ASM Skimmer Club!

[stingythingy45]

Well,I'm not trying to sound like a smarty pants either,but I don't know what 14-16 scfh is.lol......I'm guessing it probably has something to do with how much air is pulled into the venturi.
I think the the recirc. mod does a great job using the bubbles that the sedra pump produces.And pulling some of those bubbles back through the needle wheel breaks them even finer. I only have the pump maybe 2 inches below the water surface also.The entire body of the skimmer is filled with microbubbles.And even if I hold a finger over the intake hose it continues to swirl bubbles for at least 2-3 minutes before they dissipate out the gate valve.There's large bubbles building and rising up the tube constantly.And it's very simple to set with the gate valve.I'm pretty happy with it........

[reefgeek31]

i own a asm g4x that i received for trade for setting up a few tanks for a lfs. My question is, can i replace the sedra pump with a more efficient pump. I am will to spend the money to get a good pump but have no idea which way to go! Any help would be great. I would like to stick with a needle wheel if possible.

[alpine]

Plenty of choices for pumps out there,just stay away from the sedras.

[reefgeek31]

my question is for a recommendation for a exact pump. I have no idea on how to match them up?
would the sicca, laguna, red dragon????????????????
I have no idea???????

[chewie]

For a G4 the Eheim 1262 will work well.

If you're not handy it could cost you about $300 depending on what parts you use.

Originally posted by reefgeek31
i own a asm g4x that i received for trade for setting up a few tanks for a lfs. My question is, can i replace the sedra pump with a more efficient pump. I am will to spend the money to get a good pump but have no idea which way to go! Any help would be great. I would like to stick with a needle wheel if possible.

[TheNomadRhodes]

I took out the mesh mod out. Whats wrong with the Sedras? thats what ERs come with? I hear so many bad things about every aspect of ASMs but yet no one can tell me why? I love my ASM I did this mesh mod because I thought I might see better performance but my skimmer didn't seem to like it so I'm going back to the old needle wheel not trying to be a smart A here just wondering why so many people dislike ASM

[chewie]

Originally posted by alpine
Plenty of choices for pumps out there,just stay away from the sedras.

Why Sedra?

Gen-x is the one to stay away from. IMO

I have 2 sedra's that have been running for years.

No swollen impellers.

No restart issues.

No Rust.

I do clean them well, and often, so maybe thats why mine are still going strong.

There are better(efficient)pumps than the sedras but they're not bad.

[TheNomadRhodes]

Originally posted by chewie
Why Sedra?

Gen-x is the one to stay away from. IMO

I have 2 sedra's that have been running for years.

No swollen impellers.

No restart issues.

No Rust.

I do clean them well, and often, so maybe thats why mine are still going strong.

There are better(efficient)pumps than the sedras but they're not bad.

Ya same here i've been running mine since 04 and it was used when I got it..

[reefgeek31]

My only issue is enrgy consumption! I pay out the nose right now as it it for my eletric so i am more worried about the long term cost than the one time cost of a good skimmer!
I am look at this in two ways sell this one and get something else or get a differnt pump which seem wiser! More suggestions please!!!

[xtm]

Originally posted by TheNomadRhodes
I hear so many bad things about every aspect of ASMs but yet no one can tell me why? I love my ASM I did this mesh mod because I thought I might see better performance but my skimmer didn't seem to like it so I'm going back to the old needle wheel not trying to be a smart A here just wondering why so many people dislike ASM

I am willing to bet that the mesh mod was (somehow) installed incorrectly. Did you give it enough clearance to spin? When I did the mesh mod, I got 5x darker skimmate and thicker, richer froth. In other words, I SWEAR by it.

Just like any hobby, there's always an 'elitist mentality'. People who (once) used ASM's who moved on to more expensive skimmers love to bash ASM's... I say use whatever works for you. Some Honda Civics can be tuned to run faster than Ferraris - same thing with ASM's, they can be tuned REALLY good to hang with ER's and BK's, for a fraction of the cost! However at the end of the day, it's still a... well... ASM.

[alpine]

XTM
An asm can never be tuned to hang with a BK.Thats like comparing apples and oranges.Theres just to may limiting factors for the asm skimmersI still own and have my asm G4+ running.

Also I am not bashing asm.I am saying that the sedra pumps suck when used as skimmer pumps.They do not pull a sufficient amount of air.Have a lot of you even bothered to read this thread from the absolute beggining?If you do you will see that no one was able to get the sedras to pull any significant amount of air.

The quality build of the asm skimmers is great imo,minus the orings they used.Epmd orings would of been a better choice.


TheNomadRhodes
Most Euroreef's no longer come with sedra's.They were replaced with ehiems.Also you most likely did the mod wrong,and is why you saw no performance gain.If you did it to a sedra pump,then you see why I say sedras suck.


reefgeek31
First of all do want something that performs right out of the box,or do you want something that you have to mod but wont cost you as much?The sicce psk2500 would be a great choice for out of the box performance.

If you dont want to spend sicce money.Then you can get a oddysea pump for $40 and mod it for another $15 or so and get up to 35-40 scfh air.Your skimmer wil probaly be able to handle up to 50-55 scfh of air.

Chewie
Personally I think sedras are great for return pumps.Also I never told reefgeek to get a genx pump.The metal exposure for the genx's is with the 2400 I believe.

I have read countless threads on modding pumps,and every single one where someone tried to mod a sedra pump got poor results back.Sorry fellas but sedra pumps will never make it into the great skimmer pump hall of fame.

I know a lot of you feel that your skinners are working great,and they probaly are for your particular tank,but if you were to put an air meter to your pump.You would be shocked to see the small amount of air they are pulling.

[xtm]

alpine, I didn't read any of your previous post and I sincerely apologize if my post sounded like it was targeted against you. I am in no way referring to any of your specific post(s).

Any skimmer can be tuned and modified to hang with a BK-- skimmers are not rocket science---however it is not ideal from an economical standpoint as you will most likely end up spending the same amount of money to buy a real BK, but yes it can be done.

So, is this how a skimmer is evaluated nowadays? How much air they suck in? That is just a poor benchmark IMO. That would be like saying: If car # 1 guzzles more gas than car # 2, then it must be more powerful......

[chewie]

Originally posted by alpine


Chewie
Also I never told reefgeek to get a genx pump.The metal exposure for the genx's is with the 2400 I believe.

I never said you did.

Not just the 2400's the 4100, 6000, and 8500 have the "stainless" steel heat sink.


IME Sedras are a good skimmer pump, but there are better slightly more expensive pumps.

[chewie]

Originally posted by alpine



Most Euroreef's no longer come with sedra's.They were replaced with ehiems.

Actually, most ER's now come with GEN-X pumps(bad move).

[chewie]

Originally posted by alpine

I am saying that the sedra pumps suck when used as skimmer pumps.They do not pull a sufficient amount of air.Have a lot of you even bothered to read this thread from the absolute beggining?If you do you will see that no one was able to get the sedras to pull any significant amount of air.

I got a Sedra 3500 pulling 480LPH @24w with the stock needlewheel on a ER CS5-2(rs80). All I did is a little dremel work on the output of the pump, and slightly modified the stock venturi.

I have never modded a Sedra 9000, but from the looks of it, I don't think I could get too much more air out of it from looking at the outlet.

The Sedra 5000's really wake up with just a little dremel work.

[alpine]

I usually read air in scfh and not lph.What would 480lph translate to in scfh?

Also I thought you were saying that I recommended the genx pumps to reefgeek,my bad.

[TheNomadRhodes]

Originally posted by alpine
XTM
An asm can never be tuned to hang with a BK.Thats like comparing apples and oranges.Theres just to may limiting factors for the asm skimmersI still own and have my asm G4+ running.

Also I am not bashing asm.I am saying that the sedra pumps suck when used as skimmer pumps.They do not pull a sufficient amount of air.Have a lot of you even bothered to read this thread from the absolute beggining?If you do you will see that no one was able to get the sedras to pull any significant amount of air.

The quality build of the asm skimmers is great imo,minus the orings they used.Epmd orings would of been a better choice.


TheNomadRhodes
Most Euroreef's no longer come with sedra's.They were replaced with ehiems.Also you most likely did the mod wrong,and is why you saw no performance gain.If you did it to a sedra pump,then you see why I say sedras suck.


reefgeek31
First of all do want something that performs right out of the box,or do you want something that you have to mod but wont cost you as much?The sicce psk2500 would be a great choice for out of the box performance.

If you dont want to spend sicce money.Then you can get a oddysea pump for $40 and mod it for another $15 or so and get up to 35-40 scfh air.Your skimmer wil probaly be able to handle up to 50-55 scfh of air.

Chewie
Personally I think sedras are great for return pumps.Also I never told reefgeek to get a genx pump.The metal exposure for the genx's is with the 2400 I believe.

I have read countless threads on modding pumps,and every single one where someone tried to mod a sedra pump got poor results back.Sorry fellas but sedra pumps will never make it into the great skimmer pump hall of fame.

I know a lot of you feel that your skinners are working great,and they probaly are for your particular tank,but if you were to put an air meter to your pump.You would be shocked to see the small amount of air they are pulling.

Well from what I've seen the new ERs come with a modified Sedra pretty much on all of them.
But enough about the pumps
I've read tons of mesh mods how to's I didn't just get the mesh and stuff it in the pump.
I may just be a dumb ol truck driving Texan but I'm pretty sure I followed the instructions, I know what works and what doesn't I'm getting a ER or a aqua euro usa skimmer because the G3 isn't big enough to handle my bioload any more and the bigger asm's won't fit under my tank. Deltec may use the German made ehiem but I don't really care about the "its made in Europe so it's better" way of thinking. It's the same in any hobbies or work place. I used to be a industrial diesel mechanic I would get ragged on by the other guys that I didn't have the "Snap on tools" but what was so funny is they would break them all the time and I've never broken my craftsman open ends not yet any ways.. But what ever I don't like emptying my skimmer cup every day full of tank tea I like dumping it every week full of reeking black tar and so far all I get with the mesh mod is fish pee tea but to each his own

[alpine]

TheNomadRhodes

Dont feel bad,I get the same skimmate from my skimmer.Also you are so correct about craftsman tools.My entire tool set is made by craftsman.

[reefgeek31]

where would be a good place to buy a sicce psk2500 and is this a n/w or a pump that i would have to mesh mod? Does everyone think that this is a good match for my g4x?
Thanks you for your responses! Oh ya where would be the best place to pick up this pump?

[little_squid]

http://www.saltycritter.com/pumps/sicce-pumps.htm

[scott11]

i tried to read the tread for this info- but it is just too long.

If i have the recirc mod and the gate valve- does it matter what the water level around the skimmer is? Can it sit on the bottom of my sump, or do I need to raise it up?

What is the best feed pump for the recirc? I have a maxi1200 feeding the skimmer- will I see different effects with larger pumps? Tank is 120

[little_squid]

imo recircs are all done way way wrong
why would someone want to use a 300gph pump to feed a skimmer the same way as the original sendra lets say? your chances of sucking the waste in with a small pump is reduced so much that way! i think it a joke.
i would do one of two things:
slow down your return so you can directly feed your skimmer from your overflows or what i did is used a 4" pvc tube and drilled a hole for the intake of my sendra and i have my overflows dump into the 4" pvc tube so i am sucking in as much waste as i can:-)

[Brent F]

I bought a G1X and it didn't come with instructions. I am putting baffles in my sump and want to make them the correct height for the skimmer.

What depth of water is the G1X designed for? Is it 8 - 10 inches?

Are the ASM manuals available anywhere online?

[Safedad]

little squid - Thanks for the tip on the tube. I removed the filter sock I was using. I rearranged my skimmer and added a tube over the skimmer pump. This weekend I will slot the tube to lower it around the pump intake. I have the venturi air intake tube coming up and out of the tube. I also have the skimmer discharge going into the next section of my sump so it doesn't dilute the tank return water supplying the skimmer. The skimmer was overflowing this morning but I should get it dialed in soon.

I am setting up a 90 gal tank with a 55 gal sump. I will use these ideas when I move into the new sump. I am thinking about running the skimmer dischage and my topoff water down by the entrance to the first baffle. That will carry it out of the first chamber while still getting some bubble control.
Bob

[little_squid]

Originally posted by Safedad
little squid - Thanks for the tip on the tube. I removed the filter sock I was using. I rearranged my skimmer and added a tube over the skimmer pump. This weekend I will slot the tube to lower it around the pump intake. I have the venturi air intake tube coming up and out of the tube. I also have the skimmer discharge going into the next section of my sump so it doesn't dilute the tank return water supplying the skimmer. The skimmer was overflowing this morning but I should get it dialed in soon.

I am setting up a 90 gal tank with a 55 gal sump. I will use these ideas when I move into the new sump. I am thinking about running the skimmer dischage and my topoff water down by the entrance to the first baffle. That will carry it out of the first chamber while still getting some bubble control.
Bob

no problem it makes a huge difference on the amount you skim cause your trapping the waste in a smaller area within the sump:-) good luck
good luck