Continued from page 3
Of course, columnar type skimmers of any description have been facing tough competition from "venturi" operated ones for several years now. Venturi skimmers, as they are referred to, have been fighting an uphill battle for a few years. Nowadays they seem to be favored by the more advanced hobbyist.
Whatever the reason for this choice may be is not really known. Many hobbyists have a tendency to start with a columnar type skimmer and then up-grade at some later date to a venturi type. The reason for this may simply be that as the bio-load in the aquarium increases, more efficient protein skimming becomes necessary. Venturi type skimmers certainly provide this added "efficacy".
It could be argued that some of the more expensive columnar skimmers are just as efficient as the venturi ones. These skimmers are so expensive though that, although they may very well provide excellent results, the extra money one needs to pay does not justify their use. Good quality venturi skimmers can be bought for far less money and are still more efficient than their equivalent columnar models.
Whereas columnar skimmers have been in vogue for a number of years, it is my experience that North American hobbyists are switching more and more to venturi operated ones, especially those models that can be placed underneath the aquarium in the cabinet. Space always being at a premium, this is a definite benefit and one hobbyists should consider it a convenience to be implemented and taken advantage of.
Lately hobbyists have been adopting down draft type skimmers and the reports on the few models available are excellent but not conclusive in terms of whether they are actually better, that is more efficient, than properly adjusted venturi types. Moreover, these skimmers are not inexpensive to say the least. Hopefully as more hobbyists buy such models the prices will start to come down.
With the advent of the Berlin Method of running aquariums and the hybrid filtration systems using not only "live rock" but also "live sand", hobbyists in North America have considerably changed their approach to foam fractionation as, in such systems, the foam fractionation has become the only form of filtration used (besides the biological activity taking place on the rock).
This requires some explanation I am sure.
In essence, and as you may have read in other articles, the Berlin Method of filtration relies solely on two methods of water purification:
Live rock for biological filtration and the introduction of additional animal life forms into the aquarium, denitrification and nitrificiation as well as the beneficial effect live rock has on the nutritional requirements of fishes and invertebrates. Indeed many animalcules found on live rock make excellent food for these animals. Strong current inside the tank ensures that they enter the water stream and can be trapped by corals.
- Very powerful foam fractionation for the removal of pollutants, detritus, calcium phosphate, algae, food particles, feces, parasites, small protozoa and so on.
With these added and important "feature requirements" placed on protein skimmers, regular units just do not seem to give the desired efficiency. Only powerful skimmers using higher flow venturi valves appear to provide the needed skimming efficacy.
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