Need opinions on an external skimmer

Floor drain. ;D

 

Yes floor drain if you have them.....I have been lucky/found that since you can dial water height it's not been a problem for me to date. I have used a large Top Phanton 12" x 66" for 3+ years too many years ago and never overflowed. Once you get use to your system and tank i think you will be good to go....HOPE lol I do keep my eye after cleaning skimmer.

 

Nice thing with these types are that they can be shut off automatically in case of an overflow. Make the skim bucket work as a type of air relief valve. Let me see if I can find a plan of how to make it...

 

Waste Containers

Hook the air into the skim bucket. Have a small tube with a ping pong ball in it. As water level rises the ball also rises. When it's full the ball blocks off the air flow in.
This causes back pressure on the skimmer air intake and skimming stops. Never ever overflows!

 

Perfect!! Now just need to make sure I have a closet to hide it in! lol

 

That's good stuff to know thanks too!

 

Have you looked into the SRO line of external skimmers?.....they do have some very efficient models

I would also suggest plumbing the Bio pellet reactor output directly into the skimmer pump input

 

Yeah, while reef octopus is a great value, I'm looking for ultimate in performance. Budget isn't really a concern.

 

you could spend over 5k on a Bubbleking skimmer for a 500 gal system, but I dont think they would be any more effective than an external SRO. The Bubbleking will be more quiet though if that is an issue. The SRO is a well done copy of the Bubbleking.

I look for body size and pump quality in a skimmer, after that there is only so much that can be done.

The SRO 8000EXT would be plenty of skimmer for you

Super Reef Octopus XP 8000 EXTERNAL Cone Protein Skimmer by CoralVue* - AquaCave.com

Reef Octopus SUPER SRO 7000EXT External Protein Skimmer* - AquaCave.com

 

JF has used all kinds of skimmers. I have seen with my own eyes the difference between a bubble king and a reef octo on his system. Doesn't even compare.