Product Review: AquaMaxx EcoMaxx 100 (EM100) Protein Skimmer

Sometimes being an early adapter of a product can scare some people off, but not this reef nerd. "AquaMaxx has a new skimmer design with a new pump?! Count me in!"

(As you can tell by my video, it's difficult to take good images of anything in my sump. Sorry.)

A handful of my fellow reefing buddies (reef nerds) have been running the AquaMaxx AM series in sump protein skimmers, and we have a HOB-1 (hang on back) on the 28 gallon JBJ Nano Cube. I had heard great things about these AquaMaxx protein skimmers and seen great results from fellow reef nerds. When I was setting up my system and purchasing my first in-sump skimmer, I hit a snag: I only had 23" of height to work with in my tank stand. The coveted AquaMaxx skimmer I wanted would have to wait for another day.

Editorial note: I was reluctant to post my review for this skimmer as I was too excited/lazy to document the assembly and install process. The skimmer has now been in my sump for over 6 months, and I have yet to take any photos of the skimmer for my review. That said, I did imbed a quick YouTube video above so see it after it had been in my system for a month or so, and I'll update this post in the future if I take some photos.

(Follow the link to read more...)

VIDEO: AquaMaxx EcoMaxx 100

Here's a short video I've been meaning to post since the first day I started running biopellets. You can see the Hydra Biopellet Reactor and my new AquaMaxx EcoMaxx EM100 In-Sump Protein Skimmer. Skimmer cup needed some cleaning, but you can see the dark skim it's removed.

The noise in the video is NOT the skimmer, it's the biopellets and pump. The skimmer is essentially silent! Full review coming soon!

Tall Skimmer Cup, Small Tank Stand? No sweat!

My protein skimmer's collection cup is impossible to remove from my stand without tilting. This presents a problem when the skimmer is filled with skimmate; tilting the cup will dump the skimmate back into the sump.

Luckily, my skimmer's collection cup has a drain hole with a nipple fitting to connect to 1/2" vinyl tubing. I found some spare parts, and rigged up a piece of tubing and a ball valve. This should allow me to drain most of the skimmate from the collection cup, allowing me to remove the collection  cup for cleaning without spilling any of the dissolved organic stuff my skimmer has worked so hard to remove.

New Protein Skimmer!

Sneak peak of my new Reef Octopus 6 In Sump Pinwheel Protein Skimmer w/ Bubble Plate.

More information to follow...

**UPDATE: 8:58 P.M. - The skimmer has been installed. It's too soon to write a review, but it looks very promising! The assembly was simple, and it's making lots of tiny bubbles since the install. The skimmer body is sturdy and constructed of quality acrylic. I can't wait to see how it skims!

Installation wise, it was a little taller than the room I had available in my sump, so I had to remove the drawer from my tank stand. I'll have to find some way to create a fake drawer to cover the opening. The skimmer fit nicely into my 20 gallon long DIY sump's middle chamber. I don't see many micro bubbles leaving the skimmer, but I designed my sump to have a bubble trap just in case.

Here's just a few pictures I took...

I'll write a complete product review after the skimmer has a chance to break in! Until next time, keep on reefing...