Surface skimmers vs submersible skimmers....

[Littorina]

Hey there!

     Can anyone help explain the difference and/or pros/cons between a surface skimmer, such as the Tunze 9004, vs the submersible kind, such as the CAD pipeless, or the Tunze 9002?  Saw an "in tank" surface skimming Tunze 9004 yesterday and I was curious....

     I still want to set up a nanotank, so I have to limit myself to small footprint skimmers....

    I learned that the surface skimmers take the oily sheen of bacteria etc. off of the surface of the water......does that mean that if you have a submersible skimmer in the sump instead, you could still potentially get the oily sheen in the display tank? 


Pros/cons to both would be appreciated! 

[Stussi613]

Surface skimmers are just that, they remove film from the surface of the water. If you have a sump, or an all in one, with an overflow the grates on the overflow act as surface skimmers.

Protein skimmers draw water in via a pump, or a very fine bubbling airstone, and deposit microbubbles into a collection cup where they pop and deposit the nasty's that stick to the bubbles as they rise.  The result is called skimate, and after you smell it once, you won't forget what it smells like fir the rest of your life...

Usually only tanks over 10g, or with a heavy bio-load need a skimmer.  You can buy a commercial one, or just make one like the $5 bad boy I made in the picture below.

[Littorina]

So basically, is an "in-tank" surface skimmer, such as the Tunze 9004, better for tanks that have a lower bioload, while in-sump skimmers are preferred for higher bioloads?

(and really cool DIY skimmer Stuart!) 

[Stussi613]

So basically, is an "in-tank" surface skimmer, such as the Tunze 9004, better for tanks that have a lower bioload, while in-sump skimmers are preferred for higher bioloads?

(and really cool DIY skimmer Stuart!) 

If you have a sump, the skimmer should go there, and the water level should remain constant - or as much as possible.   If you don't have a sump (or an all in one with a rear chamber) , then you'd go with an in tank version.

[az]

all skimmers need to skim the surface no matter how, in-tank or hang on the back skimmers will have a way to get the water right from the top, in-sump skimmers get water through overflow box in main tank which also takes water from the top.....so same idea.

I think you should look at other better skimmers.

[Greatwhite]

Honestly, I wouldn't do an in-tank skimmer at all, if you have room to hang a skimmer on the back.  Smaller tanks are tight enough on space as it is, and sticking a water bottle full of air bubbles in there seems to take away from the aesthetics that we strive for with our tanks.

(one of) the main reasons for a sump is to keep the ugly stuff out of the tank.  I had a hang-on-back Deltec MCE600 skimmer, when I started, which used to be "the best" HOB skimmer available at the time.  It had only a small intake pipe in the tank, and everything else was behind.  There was even a chamber in the skimmer that could house media (carbon, phosban, etc) but was also conveniently sized to hold a heater.

That skimmer was EXPENSIVE, but there are now comparable skimmers for a lot less.

I did end up with the oil slick on top, which was easily remedied with a Tom Surface Skimmer that I stuck on the intake line with a little mod'ing.

[Littorina]

Hi Az,

     I remember you mentioning the Octopus skimmer to me when I visited your store a few weeks ago...
This is my first tank though, and so I don't want to go TOO expensive with equipment just yet, but also, I'm looking at setting up a nano tank - 30 G or less, and I'm looking at some all-in-one tanks, to avoid having to set up a big external sump, so I'm kind of limited with regard to the skimmers I could use....small footprint, pipeless.....so Tunze, CAD, any other small ones out there I missed?.......

     GreatWhite, yeah, that's true - with a small tank, putting a skimmer IN the display isn't the nicest visually, and yes, takes up space in a small tank.........Same with a hang-on though for visual though - I personally would like to hide it in the back compartment of the attached sump, .......again, which is why I was focusing on the Tunze and CAD's, cuz they supposedly fit into the smaller AIO's. 

[Littorina]

Actually, I saw a youtube video of someone who had a little Hydor Koralia skimmer in his back sump of his nano tank.  He said he really liked it.   Are they any good? 

[az]

for 30 gal 9002 should be fine.

[Stussi613]

She's looking at an All-In-One tank which has a good nano-skimmer that fits in the back chamber perfectly...

My little nano-skimmer is working pretty good.  Here's a video on how it works.

[embed=425,349]http://youtu.be/fgcqpFpBrXU[/embed]

[bitterman]

Nice job Stuart!

When you say nano how big?
What stock etc..

I say buy the best skimmer you can afford for your tank or slightly bigger. For example I have a Cadlights PLS-100 for my sons 50 gallon tank (has a sump)

Good luck with your nano!

Bruce

[lucius]

I did end up with the oil slick on top, which was easily remedied with a Tom Surface Skimmer that I stuck on the intake line with a little mod'ing.

Just wanted to add that Hagen has one as well with a different adapter for wider input tubes.

[Stussi613]

It's a 15g Bruce...2 Picasso Clowns and a Six Line Wrasse, cleaner shrimp, some snails and a few crabs. That's it.

[Greatwhite]

That skimmer looks pretty cool... I guess to empty the cup, you'll have to either take the whole unit out - or use a straw and a strong stomach?

I think once you get a little more airflow there, you'll want to raise it up a little to get it "not so wet".  I think I'd be inclined to screw a short extension on the top of the water bottle for a little more collector capacity... maybe?  I find that my collector cup is never quite as big as I'd like.

[Stussi613]

That skimmer looks pretty cool... I guess to empty the cup, you'll have to either take the whole unit out - or use a straw and a strong stomach?

I think once you get a little more airflow there, you'll want to raise it up a little to get it "not so wet".  I think I'd be inclined to screw a short extension on the top of the water bottle for a little more collector capacity... maybe?  I find that my collector cup is never quite as big as I'd like.

I'm kinda happy with the pump and height the longer it's been in there, actually.   It barely sticks out the top if the tank at all.   It also needs cleaning every other day...and yes, I pull the whole thing out and drain it, then wipe it clean with paper towel.