Is my skimmer sufficient enough for my tank?

[JIsBusyReefing]

I ran a biopellet reactor for 9 months until I threw in the towel. The pellets did nothing for nitrates. Tried dosing with MB7 and that didnt help the biopellets either. I finally converted the biopellets to a chaeto reactor. We'll see if that works better. Maybe biopellets work for some, but not for me.

From what I understand, there needs to be sufficient PO4 for the anaerobic bacteria to bind the NO3 and the skimmer needs to be really thorough for skimming the bound up bacteria out.

 

[X-37B]

I'm looking but all they state is "up to (insert max gallons/liters here)" same as what Reef Octopus does.

Check out the Tunze site and use their rating for whatever skimmer you run.
Although my skimmer at -70% based on their numbers was good for a full blown sps tank at 95 gallons it works fine.
I have the same skimmer in my 45 frag tank it pulls much less skim than the 120 but its load is way lower.
You can not overskim but running too large of a skimmer may not get optimum results.

I carbon dose to keep no3 at 5-10 and po4 at .02-.06.
If you decide to carbon dose start low and work up as it will take some time to lower no3.

If you feed alot of pellet food switch to frozen. If I feed pellets my no3 will go up in a few days.

 

[PeterC99]

So don't do 16 hours?

Correct too long. Should be opposite the tank light hours.

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

I haven't tested for them, but BRS carries a few test kits. You might need another stage or 2 for your RODI unit.

MultiTest - Silicate

MultiTest Silicate test measures silicates to less than 0.5 mg/L. Silicate is often overlooked, but excess silicate can contribute to certain chronic issues in reef tanks. If you are suffering from chronic issues with diatom algae or dinoflagellates, it's often worth taking a look at silicate as...

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Thanks! I'll grab a kit and see what those levels are.

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

Check out the Tunze site and use their rating for whatever skimmer you run.
Although my skimmer at -70% based on their numbers was good for a full blown sps tank at 95 gallons it works fine.
I have the same skimmer in my 45 frag tank it pulls much less skim than the 120 but its load is way lower.
You can not overskim but running too large of a skimmer may not get optimum results.

I carbon dose to keep no3 at 5-10 and po4 at .02-.06.
If you decide to carbon dose start low and work up as it will take some time to lower no3.

If you feed alot of pellet food switch to frozen. If I feed pellets my no3 will go up in a few days.

Duly noted. Thanks!

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

Correct too long. Should be opposite the tank light hours.

Alright, I'll set it to 8pm to 8am. Thanks!

 

[X-37B]

Duly noted. Thanks!

Another note I do not run a fuge.

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

Another note I do not run a fuge.

Wow! How come?

 

[X-37B]

Wow! How come?

For me its just another thing to maintain. Checky build thread as I had a plan before I started and it did not require a fuge.

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

For me its just another thing to maintain. Checky build thread as I had a plan before I started and it did not require a fuge.

Nice! Well congrats on not needing it.

 

[shred5]

Sizing a skimmer has more to do with load than size of the tank.
Some large tanks have very little load while some small tanks can have high load. Load may not be just fish, it depends also on how much you feed, if you just feed fish or the tank or if you feed corals.
It also can depend on other filtration like having a rollermat, algae filter, refugium, Turf scrubbers, how often you clean socks, how often you do water changes, how often you siphon detritus etc.

That said you want larger enough skimmer that is processes enough water though. So you may not want a really small skimmer on a large tank even with a very low load.


With most skimmers they are rated double what they can do for the average tank.

There are a few skimmers out there that actually give close to what they can do but very few do.

A classic 150int most likely to small.

​

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

Sizing a skimmer has more to do with load than size of the tank.
Some large tanks have very little load while some small tanks can have high load. Load may not be just fish, it depends also on how much you feed, if you just feed fish or the tank or if you feed corals.
It also can depend on other filtration like having a rollermat, algae filter, refugium, Turf scrubbers, how often you clean socks, how often you do water changes, how often you siphon detritus etc.

That said you want larger enough skimmer that is processes enough water though. So you may not want a really small skimmer on a large tank even with a very low load.


With most skimmers they are rated double what they can do for the average tank.

There are a few skimmers out there that actually give close to what they can do but very few do.

A classic 150int most likely to small.

​

Thanks! So would a classic 200INT be the better option to upgrade to for my tank and load? I do have a refugium and I just setup a biopellet reactor. Other than 3 filter socks, I have no other forms of filtration.

 

[shred5]

Thanks! So would a classic 200INT be the better option to upgrade to for my tank and load? I do have a refugium and I just setup a biopellet reactor. Other than 3 filter socks, I have no other forms of filtration.

I think so..
The thing about these skimmers too is the pumps are external and not space saving so they are a little more efficient too. Just need to make sure you have the space for them because the foot print is a little larger..

 

[JIsBusyReefing]

I think so..
The thing about these skimmers too is the pumps are external and not space saving so they are a little more efficient too. Just need to make sure you have the space for them because the foot print is a little larger..

Thanks! Yah I'm probably gonna get it. I added the biopellet reactor two weeks ago and nitrate hasn't budged much. Sadly, the storm that rolled through here in Texas pretty much killed all of the fish I had, minus my pair of clownfish, so I'm having to address issues that arose from that. Nitrate skyrocketed.