Skimmer needed for a 40gallon breeder ?

Venzzla · Jan 28, 2019

Hi all, I have a question about whether or not a skimmer is needed on a 40 gallon breeder? IMO, there will be a light load of fish. 2 Clown fish, flasher wrasse, orchid dotty back, and a diamond goby. I will probably also have a few crabs and snails as a cleanup crew. I will have really good flow in the tank and an aquaclear 110 . I will probably do some beginner corals in about 6 months once tank becomes seeded. I will also have 2 kessils on this tank. Thanks in advance

Matthew40b · Jan 28, 2019

A skimmer is definitely not needed, but it would help out a lot at keeping nitrates lower for longer and you wont have to do water changes as often. I have a 40 breeder that has been running for about 7 months and I just purchased a reef octopus skimmer about a month ago. I am able to go much longer without having to do a water changes because it pulls out a lot of nasty stuff, but it is not necessary.

Venzzla · Jan 28, 2019

Just curious how often did you do changes and what percent of water did you change ?Also, now that you have the slimmer how much longer can you wait before changes now ?

AdamNC · Jan 28, 2019

I have a 40br with a sump and a skimmer and even with SPS frags in it and only 2 clowns it still pulls dark skim. It depends on how dry you want the skim to be. Normally I empty a half full cup because it starts to smell. 10% weekly 5 gallon water changes and daily feedings for the coral and fish. It can add up over time.

Pntbll687 · Jan 28, 2019

A skimmer is not a necessity on a tank. World wide corals runs a 200+ gallon tank with no skimmer, lots of coral, and a good amount of fish.

I think the main thing is getting enough biology in the tank to consume nutrients at a reasonable rate to where large water changes are not needed.

On a personal note, I run a 20 long with just some power heads and live rock. There are a good amount of coral and just a couple fish. It took a few years to get to this point, but is possible. I started with a skimmer an dosing to remove phosphate as needed. Eventually stopped dosing, then removed the skimmer a few months later.

I would say the only essential components to a tank are lights, heater, and pumps to move the water around.