Reefer 170 Pump, Heater and Skimmer?

hotdrop

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Pending wife approval I'm going to buy a reefer 170 and I want to make sure I dont have to buy hardware twice for it. What are good options for heaters, pumps and skimmers? I dont want to get suckered at the LFS.
 
I don't have a Red Sea tank, but I have a DIY 40g cube with a 40g sump/refugium.

I'd recommend getting any of the DC powered return pumps that have variable speeds and maybe even a feed mode. Get one rated with the top flow rate that is more than Red Sea recommends (for insurance and to cover head loss).

I've used a number of different skimmers over the years and they all work pretty much the same. I have a Coral Box from Reef Breeders and it works well. I especially like the fact that it has a variable delay for turning it on after I feed and a float switch and alarm for the collection cup so it shuts off if the cup fills to full.

Most skimmers are fairly sensitive to the water level in the sump, so an ATO would be a useful investment. I have one that uses an electric eye rather than a float. I had one with a float and it always collected slim and needed cleaning every couple of day!

I have a basic cheap heater. But I live in SW Florida and our house is 80 degrees about 10 months of the year so I very rarely need a heater. Get one that is completely waterproof and with an on/off thermostat. They are cheap so this isn't a place to save money. Buy a good one and you'll be ahead in the long run. Cheap ones fail and either don't heat the tank or stay on and over heat the tank!
 
Have the same tank also live in Florida. Skimmer get the bubble mag curve 5. Works amazing on that tank. Pump went with a vectra m1 and works flawless love the feed mode. Then I have a mp10 for flow. As far as heater don’t by a cheap on u will replace it in time. U definitely need one to make sure there are no changes in your water. ATO I would look at tunze
 
On mine:

Varios 2 return pump(bump it up to a Varios 4 if you intend on running a manifold)
Ebo Jager 150W heater
Reef Octopus eSsence S-130 Protein Skimmer
 

IF YOU HAD TO TAKE A REEFING EXAM, WOULD YOU PASS?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 32 45.7%
  • Not yet, but I have one that I want to buy in mind!

    Votes: 9 12.9%
  • No.

    Votes: 26 37.1%
  • Other (please explain).

    Votes: 3 4.3%

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