The propper skimmer for this tank.

[toxai]

Hello.

My tank is a Beta compact 120L (I guess). And I have a problem with my skimmer (tunze 9001). It's so big that I can not close the sump and it honestly looks terrible. So I was wondering if there's any other model that can fit well on my sump and let me put the top of it propperly.

Thanks.

 

[TheSheff]

That skimmer is probably as small as you can go in terms of vertical height.

 

[nothing_fancy]

Are you trying to put a lid on the sump section? Water looks low in the sump and the air vents on your skimmer appear clogged. Not what you want to hear but this skimmer is probably a decent fit for the sump from what I can tell from the photos. Your other options are HOB if you have enough horizontal space for the pipes. Reef Octo and Aquamaxx make HOB options that work. If you wanted to size up your skimmer you can use an EXT model. Personal opinion, for this setup as it is right now you probably don't need to skim at all and you can just look into filtration media, ceramic balls, etc lots of options, mechanical filtration the list goes on.

 

[TheSheff]

Are you trying to put a lid on the sump section? Water looks low in the sump and the air vents on your skimmer appear clogged. Not what you want to hear but this skimmer is probably a decent fit for the sump from what I can tell from the photos. Your other options are HOB if you have enough horizontal space for the pipes. Reef Octo and Aquamaxx make HOB options that work. If you wanted to size up your skimmer you can use an EXT model. Personal opinion, for this setup as it is right now you probably don't need to skim at all and you can just look into filtration media, ceramic balls, etc lots of options, mechanical filtration the list goes on.

I agree, he doesn't have much bioload and just a little algae on the back glass so a skimmer is not necessarily needed.

 

[toxai]

Are you trying to put a lid on the sump section? Water looks low in the sump and the air vents on your skimmer appear clogged. Not what you want to hear but this skimmer is probably a decent fit for the sump from what I can tell from the photos. Your other options are HOB if you have enough horizontal space for the pipes. Reef Octo and Aquamaxx make HOB options that work. If you wanted to size up your skimmer you can use an EXT model. Personal opinion, for this setup as it is right now you probably don't need to skim at all and you can just look into filtration media, ceramic balls, etc lots of options, mechanical filtration the list goes on.

First of all, about the lid question. Yup, but not a new one, but the one that was included on this aquarium. I had to remove it due to the skimmer, as it didn't fit.
Secondly, about the low level of water in the sump. In fact, It's a real problem. It's been happening almost since the beginning. I periodicaly must add water in the filter pump (I'll do another post about that).
Third question, about the obstruction of the skimmer's air vents. Some sand entered them, but the skimmer is making bubbles so, it means the air is flowing and working propperly, isn't it ?
Let me check those skimmer models you provided. That may help.
Finally, about the no skimmer option. For now, maybe i don't need it. But my intentions are to add corals till the rock is not visible at all xD. And may be a couple of fish else too. So, that likely wouldn't be able right?

 

[jda]

Those skimmers are about as good as it gets for small tanks. There are smaller skimmers, but I have never seen nor heard of one that works as well. Don't underestimate what they do for gas exchange even if you don't have them remove any organics.

 

[nothing_fancy]

First of all, about the lid question. Yup, but not a new one, but the one that was included on this aquarium. I had to remove it due to the skimmer, as it didn't fit.
Secondly, about the low level of water in the sump. In fact, It's a real problem. It's been happening almost since the beginning. I periodicaly must add water in the filter pump (I'll do another post about that).
Third question, about the obstruction of the skimmer's air vents. Some sand entered them, but the skimmer is making bubbles so, it means the air is flowing and working propperly, isn't it ?
Let me check those skimmer models you provided. That may help.
Finally, about the no skimmer option. For now, maybe i don't need it. But my intentions are to add corals till the rock is not visible at all xD. And may be a couple of fish else too. So, that likely wouldn't be able right?

So, to answer your question about low water level in your sump section of your aio, you need to get a working ATO if you haven't already. This is probably the first thing you should have that's working and reliable and you should be topping off with RODI. Airflow on skimmers: air is pulled in and let out.Unless you are recirculating the skimmer you would want air to vent so keeping the holes clean is something that you should have a look at. I would recommend getting your system in check, having a look at all your parameters and getting that ato installed to manage evap before you invest in corals, if you're manually topping off at this point you're probably having salinity fluctuations among other things. I was doing this very thing when I started my first tank and I had many issues trying to keep coral alive. You've got a nice tank and light, that skimmer is fine for that tank, no need for the sump cover, you are pretty much on your way. This might be for a different thread but I would suggest posting your parameters after you test them and asking some questions before you spend a lot on corals, covering that rock could cost you...

 

[toxai]

So, to answer your question about low water level in your sump section of your aio, you need to get a working ATO if you haven't already. This is probably the first thing you should have that's working and reliable and you should be topping off with RODI. Airflow on skimmers: air is pulled in and let out.Unless you are recirculating the skimmer you would want air to vent so keeping the holes clean is something that you should have a look at. I would recommend getting your system in check, having a look at all your parameters and getting that ato installed to manage evap before you invest in corals, if you're manually topping off at this point you're probably having salinity fluctuations among other things. I was doing this very thing when I started my first tank and I had many issues trying to keep coral alive. You've got a nice tank and light, that skimmer is fine for that tank, no need for the sump cover, you are pretty much on your way. This might be for a different thread but I would suggest posting your parameters after you test them and asking some questions before you spend a lot on corals, covering that rock could cost you...

Before getting corals, most likely thing is that I'm taking a controller, as It's quite a hard task to check all the parameters almost daily as I am doing right now. Even with that, they fluctuate a lot. Specially kh. And the controller will have an ATO for sure so, I'll wait.
I checked octo and aquamaxx skimmers but I guess it would be the same to the tunze 9001. I also found a very small one from Nyos but I have to think if I am doing good taking the risk of ordering it hoping there's free space enough between the water level and the lid for its head to not get underwater.

 

[nothing_fancy]

Before getting corals, most likely thing is that I'm taking a controller, as It's quite a hard task to check all the parameters almost daily as I am doing right now. Even with that, they fluctuate a lot. Specially kh. And the controller will have an ATO for sure so, I'll wait.
I checked octo and aquamaxx skimmers but I guess it would be the same to the tunze 9001. I also found a very small one from Nyos but I have to think if I am doing good taking the risk of ordering it hoping there's free space enough between the water level and the lid for its head to not get underwater.

If budget allows, that's a very smart move you're making getting on top of testing prior to getting corals. Testing and automation will help you in ways that you already know about and in other ways that you'll discover moving forward. Some would say it is unnecessary which is an opinion so it's not a false statement but you will not regret it.