Keeping a skimmer on a timer

[djryan2000]

I was recently listening to a podcast by SaltwaterAquariums where they had Dr. Tim Hovanec (from Dr. Tim's Aquatics) on as a guest. Dr. Tim had an interesting suggestion - to run your skimmer 20 hours daily opposed to keeping it on 24/7. His reasoning was that it would allow a small population of bacteria to grow in the water column and be consumed by the corals.

He stated that whenever corals in the wild are open, they are filter feeding bacteria out of the water. Unfortunately, this rarely happens in our tanks because protein skimmers are really efficient at removing bacteria out of the water column. By turning off the skimmer for a few hours these bacteria could multiply quickly enough that our corals would start to filter feed them, thus feeding your corals without adding any food to the tank.

I thought this was a very interesting idea, and am wondering if anyone on RC does this. I know I'll definitely be trying it once I have more corals in my tank.


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[CrazeUK]

Hi.
Interesting thought. I used to think that when I had my full reef setups. We spend so much time making our tanks pristine, but then keep filter feeders in our tanks that would starve.

My question is why only 4 hours off? Is it really enough time for a growth bloom?
Why not one day on one day off?
Or 8 hours off?

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[djryan2000]

Hi.
Interesting thought. I used to think that when I had my full reef setups. We spend so much time making our tanks pristine, but then keep filter feeders in our tanks that would starve.

My question is why only 4 hours off? Is it really enough time for a growth bloom?
Why not one day on one day off?
Or 8 hours off?

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My best guess is a compromise between no longer having the export of dissolved organics and bacteria reproducing. He did mention that the bacteria that the corals will feed on will double their population every 20 minutes - so 4 hours can allow the population to grow by a factor of 4,096.


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[Member No. 1]

Running your skimmer 24/7, think about how long it takes to fill the cup if you're dry skimming. I empty mine once/wk and not that it needs it, I do it as routine.
So I would tend to believe that the bacteria have plenty of time to reproduce and that they are in high numbers.

Also I do not "feed" my corals. Between fish poop, and No3 at 6-8ppm and Po4 0.030-.050ppm, the corals get plenty to eat.

 

[Sk8r]

I run 24-7, with a skimmer rated about 2x the size of my last tank (the ratings are real questionable) ---and was able to grow a soccer-sized ball of hammer, which when broken up made the tank look like a Rose Bowl float.

 

[moondoggy4]

Turn you skimmer off while you set down and watch tv at night or when eating, see how that works for you.

 

[jeremy007]

I have mine on a timer to allow for nutrient balance