the best protein skimmer for an sw newbie

[dbacksrat]

first of all, let me sincerely appologize for a thread i started titled "collected rock in Rocky Point"-- i dont know what i was thinking, and i 250% agree with the points made in response to my post (why no one showed up at my home and hauled me off to hell meant specifically for ignorant aquarists is still a mystery to me)-- robbing the reef would be the same as robbing a conveinience store (in my opinion, all theives should be shot)--i've now lost my train of thought, but thank u all for correcting me
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I've narrowed my protein skimmer options down to 2:
Red Sea Prizm Skimmer Deluxe
-or-
Aquarium Systems Sea Clone 100
has anyone had any problems with these models? any preferences over the other?

 

[wayne]

Well it's nice of you to apologise, so that good.

I have a Prizm - it skims, and wasn't too tricky to set up, but is noisy. Lots of people do seem to have problems with these though. I tihnk this maybe bacause the only thing you can adjust is water flow rate, not cup height.
Seaclones have a terrible reputation.

What sort of prices are you looking at for these? How much would a cpr bakpak be?

 

[dbacksrat]

i talked to a really knowledgeable guy at Petco and he told me to get the Seaclone for my 29 gallon--he knows people that have had problems with Prizms...as for the range, anywhere from $60-$120

 

[S.Reef]

I have a Sea Clone Skimmer. It works fine, the only complaint is tht its hard to clean. It is pretty quiet and works efficiently. One of my friends has a Prizm Skimmer. He complains all the time about the noise.

Sam Reef

 

[supahtim]

everything i have ever heard about seaclones was bad...there are tons of mods out there to make them work better though. i suggest you do it right the first time.

Tim

 

[dbacksrat]

the guy said the 100 gallon model does a crappy job on bigger tanks but is perfect for my size tank (29 gallons)

 

[dethjam316]

i also have heard bad things about seaclones but have no experience with them. the usual #1 recommendation is the CPR BAK PAK line. these always get rave reviews.

http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_protein_skimmers_cpr_bak-pak_sr.asp

do a search for more info on the models.

 

[wayne]

Both seaclowns and prizms have shocking reps. However if it skims everything else is secondary. It's so long since I saw a clone that I don't recall if you can adjust cup height. You can't on prisms either - to adjust foam height you have to notch up or down water flow, but if you notch it too low you get a heck of a lot of noise. Also if you don't put the air inlet where it should be and leave it hanging in air the thing will work but is horribly noisy. For some bizarre reason prizms are always mentioned in Britain - probably because we don't see any other cheap hangons that are any good at all.
I'd get the CPR if I had the opprtunity. A raisable cup is a big aid to tuning the damn thing. Aqua C is good for you too, excep they're too expensive and noisier than CPR's.
If it's any consolation I've seen astonishing reefs run on really horrible air driven skimmers. People get too hung up on having the latest skimmer

 

[GRaff71884]

Skip the protein skimmer, go with an Ecosystem. It uses a product called Miracle Mud and you plant macro algae in it. This is all the filtration you would need. I also have a 29g and there was just too much crap in my tank, so I went this route, nitrates are now 0, and everything looks healthier with more color and both anemones are more colorful as well.