I recently reduced my skimmer run time to 6 hours. I have very low PO4 and NO4, each running frequently at or near zero based on ULR Hanna and Nyos tests respectively. I also run a refugium to help maintain low values but also dose Neonitro and Neophos to keep them up.
I was curious how others deal with this. I feed generously twice a day. I have a very mature tank, running for 6 years and the critters seem fine and grow.
I am a firm believer that it isn’t broke don’t fix it. I am just thinking of going no skimmer to help boost PO4 and NO3.
I include a picture from today as a reference.
Interesting topic, and something I've been pondering about for a while.
I actually now turn off my skimmer for a few hours after lights out. It's during that time that I dose amino acids and my goal is to allow the amino's to circulate thru the system without being skimmed out. Many corals feed at night when the lights are out. You will see them extended their feeder tentacles, so why not allow the corals an Extra Boost opportunity to eat before your skimmer takes out the nutrients (Fish poo, and the aminos). So long as you have surface agitation, and plenty of water movement in your sump via splashing and passing over baffles, the gas exchange in your system isn't reduced very much.
This idea came about when I was doing a basement renovation, and I was so busy that I didn't clean my skimmer for days at a time. I'm talking a week would go by, the cup was so full that the skimmer couldn't skim anymore.
This went on for about 3 months, and what I noticed is my SPS only tank that I've struggled with for years finally took off. Corals colored up, and started growing like never before.
That experience led me to think that maybe I was over skimming, since I have a very old classic oversized EuroReef Skimmer in my sump.
However I thought about it more, and a specific BRS TV video topic came to mind. Not sure which BRS video it was, but they talked about reducing Phosphates, and that you can run Chaeto Reactors, Algae Scrubbers, Skimmers or GFO reactors, but you should not run all of them in your system.
I actually have been runing a Algae Scrubber for quite some time. It's a hybird design that doesn't grow fast growing green hair algae, it grows Macro Algae (Cheato), so I guess you could say it as Cheato reactor.
I do meticulously use
very small amount of RowaPhos (GFO) in a reactor that I change every two weeks. That along with my other equiptment keeps my phosphates in the range of 0.05 to 0.1 ppm which is just right for me. I do feed my fish a lot so if I don't use all my P control methods, my P will easily go much higher.
Sorry about the detailed babble,
but my conclusion is that turning off my skimmer for a few hours every night after lights out has been the best thing I've ever done for my tank in last 20 years. It's now been 6 months with the skimmer off cycle and the positive impacts continue.
My other experience is having more fish which means more feeding and results in more fish poo (nutrients) is the easiest and most effective way to bring up Phosphates. Just feeding a few fish more isn't enough, since if they can't consume and digest all the food, the food floats around, goes into your sump and rots.
BTW this tank is 3 years old. Rocks older, so my situation is not a fresh startup up first year setup situation.
