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Do you use a protein skimmer?


Christopher Marks

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my guess is that we are not able to produce shore-like water without a skimmer... waves produce foam, oxigyze (sp) the water etc... in my opinion nanos without skimmers are just like tidepools, seperate micro-cosmos without much relation to the sea and coral reefs... from time to time they get some fresh water and so, but they are not really a reef in my understanding... just my .02$

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  • reef-luva

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  • yoshiod9

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You are absolutley right Yoshiod. The animals take up alot!! That's why I don't skim a nano. I apologize if I sounded short. I am NO where

near a pro, I am always leaning. This hobby is always changing with different things coming up all the time and some things never change though. I have maintained a 5 to a 400 gal reef... all I said is that I have a lot of experience, never said I was a pro.(please re-read my post's "pro" was never used)Thank you for the link, I love to read new stuff!! Yoshiod, I hope your a good soccer player after so many years though aye?

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Like I stated...skimmers are "good tools" at times great ones.

There are many great toys out there (no reason to list them...)

They all take "extra" work and time. I like my nano "tidepool"

(thanks Burnah)... remember this hobby was started along time ago,

without "skimmers". Can any body remember those days?

I guess I'm the only one here not skimming nano's...sweet.....

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lol. reef-luva, i think you're definitely going to be known as gramps by me from now on. ;)

 

skimmers are great tools...i think that they are not always justifiable for small tanks(if you're on top of your water changes, you definitely don't need one for a nano...unless you're going for a nutrient starved sps tank...in which case i recommend one). but for the most part, reefers seem to be lazy and having a skimmer allows them the chance to flub a bit with their water changes... not saying that i do that...but people i know do... :D;)

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"The Con's of Skimming

 

Here are some of the consistent comments about going without a skimmer:

1) removes desirable nutrients

2) too large and make too much noise

3) require additional plumbing or don't fit well with certain systems

4) it's an unnecessary expense if you are consistent with water changes, light stocking and not overfeeding

5) creates microbubbles in the tank

6) possible oxidation of sensitive molecules (one poster listed iodine)

7) some ricordia/zoanthids prefer a small amount of DSO's".....

 

A quote from another thread... I am NOT alone!!!

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Alexraptor

well i use a Prizm HOB skimmer that works quite well, its good help for me as sometimes i get too stressed and forget to do water change

but i run it almost on max flow and the foam is pretty dry and i dont have any problems with microbubbles, inhabitants seem to be doing just great ;)

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I used this really cool skimmer on my nano, I called it water changes!!!! LOL HAHA...I did change 3 gallons per week in my nano 12g when I had it. I was religious about it and never had to use any sort of mechanical skimmer...Not to say it wouldn't have helped, but it really wasn't necessary. My 50t is a different story however...I use an ASM G1-X and it works great...It is dialed low, so I am not pulling a ton of stuff out daily, but what it pulls out consistantly is muck!!! Not watery junk, but thick and nasty garbage that stinks!!

 

To touch on what was mentioned by reef-luva, skimmers can take out beneficial nutrients. Such manufacturers of fine reef foods like DT's state to not use a skimmer while feeding Oyster Eggs...Now why would they say not to skim if it was safe to do so without removing the foods...You just have to find the happy medium between under and over skimming!!! Good luck to all!!!

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they say to not skim when you add foods because the oyster eggs are TINY protein based substances that adhere to the microbubbles your skimmer produces... that has nothing to do with removing beneficial nutrients. if you're feeding your tank, you're feeding your tank...all pumps and water movement devices should be off. that's just normal operating procedure.

 

blah...this is such a useless argument though. lol. protein skimming is VERY helpful. please, please, can someone back me up here on the whole you cannot overskim debacle?! i know i'm not the only one who doesn't believe that mumbo jumbo.

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....hmmmm? Is it possible that skimmers are good AND bad....

without being one OR the other....hhmmmm? For many systems/people

(over crowded...lazy...) skimmers are irreplacable.

For others, they are a source of constant tweeking and are not needed.

Sorry you can't understand this yoshiod....

but it IS ok to have either/both opinions.... ;)

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Originally posted by reef-luva

....hmmmm? Is it possible that skimmers are good AND bad....

without being one OR the other....hhmmmm? For many systems/people

(over crowded...lazy...) skimmers are irreplacable.  

For others, they are a source of constant tweeking and are not needed.

Sorry you can't understand this yoshiod....

but it IS ok to have either/both opinions.... ;)

 

/applause

 

Exactly. I prefer to have a lightly stocked tank and do regular water changes. I find that given those conditions, a skimmer is an unnecessary expense. This does not mean, however, that I think skimmers are "bad" or "useless." This hobby is as much of an art as it is a science. Find what works with you, run with it and don't look back.

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...extended applause ktownhero....

I like the "art" comment, there is no better way to say it.

"Dont look back...", I guess I understand what you mean....

but after 23 years in the hobby (thats as old as yoshiod is...)

I keep looking EVERYWHERE.... I love to learn new things.

Yoshiod, don't take this so personally....like I told you, I have owned MANY skimmers (7inches to 7feet)in the correct application they are great....their just not needed in EVERY application. END

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Originally posted by yoshiod9

blah...this is such a useless argument though.  lol.  protein skimming is VERY helpful.  please, please, can someone back me up here on the whole you cannot overskim debacle?!  i know i'm not the only one who doesn't believe that mumbo jumbo.

 

I'm with you yoshi...where is RB, onthefly, MrA, and the others when you need them..LOL...I think this starts up everytime someone mention's the word SKIMMER..LOL..

 

currently I am not skimming my 10 gal but in two weeks when I switch over to a 20L I will be using a CSS 65 (coralife needle wheel skimmer)

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lol. reef-luva, the only problem i have with this whole skim/don't skim debacle is that many people believe that an efficient skimmer will overskim...i don't have a problem with people choosing to skim or choosing not to skim. :D

 

i know that you don't have to run a skimmer on tanks...i didn't run one on my 6 and 10 because i was keeping lps/softies(which actually do better in nutrient rich water)...so, i'm not having a problem understanding you can or can't run a skimmer... just having a problem making sure people understand you cannot overskim, that's all. :D

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If you take too much 'stuff' (nutrients, organincs, etc) out the water and the removal of the stuff effects your inhabitants negatively then that is overskimming.

Like people have said (yoshiod9), some corals and other lifeforms prefer more enriched water than others so overskimming is down t the individual setup and how much it needs - more or less - its a fine line or bubble tower in this case :)

 

I have skimmed and other times I have not. Personally skimming with a small basic skimmer is far better than the new age turbo powered powered ones that remove way too much out of the water so IMO overskimming is also dependant on the skimmer itself. Its what it takes and the quantity, not to skim or not to skim. Just choose wisely and relevantly.

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BKtomodachi

I partially agree. I always try to skim, but under-do it a bit. Still helps with algae, but I dont want EVERYthing to be gone. Many of my soft corals would appreciate me not skimming, and the SPS want me to skim. I compromise.

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I have a 4 month old 10g running with an UGF and a cheesy Skilter. The Skilter NEVER has collected anything. I'm not sure if that means that the Skilter really just IS that cheesy, or that the water quality is as good as my tests consistantly show. Either way, I haven't seen a need for a PS.

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I ran a 20 for 4 yrs with no skimmer just fine. I uprgraded to a 29 and added a skimmer and I was amazed (still am) at how much crap that thing pulls out of the water. After going from no skimmer to a skimmer I can definitely tell a difference in water quality and the like...

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