Unboxing Review - Curve 5 Elite Protein Skimmer - Bubble Magus

[Aldrinlights]

Hey everyone. This is not a paid promotion. I had to get a new skimmer as the one I was gifted died. It was. 10 year old CADlights skimmer and I was pretty happy with it. Since I went online looking not to spend more that about 200$ I saw the banner for the new curve 5 elite skimmer on BRS and decided to give it a whirl. Here's my unboxing review. I will update this thread as time goes on and am welcome to any questions.

Curve 5 Elite Protein Skimmer

The Bubble Magus Elite Series are value-packed skimmers with approachable setup and tuning, high quality materials, and excellent skimming performance. The Elite skimmers include welcome features such as the geared water-level adjustment knob for precise water level control, and a skimmer body...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

First the box it comes in.

Heres how it's packaged

Everything that comes with it. (Stickers!)

Attachment of the pump to the diffuser

The pump diffuser attachment to the base (quick release screws let you remove the skimmer tube from the base)

The cable for the pump runs through a rubber grommet in the base.

On the base there is the flow adjustment gear which is kept from bottoming out on your aquarium floor by some elevated rubber feet around the base. No suction cups sadly

Then the tube slides over the pump diffuser and connects to the quick screw latches and the pump inlet is attached through the tube to the pump

Fully assembled!

I put it in the sump and it was extremely quiet. Started making really good bubbles.

The next day I'm getting skim mate already.

Looks like this is a good one. I had to put it on an elevated surface inside my sump because I like to keep my sump water level a little higher than normal. I'll let you know if over time I need to adjust it more higher or lower but this seems like a really good replacement of the 10-year-old thing that I had

 

[SPR1968]

Great review and thanks for taking the time to do it.

It would be helpful to maybe do an update after a few months to see how it’s performing

 

[Aldrinlights]

Great review and thanks for taking the time to do it.

It would be helpful to maybe do an update after a few months to see how it’s performing

Absolutely. I'll keep updating this thread over the life of this unit. Thanks for the comment!

 

[992gnt]

Is this still working well for you? I'm thinking about picking one up.

 

[FourPawz]

Any update? This is one that I have been looking at.

 

[Aldrinlights]

It's still working beautifully. I have it submerged deeper than required due to the space in my stand and I just have it on its lowest setting. It is always making nice thick skim material and I also have it connected to an outdoor air line which has kept my ph completely stable at 8.4 ever since

 

[992gnt]

Thanks for the update, I've got one on the way.

 

[legionofdoon]

Is this on a 75?

 

[Aldrinlights]

Is this on a 75?

Yes a 75 gallon Display sitting in a 30 gallon sump

 

[homer1475]

I have the elite 5 on my 80G cube with 30G sump(85G total water volume). Have had it about 2 years now I think? Still runs like a champ pulling dark thick skimmate.

If bubble magus still ran the ROCK pump, this would have not even been on my radar. But the addition of the sicce pump, makes it a rock solid investment over some of the pricier options.

 

[xjjettx]

what water lever you running your skimmer? specs say 9in to 11.5in but mines likes 8in to 9in water level,,,

 

[Aldrinlights]

what water lever you running your skimmer? specs say 9in to 11.5in but mines likes 8in to 9in water level,,,

I had to raise mine up inside the sump. I have it in about 7 inches of water. I like a very dry skin as my tank runs ULN so I didn't want to over skim.

 

[tfeeken]

In an attempt to find info on tuning this skimmer I came across this thread. The 9 plus inches of depth that they state is WAY too much. I'm still messing with mine, but even at all the way open and in 8" of water, it's still too deep. I'm going to try and lift it to 7" and see if I can get it to run better.

I'm wondering if the skimmer being designed to run a different pump and then the elite version changed to the sicce made a difference due to either that pumps added power or efficiency for why it needs to run so shallow in comparisons to the non elite models.

 

[Aldrinlights]

I ended up getting some of the egg crate style fluorescent light fixture diffuser which a lot of people use to hold Coral frag plugs. I zip tied a bunch of layers together which I cut to fit underneath the skimmer in my sump. I was able to lift the skimmer out of the water so that it sits in about 7 inches of water. I keep a very high level of water in my sump. Also there's a break in period for sure on these things if you have not considered that. One additional factor that is also an update to this review I have my airline for the intake going outdoors with a filter on it. Occasionally the little plastic piece where the airline connects underwater will cake up with salt and clog. Now part of my maintenance routine is ensuring that I clear off any buildup where the airline connects to the intake.

 

[tfeeken]

I'm still having a heck of a time trying to get this thing to tune.

Running at the same sump level, it will overflow with the valve all the way max open. Then a water level change in the sump from going into feed or turning the return off, then the level in the skimmer drops and doesn't skim. It's all over the place. My sump has an adjustable baffle for water depth and I've tried everything. It's anything but consistent. The Aquamaxx in my other system has been rock solid and always consistent. I might need to make a change.

 

[homer1475]

Honestly, my pump gave out, and I replaced it with a sicce 1.5 I had laying around. Needle wheel fits in the 1.5.

It works loads better with a slightly smaller pump. I don't remember off the top of my head what the difference in GPH is , but it wasn't much.