No Skimmer = Crazy PE

schooleyosis · Aug 22, 2014

So my skimmer shut down around 3a.m. last night due to the skimmer cup being full as I have a float switch connected to it. When I got up around 6a.m. I looked through the tank and all my acros had a crazy amount of PE, more than usual.

I am now considering turning the skimmer off for a few hours every night as I am thinking this gave the bio-pellets time to slough off enough food for the corals without the skimmer catching it.

Thoughts???

Dowtish · Aug 22, 2014

I think there is still plenty of food from the pellets getting into your tank anyways.

How close is the output of your reactor to the skimmer intake?

I have a 14" skimmer section and I have the output about 8" from the intake of the skimmer.

FL_Reefer · Aug 22, 2014

I turn mine off every time in feed my corals for 3-4hrs after I feed. I feel that it gives time for the corals to ''eat''. I also haven't noticed a difference in my levels since doing this or an increase in algae growth. I watched a video once of a guy who had 3 different tank and sump set up going with all of the same corals in them. Same lighting going, the only difference was the way his sump was set up and the amount of time his skimmer was running. He did a year study with these tanks and found the best growth and heath of the corals were in the tank that the skimmer ran for only part of the day. I found it very interesting and figured I give it a go. My zoas and palys seem to growing alittle better and just seem to be a little happier. Just my experience though. Would like to hear others thoughts on this as well.

schooleyosis · Aug 22, 2014

Dowtish said:
I think there is still plenty of food from the pellets getting into your tank anyways.

How close is the output of your reactor to the skimmer intake?

I have a 14" skimmer section and I have the output about 8" from the intake of the skimmer.

The output of the reactor is about 3-4" away from the skimmer intake but it's in direct flow away from the skimmer intake. I used to have the reactor output directly into the skimmer but recently have removed it to "feed" the corals.

I thought at first it was just the new frags that I got but I looked across the tank and everything was polyp'd out! I think I'm going to setup a profile on my skimmer and shut it down for 3 hours a night as an experiment.

schooleyosis · Aug 22, 2014

FL_Reefer said:
I turn mine off every time in feed my corals for 3-4hrs after I feed. I feel that it gives time for the corals to ''eat''. I also haven't noticed a difference in my levels since doing this or an increase in algae growth. I watched a video once of a guy who had 3 different tank and sump set up going with all of the same corals in them. Same lighting going, the only difference was the way his sump was set up and the amount of time his skimmer was running. He did a year study with these tanks and found the best growth and heath of the corals were in the tank that the skimmer ran for only part of the day. I found it very interesting and figured I give it a go. My zoas and palys seem to growing alittle better and just seem to be a little happier. Just my experience though. Would like to hear others thoughts on this as well.

I saw this before as well but couldn't remember the outcome or the details. Thanks for sharing. I'm curious to see what others say as well.

Aqua fire/medic · Aug 22, 2014

I run my skimmer for 24hrs every third day. I feel like this is more efficient since my skimmer seems to pull out more gunk for the 24hrs then it would just running constantly. I've seen no excess algae growth since starting this routine. And like someone else said. My Z&P seem to be a little happier for it. Sps growth IME has not been affected either way.

Dowtish · Aug 22, 2014

I think shutting it down won't necessarily effect nutrient levels but it may effect the oxygen levels and ph to a degree. Your tank is quickly becoming a SPS dominant tank so I think others may have better results with this with LPS and z and p tanks.

schooleyosis · Aug 22, 2014

Good point.

Thanks!

.AcroKiller. · Aug 22, 2014

When you get a chance read this
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2010/1/aafeature

Dowtish · Aug 22, 2014

iiluisii said:
When you get a chance read this
Feature Article: Further Studies on Protein Skimmer Performance ? Advanced Aquarist | Aquarist Magazine and Blog

Just skip to the end....jeez.

Basically it says that skimmers are nowhere near as efficient as everyone thinks in removing organic materials, and in this instance the stuff coming off your pellets.

Regardless, I will always run my skimmer 24/7.

.AcroKiller. · Aug 22, 2014

That's what I'm saying. Carbon is more efficient that a skimmer at removing organic. They even test the skimmate it had pulled out more traced elements than actual organics

.AcroKiller. · Aug 22, 2014

But yea Chris what works for one might not work for others. Your tank obviously shows that a skimmer is working great.

Dowtish · Aug 22, 2014

Either way. The sludge that I remove from my skimmer cup wreaks and I definitely dont want that in my tank.

Derek'sReef · Aug 22, 2014

The guy that did the year long experiment was the owner and creator of miracle mud. Leng sy. Check his youtube channel. It makes me want to try miracle mud but it is expensive for a big tank.