MyReefCreations skimmer

[j.stagner]

After all the (unsuccessful) fussing I had to do with my previous ETSS Reef Devil skimmer, I decided that I was essentially running my tank without a skimmer and this was unacceptable.

Because of my current financial state, I had to get the best skimmer I could for the little money I had to spend, so I spent about two weeks looking at reviews, designs, and perusing various forums to find comments from various skimmer owners. There were three primary candidates: EuroReef, AquaC, and MRC (several other excellent skimmers are out of my price range). Of them, MRC had the best prices and the customer support is outstanding. Another important criteria in my selection process was that I had to be able to run the skimmer outside of the sump, which I don't think is possible with the ER.

The end result of this is that I purchased a custom MR-1 from www.myreefcreations.com, and I wanted to say to anybody that has not heard of them, they are quite good. For those who don't know, the MRC skimmers use Beckett injectors to create the bubbles.

My new skimmer is a few inches taller than the standard model, the first riser tube is 12" tall instead of the usual 6", and it is being run by a Dolphin DP1200 pump.

It took a bit of tweaking to get it right, but once I finally got it dialed in it just started filling the cup with this stank nasty dark stuff. One whiff was all I needed to know with absolute certainty that I had spent my money well.

I apologize if this sounds like an infomercial, but with all the "big name" (and often deservedly so) skimmers out there I wanted to present another alternative to those who are in the market.


Jonah

 

[Gina]

Not an infomercial at all. It's good to have other peoples input on products that are out there for sale. Glad to hear that you have found a skimmer that you are happy with.

 

[Johnny]

Great info I am planning to buy a good skimmer soon and will now do research on this brand.

 

[mungus]

Jonah

Just wondering how long it took you to get your skimmer dialed in? I am in the process of buying an MRC-1 also. I currently have an ETSS Reef Devil Deluxe and I also feel like I am running without a skimmer. (My Aqua-C remora puts it to shame) It has been about 4 months of screwing around with this thing. I just want to make sure I am not dropping $300 on something that will take me more than a month to dial in.
Thanks
Brian

 

[scottw]

been using and selling Andys stuff for a long time, he makes a good product, esp if you like Beckett Style skimmers, his are the best.

 

[j.stagner]

I would say that it took me a week to get it dialed in, partly because I didn't understand much about it, and partly because I kept fiddling with it. After that I decided to just let the thing go for two days at the recommended settings and actually started getting some skimmate, I slowly started tweaking it and just letting it run for a day before tweaking it again.

After probably a week of doing it this way, I learned what settings I liked and how it performed, and I was finally glad I got it. After that, it would be a little finicky whenever I cleaned it, but within a day it was back to running the way I liked it, and I had been pretty pleased since.

Recently, I sold the skimmer to Plack (I think that's his name here) after tearing down my tank because of life issues, and he's now going through the same process.

Overall, I loved it. I wasn't so sure during that first week, but once I had to start cleaning it regularly (and you will need to), I fell in love with it.

 

[scottw]

I would say that it took me a week to get it dialed in, partly because I didn't understand much about it, and partly because I kept fiddling with it. After that I decided to just let the thing go for two days at the recommended settings and actually started getting some skimmate, I slowly started tweaking it and just letting it run for a day before tweaking it again.

After probably a week of doing it this way, I learned what settings I liked and how it performed, and I was finally glad I got it. After that, it would be a little finicky whenever I cleaned it, but within a day it was back to running the way I liked it, and I had been pretty pleased since.

Recently, I sold the skimmer to Plack (I think that's his name here) after tearing down my tank because of life issues, and he's now going through the same process.

Overall, I loved it. I wasn't so sure during that first week, but once I had to start cleaning it regularly (and you will need to), I fell in love with it.

Just a little help for you for your MRC clean out the beckett once every few weeks in some vinegar. I am sure you have the new style beckett (has a 90 degree going into the beckett head) You will have a lot better performance if you do this. Soak it for 45 mins, and rinse with some hot water and your good to go. Sounds like a PITA but well worth it. I was running an MR-4 w/dual beckett and noticed a HUGE increase in performance when I cleaned it often

Hope that helps,

Scott

 

[RGibson]

Scott what do you think of the recirculating mrc skimmer?

 

[scottw]

Scott what do you think of the recirculating mrc skimmer?

To be honest with you, I was in Atl on a vacation and to go and talk with Andy and see his shop and all his new Killer Toys. I played in a golf outing with Andy (owner of MRC) and talked him into building the RC Beckett. I am sure it was on his mind for a while, but I pushed him into making one. Andy took a good amount of time designing this. I think its going to be a great skimmer. The beckett is already a good skimmer, now with the RC part added into it, look out for a Killer combo.

It would be well worth it to get one if you are going to go the beckett route. I hope this helped.

Scott

 

[iwantone]

YIKES! What's wrong with the ETSS reef devil deluxe?? I was thinking about purchasing one for a 120 gallon??

 

[big t]

It is a piece of crap. Save you money and pick up a good skimmer.

 

[mkpaulson]

I am in the market for a new protein skimmer and came across to the MR-4R recirculating Beckett from MCR, does anybody see any possible problems with this type of skimmer?

 

[RGibson]

Recirculating skimmers have been used for many years so i would not see any problem with a beckett from mcr

 

[NaH2O]

Mark - its kind of a lengthy thread, but here are some basics about skimming: Skimming 101. It's pretty amazing the formulas to apply to skimmers (found somewhere in the thread). After seeing the math behind my Euro-reef, it would work better if it was a recirc. However, they weren't available when I purchased mine . I think mojos DIY airstone skimmer functions the best....even according to the numbers. If only I had the space .

 

[scottw]

I am in the market for a new protein skimmer and came across to the MR-4R recirculating Beckett from MCR, does anybody see any possible problems with this type of skimmer?

I know they are going to be good. A lot of time went into the design of them. YOu will not be disapointed.

Scott

 

[kelly]

I've had my mr2for about a month now and could not be happier . Just follow the set up instructions and you will have lots and lots of dark nasty skimate. The only thing i did different was i turned my air back a full turn more than suggested to get some finer bubbles.

 

[IAP Brian]

There are several good organizations manufacturing Becket skimmers. The designs are all very similar and so is the function. I think they are the best type of skimmer with the least amount of maintenance. ( air stone skimmers are great but they require more maintenance, of the air stones) Every Becket style skimmer I have tested took less than 48 hrs to break in and produce good skim mate. (correction....only one took longer; the twin tower prototype for Big Dave.. it took him a week to get the two towers adjusted together. ) MRC, Precision Marine and IAP all make great Becket skimmers. Just remember if you have the little extra cash, a waste collector with a carbon filter is worth it's weight in gold. Good luck.

 

[loohunter]

not to get off subject, but are all etss skimmers crap or just the reef devil?

 

[big t]

Pretty much just the reef devil as far as what I have heard. I have seen a lot of the bigger etss's running really well. That reef devil I havn't heard a single good think about it ever. Mike Mojo was running a big etss for a while and it did quite the job.

 

[snowstar]

I know this is a little late to the party but one fine beckett is made by Trigger Systems... I have a modified TS300 dual on the 180. It was pulling massive amounts of black stank out of the 180 after less than 48 hrs. The one I have does not have a collection cup but directly feeds a 2.5 gallon waste collector. If is set it up to run dry I get about 32oz. of black skim a day, but the down side is I must clean it every other day becasue of the buildup on the "neck". Setup to run wet I get at least 1.5 gallons of very dark tea color out a day - and I only have to clean the "neck" once every 10 days...