Somatic skimmer w/sump

[Unregistered User]

This skimmer/sump is made for 75- 150 gallon.

Retail today $382.

No refugium.

I have a 52 gallon.

Yes, I'm aware building would save $$$. I gave a college kid $400 in equipment to build me one, and drill my tank. He went MIA. An acquaintance will help me next month, if possible, but allowing him to drive 90 minutes each way to do so is ridiculous. He unlike the teenage kid, has a family, full time job etc.

At this point the option above seems like a solution before I lose my sanity. Also, I did look at other premade... but once you look at cost, ideal water level, footprint of skimmer & then play the matching game it gets complicated. I would looooooove an easy solution.

Thoughts?

(Also, thanks for the vent. I never get angry & I have so much disdain for the college kid. He sucks.)

 

[75galOCD]

Its nice if your ok without a refugium go for it.
You could spend that much on a skimmer alone.
I like the open space, plenty of room for pumps.

 

[coil1002]

Thats a nice set up for the money.

 

[Unregistered User]

Its nice if your ok without a refugium go for it.
You could spend that much on a skimmer alone.
I like the open space, plenty of room for pumps.

I dunno. I guess I'll have to think about it. Thank you.

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

It sounds like you're really overthinking this whole thing. A sump is just a vessel to hold water and house some equipment to keep it out of site. You could literally take a rubbermaid bin and use it as a sump or any glass aquarium that would fit in your stand...
With that said: you can get the somatic 60 sump skimmer combo right now on MD for $246 with free shipping and it's totally adequate for your 52 gallon tank. I'd go with that. Bigger isn't necessarily better in this case.
If you don't plan on running a refugium for nutrient export using macro algae, you will most likely need to run GFO in a reactor. IMO, GFO or BioPellets in a reactor is easier, and cleaner than running a chaeto fuge.

 

[Unregistered User]

It sounds like you're really overthinking this whole thing. A sump is just a vessel to hold water and house some equipment to keep it out of site. You could literally take a rubbermaid bin and use it as a sump or any glass aquarium that would fit in your stand...
With that said: you can get the somatic 60 sump skimmer combo right now on MD for $246 with free shipping and it's totally adequate for your 52 gallon tank. I'd go with that. Bigger isn't necessarily better in this case.
If you don't plan on running a refugium for nutrient export using macro algae, you will most likely need to run GFO in a reactor. IMO, GFO or BioPellets in a reactor is easier, and cleaner than running a chaeto fuge.

Refrugium sounds smarter. Thank you for that info very helpful. It's $75 on eBay for things needed to convert a 20. I do have a 20 long. At that point though $75 + $25 tank is $100 seemed smarter to buy acrylic premade.

 

[Unregistered User]

It sounds like you're really overthinking this whole thing. A sump is just a vessel to hold water and house some equipment to keep it out of site. You could literally take a rubbermaid bin and use it as a sump or any glass aquarium that would fit in your stand...
With that said: you can get the somatic 60 sump skimmer combo right now on MD for $246 with free shipping and it's totally adequate for your 52 gallon tank. I'd go with that. Bigger isn't necessarily better in this case.
If you don't plan on running a refugium for nutrient export using macro algae, you will most likely need to run GFO in a reactor. IMO, GFO or BioPellets in a reactor is easier, and cleaner than running a chaeto fuge.

chaeto fuge.

Wait, is above short for refugium?

 

[madweazl]

Glasscages is building mine for under $250 (cost of tank plus I think it was $95 for the baffles I wanted). Slightly cheaper option if that is a plausible alternative for you. A smaller tank for the sump would be less expensive. This one is based on a 50g long.

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

chaeto fuge.

Wait, is above short for refugium?

Yep you got it. Also: GFO = granular ferric oxide used to soak up phosphate and silicates (primarily algae sources), Bio Pellets = a form of solid carbon dosing used for nitrate and phosphate removal. Lastly, this thread is missing pics of cats. Lets see em! ;Joyful

 

[XNavyDiver]

Yep you got it. Also: GFO = granular ferric oxide used to soak up phosphate and silicates (primarily algae sources), Bio Pellets = a form of solid carbon dosing used for nitrate and phosphate removal. Lastly, this thread is missing pics of cats. Lets see em! ;Joyful

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

 

[Fritzhamer]

I’d go for it. The empty space in chamber one can be a fuge now or down the road. It’s nice to have options, even if you run reactors you could have them in chamber one.

In a perfect world I’d have a sump twice the size of my display.

 

[siggy]

Those somatic are the perfect setups, and their is a little room to try different stuff