pretein skimmer to fit nanocube?

[CtotheD]

has anyone found a skimmer that will fit in the nanocube? i know that people are making them and that can be because its cheaper or there are none. there was one i thought might fit in there. this one

 

any one know?

[TTU_reefer]

Wow im jumping in on this one, i think it would fit!

[sNEIRBO]

That looks really similar to the Lee's small Protein Skimmer. I've read good reviews about the Lee's. What the heck, for $30 can you go wrong? Order one, then let us know if it works out. A lot of people are really interested in Protein Skimmers for Nano Cubes.

 

Here's a link to the Lee's Skimmer -

 

http://store.yahoo.com/pet-guys/-010838171000.html

 

This one is really small. The only question I had about it was, would the collection cup fit in the rear chamber of the Nano Cube. The collection cup might need to be modified. The Lee's was very short, and would easily fit in the 24G rear chambers.

 

Keep in mind, which ever skimmer you look at, the collection area in these types of skimmers NEEDS to be ABOVE the water level. The rear chambers are 16" tall, the divider between Chamber 2 and 3 is 12" tall in the 24G Nano Cubes. At a minimum, you need to have the collection cup fit in between there - between 12" - 16".

 

Good luck. Let us know how it goes. If someone can find one of these production units that works, I'd scrap my DIY Skimmer for one of these.

[sNEIRBO]

Here's another option -

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...bayphotohosting

 

http://shop.store.yahoo.com/pet-guys/-0513...1378081100.html

 

I've read bad reviews of this Visi Jet PS-100, I don't know if those reviews were being used on bigger tanks though. With Nano Cubes we don't have many options, and IMO any skimmer is better than no skimmer. This is a venturi powerhead skimmer, and the collection area looks really small. This might fit a lot nicer than the Lee's. The eBay listing says this skimmer is 18.5" tall. Doesn't look like it would be too hard to cut 1.5" off of he bottom to make it fit in a 24G Nano Cube.

 

Looks like PaulP had to cut a hole in the hood of his cube to make the Lee's small Skimmer fit.

 

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread...&threadid=59039

[CtotheD]

yeah i would buy one of those but i just made a decision to put my tank on hold until i get a car. i really need one and can't afford to keep buying stuff for my cube. looks like im outta the game for a while.

[sNEIRBO]

My DIY Skimmer is working awesome right now. I've got it tweaked so that it's only pulling about 1/3 cup of skimmate out per day. Looks like I'll be able to run it 24/7, and since the collection area is about 1 cup in size, I can run it a few days without worrrying about emptying it out - like when I'm out of town overnight. The skimmate is getting darker, the top layer of scum/foam is a brownish color now instead of white. I think this thing is working really well right now.

[xsamx]

Originally posted by sNEIRBO

My DIY Skimmer is working awesome right now.  I've got it tweaked so that it's only pulling about 1/3 cup of skimmate out per day.  Looks like I'll be able to run it 24/7, and since the collection area is about 1 cup in size, I can run it a few days without worrrying about emptying it out - like when I'm out of town overnight.  The skimmate is getting darker, the top layer of scum/foam is a brownish color now instead of white.  I think this thing is working really well right now.

 

so i take it your tank is holding up? No cracks yet?

[doncb]

sNEIRBO,

 

I bought a Visi-jet PS 100, years ago when I had a 10g Hex. Let me tell you it was a piece of you know what. That is until I turned it into an air-stone driven skimmer by removing the PH and putting an external riser tube, etc. THEN it worked OK.

 

I'm looking at putting a skimmer in my 24g DX but not sure of where. I have LR in bay 1, fuge in bay 2 and 2 pumps and a heater in bay 3.

 

Since I have some nice algae (not sure of the type) in the display area that is growing nicely, I might do away w/ the fuge and put a skimmer in bay 2.

[steelhealr]

See that...after all of this....there still is NO EASY option for an in tank skimmer for a 24G. I wish I had the time...I'd love to break apart an AquaC..take all the measurements..and then scale it down to fit in the back of the middle chamber. Someone is going to come up with one and make a bundle when they do. SH

[DKreefkeepers]

I beg to differ, I build them now and they work great. My services are available to anyone who wants one.

[sNEIRBO]

Someone in a different post said that the skimmers need time to break in - I'd say mine is broken in. It's now pulling out skimmate that's a sickly greenish brown, and the smell would knock a buzzard off of a meat wagon! Definitly a "hold your breath" procedure to turkey baster out the skimmate!!!

 

BUILD YOUR OWN! It's easy!

[DKreefkeepers]

Not everybody has the skills or the time to make somthing that looks good AND works well.

[sNEIRBO]

It doesn't need to "look good" it just needs to work. Most people are looking to stick a protein skimmer in Chamber 1 or 2 where it will never been seen. A little patience and a design is all that is really required to build a protein skimmer. Speaking of which, I'm planning to post detailed drawings for each of the pieces of plexiglass, and instructions for construction of my skimmer this week. Don't know when this week, as I'm playing in a MI-Am Golf Tourney. If I make the cuts, I could be playing Golf all week long!!

[NorthStar]

In the UK you can get a:

 

Sander Piccolo Protein Skimmer

Suitable for aquariums up to 100 litres (22 galls) Air operated, very basic design. A good beginners unit.

 

http://www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z076188.asp

 

I have one of these mounted in a HOB, I don't know the dimensions of your 12G DX but this is a tiny skimmer that works really well on a system of your size.

 

Its cheap and most UK suppliers ship worldwide and this unit just requires an air pump so no re-wiring required.

 

Hope that helps....

[MadTownMax]

Originally posted by sNEIRBO

Keep in mind, which ever skimmer you look at, the collection area in these types of skimmers NEEDS to be ABOVE the water level.  

 

IMO this is the most important concept that people need to recognize when trying to find a skimmer for their nanocubes.

 

Due to the low-profile hood (that makes nanocubes look so cool in the first place) skimmer options are limited to the gap between the water level in a given chamber, and the hood (fans)

 

Skimmers should draw water out of the first chamber (where the organics from the top of the water are most highly concentrated) - while the output should be in the second or third chamber, as they have a lower water level - allowing a taller column of foam above water level(important to getting a dry foam)

 

Using these parameters - using one of the airstone driven skimmers mentioned above wouldn't work as they would have to be contained to one chamber - I think a small counter-curren air-driven skimmer using a small tube (gravel siphon possibly) and getting water delivered from a micro-powerhead in the first chamber (maybe 150 gph max) would work surprisingly well.

[stoney waters]

I put a Sander Piccolo in the second chamber. It fit with some small modifications. Its been running for about six months now and has performed flawlessly. In such a small tank I feel air driven is the way to go. No need for the extra heat of a venturi driven skimmer.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/showthread...&threadid=59497

[the commish]

WHER DID YOU GET THE SANDER PICCOLO SKIMMER FROM

[stoney waters]

A lfs ordered it for me from a wholesaler in Ca. I believe it was called Quality Marine. http://www.qualitymarineusa.com/drygoods/skimmers.html

If you contact them they will direct you to the nearest distributor.

[JazzcatCB]

That Picollo skimmer looks great. Based on other posts in this thread, I thought that the collection cup had to be above water level. But it doesn't look like yours is. But if it works, terrific! I checked out the Sander's site, and they mentioned something about an air pump. Is that required? I ask because they tend to be so noisy, and my tank is right in my living room.

 

Thanks for letting us know about this skimmer. I may just get one myself.

[stoney waters]

The bottom of the skimmer cup is 2" above the water level in chambers 1 and 2.You must use some kind of surface skimmer in order to get a water drop in these chambers. The third chamber should have spill over from chamber 2. This keeps the water consistently level in chambers 1 and 2. It does need a large air pump, I use a RenaAir 300.

It is pretty quiet.

[elimmel]

yes, the piccolo works great. i managed to squeeze one into chamber 2 after some cutting work done using a soldering iron on the tank plastic rim. looks real ugly but who'll know with the hood down.

finding the right water level is needs some time though.

i have to off the skimmer when i off the mj1200 during feeding time or else i'll flood the collection cup.

[sNEIRBO]

elimmel -

 

Some thing with my skimmer that I built - the water level is key. My skimmer is in Chamber 2, so I'm working on a baffle that will go over the opening between Chambers 2 & 3, to keep the water level constant in Chamber 2.

 

And like you, when I pull the power for the main pump / powerhead during feeding time, or cleaning, I have to pull the power on the skimmer too. When the water floods into the rear chambers it will flood my collection cup if the skimmer is still running. I've taken to the practice of cleaning out the collection cup first, then partially pulling the skimmer out of the back to keep the cup from flooding during feeding / cleaning.

[steelhealr]

..IMO..still sounds complicated for a newbie. This eventual protein skimmer should 'pop in' and be ready to go. The person who can produce a drop in, plugin, cupeasy skimmer is gonna do well. SH

[sNEIRBO]

I'm starting to believe the best design would be outboard. It shouldn't be as suseptible to water level changes then. But that requires cutting up the hood, and not many people (including me) want to do that.

[MadTownMax]

-or drilling the back glass....

 

 

The problem w/ a lot of HOB skimmers is the back-pressure from going through 3 90-degree elbows, and the associated tubing - the remora is a little better of a design, as they only use two 45-degree elbows

 

the reason I mention drilling is b/c you could have a straight line into the reacton chamber - thereby not needing a pump (if using an air-stone you'll be operating on the air-lift principal - just like under-gravel filters do) - although you could still run into height issues when opening the hood.