View Full Version : Go skimmer-less?
105man
11-27-2003, 6:54 PM
Wondering whether anyone has done just great without a skimmer, or experimented with and without and found any difference.
54 gal corner tank
Live rock, live sand
Fluval, UV
mushrooms, polyps and leathers
tang, flame angel, copperband butterfly, shrimp, algae critters
Thanks!
Slappy*McFish
11-28-2003, 12:02 AM
I would not go without a skimmer in a reef tank containing live corals. They are the most valuable piece of equipment you will own next to the lighting. The next alternative would be to use activated carbon, lots of it, and replace it frequently..however, I don't really recommend it for reef tanks...better than nothing though. The next alternative would be frequent water changes to remove the build-up of organics and proteins in the water.
There's a lot of people who go skimmerless and have great success with it. I have never tried it though - I have an awesome skimmer and it just makes things easier for me. Plus, I've only been doing salty tanks for two years now and still consider myself a newbie...I'll take all the help I can get. My skimmer still pulls out some pretty nasty looking stuff so I'll keep it going. Most of the people I know that do not run skimmers have a lot of marine experience.
mogurnda
11-28-2003, 7:05 AM
I have toyed with the idea of going skimmerless, and certainly people have succeeded with it, but have decided to keep it for now. There is a possibility of losing a little plankton and maybe some nutrients with the skimmer, but those effects are largely undocumented. With the benefits of intense aeration and reduced organic load, skimmers will probably be with us for a long time.
Tiffany
11-29-2003, 9:59 AM
I've run skimmerless for 2 years now and have a lot of success, a thriving anemone and different shrooms, not to mention fish.
I'm about to add a skimmer to the tank, as I'm planning some new additions and corals that need the quality of water, and want to reduce the load on the bio-wheel ,but I'm weary of the nutrient level changes.
If I did the 10% a week W/Change my nitrates were generally 0ppm, (if I over fed 5ppm,) if I left it for 2 weeks it would only occasionally go up to 10ppm. I guess it depends on stocking levels and feeding.
Aside from that no problems.
:)