how necessary is a protien skimmer

[FishFanatic13]

i have a 14 gal biocube. oceanic does make a protien skimmer for the tank but im wondering if its absolutly necessary,can anyone help

[Fishfriend1]

are u planning to put corals in it?

[fsn77]

With a good maintenance routine, using a skimmer can easily be avoided, especially in a smaller tank where larger (percentage wise) water changes are somewhat more convenient than in a more sizeable tank. Keeping a light fish load and being sure to not overfeed also help.

[FishFanatic13]

Just has lr in it and I was planning on getting maybe one or two corals fish wise maybe 3 small ones it's not a very big tank.. I take care of my fish I'm not a noob when it comes to maint just wondering if I should pick it up it's not that expensive it can only help the tank right? Is there anything bad about a protons skimmer

[Fishfriend1]

U should get one then. It can never hurt.

[davocean]

Agree w/ FSN77
I have seen a couple small skimmers that worked OK, can't remember make, but most small skimmers seem to be a headache to keep adjusted.

[greech]

Get a Tunze 9002 nano skimmer if it will fit in a rear chamber (think it will). Well actually here is a thread showing it does :). Just not sure about your lid.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=172694

I have never owned an Oceanic skimmer (or any skimmer for that matter) but I have never read a post that holds them in high regard. The Tunze skims like crazy in a fellow reefers tank. If the standard cup doesn't fit, then you can try this:

http://shop.mediabaskets.com/Small-Tunze-Cup-Skinny-Body-Size-JBJCUP.htm

That site also has some other biocube accessories you might find beneficial. Checkout their media racks. HTH

[greech]

The above assumes you need/want a skimmer. Weekly 2+ gallon water changes on a 14 gallon tank should be enough to maintain water quality and replenish trace elements. You could also look into Chemipure Elite and/or convert one of your rear chambers to a refugium in lieu of a skimmer. The same link for inTank has some things for that too that I have read good things about.

[FishFanatic13]

the oceanic skimmer wants me to take out hecarbon filter and just use the skimmer i didnt think this was a good idea anyone agree

[ToeJam]

I let you know by PM but I will post what I know since I did have a bio cube 29g model.
The sig I have explains skimmers very well. Once you see that you will realize that Oceanic Skimmer is junk. Pure ..and utter useless junk.


The advise I give is based on others with nano tanks to...and my friend and I had thriving nano's.

Chamber 2: remove all bio balls...use crushed rubble live rock ...place a filter floss pad on top between the grate and the rock....to catch debris....(clean it every few days like one would a filter sock)....

Change water: 1g a day would be perfect if you dont mind doing that. Or simply a 50% change weekly on a tank that size....or change it up to like 1g every 3 days.

The largest problem I had was phosphate.... so remember to top off with RO/DI water...buy or mix salt in that kind of water for changes. Phosphate is introduced by food and water..we can eliminate the water....but food no....

To go the extra mile...phosban reactor with a bit of hood lid modifications you can hide that reactor and have the lines run into from behind.....have the intake line go in chamber 1...and the out line pumping water back in to chamber 2.

Phosphate is going to be your long term enemy for tank looks...cyano thrives on it...and so does algae.... *though cyano is algae bacteria hybrid*....I can't tell you how many times a phosban reactor has turned around many display tanks.....we share war stories at my local pond we shop at ...

Why I dislike the carbon by oceanic: The filter clogs super easy from dust....it restricts flow...causing air to suck in chamber 3 cause of the cycle of water going to the chamber and out are out of balance.....removing that....and doing chamber 2 change like I recommend will eliminate that problem...keeping flow perfect from display and hidden chambers.

Even if you just do chamber 2 modifications and big water change only...your tank will do very very well. The live rock rubble will be your bio filter...the pad the mechanical.... water change for chemistry ....i know not a detailed explanation but I think you will be ok.

[DoctaQ]

you can get away with no skimmer, my signature 15 has no skimmer and i keep a lot of sps, my nitrates are always 0, i do grow some intank macro algae and have an algal turf scrubber of sorts.

people say using a skimmer polishes the water too much not leaving enough food in the form of disolved organics in the water. if you beleive that, thats another issue, i for one do

[greech]

I always like to look back at this tank when I start thinking about buying a skimmer. Pretty much speaks for itself...

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=893433

[Amphiprion]

Skimmerless tanks can certainly be done and look nice at the same time. A few examples:

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x10/p0rthi0s/fts_40.jpg

http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z107/Amphiprion_photos/3eb5b6af-5ecc-48b8-bb2b-ce75.jpg

http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z107/Amphiprion_photos/UserMudsharkOnMASA-11.jpg

I'm hoping to go skimmerless eventually, but I don't feel that I have enough diversity yet to get the job done in the absence of a skimmer. My ATS is also very immature and I don't trust it by itself at the moment.