, 20gal Sumps. 30gal Frag Tank. ETSS 800 Skimmer, Deltec APF600 Skimmer. PFO Solaris Lighting on Display and Frag Tank
That might be a great skimmer, but it looks too much like a toy to me. "Soft & creamy absorbate?" I prefer the more brutish styling of the Orca. Looks meaner. And it is made in the US (I think) and I should be able to get good service if needed. I got very quick response when I had a small issue with the Dart, so I am assuming the quality of service for the skimmers would be the same.
Good call on that skimmer phlounder. I have been eyeballing it for weeks, but decided against it at the last minute. Having to run two tanks on the same 15 amp circuit ensures power consumption is given the utmost consideration. I have thought about having a dedicated circuit installed, but have yet to overload the circuit that is being used.
It will be interesting to see how this skimmer will compare to your lifereef.
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I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them. -Thomas Jefferson
I am really not knocking the LifeReef skimmer. I just think they are like just about every other skimmer manufacturer out there that maybe fudges a little when recommending what size tank the skimmer will handle. Jeff at LifeReef told me he had this skimmer on his personal 200, but later I learned that his tank is really not heavily stocked. This tank will be.
I am thinking of a smaller tank in my home office and I will likely use the LifeReef on that tank (if and when it ever materializes) and it will do a great job.
Glad you mentioned the need of another dedicated circuit. Maybe we don't talk about this enough, but it is a pretty important step to consider before ever setting up a system. I learned the hard way with my 75. I now have two dedicated circuits and a third one that is shared with some light fixtures in the living room, all installed right behind the tank. I took care of this before the tank was ever set up. So, glad I did!
Lyndon.
Linear Mode
