Coral only, filter sock required?

[liddojunior]

I have a 20 gallons long AIO and wonder if filter pads or socks are even required for a coral only tank. I have substrate and frag racks and frags on grow out tiles. Some trochus snails as CUC

I started with live rock from my display tank that was seeded with Aussie live rock and have added copepods just to boost pod diversity.

I was wondering if I even would need mechanical filtration. I dose live phyto, and was thinking mechanical filtration probably just gets pods and phyto trapped and could just be better without mechanical filtration since I don’t have any fish.

 

[Doctorgori]

I’d add a skimmer but that’s all

 

[mues]

Plenty of people that even have fish run without socks/fleece. Completely up to you.

 

[liddojunior]

I’d add a skimmer but that’s all

After a couple months, I barely have nutrients go up. My phosphate is lower than I can detect. And nitrates stay at 2 ppm. No Dinos , so I think it’s like the right amount that corals, I don’t actually have much algae that even grow on glass.

I have trouble with nutrients that I just leave skimmer off. It has trouble building up good foam cause there’s not much to skim.

So now I’m like is there even a point to having a filter pad if all it does it probably capture pods and phyto. And maybe coral goop and shedding , not sure how much of a bioload that could be