To skimmer or not to skimmer ?

RicoReef

RicoReef

Member
So the question is. Is a skimmer really all that necessary ? In a reef tank i know there is alot of views on this topic but what is cr's take on it ? Should i invest on a $200 skimmer or should i invest it on other equipment like a dosing pump?

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I'm in the skimmer camp. I don't like to do water changes and I like fish and feeding them.

If I had to do water changes to keep my nutrients in check, I could probably buy a skimmer with the money I'd spend on salt for water changes. How big is your tank? I guess if you're talking 40 gallons or less, it wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

Buy a skimmer and dose kalk. It's nearly free and you don't need a doser.
 
I tried not using a skimmer on a 30 gallon tank, with just 2 clownfish in it. It sucked. water eventually turned yellowish tint. I would rather spend money on skimmer than spend money buying activated carbon/gfo/reactors/water changes/light for refugium. All I use to keep my water clean in my SPS tank is an oversized skimmer, nothing else.
 
Sawdonkey said:
I'm in the skimmer camp. I don't like to do water changes and I like fish and feeding them.

If I had to do water changes to keep my nutrients in check, I could probably buy a skimmer with the money I'd spend on salt for water changes. How big is your tank? I guess if you're talking 40 gallons or less, it wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

Buy a skimmer and dose kalk. It's nearly free and you don't need a doser.
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Yeah its a nuvo 40 ive ben doing some research on it. if it does benefit the corals and fish am ok with it i dont want to cut corners

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You need some way to export nutrients. Either water changes or a skimmer. Cleanup crews will help, but are not sufficient alone. My take is you are going to spend the money irregardless whether it be a skimmer and adding supplements or spending on salt for water changes. I like a skimmer because it becomes a great backup if something dies in your tank while you are away and oxygenates the water. Tie a orp meter to a Neptune controller and you have a pretty sweet backup. My 2 cents:)
 
If you want to save money buy one used -- they come up for sale all the time on here and CL. You don't need a gigantic one for 40 gallons.
 
Skim! I have 50 gal with a total of 110 gal of water in my system(funny, know)I use a skimmer plus carbon and GFO. My water looks as if its not even there.
 
Thanks everyone for your help to skimmer it is. i stoped by aquatica today and picked up a nuvo ghost skimmer so far no junk in the cup

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Congrats, you will like it. I have one as well. It will take a good week or two to build a slime coating on it and break in. Mine pulls dark skim like a champ.
 
Naturalreef said:
Congrats, you will like it. I have one as well. It will take a good week or two to build a slime coating on it and break in. Mine pulls dark skim like a champ.
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Thanks its a good skimmer the only thing is that am having truble keeping the micro bubbles out the tank i tried some flos but am still getting some do you have the same problem?

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I am surprised that there is a "no skim camp" out there. A few months ago I started a thread on reef central asking if anyone turns their skimmers off at night while the dose to avoid diminishing trace elements they just put in the tank and was practically labeled an idiot for asking the question. Skimming only takes out about 30% of the organics from the water...


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I've ran long term succesfull tanks without them, but once you have all the absolutely essential equipment, my very first purchase after that would be a skimmer. In the long run it saves time, money, and provides much better results.
 
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