IMO, you will not find a non recirc skimmer that will perform as good as that Octo recirc for that price. Is it worth the diff in price from the reg. Octo to the recirc? Performance wise, the recirc may be a little better, but I guess it would depend on the circumstances. Do you need to customize your sump to make the regular skimmer fit and work? They must be kept in a section of sump where the water level stays constant. The recirc can work in any water level or outside the sump. With the recirc, you need a feed pump. A MJ 900 or 1200 would work fine. The reg skimmer comes with the only pump you need.