To skim or not skim while away?

[VashonBigs]

If I normally skim and am leaving for a few days, is it ok to turn off the skimmer or will these have an adverse water quality issue with fish and coral? Three days away.

 

[Shaun_in_Cali]

How often do you empty your skimmer cup?

 

[VashonBigs]

How often do you empty your skimmer cup?

Not often but I put in a few new filter socks and it is causing an overflow. Brand new sock...

 

[Shaun_in_Cali]

If you didn’t rinse the sock that may be why.

i empty my skimmer cup every 4, maybe 5 days days with how it is currently set, if it was me I would keep skimming.

Having said that it likely won’t have a humongous effect either way. If you are worried you could turn it off and do a water change when you get home.

 

[Silentdeath5]

You could also drill the cup for a drain into something like a 10-20 gallon tank if you’re worried it might go crazy. But really, 3 days of not skimming won’t do much harm

 

[harley32907]

I have a drain tube on my cup that goes in a gallon jug, lasts weeks

 

[harley32907]

This isit

 

[Shaun_in_Cali]

You could also drill the cup for a drain into something like a 10-20 gallon tank if you’re worried it might go crazy. But really, 3 days of not skimming won’t do much harm

The only problem with this is on the occasions where my skimmer has gone crazy (e.g poorly rinsed sock) it would have put loads of water out of the tank. ATO would have kept up for a bit but then ran out, and likely resulted in a relatively large salinity change. I’d rather it overflow back into Sump if I was concerned.

 

[Silentdeath5]

The only problem with this is on the occasions where my skimmer has gone crazy (e.g poorly rinsed sock) it would have put loads of water out of the tank. ATO would have kept up for a bit but then ran out, and likely resulted in a relatively large salinity change. I’d rather it overflow back into Sump if I was concerned.

Very true. Just don’t run it. It’s worst to have overflowing skim bubbles all over your sump. You’ll then need to scoop out those and clean the sides of your sump.

 

[Vette67]

What I usually do when I go on vacation is turn the skimmer level down. You’ll still be skimming, but you’ll get drier foam and that can reduce the likelihood of overflowing. Then readjust things back to normal once I get home. So far, that has worked for me...

 

[Bossman]

The skimmer helps aerate your tank. I wouldn't shut it off. You could just leave the cup off. This way the cup won't overflow. Or you could leave the cup on. If it overflows, it will go back into your sump. Not ideal, but the tank will be aerated.

 

[fish frinzy]

Put a hole in cup and drain in a cup. Leave skimmer on if i was you.

 

[dwest]

A few days off is no problem. Or, as others mentioned, you could run it without the cup.