going skimmerless on sps
- Thread starter thefuture
- Start date
I ran a skimmerless 30g tank for over a year. I've converted to almost all SPS over that period. For the most part my frags have just as good color as the mother colonies at the LFS. A few are even better IMO. I culled a couple as well that didn't like my tank. I don't think my growth is all that great but they are growing. I dose two part and kalk, no CR. What does this prove? Not much JME.
Anyway, I finally broke down and bought a skimmer for peace of mind. Too many $$$ SPS in the tank now so I basically chickened out. Plus, I wanted to go from 1 fish to 3. I'll still do my 25% weekly water changes though.
Anyway, I finally broke down and bought a skimmer for peace of mind. Too many $$$ SPS in the tank now so I basically chickened out. Plus, I wanted to go from 1 fish to 3. I'll still do my 25% weekly water changes though.
You mean Gary? Frankly, I'm not sure.
It's either his, or from Brian at Atlantis Aquatics (show of hands for how many folks know who he is?). When I setup my current tank, I fragged all my old corals and moved them.... I had a frag of Gary's table and one of Brians in the same tray, and couldn't remember which was on the left, which was on the right. Dead as a doornail at the moment, so I suppose it doesn't matter anymore. Jiggy, if people never took risks, we'd never have gotten to the moon, we would have automobiles, we wouldn't have airplanes. Is my decision to not run a skimmer on my system on par w/ these advances? No, but how in the world would things ever advance, if nobody ever tried anything different? If you always do what you always did, you always get, what you always got. These are supposed to be impossible to keep. I've had this one going on 3 years this Spring.
http://reef.myip.org/230/2004_12_23/Sea_Fan.JPG
488kb's
Sigh... the _point_ jiggy, is there is no single 'right way', the world, and this hobby in particular, are not black and white. Go back and read some of the previous posts in this (or any other one for that matter) thread. "Must", "Can't", "Have to"... yeah, obviously.
Now I've gotta take time out of my schedule to post some pics so some ****-for-brains newbie can believe me when I tell them I haven't run a skimmer in years and don't think I have to?Ya know what, I don't have any books on my shelf that are remarkable, in fact, it's probably smaller collection than most folks. Sure, I've read a lot of articles online (oh, you mean those free things you can turn up with 30-seconds on google?), but since when is it my job to prove to someone that I read and digested them? Jeeze, generally speaking in the rest of the world, the people with very little experience tend to sit in the back of the room quietly, listening to the folks with lots of it. Only on the internet could some snot nosed spoiled teenager dominate an intelligent debate to the point someone has to stick their tounge out and say "Blah, there, now ya believe me?"
And you people honestly sit back and wonder why this boards gone down the tubes?
Are ya that blind?
- Mac
marinelife
Active member
Are skimmers for sure, not always
Flatlander
Premium Member
Not sure why? Just for the sake of discussion.
of course. If nutrients are removed by other means than a skimmer, would not the end result be the same?
Flatlander
Premium Member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6855463#post6855463 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ReeferMac
Works just ducky in a 230, too Dougy.
60-gallons monthly.
Mac
Yes, guess it would. 60g in that large tank does not seem like much though.Cant argue with something that works though. Nice pics. I need to go read more about your tank. :thumbsup:
What's cool, is reading, learning, applying, and validating.
I didn't do anything exceptional, just paid attention.
I designed a system to work around some well proven principles.
Ya wanna know the trick? Controlling nutrient input. If you don't put it in there, you don't need a fancy piece of Acrylic to pull it out.
Now, what newbie's gonna ask me to weigh my 8-year old Sailfin tang to prove that point?
- Mac
prodman
Active member
Do you only have the fish listed on your website? Thats a light load for a big tank imo.What your doing is obviously working for you. But I have more fish than that in my 120 feed as much as I want and my colors easily rival your colors. I think a skimmer helps me do that. Point being alot of ways to skin a cat but I think some are easier than others.<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6863094#post6863094 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ReeferMac
.
Ya wanna know the trick? Controlling nutrient input. If you don't put it in there, you don't need a fancy piece of Acrylic to pull it out.
Now, what newbie's gonna ask me to weigh my 8-year old Sailfin tang to prove that point?
- Mac
cutsupremetrib
In Memoriam
I am one of the people who had ran skimmerless for three years I recently bit the bullet and bought one and the only true improvement i notice is my water is clearer and my corals seem to be a little happier as in PE i still have a red slime algae problem even though it comes and goes alot and my phospates are at 0 it just amazes me anyhow running a skimmer does make an improvement in my oppinion it may pull out some trace elements over time but nothing thats really going to effect your tank unless you run it without doing a water change for like 7 years
marinelife
Active member
In this hobby there are many ways to do things, I just can not understand why there is so much arguing going on. Tanks can do well with both skimmers and without. It is all just a matter of balance
cutsupremetrib
In Memoriam
agree totally different strokes for different folks
clkwrk
Active member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6862921#post6862921 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Flatlander
Not sure why? Just for the sake of discussion.
Yes in a perfect world
But then you also have the quality of waste removal . What would it take to remove the same pollutants that my skimmer can in a week . If my skimmer removes 2 gals of dark coffee colored skimate in a week and I still do my 10% waterchange what would it take by other means to remove the same amount of pollutants? My guess would be a 50% waterchange . But thats just a number out of the air . I have no clue myself but IMO it would take alot to remove the same amount of polutants by a waterchange unless it was large.
All things aside . Can it be done yes
Can most newcomers do it IMO no An aged saltwater person can do lots of things that newcomers can't and shouldn't.When I was a newcomer I didn't put the love into my tanks like I do now. I didn't maintain them as heavily as I do now .I also didn't have the experience to realize I need to do these things at that time either.......
But in the end a beautiful skimmerless sps tank with zeovit colors and no zeo will be one work of art.
IMO most wouldn't balance their systems right and its hard to fight the newcomer urge to buy that cool fish or creature which adds to the system .
With the right balance and right maintance it can be done very sucessfully but IMO it would require way more work , restraint and trial and error with bioload unless it is obviously low .
samsfishnchips
Premium Member
thefuture,
you made a thread because you wanted an opinion on what to do and many knowledge people with yrs+ experience give you their opinion,
your question
so should i get a skimmer?
their answer yes,
and at the end you still want to do what you though from the beginning, so I see this thread very much useless because even though you seem to looking for a suggestion, you made up your mind from the start, so whats the point?
but after all thats normal really, people love to cut corners, do the opposite, a few bumps on the head, and maybe at the end learn and do it right or go on killing poor creatures that tanks are not properly set up to maintain, good luck on your quest.
sam
you made a thread because you wanted an opinion on what to do and many knowledge people with yrs+ experience give you their opinion,
your question
so should i get a skimmer?
their answer yes,
and at the end you still want to do what you though from the beginning, so I see this thread very much useless because even though you seem to looking for a suggestion, you made up your mind from the start, so whats the point?
but after all thats normal really, people love to cut corners, do the opposite, a few bumps on the head, and maybe at the end learn and do it right or go on killing poor creatures that tanks are not properly set up to maintain, good luck on your quest.
sam
samsfishnchips
Premium Member
so we went from, no skimmer let sand/LR do the job to deciding between two skimmer
a bit confuse there buddy
oh well, both are nice, but the coralife with the needle wheel would be my choice, getting many good review,
sam
a bit confuse there buddy
oh well, both are nice, but the coralife with the needle wheel would be my choice, getting many good review,
sam
yea i posted that other one and then i reread the thread and changed my mind. haha so i edited it and asked which skimmer to get cause now that is the question. i have securely decided to get a skimmer. but im not gonna run it hard or get something that does it over. i want a more of a natural approach. i think a system should be able to maintain itself but since i supplement food mechanically (which carries protein) i need to take it out mechanically too.(skimmer) this is my logic after all this resaerch. i think a skimmer takes out some of the foods of the bacteria and this is not so healthy for a tank in a way
