Hypothetical emergency: skimmer down, what now?

[beyarbrough]

Hello Reef2Reef. I am getting back into the hobby and currently in the planning/collecting equipment stage. I have been researching silently and have a question I was unable answer with research and Google searches. I would like as many fail-safes as possible to prevent crashes. In the event of a skimmer failure that might require more than a few days to resolve, what, in everybody's opinion, is the best method to maintain a reef and prevent disaster? I plan to run activated carbon through a reactor. Could an increased amount of carbon and/or replacement frequency work as a temporary skimmer replacement? Would this work better combined with decreased feeding? Would gfo also be necessary? I would like to be prepared rather than possibly have to ask this question in a true emergency. I have considered a refugium with multiple macros but through my research I do not believe any macro running concurrent with a skimmer would be able to suddenly absorb the elevated nutrient load in the event the skimmer was to go offline. I am interested to hear others opinions. If this has been covered multiple times before a link to the discussions would be appreciated. Thanks everybody.

 

[Tahoe61]

Welcome.

A skimmer is not a must have on reef tanks or even sps dominated systems. Is it an ideal to have one, yes in most cases, but I have seen stunning sps or lps dominated systems run without a skimmer.

Currently my skimmer is broken and my lps, clams and sps are doing just fine.

My last sps dominated tank no skimmer



You are correct introduction of limited nutrients and water changes go along ways.

 

[NanaReefer]

IMO one of the best safety nets to have on hand is the ability to make new saltwater. Thus keeping at least 30+ gallons of RO/DI handy at all times. Nothing removes impurities as fast and safe as far as this reefer is concerned. Much quicker then any skimmer or reactor can do. Power outage with no battery backup? WC! Chemical warfare? WC! Chemical overdose? WC!

 

[Untamedrose]

Think you would be fine....thats a go to the lfs the next day or order online. Can go several days not skimming.

Now no power thats a problem.

 

[Mr. Brooks]

You can go weeks without skimming. Just make sure you have plenty of surface area for bacteria to colonize and handle any fluctuations in waste/nutrients. And as others have said, if nitrates and phosphates start to rise, do a water change. It's also important not to overstock your tank.

 

[Kungpaoshizi]

If you want to prevent fails, keep everything in the tank, and don't use reactors or mechanical filtration.
I use 2 powerheads, and 1 skimmer that's completely underrated. I depend on the sand and rock, the corals and other filter feeders, and drew's dosers. The pumps have a battery backup for 1, and the dosers have their own inverter/battery hooked up to run for days. That's it.