Skimmerless: who's doing it? pros and cons

I thought you were done.
I said the corals I tried in my skimmerless tank did not do well even though NO3 and PO4 are low. In case you haven't read the whole thread pics are linked in post #64. They do just fine in the main sytem. Just to be clear. Certain corals , particularly those form more turbid waters seem to prefer more organics and less skimming. Some do not.

Thanks for the pictures and detail. That's helpful.

The corals in that tank are corals I would expect to thrive in higher organics( acanastrea, phlerogyra, cataphylia ,anthellia, lobophyton and some montipora) . It's good the two acros pictured are surviving but those are two hardy variants and the growth and color are not stellar by any means. Wahtw teh green crud in the tank btw.?
I have a red planet grown over several years along with several mini colonies and frags all from the same 1 in ch frag. The main colony is bigger than your head; I think. It's' a very hardy acro and seems to tolerate lot's of variable conditions much more so than most.

My beef is an unprovoked dismissive snide comment in response to a simple statement of fact. Skimmers remove some organics; algaes add them. followed by a blatant effort to turn a thread about skimmers and skimerless into an opinionated unsubstantiated ill informed ramble about turf scrubbers and an insistance that any questions about them mean one thinks they" don't work". I've seen it almost every time they are discussed. The simplest facts about how reef chemistry and biology work are thro wn aside as personal attacks on the ats users or the ats system and those with the temrity to raise a question are quidkly marginalized as non beilivers, who thin ats doesn't work and closed minded to new things. Yech, It makes no sense. . I get ats . I know what it does and doesn't do but I don't get the almost hysterical response to any suggestion that they have limits. It's nonsense.
I think they are a good tool for n and p reduction when properly sized ,lighted, provided with flow and ,seeded properly for those intersted in trying them. There are other methods too. But folks who wan't to use them should try them with an awarenes of their limits and pluses and some understanding of the algae and the negartive side of organic buildups. In other words , how things work not just "trust me" baloney.


I have read almost all the threads on them and was one of the original folks about five or six years ago on disscusion group about them. I was invited by the fellow who started that
(who shall be nameless here since I don't want to give him any attention
)but resigned after efforts to manipulate information by organizing folks via behind the back pms to attack those who raised questions were undertaken. Later I learned the guy who started all that has a commercial interest in them. sad
I prefer organic carbon dosing for n and p management but that needs a skimmer so I don't tout it here. An ats may work fine and be fun for those so inclined , it needs needs some form of organic export though or DOC will just hang out ,build up and eventually cause trouble. IT is not a replacement fora skimmer. That isn't even claimed in those seemingly endless threads you citedIIRC. PErhaps yopu haven't hadtime to readthem or skipped through.
 
I am wondering. What would be the long a ATS has been up in place of a skimmer. And without a skimmer added back on during said time frame. Because lets face it. That's cheating. :)
 
I keep a lot of nonphotosynthetic corals in my tank with no skimmer, but bio pellets.
No algae issues, as my fuge works great. I also feed half a cup of phyto and rotifers every 2nd day.

20% water changes every 2nd week.
 
Going skimmerless is definitely an interesting idea, however I am still skeptical. There are so many benefits to using a skimmer. Aeration and waste removal are very important in the micro environments that we try to recreate. Skimmers basically simulate the same thing that natural wind and wave movement do in oceans. I would disagree with perminantly removing a skimmer from your system due to the many benefits skimmers provide. Have you considered turning off your skimmer for several hours following feedings? Several hours is ample time for filter feeders to feed prior to turning on the skimmer again. I feel like this may be the best of both worlds.
 
I ran an ATS and a skimmer. it wrked OK, but I really hated cleaning the ATS. In answer to the OP's original question, IMO, that is the con. I do think that I'm now spending money on GFO that I didn't have to with the ATS. IMO, that's the pro of using the ATS, money saved on GFO.

I agree with David that the ATS is not a replacement for a skimmer or GAC. Again IMO... The ATS can compliment a skimmer and GAC. Yep, if nitrate is otherwise controlled, the ATS will not grow as fast, but it will grow in relation to the phosphate that is not controlled by the other methods. IMO, that's the ultimate trade off... an ATS that keeps phosphate low but doesn't have to be cleaned too often.
 
Anyone running mainly an ATS, and running their skimmer 1 or 2 days per week to remove some excess organics? It sounds like there is probably a very nice balance between running an ATS full time and a skimmer a couple times per week.
 
I ran my 90's fish only systems without a skimmer(bio balls & eventually UV).... too much work and reliance on larger more frequent water changes. I ran a biocube mixed reef without a skimmer...luckily it was a small tank,
again very reliant on my water changes, changing carbon, washing filter material daily...
Current tank....60 gal cube... large skimmer, UV. easy as pie to keep. Skimmer and UV run correctly and I get to be a lazy reefer...don't have to clean my glass daily, battle algae or change out water religiously. I have a well stocked fish load and lps/ softie tank. I myself would never go back to running anything but a good sized skimmer and UV.

On the ATS systems...they may be a good way to run a reef...but... I ain't cleaning that mesh of algae every week...LOL... I'll stick to pouring some crap from a cup into my toilet a couple times a week( I gotta install a drain for my cup to make even less work of it.. LOL). No muss no fuss.... the lazy reefer way.
 
No skimmer on the 29 bio cub, I just do 5 gallon water changes each week. Pros would be less equipment to maintain, a little less electricity use and one less pump to go out...cons would be its probably cheaper to run a skimmer on a large system and be able to go a little longer in between water changes or do smaller changes.
 
No skimmer on the 29 bio cub, I just do 5 gallon water changes each week. Pros would be less equipment to maintain, a little less electricity use and one less pump to go out...cons would be its probably cheaper to run a skimmer on a large system and be able to go a little longer in between water changes or do smaller changes.

This is exactly how I run my 29 gallon.
 
Still running skimmerless on the 400g!!! Algae is gone and corals growing perfectly... Also without water changes... Just adding some trace elements and minerals once every couple months...

Six months ago started a 50g skimmerless sumpless tank but it has been harder than i thought... I guess for the initial stages of the cycling a skimmer is a great addition... After that initial stages you can definetly live without it...
 
Just started an ATS 2 weeks ago and once my nitrates are under control I will be pulling my skimmer.

What is ATS?

Also, it's a lot easier to go skimmerless with a Nano, than it is a larger tank.

If you have more time to devote to your tank, going skimmerless isn't as big of a deal, if you ask me.

Good luck, and keep us posted.
 
Using an ATS or a macro algae refugium does not lessen the need for organics removal;the algae increases organics via exudates.The algae makes organic compounds. Removing organics is one of a few things things a skimmer is good at doing. Aeration is another. An ATS or macroalge refugium takes inorganic nitrogen and phosphate and binds it in organic compounds . They do not replace a skimmer since they do different things. They are complimentary.
 
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I use no skimmer at all on a setup with 4 tanks and a total of about 200-250 gallons. Instead I have a 40 gallon refugium with chaeto and caulerpa mexicana. All the tanks drain through filter socks into the sump and I also have a small phosphate reactor,a UV sterilizer, and a calcium reactor on the system. I do a small 10 gallon water change every two weeks. Water is consistently perfectly clean, no nitrates or phosphates ever. Been running the system this way for several years now. Skimmers are pointless, just get a refugium!
 
155 Gallon reef tank full of corals with 5 fish, 2x250w 10K MH 8hr duration, started in 2007. no skimmer, no refuge or ATS. I use a 100 micron sock to remove larger particulates, activated carbon every other month, along with GFO when phosphates become .25ppm . I also monitor my RO D/I and keep it at 0ppm TDS. Dirty RO water seems to be my main source for phosphates. Every 6 months I do a water change (25%) to balance all the minerals and elements. Nitrates always undetectable, phosphates usually below .25ppm (test kit lowest reading). The best indication for water quality is my corals and the viewing panes of glass. no cyano, or diatoms, just little hair algae around the drains. I dose calcium, alk, mag, strontium, potassium, iodine, essential elements, occasional amino acids from constant pruning.
picture.php
 
haven't used a skimmer since the nineties. i run air, water changes, almost daily.
four gallon and a two point six gallon.
 
Here's a sequence of photos and video of one of my skimmerless tanks with lighted and cryptic refugiums:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjMFWHC4uBM


Ken Feldman, et al, has published a very good series of articles of his research. Here are the links for those interested:

Ganulated Activated Carbon pt. 1 & 2
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/1/aafeature1
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/2/aafeature1

Total Organic Carbon in Aquaria
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/8/aafeature3
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/9/aafeature2

Protein Skimate Analysis
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2010/2/aafeature

Protein Skimmer Performance
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2009/1/aafeature2
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2010/1/aafeature

Bacterial Counts in Aquaria vs Reefs
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2011/3/aafeature1
 
Love to see some pictures of your tank and setup.

here are two pictures. the first shows my three ATS in place.
and the second is a FTS of my tank which is a mixed reef, mostly fishes and soft coral, but a few LPS and one SPS. I am testing how much I can feed the system and still have low nitrate.

I plan on upgrading to a 50 gal soon and have more corals.
 

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