Older modded skimmer vs new design

willieboy240

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I’m sitting here watching my 15 year old atb skimmer that I modded with a adjustable dc pump and gate valve. I’m thinking this bad boy skims probably as good as a new design skimmer. It has the baffle plate and what not in there. Skimmate is super nasty. Bubbles are nice and small/unformed.
I would really like to hear from some old school reefers from back in the euro reef, H&S and deltec days. Is it worth the money to buy a new skimmer or is it basically the same tech as 15 years old with a few mods.

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Big E

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Your mod is a good as any high end internal skimmer of today when comparing performance.

The old school skimmers were beasts and can't be touched in performance. They fell to the wayside due size, big pumps to drive them, noise issues.

External models are awesome from the past as well as today. I loved my AP700 Deltec external.

Today's skimmers are more designed for form fit. They fit nice under your tank are quiet with low electricity usage & small footprint (pump inside reaction chamber) which all come at the sacrifice of top performance.
 

Paul B

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I would keep it. My DIY skimmer is twice as old as that and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Newer stuff is usually inherently cheaper and by that I mean how it's built, not how much it cost.

Skimmers help bubbles remove wastes, they don't cure cancer, get us to Mars, or help with psoriasis.
Don't change good working vintage tools.

Sorry skimmer manufacturers. :cool:
 

OldSchool Reefer

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I’m sitting here watching my 15 year old atb skimmer that I modded with a adjustable dc pump and gate valve. I’m thinking this bad boy skims probably as good as a new design skimmer. It has the baffle plate and what not in there. Skimmate is super nasty. Bubbles are nice and small/unformed.
I would really like to hear from some old school reefers from back in the euro reef, H&S and deltec days. Is it worth the money to buy a new skimmer or is it basically the same tech as 15 years old with a few mods.

image.jpg
I have a Euro Reef that has been in the box on a shelf for 12 years now that I would love to mod! Time will tell!
 

ca1ore

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About the only thing that has made much difference is the use of lower power draw pumps .... everything else is just Marketing. I use a 15 year old ASM skimmer on one tank and a 20 year old MTC skimmer(though modified more recently) on the other. I'd defy anyone to prove that these don't skim just as well as the newest bright shiny object. All to say ..... keep what you have.
 

hart24601

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Realistically I think as a whole the great skimmer debate and quest for efficiency has died off to a great extent after decades. Many now keep amazing tanks with skimmers on timers or not at all - so if happy with your mods and how it performs then you’re good! I would agree with others the main advancements have space compaction to put under tanks and power draw, which I suppose by definition lower power draw is more efficient, but for practical matters it doesn’t matter much ime. Keep rocking what you like!
 

fish farmer

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About the only thing that has made much difference is the use of lower power draw pumps .... everything else is just Marketing. I use a 15 year old ASM skimmer on one tank and a 20 year old MTC skimmer(though modified more recently) on the other. I'd defy anyone to prove that these don't skim just as well as the newest bright shiny object. All to say ..... keep what you have.
I recently replaced my old ASM G-1 skimmer(modded with gate valve) with a Reef Octo of similar specs. The Octo skims a little better but is likely due to me being able to dial it in better and it is a smaller package.
 

Paul B

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MonkeyCmonkeyD, I can't make my skimmer any taller. As it is, I have to get on a step stool to get to the top of it. :rolleyes:

 

JCM

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My old tanks (15 years ago) ran a Euro-Reef RS-100, then an SWC 200. My new tank is running a Bubble Magus Curve 7 elite.

The new skimmer is less noisy and more energy efficient. I dont notice much difference in skimmate quality at all though.
 

dedragon

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Kind of BTS (bolted to stand) :)
Hahaha, this thing always cracks me up when i see it. Great design and def works like a champ, but i always wondered how you cleaned it, step ladder makes sense.
 

dedragon

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On to the point though, i think that ATB used a bubble plate, if so most other protein skimmer designs havent changed to much, just the pumps and a huge increase in price for ones that arent made out of cheap materials
 

dedragon

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Had an eshopps x120 and it is obvious where they cut corners, not that i think it will hurt performance but not as well built as some older skimmers imo
 

SPS2020

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Euro Reef CS6 on my IM 100g INT...love it! The thing still works like a champ after all these years and I have no intention of replacing it. Once the Sedra 3500 goes bye bye, I'll look at modding it with a DC pump. It is way easy to clean with no plastic nuts and bolts for disassembly. The new skimmers seem like a PITA to take apart and clean all those pieces. No thanks! :)
 

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Paul B

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Great design and def works like a champ, but i always wondered how you cleaned it, step ladder makes sense.
The thing drains into the drain and the top plastic cover thing and collection tube comes right out for cleaning.
 

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