Do you need a skimmer for a 12g?

I see no point. Specially now that i've been running my 40 for almost a year w/out one. Granted i mostly only have softies, but i do have a few lps and sps. But water changes on a tank as small as yours would be all you need. If you were going to be doing something like an Acro tank with lots of those or other sps, then maybe do a small skimmer...but otherwise (like if you just have a couple sps) then i see no point at all.
 
My NC12DX tank has been thriving without one for over a year. However, I just recently added one and I can without a doubt notice the difference.

Before adding the skimmer, I would have to clean the algae off my glass every 3-5 days. Since adding it, algae growth on the glass has slowed to require one cleaning every 10-14 days.
 
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