Are skimmers necessary?

Camrea47 · Aug 23, 2016

skim said:
You may want to read this it may help.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2010/2/aafeature

Thanks, I will give it a read now.

NJHC · Aug 23, 2016

Camrea47 said:
Are skimmers necessary for a marine tank?
I'm new to marine tanks and was wondering if you need one?
I'm looking at 2 different tanks and both come a sump with room for one but I have no idea if they are needed .
The 1st tank is a red sea reefer 170 and the 2nd is an aqua one aquareef 275. They are both around the same price at my LFS so I'll probably go with the bigger 275 which does come with a skimmer but I've read it is a poor quality one.

Any help on this would be appreciated, thanks!

The single most important item for a reef tank.. light skimmer water

meir · Aug 23, 2016

NJHC said:
The single most important item for a reef tank.. light skimmer water

I wldnt say that it's the most important being that flow and light do come first

Joshky · Aug 23, 2016

Apparently my acro's don't think so, it seems as though if I run my skimmer for any decent period of time they all start starving. Finding a good balance for your tank is prudent, by any means necessary, a skimmer is nice to have even if you're forced into a situation like me where you're not always running it.

saltyfilmfolks · Aug 23, 2016

Refugium. Skimmer rated to the tank. Look at the Tunze.
no you can go skimmerless. but its got its "Price" too.

Untamedrose · Aug 23, 2016

Skimmers are needed...is my vote.

Agree you could Wait a bit.... get that tank wet, cycled, get your first clean up crew in there....but I'd add one before first fish.

Camrea47 · Aug 23, 2016

It seems pretty unanimous that I don't NEED one but I need one lol.
I'm going to get one while my tank cycles and then put it in my sump.

Erika_N77 · Aug 23, 2016

I've been using the one that came with the AquaOne for over a year and had no issues does the job great. my friend uses the bubble magnus, She has to clean it lots as the cup is small and it can be temperamental getting it going again if she's had to stop it. I'd say if it comes with the tank as mine did use it and see how you go what have you got your lose

ksc · Aug 23, 2016

It's a fact that you don't need one. They don't work very well and are probably the most over rated piece of equipment commonly used. Many successful tanks run skimmerless and have been for years.

If you read that article you will find the proof that the least expensive skimmer performs just as bad as the most expensive one. I find it amazing that the antiquated bubble tube hasn't progressed in decades.

adestafi · Aug 23, 2016

I have run my reefer 450 both ways- I would spend more money optimizing flow at first then you can always add a nicer skimmer later. As long as you don't go crazy adding fish right away you will be fine but corals need light and flow- which can be a hefty upfront cost as well

RoyalGrammaJohn · Aug 23, 2016

Not

nhat said:
Who said no skimmer needed, i bet they will do waterchange everyday or clean the glass every hour or no fish!
Skimmer is one of the most importand equidment on reef aquarium system.

not true. If do a water change of at least a 1/3 every week or two and don't overstock with livestock you can get by without one. I've never ran them on 55 gallons and smaller and nitrates were always alright around 5ppm. Plus with all the new filter media like poly filter and chemi pure blue which I've used if not running a skimmer helps drastically.

rdonovan999 · Aug 23, 2016

For people that answered this I'd like 2 throw a twist on it... if u are running ozone on a big fish system is a skimmer needed? Bought a huge commercial fish system has ozone but no skimmer...

midtnmike41 · Aug 23, 2016

After you see what a skimmer pulls out of your system you will be sold. It's weird, the nastier my skimmer cup is the more excited I get.

jeremy.gosnell · Aug 23, 2016

The age old question. No, skimmers are not "necessary" and there are many beautiful, skimmer-less tanks that can attest to that. Julian Sprung has a gorgeous skimmer-less reef. However, they certainly make life easier, as they remove solid organic waste, which aids the bio-filter in breaking down nutrients. I personally consider a good protein skimmer the heart and soul of reef filtration, simply because there isn't anything else capable of such efficient waste removal. Skimmers also raise the water's dissolved oxygen levels, help balance ph and dilute co2. Hmmmm, maybe they are necessary.

It's worth mentioning that a skimmer is indiscriminate in what it pulls out. This means that beneficial elements and additives are pulled out with solid waste. If you add ammino-acids, coral food or any element to the water, it's best to turn the skimmer off, for up to 6-10 hours. My skimmer runs about 14-18 hours per day, as I dose my tank daily with various additives. Some tank methodologies (such as zeovit) can actually be more effective without a skimmer.

jeremy.gosnell · Aug 23, 2016

rdonovan999 said:
For people that answered this I'd like 2 throw a twist on it... if u are running ozone on a big fish system is a skimmer needed? Bought a huge commercial fish system has ozone but no skimmer...

To use ozone safely and effectively, you need an ozone/water interface. That interface can be the bubble chamber of a skimmer or an ozone reactor. AVAST makes an ozone reactor that is arguably more effective than injecting ozone into a skimmer. Reactors usually pass effluent through a carbon reactor before returning it to the tank. If you inject ozone into a skimmer, you will need to place a carbon bag at the skimmer's water's output to remove residual ozone. Also, ensure you're using an ozone rated skimmer. Not all skimmers are ozone rated and the Vertex Omega is the only line I know of with a built-in ozone port.

Kungpaoshizi · Aug 23, 2016

Camrea47 said:
Are skimmers necessary for a marine tank?
I'm new to marine tanks and was wondering if you need one?
I'm looking at 2 different tanks and both come a sump with room for one but I have no idea if they are needed .
The 1st tank is a red sea reefer 170 and the 2nd is an aqua one aquareef 275. They are both around the same price at my LFS so I'll probably go with the bigger 275 which does come with a skimmer but I've read it is a poor quality one.
Any help on this would be appreciated, thanks!

Skimmers are necessary. You can skirt around the absence with several other methods, but to care for the creatures in the tank the best you can, includes this method to eliminate chances of other methods failing or slacking because you did not change the media or see something right away. An easy thing to help with is oxygen, provided by the skimmer.

Tahoe61 · Aug 23, 2016

Some tanks I run a skimmer on and other tanks I do not for one reason or another. I have countless images of both types of tanks, but you get the idea. The premise of thread is are skimmers necessary, no they are not, it's a personal choice based on how you want to run a specific system.

My current tank will eventually be sps dominated, and yes I will add a skimmer, that is just my preference for this current tank.

Sps dominate nano cube, no skimmer:

A softy tank/mixed reef no skimmer:

saltyfilmfolks · Aug 23, 2016

Tahoe61 said:
Sps dominate nano cube, no skimmer:

..........

Darth George · Aug 23, 2016

No skimmer here. No sump or dosing. Weekly 25% water change. I do use chemipure blue. I blast the rocks with a baster the night before a water change. Sand vac 25% weekly. 4 fish in the system. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite & 5 ppm nitrate (SPS loves it). Skimmers required? Not at all! Beneficial? Absolutely! They definitely have their place. I'm just a big fan of the KISS acronym, keep it simple stupid!

Lenny_S · Aug 23, 2016

Joshky said:
Apparently my acro's don't think so, it seems as though if I run my skimmer for any decent period of time they all start starving. Finding a good balance for your tank is prudent, by any means necessary, a skimmer is nice to have even if you're forced into a situation like me where you're not always running it.

+1 on this one... I have a skimmer + sump + refugium + GAC. I shut my skimmer and GAC down ever day during my photo period including ramp up/down (12 hours). For my system, this is a good balance, it also helps with heat management as those submerged pumps don't contribute more heat as the lights come up. My refugium is on a reverse photo period from my lights, and my skimmer comes back on at lights out. This combination also helps with CO2 management and pH stabilization, so the added benefit is I only have a very slight pH swing at night (8.35 average day, 8.28 average night). And for my system I am able to maintain a good nutrient level by only using the skimmer for 1/2 of the day.
Back to the OP.... a skimmer is useful. If one comes with the system you are getting, give it a try after the tank is cycled and stocked before you worry about replacing it. As long as you can adjust it, maintain it easily, and it pulls decent skimmate then why replace it? IME it takes a year to really get a system tuned and find its individual balance, just be patient and make small adjustments over the first year until you find what works for your system.