what is the best skimmer?

after buying a red sea max for my son , i am now jealous and am looking at buying one for myself. i am looking at 5x2x2 (560L) what would be the best type of skimmer i shouls put in it?i have been to 2 shops and they suggest the turboflotormulti or the redsea what would you suggest?

 

you probably might get a bunch of mixed responses on that one there are lots of debate about top products.

 

Mine, is the Remora C. All the rest are crap, just kidding. I am not a fan of the Bal Pak 2. Those are the only 2 i have used. Remora C never had problmes, very reliable.

 

Except for the prism HOB skimmer R/Sea has a great skimmer as good as any on the market in the same price range I never had a bad one. I still use them . I like to old classic Berlins and the X-L then I go to the 600.00 Plus units for a more efficient and larger skimmer there are a lot of different choices in between 150.00 to 600.00 ETSS Precision Marine and Turbofloter and Its goes on and on.. But as mentioned you will get more answers to this one then a few. But again for a basic skimmer on a tank less then 200 Gallons the old Red sea classic with a proper pump can't be beat for the money.

 

I'm sure most companies that make skimmers produce a top-of-the-line model for their product and most probably are excellent skimmers. The top-of-the-line stuff however tends to be a bit pricy ($$$). So basically it all comes down to one's budget.

Unless you go ballistic ($$$) a couple of very good reliable skimmers are the "Aqua C Remora" and the "Coralife Super Skimmers" most commonly mentioned in this forum and recommended.

I personally use the Coralife 220 and have nothing but good things to say about it in terms of ease-of-use, reliability, effectiveness and price.

Good luck with your purchase.

 

There are many good skimmers on the market and unfortunately, the market is flooded by the influx of skimmer makes and models making it more time consuming and harder to decide on the BEST skimmer for your particular tank and bioload!
One thing you want to do is buy a skimmer that can handle a tank bigger than the one that you have as these numbers as to the tank size associated with the skimmer, doesn't take into consideration the bioload that you have in your tank! Bigger is better here regarding skimmer size!
Now for those of you looking for a hang on skimmer will have to make sure that you have the space behind the tank to the wall of your house to fit the skimmer. The Remora by AQUA C has a small area with which the skimmer will fit rather nicely with no need for alot of space. The Remora also is a very good skimmer IMO.
If you are going with a in sump skimmer, be careful about the footprint size and it being able to rest inside your sump, especially if you have a small sump and need to put heaters, skimmer, and pumps etc. in the sump! Also, skimmers are different heights so make sure yours will fit underneath your tank in the stand with easy access to remove the skimmate cup!
I would do as much research as you can to make the best decision on this critical and crucial part of your saltwater tank reportoir! Money, size and type of skimmer(down draft, needlewheel, air injection etc.) will have to be addressed in your choice!
CHOOSE WISELY and good luck...

 

The turbofloater is a very good skimmer. Ask Matt Rogers about the turbofloater, I believe he has one. The berlin skimmer from what I've read seems to take a lot of frequent adjustments to keep it skimming although I dont have any personal experience with this skimmer.

 

I am currently using a coralife super skimmer and I agree it is very user freindly and cost friendly to and works great.

 

im useing a kent marine nautilus te. best skimmer i have had yet. very low maintance large skim cup. and very easy set up. attatch a pump adjust the height of the water and your done. only draw back is its a sump skimmer.

 

Coralife super skimmer all the way! Good price, easy setup, you dont have to manually pick up the cup and drain it (it has a tube connected to the cup so all you have to do is place that tube over a small pale or something and that should suffice) I run mine pretty dry and get alot of dark gunk. I guess it all depends on the bioload and the size of the tank, but IMO this is a great skimmer.