Review of the AVAST Davy Jones’ Skimmate Locker

We were recently sent a Davy Jones’ Skimmate Locker from AVAST Marine Works for a product review, and we wanted to share our first impressions. The Skimmate Locker we received is the medium, which has a 5.5″ x 5.5″ footprint and is 18″ tall. The American-made collector is loaded with a lot of features. The lid, which is where all of the features come into play, is removable to allow for complete draining and cleaning. Sitting atop the lid is a carbon-filtered vent that lets out air, but not the smell. As the skimmate builds up in the chamber, it will displace air. As the air escapes, it carries with it a nasty smell that can permeate an entire room. The carbon in the vent will absorb most of the smell, keeping the room where your tank resides from wreaking.

Continue reading below to hear more about the pressure switch used to turn off a protein skimmer, as well as our initial impression.

The best part of the collector is how it reacts when full. Unlike other gravity-fed skimmate collectors that use ping-pong ball to prevent the them from overfilling, the AVAST collector features a pressure switch that is connected to a power switch. When the collector fills up to sensor tube, the increasing air pressure causes the power switch to turn off, killing all power to the protein skimmer. The sensor used in the Davy Jones is triggered by air pressure created by a rising liquid. It cannot become clogged like a float switch and won’t get stuck like a ping-pong ball could.

So far, I’m quite impressed. AVAST has taken a simple product and made it better. The build quality seems to be top notch and all of the features were well planned and implemented. Stay tuned for a brief video of the Davy Jones’ Skimmate Locker. We will also be doing a review of the unit while it is in action, including how it handles a rising skimmate level, turning off the protein skimmer, and of course the smell.