Got LifeReef ??? Show us your LifeReef Sumps, Skimmers, and Anything else you may have by LifeReef.

scuzy · Sep 15, 2018

I was thinking a red dragon pressure rated 100w cause I had great reliability with those. I'm not sure how the varios reliability since it's a Chinese DC.

markstubb · Sep 16, 2018

I'm pretty sure the varios reliability is on par with most, if not better. I personally have 5 of them, 4 6's and a 4 and they run like clockwork. But then again, for 900 bucks, the 100w red dragon should work well. I'd just rather buy 3 (or more) varios 6 (or 8) as it's just a skimmer. We're not talking about a return pump here.

pwilliaml · Sep 17, 2018

I would strongly consider building a shelf that your skimmer could sit up on so that the drain line only goes down from where it exits, otherwise it's just going to overflow your skimmer cup constantly as the drain line height determines how high the bubble level is in the skimmer with the drain valve wide open. Trying to add a pump to the outlet is a balancing act you don't want to play. Just risking overflow. Talk to Jeff at Lifereef, [email protected] he will tell you straight up what will work and what won't. He answers emails fast too. Stands behind his products, even if you didn't buy them directly from him. I bought my skimmer from someone on here and emailed Jeff about it and he answered same day, gave me the instruction manual and told me everything I needed to do to get it running at 100%. Good luck.

Don Lidtke · Sep 17, 2018

pwilliaml said:
I would strongly consider building a shelf that your skimmer could sit up on so that the drain line only goes down from where it exits, otherwise it's just going to overflow your skimmer cup constantly as the drain line height determines how high the bubble level is in the skimmer with the drain valve wide open. Trying to add a pump to the outlet is a balancing act you don't want to play. Just risking overflow. Talk to Jeff at Lifereef, [email protected] he will tell you straight up what will work and what won't. He answers emails fast too. Stands behind his products, even if you didn't buy them directly from him. I bought my skimmer from someone on here and emailed Jeff about it and he answered same day, gave me the instruction manual and told me everything I needed to do to get it running at 100%. Good luck.

After sleeping on this and looking at the space I have available, a stand will work so I will go ahead and built a stand. It does create more head distance but I can always go with a larger pump if needed.

scuzy · Sep 18, 2018

So tried a dcp10000 and it's definitely pushing more bubbles. I like it. Night run this for a bit to see how it lasts. My last herbal lasted 2 years.

pwilliaml · Sep 19, 2018

I've got an old Waveline DC-6000 pump on my Lifereef skimmer right now, but I want to switch it for something else as I believe my pump randomly changes it's speed / flow occasionally which affects the water level in the skimmer or overflows it. Anyone else had this issue with a DC pump? My Varios-6 seems to have no issue maintaining a constant speed. I really want to try the new Sicce Syncra ADV 5.5 pump when it finally becomes available as it's low power and pushes a ton of water.

Water Dog · Sep 19, 2018

If you’re waiting for the ADV 5.5 to come out, you might as well get the ADV 7 (1900 gph) which is already available. It gives you more flow for 55 watts as opposed to the 50 watts that the ADV 5.5 uses. Remember, Jeff uses a Mag 18 on his 24” Lifereef and @d2mini uses a Fluval SP4 (1822 gph) on his.

Bpb · Sep 19, 2018

scuzy said:
So tried a dcp10000 and it's definitely pushing more bubbles. I like it. Night run this for a bit to see how it lasts. My last herbal lasted 2 years.

I run the same pump on my Lifereef for about a year now and it’s been perfect. I run it on 95% power

pwilliaml · Sep 19, 2018

Water Dog said:
If you’re waiting for the ADV 5.5 to come out, you might as well get the ADV 7 (1900 gph) which is already available. It gives you more flow for 55 watts as opposed to the 50 watts that the ADV 5.5 uses. Remember, Jeff uses a Mag 18 on his 24” Lifereef and @d2mini uses a Fluval SP4 (1822 gph) on his.

I did not know that. Thanks Water Dog, I'll check out the ADV 7 then. Anyone know of any reviews on these?

cono · Sep 25, 2018

I just restarted my 180 gallon..there is nothing in it besides sand and rock
...I have Jeff's 24 skimmer , the only thing I did was plumb the s1 to it ....but just wanted to ask ,there isnt that many bubbles being produced.....cant it be because there is no bio load in the tank or can it be the pump

legionofdoon · Sep 26, 2018

Are there bubbles in the body or is it not producing foam?

cono · Sep 26, 2018

Bubbles are in the body but not a lot as it should be

legionofdoon · Sep 26, 2018

Yeah that looks a little thin. Do you have access to a stronger pump? I ditched the mag 7 and went with a DCP 8000 and saw a big difference. Im not familiar with the SP 1.

legionofdoon · Sep 26, 2018

legionofdoon · Sep 26, 2018

Did you check your salinity?

cono · Sep 26, 2018

I did check salinity ...the only thing I can think it is ...is that I didnt calibrate the pump I just plugged and plumped it and i think that there is not enough flow

legionofdoon · Sep 26, 2018

Check your venturi and see if there is anything blocking your pump intake, 1400 GPH should be plenty.

scuzy · Sep 26, 2018

I replaced my varios6 with a dcp 10000 and it's pushing some mad bubbles. I notice anything weaker won't work to well.

scuzy · Sep 26, 2018

I also got a mazzei Venturi along with the regular. Was wondering if it's worth the conversion to the mazzei Venturi. If I go mazzei I will need to replumb to get it fit right in my sump skimmer compartment.