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Great Skimmer By Roger on 5/30/13
Roger would recommend this product to a friend
I have the XS 160 set up for my 65 gallon reeftank. I have a pretty high load a oncend you get it dialed in it is working great.built with quality materials, quite and easy to clean.The only con is it was pretty dificult to get it dialed in.
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Fantastic Skimmer By Tony on 4/22/13
Tony would recommend this product to a friend
I'm new to the hobby and researched everything carefully before I bought this skimmer. I based my choice upon other reviews on how it was easy to get started. They were right. This skimmer is amazing! I installed it in my 40g sump under my 125 g DT. New set up and everything is getting under way. Within 30 minutes of starting the skimmer, the brown gook coming out was unbelievable. I ran this wide open for several days and just now, a week later, started toning it down a bit. It's been fantastic. Quiet, efficient and really doing it's job. Very few bubbles coming out of the skimmer now and lots of stuff coming out of the water. Truly plug and play! I didn't have to hunt around for the right level, worry about break in, etc. It's just that easy. Love it.
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I love this skimmer! By James on 4/4/13
James would recommend this product to a friend
Best skimmer I've ever bought! So glad I bought it, it really pulls out all the gunk in my tank. I haven't had any problems and I'm glad I purchased this skimmer.
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Great Skimmer, But on the Loud Side By Thomas on 3/18/13
Thomas would recommend this product to a friend
I purchased and put this skimmer into use 4 months ago on a 75 gallon mixed reef tank that is stocked with 11 fish. Reading various posting about the skimmer if there was a complaint about the skimmer it was about water discharge. The skimmer came with a metric/SAE adapter. A quick trip to HD and $4 in parts and the issue with water spraying down the sump area was fixed. My only complaint about the unit is how loud it is. I read several reviews where individuals say theirs got quieter with time. Well after 4 months I am still waiting. I may plug one of the two holes in the silencer as some suggest. The performance and build quality are great. The skimmer is constructed well and was pulling skimmate immediately. Overall I would recommend the skimmer with my only slight complaint being the loudness.
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Great Skimmer By Jonathan on 2/20/13
Jonathan would recommend this product to a friend
Perfect for those with smaller sumps that want full size skimming. Easy to set up, pulls out an astonishing amount of yuk. Little loud but I have a basement sump, so who cares!! Don't think twice!!
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awesome skimmer By Joe on 2/10/13
Joe would recommend this product to a friend
This thing is quiet, reliable, skims like a dream, as long as you set it up properly, water level can not be low in sump or it won't work and will be loud. But deffinety high qaulity you get what you pay for.
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Have not had a good experience By Stylianos on 2/5/13
Stylianos wouldn't recommend this product to a friend
Almost thinking of replacing this skimmer currently. Using it for my 93g and it just doesnt seem to do a very good job. I have to constantly fiddle with it to try to get the skim just right, and one of the bottom legs broke off while i was cleaning it (not made very well)... I am wondering if the pump that came with it is just not strong enough? anyway I would not recommend it after about a year of using it.
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Great Skimmer! By Doug on 1/29/13
Doug would recommend this product to a friend
No problems. Very satisfied with my purchase.
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Unimpressed By Charles on 12/17/12
Charles wouldn't recommend this product to a friend
While this skimmer works I have the following problems with it....
#1. It's loud. The silencer is made of cheap plastic and is the same generic silencer used on other RO skimmers (it is not designed for the PSK-600 pump or this skimmer). You can plug holes and at most you'll reduce maybe 1/3 of the noise. This skimmer DOES NOT get quiet with break-in. You may just get used to the noise.
#2. It's got a 4" neck size. Do not plan on using this on anything less than a heavily stocked 90. You will be disappointed.
#3. It's loud...Yes I mentioned this already. Look at this skimmer...It doesn't include vibration dampening feet on either the skimmer or the pump. What this equates to is...noise and lots of it. Even cheap skimmers of other manufactures include this.
#4. You will have to make your own vent pipe. This is obviously RO cutting costs...You can buy the separate outlet if you want, however it will cost YOU.
$5. This skimmer takes FOREVER to break-in. I've owned numerous skimmers and the amount of time this took to break-in was rediculous.
All in All...I wouldn't recommend this to any of my friends as a buy.
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Good Skimmer, Very Loud By Trevor on 11/28/12
Trevor would recommend this product to a friend
Although other reviews have discussed the noise, I feel it necessary to mention that this skimmer is loud. It does a good job of generating foam and pulling debris from the water, but it is as loud as an air conditioner. Several people have suggested plugging one of the air intakes and that does help, but overall the skimmer still provides a loud hum of machinery. If you are more interested in the quality of filtration than noise, then this is the skimmer for you. However, if you plan to put this aquarium in a bedroom or office, I would suggest a quieter alternative.
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Started skimming crud in less than an hour in a new tank no livestock By jeff on 11/5/12
jeff would recommend this product to a friend
I hooked this up to a new tank with rinsed dry rock and rinsed dry sand, plugged in the xs160 for a test run and couldnt believe my eyes when i returned an hour later and there was nasty crud already being skimmed. With regards to noise I have to say that it is pretty darn quiet, most all of the noise comes from the air inlet sucking air and as many have suggested just plugging one of the two inlets cuts the noise down to just a small humming and it didnt seem to affect the quality of skimming. VERY happy with this skimmer.
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Great Skimmer By David on 10/9/12
David would recommend this product to a friend
Bought this about a year ago and it's doing great.
Compared to my last skimmer (AquaC EV 120) it is a lot easier to clean and the cup detaches farther down on the neck so you don't have to reach down and clean the neck so much, just detach it and rinse it out.
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Amazing skimmer for the price By Chris on 10/5/12
Chris would recommend this product to a friend
The skimmer was easy to setup and began extracting skimmate within hours. There's no need for continuous tweaking. I really like it how the collection cup is large and makes cleaning it a breeze. Lastly, the silencer makes this one of the quietest skimmers I've ever owned. Highly recommended!
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Awesome skimmer By Dave on 10/5/12
Dave would recommend this product to a friend
I've had this skimmer running for 1.5 months now, and the gunk it pulls out looks like it could pave my driveway. For people complaining the silencer is inefficient, if you plug one of the 2 holes on the silencer it stops 95% of the noise. Make SURE you keep your water level in your sump chamber with the skimmer in it at the same level for optimal performance. Overall, I highly recommend this skimmer.
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Great Big Skimmer in such a Small Footprint! By Jason on 9/14/12
Jason would recommend this product to a friend
I have a 40gal Breeder sump and wanted a skimmer with a small footprint yet big enough to handle a 120gal reef system.
This skimmer is a beast! Easily worth the price!
This is my second Reef Octopus skimmer and both are running great.
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Great buy By Shane on 9/8/12
Shane would recommend this product to a friend
Have had the skimmer running for about 3 months now and it's amazing it pulls out all sorts of nasty junk as soon as I found the sweet spot
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Not entirely what I was expecting By Michael on 8/17/12
Michael wouldn't recommend this product to a friend
Quality skimmer with solid construction, and nearly silent if you plug one of the air intake holes on the silencer.
The pump feels a bit underpowered, and there's no ability to fine tune air intake. Okay for a 75-90 gal, but much more is pushing it.
It's a good skimmer , but a little underwhelming overall. 3.5/5
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Plenty of bubbles By Karl on 8/5/12
Karl would recommend this product to a friend
Skimming with a very light bio load. I replaced a 55 with 150 gallon tank. The 3 fish and 6 corals are in the 150 now. The skimmer is collecting small amounts of scum. I amazed its collecting anything.
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Great for what I got it for By Will on 7/6/12
Will would recommend this product to a friend
I've hare this skimmer for about 8 months works great and Is quiet.
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Great for what I got it for By Will on 7/6/12
Will would recommend this product to a friend
I've hare this skimmer for about 8 months works great and Is quiet.
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Only Skimmer you should buy By Mary Beth on 6/10/12
Mary Beth would recommend this product to a friend
It took us three different skimmers to get to the best. This one is awesome. Definitely a set it and forget it.
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reef octopus xs 160 By moises on 6/4/12
moises would recommend this product to a friend
The skimmer is amazing. started skimming the first day. first day was a bit noisy but once it broke in. It toned down a bit. still a little loud but nothing i couldnt live with. skimmate is out of this world. I happy, I made the right choice.
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This thing is a Beast! By Kate on 6/1/12
Kate would recommend this product to a friend
Very well made, easy to understand instructions. I have not had the skimmer long enough to attest to quality, but will post another review in a few months. BRS packed this very well, no chance for damage during shipping.
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Holy Protien Skimmer By Jeffrey on 4/6/12
Jeffrey would recommend this product to a friend
Do not be fooled by the pictures this is a beefy skimmer, it barely fit in my sump. A little noisy but not nearly as bad as people make it out to be in other reviews. Mine still breaking in so I'm not sure about the skimmate, but if the gunk that's starting to form on the neck is any indication it will produce excellent skimmate. Would definitely recommend to others.