AquaC Remora Pro

[mb75]

Just recieved my new AquaC Remora Pro (Mag Drive 3 version) from Marine Depot today, and I'm a bit leery about it.

I spent nearly 300 dollars on it, I also purchased the pre-filter box as well. It's replacing a CPR Bak Pak skimmer, which I have gotten four good years out of. Just curious if anyone had who uses the AquaC Remora Pro had the same concerns I have:

1.) No support for the pre filter box.
It has three thumbscrews to hold it in place. The Mag Drive 3 is quite heavy, and attaches to the inlet pipe via a piece of vinyl tubing. The end of the tubing has a connector which threads onto the pump. The other end of the flexible tubing has a plastic clamp which holds it onto the inlet pipe. Has anyone had any problems with the pump and filter box sliding off?

2.) Low amount of clearance between the walls of the pre filter box and intake for the pump.
There is only about 1/8 of an inch between the intake and the edge of the box. The pump is very tight when you slide it into the pre filter. That on top of the power cord make for a tight squeeze.

3.) Outlet is the only support for holding it onto the edge of the tank.
The outlet is not centered on the skimmer body. The pump adds a ton of weight to the left hand side of the skimmer. It seems like when I attach it, it will lean to the left raising the edge of the skimmer outlet, and possibly causing it to slide off the edge of the tank.

I'm not sure if I should return this, or give it a shot this weekend and see how well it works. I'm leaning more towards using it, I have seen nothing but good reviews for it.

Any input from current Remora Pro users would be helpful.

 

[s_kelley]

I have an older remora mine uses a maxi 1200 though. I also purchased the prefilter box, I attempted to use it for a while but got tired of continually adjusting the hight of it with those rediculous thumb screws. The slightest evaporation and it begins to suck air. At one point the pump came off of the tube due to me pulling on it i think and water shot up into the air.
So once i ditched the filter box and used a plastic zip tie to make sure the pump would not slip off it works great.
Let me know how you make out or if you find out any more info on how to use the filter box.
Good Luck

 

[Reverond]

Hahaha, funny i just upgraded my Remora Pro from the MaxiJet 1200 i was using to a Mag 5 pump with the pre filter box, and i said the same thing. I have only been running the new pump for about 3 days. So i can't pass final judgement though.

As for question 1. ( No support for the pre filter box. )
I hooked up my mag pump directly to the remora pro and didn't use the vinyl tubing. If your Remora is like mine, the inlet is a threaded 1/2" PVC. And the pump is threaded 1/2" PVC. So if you remove the 4 screws on the face of the Mag 3. And take the pump face off. Then you can screw that directly on to the Remora inlet tube. Then put the pump back together. Does that make sense?

As for Q2. I haven't had any problems with the clearance. But mine is on a 20 gal high. So there may be a little more of a issue if you are running a bigger tank that has a wider rim.

And for Q3. Mine actually seems to balance quite well. I was almost more concerned with putting all that weight on the edge on my 20Gal tank. But it has been fine so far. ;-)

 

[Mike75]

I used to have the same setup until I finally went to a drilled tank with overflow.

1) I never had any problems with the pump or filter box sliding off, and I didn't have hose clamps, just thick-walled vinyl tubing that fit very tightly. In hindsight that probably wasn't the best implementation, but it was always very tight when I had to pull it apart to clean it.

2) I agree, it's a tight squeeze but everything does fit.

3) I didn't have any problems with it not sitting level on the tank. The Pro holds quite a bit of water, so once it's full the weight should level it out.

The biggest problem I had with it was keeping the water level in the tank higher than the teeth on the overflow box. I had used two different boxes (long story) and one would let in enough water from the bottom so the pump wouldn't run dry, but the other wouldn't. An auto-top off would have solved this, but I didn't have one at the time.

If you search the equipment forum at RC for "remora mods" there's one or two worthwhile tricks. HTH

 

[55GalGill]

I had a whole bunch of issues with my remora. the happiest day in this hobby i have ever had was when i sold it to a fellow reefer(all problems disclosed, of course).

1.The tube that runs from the mag pump to the body of the skimmer was badly designed and began to leak after a couple months.

2. The bottom adjustment legs were glued on so poorly from the company that they popped off from the weight of the skimmer(i fixed that).

3. The plastic clamps that hold the mag 3 let go on me one day and the mag 3fell onto the sandbed when i wasnt home, needless to say it was terrible for the fish and the whole tank.

4. Constant adjustment to get the Remora to produce a good think skimmate.

5. Noisy as all heck if you have it in your bedroom with out a canopy on your tank

The sad thing is, it was my second Remora because the first one they sent was so poor quality that it leaked like a sive out the connection pipe. I did a lot of research before I bought this pump and was severly dissapointed in it. But there somehow is a lot of people that love this skimmer. My opinion is that I got sent two bad models, built by a lazy angry employee about to quit the company.

 

[t1771]

I haven't had any problems with the balance of mine, but my mag has come off the tube several times. I think the plastic clamps are pretty much useless. As for noise, I put filter cotton above the injection tube and it keeps it pretty quiet, plus it doesn't impair the bubble injection. I also bought the pre filter box, but never really used it.

With all that being said, I do like the performance of the skimmer. I have never had any issues with skimmate. Keep in mind though, if you're going to try it out for the weekend, there is a break in period.

 

[jojo1n2]

if you use the overflow box, you'll def need an auto top off unit or some type of drip system to keep it from running dry The screws to keep the box on the mag are fine, not the best, but the mag will way less in water. I only had to keep them finger tight on mine. Never had a prob with it sitting on my tank and it was a bit noisey at 1st but after about a week it quieted down. All around a decent skimmer. Pretty good cust service as well

 

[wsonner]

The pre-filter box is a bit of a conundrum. It can work really well but there is little forgiveness for not keeping up with your top offs. Miss a day or two and you'll start sucking air. I eventually took it off. Other than that the Remora Pro has been my favorite HOT skimmer and the support from Jason Kim at AquaC is awesome. Give it a whirl. I think you will like it.

Wes

P.S. Here's a little secret...Jason sells his factory seconds for real cheap (at least he did a couple years ago)! Just call up AquaC and ask about it since I don't think it is advertised.

 

[Anthony1238]

I have that same skimmer, I hung it on the back of my sump and made its own section for the mag3 after the water overflows from my LR rubble section. then the outtake emptys into my Fuge. works very well this way. Its been 6 months and i have a decent amount of fish in my 75 and i have had Zero Nitrates besides my cycle in the begining.