curiosity killed the cat

[ARGYGANG]

Got curious if I could cut corners and get a $20 nano skimmer instead of one of the more known ones that are $80+, bought a $20 one off Amazon here is the link to it so you guys don’t waste your hard earned money 1/100 stars just a high priced bubbler. This isn’t a help post or anything just simply a loss of mine I could share so it isn’t a lose for any of you lol.
(ignore excessive fish flakes auto feeder dumped over as I was taking pics)

 

[nuxx Verified Sponsor]

Doesn't hurt to try.

I used cheap Jebao powerheads and return pumps and had zero problems.

Worst case, it was a cheap experiment. Might be surprised...

 

[ARGYGANG]

Doesn't hurt to try.

I used cheap Jebao powerheads and return pumps and had zero problems.

Worst case, it was a cheap experiment. Might be surprised...

For sure! that’s why I posted here, I purchased this product it did not work and I figured where else would people be looking at this??? Reef2reef! I’ll save them the time and money so that they can do other experiments that may work, when we pool our knowledge that makes everything run as smoothly as possible.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Got curious if I could cut corners and get a $20 nano skimmer instead of one of the more known ones that are $80+, bought a $20 one off Amazon here is the link to it so you guys don’t waste your hard earned money 1/100 stars just a high priced bubbler. This isn’t a help post or anything just simply a loss of mine I could share so it isn’t a lose for any of you lol.
(ignore excessive fish flakes auto feeder dumped over as I was taking pics)

You will have more headaches with the wood air stone clogging and requires a very strong pump to get air thru the wood. Pump will be at least $25-$30 and replacement stones$6 each. Better off buying a hang on unit such as IceCap K1-50 which works like a full size skimmer and easy to maintain.

Maine - Skimmers - Drygoods - IceCap K1 Nano Protein Skimmer

IceCap K1 Nano Protein Skimmer: $75 includes shipping in continental US. (~ 3 months old)

www.reef2reef.com

 

[nuxx Verified Sponsor]

For sure! that’s why I posted here, I purchased this product it did not work and I figured where else would people be looking at this??? Reef2reef! I’ll save them the time and money so that they can do other experiments that may work, when we pool our knowledge that makes everything run as smoothly as possible.

On "dumb" equipment like powerheads / skimmers / etc... can normally skimp.

A lot of things like cheap DC pumps / powerheads can be controlled by a nice controller anyway.

No I wouldn't skimp on controllers though...

Even lights you could probably get away with. I had some of the best growth with the cheap block box LEDs. Went with Kessils on my big tank just for looks TBH...

 

[ARGYGANG]

On "dumb" equipment like powerheads / skimmers / etc... can normally skimp.

A lot of things like cheap DC pumps / powerheads can be controlled by a nice controller anyway.

No I wouldn't skimp on controllers though...

Even lights you could probably get away with. I had some of the best growth with the cheap block box LEDs. Went with Kessils on my big tank just for looks TBH...

My $90 light off Amazon is just as good as some of the competitors twice the price and half the quality, sometimes big name brands skimp because there name is already made for them sometimes it’s a real quality product aswell, you dice roll everytime you buy something that isn’t main stream that tons of people use.

 

[afrokobe]

yea, I thought I could game the system and got that skimmer as well on Amazon. After two weeks, the skimmer gets so clogged on the wood airstone you will have to do so much regular maintenance. Also trying to get that skimmer to skim consistently is another issue. There are no fine adjustments for the height and you find yourself constantly raising and lower the skimmer.

Honestly, I would just go skimmerless or save for something that is actually useful.

 

[dedragon]

mame skimmer iii always looked interesting and is pretty much a glass version of that skimmer, but the wood airstone clogging seemed like too much of a pita. I agree with afrokobe, just go skimmerless and maybe run the cheap protein skimmer just to add some o2 back into the water. Under 40 gallons I always recommend no skimmer as they are way too finicky in smaller tanks

 

[afrokobe]

if you can fit and swing this:
This thing is great. I run one on my 20g long. Pulls skim consistently and very easy to fine adjust. Outside of this in terms of smaller skimmers, only other skimmer ive heard good things about is the tunze 9001. (which will have to fit sideways in some aio)

 

[dedragon]

if you can fit and swing this:
This thing is great. I run one on my 20g long. Pulls skim consistently and very easy to fine adjust. Outside of this in terms of smaller skimmers, only other skimmer ive heard good things about is the tunze 9001. (which will have to fit sideways in some aio)

thats not a bad design at all, looks similar to most regular skimmers. I wish they put that drain hole higher up in the cup, that way in case there was a skimmer overflow you could just redirect it into the tank. Overflows are the only issue I have with hob skimmers, this one being internal may stop this as well depending how close to the wall it is

 

[afrokobe]

thats not a bad design at all, looks similar to most regular skimmers. I wish they put that drain hole higher up in the cup, that way in case there was a skimmer overflow you could just redirect it into the tank. Overflows are the only issue I have with hob skimmers, this one being internal may stop this as well depending how close to the wall it is

while it says hob, its actually in sump. I have no idea how this skimmer would work hob lol.

 

[Alvaro_Spain]

I have Bubble Magus BM MiniQ Nano (just 50 bucks) and I feel it is the best cost/value non wood airstone skimmer. Very silent,

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005003986539969.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.45.46f71802kfukf9

 

[Jonreefer]

i have this as its the only thing that will fit in my AIO chamber and it works just fine
it skims like skimmers do

 

[ARGYGANG]

mame skimmer iii always looked interesting and is pretty much a glass version of that skimmer, but the wood airstone clogging seemed like too much of a pita. I agree with afrokobe, just go skimmerless and maybe run the cheap protein skimmer just to add some o2 back into the water. Under 40 gallons I always recommend no skimmer as they are way too finicky in smaller tanks

so what should i keep the nitrates at for mushrooms and xenia? i know those love higher than normal nitrates as they eat it similar to plants (correct me if im wrong as always please im new to coral and could have miss read/been provided false info) so would like 30-40 be a good level to keep it at? its just two clowns and they are both very very small so nitrates arnt really a big issue anyways.

 

[dedragon]

I wouldnt keep my nitrates that high, I would aim for 10-15ppm with a little bit higher or lower being just fine. If you wanted a mixed reef in the future I would lower it just a bit more to aim for 5ppm. These are just rough parameters and stability is always more important than sticking to exact levels

 

[Tamberav]

My softy tank has nitrate of 50 and it isn't an issue for the corals or fish or CUC. There is no reason to keep it that high though, just as long as you have some for the coral.