Skimmer and roller instead od socks and media?

[Manaman41]

Thanks again for all of the help. Everyone in here that has given me some clarity has been amazing.

Can I use a nano skimmer and filter roller instead of having socks and media in the back of my 25g AIO? I was going to purchase a media Caddy and my tank came with a sock.

I would have a heater, upgraded return pump (AI axis 40), possibly an ice cap skimmer and a reef n roll filter roller. Would this be all I need for a healthy reef?

 

[The_Paradox]

Personally on a tank that small I would just go with a skimmer and water changes as needed. What fish do you have and what do you feed should be the biggest factor.

 

[Manaman41]

I am still putting together my equipment. No water yet. Are you saying I wouldn't need socks or filter media if I had the skimmer? Thank you for the help.

 

[The_Paradox]

I am still putting together my equipment. No water yet. Are you saying I wouldn't need socks or filter media if I had the skimmer? Thank you for the help.

You will get a lot of opinions but a lot of people don’t run socks or filters. I haven’t in over a decade with the exception of if I’m rescaping. If I’m in the tank moving stuff around and tearing stuff up I’ll throw a sock in for 3-4 hours and add some flocculent.

 

[Manaman41]

You will get a lot of opinions but a lot of people don’t run socks or filters. I haven’t in over a decade with the exception of if I’m rescaping. If I’m in the tank moving stuff around and tearing stuff up I’ll throw a sock in for 3-4 hours and add some flocculent.

Sounds good. I'm just looking to make my tank a little easier for a beginner. First tank ever and I want to get it right. Don't get me wrong, I'm not afraid to put in the work. Just don't want my first set up to fail before I get into it. I research a lot before doing anything in life so like to get opinions from seasoned vets.

 

[peterhos]

No experience with your tank specifically, but in my Red Sea 250 I replaced the socks - a pain to keep cleaning- with a roller mat that needs a new roll every 2 or 3 months with no maintenance in between. Maybe start with a skimmer or roller mat and buy the other if need be after observing the tank for a few weeks.

 

[Manaman41]

No experience with your tank specifically, but in my Red Sea 250 I replaced the socks - a pain to keep cleaning- with a roller mat that needs a new roll every 2 or 3 months with no maintenance in between. Maybe start with a skimmer or roller mat and buy the other if need be after observing the tank for a few weeks.

Thank you. I really like the high tech tanks. I know a lot of people like the minimalistic look, but I like learning how everything works together. Really appreciate the response.

 

[LPS Bum]

I use a ReefMat and it’s awesome. Pulls most of the garbage out of the water.

In a tank of that size, and depending on your bio load and feeding, if you use a fleece roller and have a reasonable water change schedule you may not even need the skimmer. There won’t be that much left for the skimmer to pull out.

 

[Manaman41]

I use a ReefMat and it’s awesome. Pulls most of the garbage out of the water.

In a tank of that size, and depending on your bio load and feeding, if you use a fleece roller and have a reasonable water change schedule you may not even need the skimmer. There won’t be that much left for the skimmer to pull out.

Copy that. Is it not still good for air exchange though. I've been reading that a lot of people like them to help maintain a higher ph. Any thoughts on this?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I agree with paradox, a skimmer and water changes would be the main filtration for that size tank. I've kept a 32 gallon reef for years with just a skimmer and weekly water changes.

 

[Manaman41]

I agree with paradox, a skimmer and water changes would be the main filtration for that size tank. I've kept a 32 gallon reef for years with just a skimmer and weekly water changes.

Thanks so much for your input. I feel like this will be a community tank instead of just my reef from all of the help I've been getting in here. Haha

 

[The_Paradox]

Thank you. I really like the high tech tanks. I know a lot of people like the minimalistic look, but I like learning how everything works together. Really appreciate the response.

I get it. I’ve worked in the research sector for almost two decades in bioengineering/chembio. That being said, every near miss I’ve had with my tank has been due to equipment failure. Most of the near misses you read about here from the non-beginners is the same. In the hospitals and labs I have an army of monkeys to check equipment 24/7. We pull PCM on everything, chart MTBF, monitor the tattletales, and work with high end equipment that is usually double/triple redundant. Even with all that we still have experiments get ruined. In the aquarium world it’s the exact opposite. It’s single point of failure equipment that was engineered by a semi-competent person with no real determination on MTBF or SLA on the software.

Automation is great but even with it you are going to put in just as much work. What it does allow you to do is be more consistent.

To your case it sounds like you want a pretty simplistic tank to start. That’s a great foundation and learning why you are doing something is more important than learning how to do something. Buy what you need not what you think you need.

KISS

 

[Manaman41]

I get it. I’ve worked in the research sector for almost two decades in bioengineering/chembio. That being said, every near miss I’ve had with my tank has been due to equipment failure. Most of the near misses you read about here from the non-beginners is the same. In the hospitals and labs I have an army of monkeys to check equipment 24/7. We pull PCM on everything, chart MTBF, monitor the tattletales, and work with high end equipment that is usually double/triple redundant. Even with all that we still have experiments get ruined. In the aquarium world it’s the exact opposite. It’s single point of failure equipment that was engineered by a semi-competent person with no real determination on MTBF or SLA on the software.

Automation is great but even with it you are going to put in just as much work. What it does allow you to do is be more consistent.

To your case it sounds like you want a pretty simplistic tank to start. That’s a great foundation and learning why you are doing something is more important than learning how to do something. Buy what you need not what you think you need.

So many opinions out there that I appreciate a straight response. Will take your thoughts to heart. Think I may just start with the skimmer and try it out. Will be starting VERY slow I don't take lightly that the life I'm caring for depends on what I do.

KISS is funny, haven't heard that in years.

 

[Manaman41]

So many opinions out there that I appreciate a straight response. Will take your thoughts to heart. Think I may just start with the skimmer and try it out. Will be starting VERY slow I don't take lightly that the life I'm caring for depends on what I do.

Sorry, not sure how my 'KISS' comment showed up like you said it

 

[Semper.Reefing]

I am still putting together my equipment. No water yet. Are you saying I wouldn't need socks or filter media if I had the skimmer? Thank you for the help.

Is this an IM 25 lagoon by chance? I have the 50 AIO. I run a media basket on one side with filter floss, chemi pure, and bio media. The other side I run a UV with filter floss on top. I also run a protein skimmer at night. This seems to be working well with me

 

[Manaman41]

Is this an IM 25 lagoon by chance? I have the 50 AIO. I run a media basket on one side with filter floss, chemi pure, and bio media. The other side I run a UV with filter floss on top. I also run a protein skimmer at night. This seems to be working well with me

Mine is the Waterbox 25g Peninsula. I really like IM though. Next tank. Haha. Thank you for sharing what has been working for you

 

[Readywriter]

My first tank was a 30 gal, 3" sandbed, whole bunch of fiji live rock and a skimmer, and once the tank was established the water was always crystal clear and never had any serious algae battles. Filtration doesnt need to be complicated, and I have a strong hunch that the drive to over automate and pursue quick fixes in a bottle for everything is whats driving all the current difficulties that people are having, biology is your friend here.

In my opinion water top-off is the only necessary automation. But for a tank that size that can be as simple as a modified water jug using capillary action to slowly drip water into the tank.

 

[LPS Bum]

Copy that. Is it not still good for air exchange though. I've been reading that a lot of people like them to help maintain a higher ph. Any thoughts on this?

There’s something to that I suppose. Personally I think you get a much better pH boost from running kalkwasser than a skimmer. But I don’t see much of a downside to running a skimmer, other than the upfront cost.

I run both a skimmer and a ReefMat, but my bio load is reasonably high. Even still, my skimmer doesn’t have much to pull out.