Do I “need” a skimmer on 25 gallon?

[Rmckoy]

I’ve always ran skimmers. 13.5, 60 gallon (in the sump so almost necessary) and that’s about it. I now have a 25g because it is more practical and wondering if I absolutely need one. My tank seems to be doing great. Been running for about a month or so now now granted it was already cycled when transferred but, from what I see it looks as I don’t need one. Looks can be deceiving sometimes tho so let me know what y’all think!

It’s almost like saying you don’t need running shoes to run a race .
but they will be better compared to bare foot .

I’ve always used a skimmer and notice when I turn it off for any length of time nutrients and algae will increase

 

[Dav2996]

People frequently refer to the "gunk" and "stuff" that the skimmer pulls out, and are happy that it's not floating around in their tanks, which sounds a little odd to me, as you essentially are stripping out dissolved organics that a lot of reef organisms, including corals, feed on, not to mention the planktonic life that actually dies in the collection cup.'

Now I am by no means knocking skimmers, I run them myself on my larger tanks. But I don't think it is a coincidence that my 15G skimmer-less reef is my healthiest and most successful system. And I do believe that skimmers serve as a useful safety net in young and immature systems, and can help bring stability to an unstable system.

I currently don’t do water changes and my skimmer does great. Also skimmers add extra oxygen to the tank keeping PH more stable. They also remove chemicals. I have my skimmer on a kasa power plug from Amazon and I have it turn off when I dose AB+ coral food and then turn it on an hour later daily. I run it on my nuvo 20 gallon tank.

 

[DavidinGA]

I haven't used a skimmer in over a decade. Definitely not needed. I just run floss and an ATS (which is superior to a skimmer anyway).

 

[Reefngeek]

I’ve always ran skimmers. 13.5, 60 gallon (in the sump so almost necessary) and that’s about it. I now have a 25g because it is more practical and wondering if I absolutely need one. My tank seems to be doing great. Been running for about a month or so now now granted it was already cycled when transferred but, from what I see it looks as I don’t need one. Looks can be deceiving sometimes tho so let me know what y’all think!

No to the skimmer. Yes to a refugium...imo.

 

[Dav2996]

No to the skimmer. Yes to a refugium...imo.

I use skimmer, refugium, and UV.

 

[WWC]

In a tank that size it is not 100% needed but not a bad thing to have, It is not something you have to run all the time. you can run it once and awhile to get that cleaning then once done you can shut it off. You just want to make sure you are keeping up with those water changes as much as you can.

 

[AquasKy]

I’m sure it will. Throw some gfo/ phosguard in you’re media compartment or whatever you have if it’s you’re last resort. Post some pics of ur 20g!

I’ve been on vacation for a week and thought I was doing a water change today but the LFS switched up their hours on me and were closed today so I did a quick clean today and finally put the skimmer on (it did arrive in time for me to put it on before vacation but the directions were weird and I didn’t have the energy) and I will do a 10% water change and a little more clean up tomorrow. I can add way better pictures then.