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Need help finding QUIETEST protein skimmer

M

matt2939

I've come across lots of threads about "best" skimmer, or "best cheapest" skimmer, but honestly for me the most important thing is that the skimmer is quiet since it will be in my sump in stand. I know I know it's probably not the best attribute to have at the top of my list, but it will be in a home office. I'm hoping most manufactured skimmers will be relatively close in effectiveness. So with that being said, this is for 57g display with 29g sump. This will be stocked with probably 5-7 fish and soft/lps corals... no sps. With the PA group buy I figure this is a good time to jump on this purchase. Would like to keep price below $300. Here is what I've been researching so far but still can't find great info on the noise level:

Extreme XS 160 Protein Skimmer
http://premiumaquatics.com/aquatic-supplies/CV-XS-160.html

Octopus Needlewheel 110 Protein Skimmer
http://premiumaquatics.com/aquatic-supplies/CV-OCT-NWB-110.html

Super Reef Octopus 1000 Internal Protein Skimmer
http://premiumaquatics.com/aquatic-supplies/CV-SRO-1000INT.html

ASM GC-3 Protein Cone Skimmer
http://premiumaquatics.com/aquatic-supplies/ASM-GC-3.html

Eshopps Gen. II PSK-100 Skimmer Rated 75-100g tank
http://premiumaquatics.com/aquatic-supplies/ES-PSK-100.html


Thanks for the help!!
 
NyteGTI

NyteGTI

when I finally put the sponge on the outlet for my ASM G1-x it became nearly silent. I don't know if the GC-3 is the same, but that's my $0.02
 
jgraz

jgraz

It's not on your list or at PA but my SWC 160 cone is dead silent, and would be great for that setup.
 
greybolt03

greybolt03

Is your sump going to be open or in a closed cabinet?
i know I can't hear my skimmer over the water flow from the tank..
I also have the swc 160
 
Fish Brain

Fish Brain

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I have the RO XS160 and RO 110. If you are looking for a quiet skimmer you should take the 160 off the list. It's not really loud like OMG this skimmer is driving me nuts loud, but it is audible. The sicce pump draws so much air to can hear it.

110 would be a better choice and is a good skimmer. I was using it on my 65G for a bit and now use it on the 40B.
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
I ran the Bubble Magus nac (foget the number) on my 57g which was in my living room and did not hear any noise. I also had a swc 120 on my 45g cube which also made no noise.
 
jgraz

jgraz

Thermosts said:
I have the RO XS160 and RO 110. If you are looking for a quiet skimmer you should take the 160 off the list. It's not really loud like OMG this skimmer is driving me nuts loud, but it is audible. The sicce pump draws so much air to can hear it.

110 would be a better choice and is a good skimmer. I was using it on my 65G for a bit and now use it on the 40B.
Click to expand...

My SWC 160 doesn't use the sicce. It's got an atman. I think my fish make more noise.
 
M

matt2939

Sump will be in a closed cabinet. For reference I tried a mag 7 return pump and found that way too loud, it had such a persistent hum to it that reverberated across the room. I switched to a Sicce 3.0 and can't even hear that pump.

Seems like the SWC 160 is a popular choice. The SWC 120 is rated for a 55-90 gallon, any thoughts on going with the smaller model for my setup?
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
What does your stock list/coral selection look like?

My 45 cube with probably 10g in the sump was stocked very heavy coral and medium on fish and the swc 120 was plenty of skimmer. I think you could very easily use it on the 57g, if I had not already purchased the bubble magus, I would have been running 2 swc 120s on my 45g and 57g.
 
greybolt03

greybolt03

Also realize that upgrades are inevitable in this hobby!!! So you may want to get a slightly bigger skimmer so you can use it if you do upgrade in the future.. Just something to think about..
 
jgraz

jgraz

With that said and if you want to go with a 160 I have seen a few used ones going for sale lately on the different forums
 
govertical19

govertical19

jgraz said:
It's not on your list or at PA but my SWC 160 cone is dead silent, and would be great for that setup.
Click to expand...

What is also great about a lot of their skimmers is you can get neck extension now and get better skim mate out of them. I purchased 3 for my sro 5000 and they are great!

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
 
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