Life Reef Skimmer -- An Honest Review

[piranhaman00]

Has anyone in this chat switched their LR to the Mazzei Venturi style vs the regular one? I have seen some other places where people have mentioned this makes the LR skimmers work even better and easier to dial in. If you have tried both what are your experiences? Thanks!

Mazzei works better , pulls about 1.25x the air. However it’s even louder than stock.

 

[piranhaman00]

I don’t think I ever updated.

I ended up going to a RO 250INt, overall a way more effective skimmer.

 

[Devaji]

The downside to recycling air from any skimmer cup is decreased oxygenation. This may not be a big deal if your tank has good gas exchange from other places. It might matter a lot. In any case, you can make or buy silencers.

still thinking of a LR skimmer. I would be using it on a 275 FOWLR
will be using oz

I don’t think I ever updated.

I ended up going to a RO 250INt, overall a way more effective skimmer.

man i have on the fence about a LR skimmer for years.
been going back on for for me 275 build between planted FW and fish only SW for many months now. ugg

anyway i am between the RO 250 int and the LR 30" svs skimmers if I go SW..
noise, performance,maintenance, and cost are all factors I am thinking about.

been rocking a RO 150 for years it just works. very little adjustment and pulls out a lot of crud.
wish i could play with both is person ( like to did) and decide what worked best for *ME*

 

[alysak6075]

still thinking of a LR skimmer. I would be using it on a 275 FOWLR
will be using oz


man i have on the fence about a LR skimmer for years.
been going back on for for me 275 build between planted FW and fish only SW for many months now. ugg

anyway i am between the RO 250 int and the LR 30" svs skimmers if I go SW..
noise, performance,maintenance, and cost are all factors I am thinking about.

been rocking a RO 150 for years it just works. very little adjustment and pulls out a lot of crud.
wish i could play with both is person ( like to did) and decide what worked best for *ME*

I have the 250SSS and the 36 external SVS. I swapped the 250 for the 36. 250 is quieter no doubt about it, but the 36 pulls way more crap out. However the 250 used to pull between 26 to 32W.
The 36 pulls 80W with a Jebao pump.

Best part for me about the 36 is: dont need to clean the body all that much, been running it for almost a year, will run it probably for a few more years before even thinking about cleaning.

Also the fact that its not living under the stand in the sump gives me more room in the sump and i dont have to bend over all the time to clean the cup. The best part however is: the silencer also acts as a safety when the skimmer decides to overflow the silencer fills with water, that stops foam generation and effectively stops any leaks/overflow on the floor. Ive yet to have this skimmer make a mess tbh.

 

[Dmax]

If you have the vertical space I think they are hard to beat. I have 2 SRO 6000 Ext skimmers that are excellent skimmers as well, but the pump I've had to replace 3 times. I love the fact that this skimmer design isn't designed around a specific pump. The pic is on a 450 reef system and the 60" model. Also the LR is almost silent compared to the washer machine SRO.

 

[t5Nitro]

I think my LR skimmer has been on 24/7 for the last 4-5 years and I haven’t touched it. Occasionally injected hot water through the Venturi intake to clean out any crud. I’m sure there are more efficient skimmers out there? But longevity is speaking for itself on mine so far.

And it’s really not the skimmer body. It’s all the pump, and the old school pond master danner pumps are built like tanks.

 

[ThaBeast]

Here's my SVS-30 chugging along on my 185. It's been set ang forget unless the bio load changes significantly. I've had all kinds of skimmers in the past including a couple monster Deltecs and a EuroReef, probably wouldnt buy anything other than a LifeReef again

 

[areefer01]

I think I mentioned this already but I purchased the SVS2-24 back in 2001 for my 100 gallon display. Still in service today on my 210. Upgrading next year to a display somewhere around 300 - 375 gallons and will move the skimmer over to it.

Interesting enough I recently called Jeff to purchase a new one. The current one is perfectly fine but I don't know when he may retire so figured I'd have a spare on the shelf to be safe. Or I'll swap them out, add the ozone finally, and pass the older one down to my son who is setting up a display.

Obviously I'm biased as I love the skimmer. I also like Jeff so it sort of makes sense to stay with what I have. I can only compare it to my previously owned ETSS skimmer and later becket mod I did to it so not a lot of cross brand experience. My point I guess is that his quality is there, they work, and if taken care of within reason should last the lifetime of the owner. I also believe this to be true of other quality built products to be honest. However, I can only speak to what I've used and the LR is it for me.

 

[Devaji]

question for all you LR users out there?
can you /do you tune the air coming in? or is that all dependent on the pump speed?

 

[jda]

It is based on the rate of flow going throught he ventrui. You can make the hole larger by drilling out extra material in the nipple and stuff.

In the end, I don't think that it matters much if you get the GPH of the pump in the range that others, or the LR folks, suggest. They key to LR, Downdraft and Beckett skimmers outperforming most needle wheels is that they have the non-uniform bubble size, IMO.

 

[Devaji]

It is based on the rate of flow going throught he ventrui. You can make the hole larger by drilling out extra material in the nipple and stuff.

In the end, I don't think that it matters much if you get the GPH of the pump in the range that others, or the LR folks, suggest. They key to LR, Downdraft and Beckett skimmers outperforming most needle wheels is that they have the non-uniform bubble size, IMO.

thanks for the replay. I reread this thread. now I understand.
that does make since.

 

[areefer01]

I'm not sure I would recommend drilling out the venturi though as suggested above. Especially if you are buying a new one. I use a DC pump and dial it back but also know others do not.

 

[fishybizzness]

For those people using the 24, where do you keep the water level inside the skimmer for best skimming? I run mine just at the top of the body below the flange. Is that the recommended height?

 

[Oldreefer44]

I believe the recommended level is around 7 inches from the bottom but as long as you are getting plenty of skim I wouldn't worry about it. Also, Jeff is very responsive to questions via email.

 

[legionofdoon]

For those people using the 24, where do you keep the water level inside the skimmer for best skimming? I run mine just at the top of the body below the flange. Is that the recommended height?

From what I remember Jeff said right around the life reef sticker. That's how mine works the best.

 

[legionofdoon]

I believe the recommended level is around 7 inches from the bottom but as long as you are getting plenty of skim I wouldn't worry about it. Also, Jeff is very responsive to questions via email.

Jeff is very responsive. I bought mine second hand and he was very helpful.

 

[fishybizzness]

I know the water depth that the skimmer sits in is not as critical as with other skimmers but what water depth are you guys keeping your skimmers at?

 

[JC1977]

I know the water depth that the skimmer sits in is not as critical as with other skimmers but what water depth are you guys keeping your skimmers at?

I run mine around 8”

 

[ThaBeast]

I know the water depth that the skimmer sits in is not as critical as with other skimmers but what water depth are you guys keeping your skimmers at?

mine runs at 6"

 

[Devaji]

I know the water depth that the skimmer sits in is not as critical as with other skimmers but what water depth are you guys keeping your skimmers at?

mine run at 0" cuz I have not ponyed up for one yet. even tho I have been looking for many, many years. haha