CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

I'm setting up a FOWLR saltwater system, and need to know what brands of skimmer are the best. I at first was going to go with the cheapest skimmer I could find, but on second thought, going cheap hasn't worked well for me in the past. What company makes a skimmer that isn't necessarily overpriced, but is a quality skimmer for a nano-tank? It is going to be a 29 gallon tank with a DSB and 20 gallon sump. I want a skimmer because I may at some point down the road turn it into a Nano-Reef, but am not prepared to do that right now. Any suggestions?
Thanks.

I am going to move this to saltwater, that way junior will get a notice, him or jay will know a good one for you to get.

Okay, good idea. I just wasn't entirely sure whether I should put this in Salt or Hardware. It could really be both, you know...

Like to help ,but im a saltwater ametuer

Do you want it to be in sump or hang on the back?

It'll be in sump. The sump is going to be a 20 gallon long tank with some sort of divider, and it will be something like 5 gallons sump, 15 gallons refugium. I can adjust those numbers if a better quality skimmer measures different.
As for price on the skimmer, I'm basically hoping to pay less than $400. I haven't done much research, but I have seen some skimmers more expensive than my car (which is a piece of crap, btw). Thanks for the help.

O you are killing my under $400 that is REALLY way to much for a skimmer. Just get a remora urchin pro, that will be way over kill for your tank and will run about $150 used.

Go to http://www.Reefcentral.com and look in the for sale section, you should be able to find a used one with in a week or so.

Good luck
JR

Awesome. RC has been where I was doing most of my research. Water Keeper has got some great threads for people who are new to saltwater. You said earlier that alot of them don't get the point of fishkeeping, that its like a matter of pride for a bunch of them. Thats so true. But, a decent forum none-the-less.
Remora Urchin Pro, eh? Are there different models or is that the model your suggesting? I'm also looking at Ebay for the skimmer, but I don't know if thats really a good place or not. The people on RC were suggesting all kinds of expensive models, and that worried me. Thanks for the advice.

the guys on RC will suggest a euro-reef, way over kill in my opinion. the remora is more than enough for a 55g with sump much less a 29g. ebay is a good place to look but prices are usually a we bit higher.

thanks
JR

http://www.bigalsonline.com/search/?type=catalog&method=all&collection=sitebuilder%2Fcatalog3-1&keywords1=skimmers
Look at these

berlins way over rate themselves, I would only put the xl on a 55g nothing larger(old style skimmer kind of out of date).
The seaclone does nothing, you would be better off spending that money on live rock, it will do a lot better than a sea clone.
The prizm is alright, that would be my pick out of all of them but you can get those for about $50 used.

I have used everyone of those skimmers so I am not just spouting off info that I have read, this is all first hand.

Thanks
JR

Prizm is a decent skimmer? Everyone on RC said its a PITA, and lumped it in the same group as a 'clone. I like the price much better on a Prizm (naturally). Is there a particullar model, or minimum tank rating you would suggest for my tank?

The skimmers appear expensive, will that be my most expensive need for a saltwater tank?

Depends, saltwater is spendy no matter what, but don't cut corners on the skimmer.

I ended up spending more money on Live Rock than I did on my skimmer, but I got a great deal on it at Big Al's online. (check the sticky in the Aquarium Hardware section).