To skim or not to skim?

[robertparker]

That is the question? I know this has probably been asked a thousand times but I am still confused? I have a Bio-Cube 29, 23# of LR,40# of LS,8 blue leg hermits, 3 turbos, a Green leather,and a Zoa frag. In the future I plan to add a few fish( probably blennies or gobys)cleaner shrimp, and e few more softies. Do I need to use Skimmer or will I be alright with water change once a week and bag of carbon in second chamber? Thanks for any help I'm really confused in this matter.
Rob

 

[skabimini]

I have a 20 cube thats been up and running for over a year now and no skimmer is used. I do a 5 gal. water change once a week. I run with a little bit of carbon in a media bag. No issues and a very healthy tank. If you got one or have a good deal on one go with it. What can it hurt? Only to gain on that one.

Just my opinion. Hope it helps.

 

[tsmonrad]

I have the same question. I have a new 29 g biocube as well and have read too much. It all started with the bioballs- which I have been told to trade out for more LR, with filter floss on top.
If anyone can help out and direct if a skimmer is needed-I would appreciate it as well.

 

[YellowDesmo998]

with regular water changes (10%-25% a week) skimming isn't needed

 

[FishMachine]

I think it depends your bio load. I personaly would put in a skimmer.

 

[SugarFox03]

I have a Remora protein skimmer on my 24 gal and I couldnt imagine not having it on the tank. I dont have a huge bioload, and I have a decent clean up crew, and I am pretty good with picking out uneaten food, but this thing still pulls a lot of crud out of the tank. I think if you're going to have any sensitive corals, go with the skimmer. What do you have to lose?

I also recommend getting some more live rock. 23 lbs in a 29 gal tank isnt that much. I have around 30 in the display of my tank, and another 4-5 lbs of live rock rubble in my right chamber.

 

[matter1331]

a skimmer would be a good idea, but with a nano tank it's kind of a catch 22; virtually every nano skimmer I've seen seems to be a waste of money. If it were me I would go skimmerless and just stay on top of your water changes. This is what I do with my 7 gallon and I have great success.

 

[victor_c3]

If I didn't have a sump I don't think I would go with a skimmer on my 30 gallon tank. It just takes up too much space in the tank. That being said, instead of buying a nano skimmer, I went with a full sized AquaC EV 120 skimmer rated for a tank between 40 and 150 gallons.

I don't know if its worth the $340 I paid for it, but it sure pulls a lot of nasty smelling crap out of the water. Also, I would never even consider trying to keep a heavy bioload without one. I don't have anything other than 40 pounds of live rock in my tank at the moment and I'm still getting a fair ammount of skimmate.

 

[tsmonrad]

OK-
http://www.nanotuners.com/product_info.php?cPath=51&products_id=358

anyone have experience with this one? Does it install in the back of the actual tank or is it hung off the back?

 

[robertparker]

Thanks everyone for your input. I think I'm going to purchase the skimmer and when the bio-load gets bigger I'll install it. Until then I'll go skimmerless or maybe I'll stay skimmerless only time will tell thanks again.
To answer tsmonrad, that one or the tunze 9002 seem to be the skimmers of choice

 

[martinplayer]

I was looking at the Fission Nano Skimmer. Seems compact enough and looks like it might even fit inside tank of biocube 29. Any reviews or thoughts?

 

[ghostman]

I have the sapphire skimmer on my 29g and it works great. I am definitely a skimmer supporter as they remove nutrients prior to the buildup that can be removed by a water change, and they oxygenate the water which also helps stabilize pH at night. The sapphire is well made and fits perfectly, but certainly doesn't pull out the crud my old Deltec did on a bigger reef. The Tunze nano requires some modification to the tank wall, not the hood. I have never seen the Fission, but have heard enough to not buy it. HTH

 

[tiffrobbins]

I've recently moved from a 55gal to a 20gal. I always ran a skimmer on my 55 and the only time it pulled anything out was when I was neglecting my water changes. I've always kept a low bio-load. I'll probably run the skimmer for a while and see if I get anything. I'm keeping the same 10gal sump setup so this shouldn't be an issue.