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Skimmer, is it a must ?


Charith1986

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Charith1986

I am going to set up a 12g fish only tank. I dont have any plan to have a skimmer in it.

 

can i run the tank without a skimmer ? in that case how often do i need to do water changes.

 

I am going to add direct ocean water.

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Is it Nescessary?

 

Different experts have different opinions on the necessity of protein skimmers. Author Jim McDavid of Tropical Fish Hobbyist magazine considers protein skimmers essential for nano reef aquariums. Meanwhile, Scott W. Michael of Aquarium Fish USA Magazine holds them not to be quite mandatory. However, even the more moderate sources like Michael still consider them useful and a good piece of equipment. Keep in mind that while other types of aquarium filtration can perform some of the same functions as a protein skimmer, there's no reason you can't combine them with other types of filtration.

 

Skipping the Skimmer

 

If you do decide to skip the skimmer, you will have to make certain concessions. First, you will have to perform water changes slightly more often. Ideally, in a nano reef aquarium without a skimmer, change 10 percent to 20 percent of the water weekly to compensate for the lack of a protein skimmer. Additionally, with a protein skimmer, you will have a more narrow margin for error in aquarium maintenance. For example, if you've overstocked or overfed your nano reef aquarium, water chemistry will degenerate much more quickly in the absence of a protein skimmer.

 

Size of Your Skimmer

 

You have two considerations when selecting a skimmer. First, you should get the most powerful protein skimmer that you can get. Jim McDavid of Tropical Fish Hobbyist recommends getting a protein skimmer rated for at least a 100 gallon aquarium. Since nano reef aquariums have a small volume of water, and contain such sensitive organisms, you need a powerful skimmer -- or alternate filtration systems -- to provide pristine water. For the second consideration, you need to find a protein skimmer that fits comfortably within your setup. With many marine aquariums in general, and nano setups in particular, the aquarium uses a piece of equipment called a sump. Sumps allow you to attach aquarium gear like protein skimmers to a separate water container, often hidden within the aquarium stand. At the same time, some skimmer designs are more compact than others. For example, a venturi skimmer will work more efficiently than an airstone-drive skimmer of the same size. Unfortunately, more powerful-for-their size skimmers often cost more. You may need to compromise between power and space.

 

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Charith1986
5 minutes ago, naothan said:

 

Hi Nathan, thanks for ur feedback. what do u think about adding ocean water to the tank ? i cant go 3 KM towards sea and get it from 10 to 15 M deep sea bed. but from a clean beach where there is a small reef there.

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4 hours ago, Charith1986 said:

Hi Nathan, thanks for ur feedback. what do u think about adding ocean water to the tank ? i cant go 3 KM towards sea and get it from 10 to 15 M deep sea bed. but from a clean beach where there is a small reef there.

honestley i have no idea about actual ocean water , interesting .. i would assume yes but it would have to be away from shipping lanes clean water  .. and u may get the bad with the good as far as parasites i would imagine 

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No, they aren't necessary.

Every reef system is different.

 

There are tons of systems out there without skimmers.

 

I haven't run any skimmers on my tanks and have struggled to maintain nutrient levels, do waterchanges every 14 days, feed heavily...

 

 

Check out TOTM and journals, this will offer you the various ways one can run a system

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Charith1986

yeah, my concern is about parasites. but according to most LFS who catches fish directly from the sea (not captive bred) they use ocean water. so the fish is okay in that water. But should re think if I am going to introduce captive bred and how they will react to sea water. In case if i put sea water i will have only local fish from the ocean.

 

will keep posted , lets hope for the best ☺️

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Charith1986
Just now, Clown79 said:

No, they aren't necessary.

Every reef system is different.

 

There are tons of systems out there without skimmers.

 

I haven't run any skimmers on my tanks and have struggled to maintain nutrient levels, do waterchanges every 14 days, feed heavily...

 

 

Check out TOTM and journals, this will offer you the various ways one can run a system

Hey, thanks for the info. really appreciate.

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5 minutes ago, Charith1986 said:

Hey, thanks for the info. really appreciate.

YW

 

Waterchange frequency and size depends on each tank. There are many variables.

 

There are others that have used ocean water. 

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Charith1986
11 minutes ago, Clown79 said:

YW

 

Waterchange frequency and size depends on each tank. There are many variables.

 

There are others that have used ocean water. 

yes, i will first try one or two local clowns with sea water. if it works out we can add the rest.

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There are a couple of tanks on R2R that run their tanks on direct sea water. I believe one of them strains/filters the water through a diatom filter and some of the others may sterilize with a submersible UV light. Either or both would be pretty good options, otherwise I feel like natural sea water would be a great choice and extremely cost effective. 

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On 4/28/2020 at 1:15 AM, Clown79 said:

No, they aren't necessary.

Every reef system is different.

 

There are tons of systems out there without skimmers.

 

I haven't run any skimmers on my tanks and have struggled to maintain nutrient levels, do waterchanges every 14 days, feed heavily...

 

 

Check out TOTM and journals, this will offer you the various ways one can run a system

May i know what do you run on Media 

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squamptonbc
On 4/28/2020 at 12:04 PM, Cannedfish said:

There are a couple of tanks on R2R that run their tanks on direct sea water. I believe one of them strains/filters the water through a diatom filter and some of the others may sterilize with a submersible UV light. Either or both would be pretty good options, otherwise I feel like natural sea water would be a great choice and extremely cost effective. 

 

Lots of public aquariums that are on the coast use natural seawater as well. When I lived in San Diego, I used natural seawater with good success. There was (maybe still is) a hose at one of the piers that pumped seawater, same source as the Birch Aquarium I believe. 

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If I was getting seawater, I'd be very careful that there is no possible run-off that is getting in the water. Oil on the road that washes off in the rain, etc. Presumably if you are driving to the beach, then there is the opportunity for pollution.


Of all the things in this hobby, salt isn't expensive. Mixing your own removes a possible point of introducing an unknown element into your tank. With nano tanks, stability is critical, so why take the risk?

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Charith1986
7 hours ago, Clown79 said:

I run seachem carbon and filter floss

mine , active carbon, two packs of ceramic rings, coral sand and filter floss

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So,Yes is the short answer. You can use water from the ocean. Now the other question is should you ? Making or buying

saltwater is fairly cheap and easy with little to no risk. If you make it yourself you know exactly whats in it. If you buy it you still

have a good idea it safe because it most likely is being used in the tanks by the seller. Its a coin toss. I know I would use a two headed coin

and always call heads on the man made water. Good luck either way.

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neonstingray

I look out the front of my house at seawater and still just mix it.  It won't save you any effort, especially for a tank as small as 12g.  And no, you don't need a skimmer on a 12g.  I've used two different skimmers on my tank, but stuffing fine filter floss into the end of a cut open water bottle and putting that onto the intake of a power head still pulls more gunk from the water column than either skimmer did.  I also disagree with the idea of the bigger the better when it comes to skimmers, unless you'll be constantly overfeeding your tank.  In my experience when you put a huge skimmer in a tiny tank, at first it pulls some nice sludge out, but then as the water gets cleaner the skimmer is too big to be able to build an efficient bubble head.

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