protein skimmer and cheato?

[wyattroa]

I have a 24 gallon nano cube and have a quick question. My system did not come with a protein skimmer. I bought the skimmer you attach in front of the water intake vent though. I cleared out my second chamber and want to run either a protein skimmer or cheato. Which one would be best? The tank is still new and cycling also. Is there a way to run both on this tank system?

Robert

[Grad]

I have a 24 gallon nano cube and have a quick question. My system did not come with a protein skimmer. I bought the skimmer you attach in front of the water intake vent though. I cleared out my second chamber and want to run either a protein skimmer or cheato. Which one would be best? The tank is still new and cycling also. Is there a way to run both on this tank system?

Robert

 

This have been answered many time on this forum. Use the search engine, there is a lot of really helpful answers already here. Skimmer is a better option IMO, luck.

 

-Grad

[Bill Nye]

The conventional wisdom is that if you have to choose one or the other a protein skimmer is more effective in higher bioload situations. Usually what is recommended is small tanks should go chaeto and larger tanks should go protein skimmer. This being said having both is preferable because they technically do different things.

[sandcruiser]

skimmer:

pros: removes more stuff (chemicals), does it faster, helps with gas exchange

cons: can be bulky, can be finicky to setup, can be noisy

 

 

chaeto:

pros: actually removes CO2 and adds O2, silent, can help grow microfauna (pods), pulls phosphate and nitrate

cons: requires light (can add heat), you've got to trim/remove it to export nutrients

 

If I had space, I would run both. For now I'm running another type of algae in the sump. will eventually add chaeto as well, but my bioload is very low and I'm trying to grow some decorative macros so I don't want to out-compete

 

In my ideal world, I'd run chaeto/macro in a 'fuge on a reverse photo-period and also run a skimmer, but only run it for a few hours in the middle of the day, which would make it pretty ineffective but also prevent it from pulling food out of the water

[wyattroa]

skimmer:

pros: removes more stuff (chemicals), does it faster, helps with gas exchange

cons: can be bulky, can be finicky to setup, can be noisy

 

 

chaeto:

pros: actually removes CO2 and adds O2, silent, can help grow microfauna (pods), pulls phosphate and nitrate

cons: requires light (can add heat), you've got to trim/remove it to export nutrients

 

If I had space, I would run both. For now I'm running another type of algae in the sump. will eventually add chaeto as well, but my bioload is very low and I'm trying to grow some decorative macros so I don't want to out-compete

 

In my ideal world, I'd run chaeto/macro in a 'fuge on a reverse photo-period and also run a skimmer, but only run it for a few hours in the middle of the day, which would make it pretty ineffective but also prevent it from pulling food out of the water

Thanks for the informative post. I am on the fence with either a the skimmer or chaeto. I think I can only run one with the second chamber. I have not found a setup in the nanocube that uses the stock chambers to run both.

Robert

[ozzyvega]

I have the 12g nanocube and run both. 1st chamber biocube skimmer (which gets a lot of bad ratings but I love mine works like a champ) 2nd chamber cheato reverse light cycle 3rd chemi-pure elite and carbon on top of return pump, macro in the display (cause i like the way it looks) I also have a low bioload but will add more fish soon to feed my sps. My opinion skim and macro in the chambers.

[myjohnson]

depends on what you want to keep.

 

If SPS, I would go skimmer.