Vincerama2
Guest
Hi guys, I set up a 100g tank with maybe 75 gallons in it to temporarily house some fish and rock while I set up my 180.
The only skimmer that fits in the tank (it has fat perimeter bracing ... "eurobracing?") is a Coralife Super Skimmer 65. CookieJar was nice enough to give me an old skimmer that I can use in a sump, but it doesn't fit this tank with the euro bracing. I will be running a sump skimmer with the 180.
Now the SS 65 was troublesome (overflowing, not skimming, etc) until I figured out that I need to stack stuff under it until the pump input should be 1/2" below the water surface (basically just setting the water level in the skimmer, since its neck does not extend to adjust). As far as I can tell...it works amazingly. It is pulling some dark crud out. Now ... it doesn't pull out a TON of skimmate, but isn't this really a function of water quality? The tank started with seasoned live rock (with some dead corals on it, admittedly) but also with maybe 60 gallons of freshly made salt water.
But this had me thinking. The skimmer will process whatever water pumps though it. There is no other input other than the amount of crap in the water. I'm assuming the efficiency of every skimmer is more or less constant. So if you can skim out 10% of any organics in a given volume of water, that doesn't really change. The efficiency would be a function of skimming method.
If the skimmer was larger would that make a difference?
I can see if the PUMP flowed more water, then more water gets processed, but in theory, once your water is "clean" or mostly clean and the skimmer is running at its max efficiency...it only needs to skim out the daily input of fish poo/coral barf, right?
So would having a massive skimmer really work better than a smaller skimmer? If you only need to skim out that day's poo, then isn't running the massive skimmer just a waste of electricity?
And yes, it's true that the skimmer also works as a gas exchange booster, but let's talk about its skimming power.
So, in theory, if I had a 1000 gallon tank, do I really need more than a skimmer "rated" for 100 gallons? Isn't skimmer size more a function of "fish/coral" load than actual water capacity of the tank? I acknowledge that larger tanks tend to have more pooing things in them than smaller tanks. But let's say the bioload is the same in a 100g tank vs a 1000g tank because you gave 10 fish.
Discuss ....
The only skimmer that fits in the tank (it has fat perimeter bracing ... "eurobracing?") is a Coralife Super Skimmer 65. CookieJar was nice enough to give me an old skimmer that I can use in a sump, but it doesn't fit this tank with the euro bracing. I will be running a sump skimmer with the 180.
Now the SS 65 was troublesome (overflowing, not skimming, etc) until I figured out that I need to stack stuff under it until the pump input should be 1/2" below the water surface (basically just setting the water level in the skimmer, since its neck does not extend to adjust). As far as I can tell...it works amazingly. It is pulling some dark crud out. Now ... it doesn't pull out a TON of skimmate, but isn't this really a function of water quality? The tank started with seasoned live rock (with some dead corals on it, admittedly) but also with maybe 60 gallons of freshly made salt water.
But this had me thinking. The skimmer will process whatever water pumps though it. There is no other input other than the amount of crap in the water. I'm assuming the efficiency of every skimmer is more or less constant. So if you can skim out 10% of any organics in a given volume of water, that doesn't really change. The efficiency would be a function of skimming method.
If the skimmer was larger would that make a difference?
I can see if the PUMP flowed more water, then more water gets processed, but in theory, once your water is "clean" or mostly clean and the skimmer is running at its max efficiency...it only needs to skim out the daily input of fish poo/coral barf, right?
So would having a massive skimmer really work better than a smaller skimmer? If you only need to skim out that day's poo, then isn't running the massive skimmer just a waste of electricity?
And yes, it's true that the skimmer also works as a gas exchange booster, but let's talk about its skimming power.
So, in theory, if I had a 1000 gallon tank, do I really need more than a skimmer "rated" for 100 gallons? Isn't skimmer size more a function of "fish/coral" load than actual water capacity of the tank? I acknowledge that larger tanks tend to have more pooing things in them than smaller tanks. But let's say the bioload is the same in a 100g tank vs a 1000g tank because you gave 10 fish.
Discuss ....