Journal SkaleyAquatics Re-attempted Dutch

[SkaleyAquatics]

Might give one a try. Adds flow and helps with O². Might allow you to increase CO2 a bit more.

I'll give that a consideration. I had thought about it but I don't get that surface film in this tank so I quickly ruled it out but didn't think about it increasing O².

 

[Unexpected]

I'll give that a consideration. I had thought about it but I don't get that surface film in this tank so I quickly ruled it out but didn't think about it increasing O².

I'm no expert, but it seems many agree the skimming action can help with O². I have no data to prove it though. Seems like it would just from the swirling in the skimmer.

 

[Koan]

Might give one a try

Chewy has the famous Eheim on sale, I just picked one up.

Amazon has the animal saver piece for it , got that too

 

[SkaleyAquatics]

Chewy has the famous Eheim on sale, I just picked one up.

How important is size on these? Because this only does half of my water volume.

 

[Unexpected]

How important is size on these? Because this only does half of my water volume.

I have one on my 100. They are pretty strong.

 

[Naturescapes_Rocco]

I have been using an Oase CrystalSkim 350 for about 5 years now on my larger tanks. I LOVE it, but you have to know how to best set it up.

I think that micro-scum on the surface has a major impact on O2 and CO2 injection/offgassing, so I run skimmers in all of my tanks. I really do think it helps with oxygen in the water.

 

[SkaleyAquatics]

I LOVE it, but you have to know how to best set it up.

What do you mean by this? I seen there is the 600 which does 160 gallon which is almost my water volume that I could get.

I still think I need to add a separate pump for the reactor so I can slow down the water going through it. When gas is on, does not make it half way down to the inlet and outlet. When I did the math for it I need it pretty much at half for 180gallon.

 

[Naturescapes_Rocco]

What do you mean by this? I seen there is the 600 which does 160 gallon which is almost my water volume that I could get.

A lot of people (or should I say, wannabe youtubers lol) get the CrystalSkim and don't know how to actually make it work. It has 3 different combinations for the floating top piece and can also have the flow rate adjusted.
Option 1 is no basket, no crown:

This is the worst way to set it up. It will barely work and I've seen multiple youtubers stop here and say "it doesn't work!".

Option 2 is with crown, no basket:

This is the most powerful option. It will clear your surface in no time, but small shrimp or fish can get sucked into the skimmer. Only use this option if you have larger inhabitants. This option is also great for pickup up floating trimmings. I set mine up like this on plant trimming days to help collect plant debris, which is amazing.

Option 3 is with crown and basket:

This one is almost as good as Option 2. I run my skimmer like this, because without the basket I had shrimp and otocinclus getting sucked into the skimmer. I also run the skimmer on a looped timer: It's on for 30 minutes, then off for 3 minutes. This change helped my tank go from 1 casualty per week in the skimmer (shrimplets usually) to literally 0 casualties for 3 months now. The downside is it is easier to get clogged with plant trimmings than Option 2, but is obviously much safer for smaller inhabitants.

Again, I've been using this exact skimmer for about 5 years with no issues once I figured it out. I LOVE it, and it also looks really nice and clean and doens't bother me (see my signature photos for examples).

My current largest tank running this skimmer is a 140 gallon rimless tank. I use the Oase CrystalSkim 350 and wouldn't ever see a reason to upgrade to the larger side 600. I genuinely think you'd be totally fine with a CS350 on your 180.

 

[SkaleyAquatics]

A lot of people (or should I say, wannabe youtubers lol) get the CrystalSkim and don't know how to actually make it work. It has 3 different combinations for the floating top piece and can also have the flow rate adjusted.
Option 1 is no basket, no crown:
View attachment 8390
This is the worst way to set it up. It will barely work and I've seen multiple youtubers stop here and say "it doesn't work!".

Option 2 is with crown, no basket:
View attachment 8391
This is the most powerful option. It will clear your surface in no time, but small shrimp or fish can get sucked into the skimmer. Only use this option if you have larger inhabitants. This option is also great for pickup up floating trimmings. I set mine up like this on plant trimming days to help collect plant debris, which is amazing.

Option 3 is with crown and basket:
View attachment 8392
This one is almost as good as Option 2. I run my skimmer like this, because without the basket I had shrimp and otocinclus getting sucked into the skimmer. I also run the skimmer on a looped timer: It's on for 30 minutes, then off for 3 minutes. This change helped my tank go from 1 casualty per week in the skimmer (shrimplets usually) to literally 0 casualties for 3 months now. The downside is it is easier to get clogged with plant trimmings than Option 2, but is obviously much safer for smaller inhabitants.

Again, I've been using this exact skimmer for about 5 years with no issues once I figured it out. I LOVE it, and it also looks really nice and clean and doens't bother me (see my signature photos for examples).

My current largest tank running this skimmer is a 140 gallon rimless tank. I use the Oase CrystalSkim 350 and wouldn't ever see a reason to upgrade to the larger side 600. I genuinely think you'd be totally fine with a CS350 on your 180.

Thank you for the detailed write up! I think ill go with the 350 in addition to grabbing a pump.

Also the last picture in your signature with the offset island is magical. I'd love to recreate something like that someday.

 

[Naturescapes_Rocco]

Just wanted to leave this video here:

I think he shows a great example of how well this skimmer works, and has it set up with both basket and crown for proper use.
I hope you love this skimmer!

 

[Kwyet]

I was using this skimmer and liked it. It was set up just this way. An oto still managed to get into it one night and die. After that I set a timer so it only ran intermittently during the day, and there weren’t any more deaths. I realize you already went over a timer schedule to prevent this, but I just want to reinforce that the guards aren’t enough to keep small livestock safe. Anyone that uses it needs to set it to a schedule that will allow fish to escape.

 

[Koan]

An oto still managed to get into it one night and die

FWIW the Eheim has an available animal saver

Watch Skimmer Attachment and Diffuser Demo on Amazon Live

Shop with expert advice from Aquameta in their latest video Skimmer Attachment and Diffuser Demo.

www.amazon.com

Altho way less pretty than the Oase

 

[Kwyet]

FWIW the Eheim has an available animal saver

View attachment 8408

Watch Skimmer Attachment and Diffuser Demo on Amazon Live

Shop with expert advice from Aquameta in their latest video Skimmer Attachment and Diffuser Demo.

www.amazon.com

Altho way less pretty than the Oase

View attachment 8410

I later switched to a different skimmer, because I wanted the outlet to come out horizontally instead of vertically. I still keep it on an intermittent daytime schedule just in case, but I haven’t had any problems with it. I’ll keep this in mind. Thanks!

 

[JuJuFish]

I later switched to a different skimmer, because I wanted the outlet to come out horizontally instead of vertically. I still keep it on an intermittent daytime schedule just in case, but I haven’t had any problems with it. I’ll keep this in mind. Thanks!

Which one did you get?

 

[Kwyet]

Which one did you get?

It’s this one:

It works great!

 

[SkaleyAquatics]

So I ended up getting the Oase 350. I just put it in to the tank today after the water change. Time will tell how I feel about it.

Additions/Changes:
So I also did my weekly water change on the 180gal this weekend and will update the journal to reflect that. I also changed the layout slightly and swapped some plants in. I moved the aponogeton longiplumulosus to behind the street, which was a huge improvement of its location that was in the back right corner. I added a small red tiger lily for the focal point and for the street to disappear behind as it grows in. I reshaped the limnophila aromatica 'mini', I added subwassertang attached to red lava rock on the right third of the tank. In front of that is monte carlo, hopefully it will actually grow for me this time since it wasn't tissue culture. I took out the rotala macrandra mini type IV, glossostigma, and crypt wendtii 'brown'.

Dislikes/Still Need done:
I'm not really a fan of the placement of rotala indica 'bonsai'. I did not really want to move it to one of the farm tanks quite yet. I would like to add planted walls to this tank, just haven't gotten a chance to order the rigid airline tubing and suction cups yet. I also feel that the sword needs to come out. I think the curtain plant on the right side will be mayaca fluviatilis which I need to add. I am currently at 15 species in this tank which leaves me room to add up to 3 more before I hit the 18 species max for this size tank.

Unsure/Thoughts:
Im not to sure how I feel about the lobelia cardinalis > hygrophila 53b > limnophila wilsonii on the left side yet. They all feel like the same shade of green and I need to break that up. I would like to put a dark green/brown crpyt next to the lobelia and then maybe put something else in the corner besides the wilsonii. I am not sure how I feel about the rotala macrandra 'bangladesh' in the back right corner. I love how it looks when it is filled in but its now taking up a massive about of space and what to add another plant there. I was thinking about Rotala macrandra 'Kochi' and either 53b infront of it or pogostemon deccanensis.

 

[Burr740]

The sword would be a good focal plant I think. Behind the blyxa where the little pink stuff is, right beside the street

Youve probably seen me talking about symmetry lately? Youll want to be careful and not have both sides doing the same thing. Which you are currently close to having



Just something to keep in mind as you tweak things moving forward. And of course itll look different when everything grows up, its just extra obvious right now

 

[Unexpected]

What's that left curtain plant? Helanthium?

 

[SkaleyAquatics]

What's that left curtain plant? Helanthium?

crypt crispulata var. 'tonkinensis'

 

[SkaleyAquatics]

The sword would be a good focal plant I think. Behind the blyxa where the little pink stuff is, right beside the street

That little bit of pink is the nymphaea lotus 'red' i figured that makes a good focal plant as well. I'll keep this in mind as I tweak moving forward.

Youve probably seen me talking about symmetry lately? Youll want to be careful and not have both sides doing the same thing. Which you are currently close to having

Just something to keep in mind as you tweak things moving forward. And of course itll look different when everything grows up, its just extra obvious right now

Thank you for point that out! Usually i am very good about avoiding symmetry and I knew something didn't feel right about this scape, but I had not sat and starred at the tank long enough to figure it out. But man is it obvious now that you point it out. I took a few plants out of the difformis group and had not even noticed that the bylxa had the same shape.