Looking at an Extreme 120 Cone

Discussion in 'SWC Skimmers.com' started by djbonney138, Apr 17, 2011.

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  1. djbonney138

    djbonney138 Peppermint Shrimp

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    I have a 75 gallon medium stocked soft coral reef. I have a 4-5inch yellow eyed tang, a med. sized 6line wrasse, flame hawkfish, ocellaris clown and a blue-yellow tailed damsel. I have over a dozen varieties of soft corals including a kenya tree, zoanthids, mushrooms, sea mat, palys and others. I was planning on buying a house this spring and with that in mind I bought an Aqua C EV180. I had some serious algae issues a while back and attributed that to inefficient skimming. All those things considered I bought the oversized skimmer planning on using it to eliminate the algae and using it on a larger tank when I moved in to my house. Long story short not moving and want to put my tank down in my room in my condo. I will keep my 75 gallon and want to get a quieter skimmer, redo my sump and replumb my sump. Is the Extreme 120 going to be efficient enough to skim my bio load? Will it be a lot quieter than my AquaC? I am getting rid of my 29 gal. sump and putting in a 20 gallon long, will this skimmer work with 6 inch baffles or do I need to do 8 inch?
    Also any deal for 3reefers?;D
    Thanks Guys and gals!
    Dan
     
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  3. djbonney138

    djbonney138 Peppermint Shrimp

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  4. Powerman

    Powerman Giant Squid

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    The 120 would be just enough. You could even do the 160. Yes it will be quieter. If you have insufficient skimming, then a bigger one helps... but a bigger one will not remove any more than one properly rated... it will just skim less of the time.

    You really need 8 and I would shoot for 9. You can always move your skimmer up with a stand, but you can't ever raise the water level if it is too shallow. Running a skimmer too shallow has a big impact on performance.
     
  5. djbonney138

    djbonney138 Peppermint Shrimp

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    In a 20 gallon long sump the tank will only be 13 inches tall, if I do 8 inch baffles will the skimmer splash out of the sump? In all the pics and videos I have seen of this skimmer I can't tell where the water exits.
     
  6. Powerman

    Powerman Giant Squid

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    No, not at all.... and I had a 18" sump so I had plenty of room... but 30s and 20s are common. You want to provide extra room for drain back... but regardless of other criteria, the skimmer has to have the level it needs. So what ever the highest level is for the skimmer in the proper range, that is what you shoul dhave. Most skimmers are work best in 8-10". The 120 might be 9" highest, but someone else will have to chime in on that one for sure.

    In general... running a skimmer at the highest level will put less back pressure on the pump, allow more water through put and skim wetter. Running a skimmer shallow puts more back pressure on the pump, reduces the water through put so you have to close the out let more, and will run dryer skimmate.
     
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  7. djbonney138

    djbonney138 Peppermint Shrimp

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    OK thanks for the info. My AquaC EV splashes like crazy and I have salt creep everywhere.
    K+
     
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  9. pink4miss

    pink4miss Panda Puffer

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    the 120 cone is listed for 90 gallon tanks with low bio load, 70 for medium bio load, and 55 for high bio load.
    if you plan on using bio pellets i would telll you to jump up to the 160 cone.

    i have the swc 120 cone, its and awesome skimmer, and quiet :) quiet makes me very happy. any way the skim this thing is pulling is amazing. i have always been a tunze fan. but i can tell you. this skimmer has made me rethink that. its made so well... how well it works, easy adjustment and how i dont hear it running over the other pumps in the sump. its a perfect fit for my tank and my bio load, its pulling so much skim. i have had complaints though when emptying the cup...like pu whats that smell? .... PU is that nasty stuff. it stinks the house up. lol
     
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