Is lifereef really the best skimmer?

[legionofdoon]

No life reef is not the best skimmer. Life reef has a small group of loyal followers that won’t even try anything else. I have one of his skimmers and replaced it a year ago and haven’t used the life reef since.

Tell us what you didn't like and what you replaced it with. Also maybe some comparison pictures to illustrate your reasoning for the switch.

 

[User1]

You can never have enough power... Jeff of Lifereef runs a Mag18 on his 24” Lifereef. A Cor15 would be underpowered for a 24” IMO.

While I don't disagree with the never enough power bit - the Cor 15 works perfectly fine. I run one and it performs equally as well as the Mag18.

I chose to run a Cor 15 because that is the same as my return pump. If for some reason my return goes South I can take the skimmer offline and replace the return pump in less than a minute. Maybe I should clarify that for me, it works fine and I didn't see a difference in what it collected between the two. The only difference was the Cor produced less noise. Maybe I have less bio load, younger tank, or magical pink unicorns - just an opinion.

 

[Water Dog]

That’s very good to know... I do think it would be underpowered for the 30” Lifereef though:

 

[User1]

No life reef is not the best skimmer. Life reef has a small group of loyal followers that won’t even try anything else. I have one of his skimmers and replaced it a year ago and haven’t used the life reef since.

While I hear what you are saying I would say you are incorrect on the small group of loyal followers. He couldn't stay in business if it was a small group and he has been in business for 20+ years and his skimmers last. I have the same model that I purchased in early 2000 that is still running great today. I originally had it running on a 100 gallon, then later a 29 gallon cube, then took it offline and threw it in a box, only to run again on a 40 gallon then currently deployed it on a 210 gallon. Still running strong. I don't see a skimmer that I could buy today that would let me run it like that and I know it will support larger tanks should I choose to upgrade again up to 400 gallons. Best money I've spent since it has been so multipurose.

I've also owned ETSS skimmers prior to the life reef. Talking about an piece of dog poo. It skimmed great but needed constant adjustment. Weekly regardless how consistent I kept the water level in the sump it still needed constant adjustments. Also owned a CPR Bak Pak. Great skimmer for its size.

So to answer your question. Most of us probably have used other skimmers but there is no need to try anything new when what we have is working perfectly fine. Why throw money away when it isn't necessary? What can I possibly gain?

 

[User1]

That’s very good to know... I do think it would be underpowered for the 30” Lifereef though:

It very well maybe. My lifereef goes back to 2000 like I noted above so forget the model. I'd have to check a email Jeff sent me when I asked him. He keeps good records I must say. In any case I was asking about upgrading it since I was upgrading to a 210. He said no need to upgrade which I thought was cool. He could have sold me something new but chose to be honest and say mine is perfectly fine.

Didn't mean to argue - just wanted to say that I am using the Cor and it works for me. Ask me in another year after I add some more fish just to keep me honest

 

[legionofdoon]

Jeff also is extremely responsive if you email him. He also follows up to make sure it works out.

 

[Be102]

I love lifereef products and Jeff is a great guy. Friendly and very informative. Never a rude response . I have a skimmer and overflow box by him. Would love to get more products in the future

 

[ca1ore]

I think there is a lot to be said for longevity, and reliability. When faced with Lifereef versus MTC 25 years ago I went with the latter (mostly because they were local). Equivalent build quality and a shared appreciation for the advantages of contact time. Feeding the Venturi with air from the cup is really quite ingenious. Whether LR is the best or not is in the eye of the buyer I suppose - not sure who’d be better?

 

[nbd13]

While I don't disagree with the never enough power bit - the Cor 15 works perfectly fine. I run one and it performs equally as well as the Mag18.

I chose to run a Cor 15 because that is the same as my return pump. If for some reason my return goes South I can take the skimmer offline and replace the return pump in less than a minute. Maybe I should clarify that for me, it works fine and I didn't see a difference in what it collected between the two. The only difference was the Cor produced less noise. Maybe I have less bio load, younger tank, or magical pink unicorns - just an opinion.

What size skimmer do you have running a Cor15 on?

I was going to go with the Cor20 because that’s what return pump I was going to get as well and like you wanted a backup just in case.

Nick

 

[Bpb]

No life reef is not the best skimmer. Life reef has a small group of loyal followers that won’t even try anything else. I have one of his skimmers and replaced it a year ago and haven’t used the life reef since.

There’s no possible metric to determine the “best” skimmer for someone. In a few independent, though well performed, experiments bubble king seemed to have the best performance in removing a measured amount of DOC (don’t have a link, sorry). But that doesn’t necessarily make it the best choice. Maintenance and value are part of the equation as well.

Best skimmer? Can’t say. I can almost assure you everyone presently using a Lifereef has tried another skimmer though and has settled on what they feel provides the best combination of performance, cost, and ease of upkeep. We are all allowed to disagree because we don’t place value in the same spots.

 

[Mrx7899]

There's at least one person over on the life reef club thread on RC that got one. You could contact Avast on a recommendation.

I have the avast marine micro neck cleaner on mine works perfectly

 

[Mrx7899]

Here's a pic just cleaned the skimmer cup

 

[User1]

What size skimmer do you have running a Cor15 on?

I was going to go with the Cor20 because that’s what return pump I was going to get as well and like you wanted a backup just in case.

Nick

It is the VS2-24 built in 2000. Originally it came with a Iwaki pump so it was external. It is now in the sump with a Cor 15. I went with the Cor 15 because that is also my return pump. Just like you pointed out - my thought was that if ever the return failed I could take the skimmer offline while I await a solution to fix or replace. Also I had trouble finding the Cor 15 as it was - at the time I couldn't find a 20 so picked up whatever I could.

 

[Be102]

It is the VS2-24 built in 2000. Originally it came with a Iwaki pump so it was external. It is now in the sump with a Cor 15. I went with the Cor 15 because that is also my return pump. Just like you pointed out - my thought was that if ever the return failed I could take the skimmer offline while I await a solution to fix or replace. Also I had trouble finding the Cor 15 as it was - at the time I couldn't find a 20 so picked up whatever I could.

I have a vs2-23 I believe and I also did what you did. I have varios 6 pumps one on my return and one on my skimmer. If anything ever happened I could easily switch it out. Then I also have the mag drive that case with the skimmer that I could throw on it.

 

[KJoFan]

For the past week or so I've suddenly been having an issue with microbubbles coming from the output of my Lifereef VS-2 24" skimmer. Anyone ever have this issue, and a solution to resolve it? I have to guess it's my pump (Jecod 9000) but unsure why it's suddenly causing the skimmer to spit out microbubbles. The pump seems to be working as it should, nothing clogging the intake or anything like that. Just thought I'd throw it out there and see if anyone has encountered this and had a fix.

 

[Water Dog]

Is the venturi cleaned and clear?

 

[KJoFan]

Is the venturi cleaned and clear?

Yes, forgot to mention that. I pulled the hose connecting to the collection cup and cleaned it out and also poured hot water down the air draw which, in theory should clear out anything clogging the venturi as far as gunk/salt etc. Of course, that didn't make a difference so maybe I'll need to disassemble further just to see if there's something clogging it more firmly.

 

[User1]

I use a 20mm syringe to clean mine. Hose I just rinse to clear out. Same with collection cup fittings. The venturi can be a bit difficult but what I found is that I can fill up a syringe out of the sump then flush the venturi out and it is good to go. I don't really have anything on the bubbles - I've not had that happen.

 

[KJoFan]

I use a 20mm syringe to clean mine. Hose I just rinse to clear out. Same with collection cup fittings. The venturi can be a bit difficult but what I found is that I can fill up a syringe out of the sump then flush the venturi out and it is good to go. I don't really have anything on the bubbles - I've not had that happen.

Thanks for the tip on the venturi, I might give that a try. Could just be something clogging it up enough to cause issues. It's drawing air still and skimming, but the microbubbles of course end up in the display which is annoying.

 

[JeffT]

Ralph is upset because his Lifereef System had some bubble issues caused by cavitation. This problem was corrected during our first few chats via phone. Then many months later he says the bubbles are back. Well, this was caused by his refusal to run filter pads as required. Several methods were discussed as to how to prevent cavitation. In fact, Ralph provided a video of the system working fine. You can see his vids and my posting of his system working at YouTube, look up "Lifereef Problems". Cavitation is an issue in some installations, regardless of the sump brand. Cavitation can be caused by plumbing, pumps too large for the plumbing used, pumps being restricted in suction, etc. All cavitation issues can be solved, as I've done every time this comes up which is only a few times per year.