Fight! Fight! Fight! Wet Skimming vs Dry Skimming

Do you prefer dry skimming or wet skimming?

  • Dry Skimming

    Votes: 278 47.1%
  • Wet Skimming

    Votes: 241 40.8%
  • Neither, no skimmer

    Votes: 50 8.5%
  • Other (please explain in thread)

    Votes: 21 3.6%

  • Total voters
    590

gt44ever

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I lean wet after watching the BRS skimmer series. Wet is generally more efficient at removing organics because "too wet" just means you're pulling too much water out with the organics. "Too dry" and you're effectivley leaving organics behind.
I also prefer wet so I don't have to clean the neck near as often. Only downside is occasional overflow, which is eased with a controllable skimmer since you can turn things down easily without having to fiddle with the level knob.
 

rob s.

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Im skimmerless on a 45G, nutrient import and export can be controlled with more than a skimmer :)
i have no other options other than constant water changes. Maybe a sump but its to small a tank for that so i decided on the skimmer. It got a lot of good reviews so i hope it lives up to the hype.
 

terraincognita

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i have no other options other than constant water changes. Maybe a sump but its to small a tank for that so i decided on the skimmer. It got a lot of good reviews so i hope it lives up to the hype.

Your tank my friend! Do what works! not trying to bash skimmers, they absolutely have their place and purpose :)
 

Karen00

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the one i just got from Ice Cap has a really small footprint. It fits rite in the back of my AIO 20 WB
Thanks for this!! I will look into it. I'm adding your note to the rather large document I'm keeping on all of this stuff and everything I have to research. Haha. Sometimes it's hard to wrap my head around.
 

Karen00

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IMO you definitely do not need a skimmer on a 5G


Honestly I think I'd only run a skimmer on something 75G and up, and only then if I was heavy feeding trying to promote intense intense growth. but I'm getting great growth (at least I think it's good) with other methods.

Otherwise I wouldn't put a skimmer on a system probably under 120G. After that size I'm just so scared of losing that much money I'd put an expensive skimmer just cuz it's cheaper.
Thank you for this! I'm hoping I won't need a skimmer. After all it would be hard to overstock and thus overfeed or do anything else that might require a skimmer on something that small although I guess it's possible. Haha
 

beefybear

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I skim dry but 100% recommend a skimmer to anyone who doesn’t use one. It’s great for pulling out organics but it has similarly great value in ph control. Tack on a co2 scrubber to that bad boy and never have to worry about low ph again!
 

tpeck723

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I run middle of the road on skimmate after watching the BRS skimmer videos. I upgraded to a 280g with a Skimz SK254 and I was trying to learn this new dual pump skimmer and get it dialed in right so those BRS videos were really helpful. There is definitely the sweet spot in the skimmate so I only have to clean it once a week and not have it be like super thick sludge. I am also running an Apex sensor inside the cup that sends an alarm and shuts the pumps down if the skimmer overflows.
 

Bluenote

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I only do a partial water change once per month and use an ATO. In my case, I don't want to wet skim too much or I could risk eventually reducing my salinity.
 

Brew12

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I have no idea where the line is drawn between wet and dry so I have no idea if I skim wet or dry. I know it always smells horrible and if something in my tank spawns it makes my skimmer go nuts.
 

salty_chimp

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1. every tank is different
2. how you feed (fish and/or corals) will dictate the amount of dissolved organics and thus nutrient levels
3. skimmer + other nutrient export options need to be in unison to KEEP LEVELS CONSISTENT!
4. the corals you keep will almost dictate where you need to keep your nutrient levels, but CONSISTENCY IS KEY ABOVE EVERYTHING!
5. to answer the question directly... wet skim after erroring on the side of caution and having dealt with hair algae outbreaks due to high nitrate/phosphate
 

bobbyM

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I’m not keen on the question. I’ll ask a similar question in a different context.

do you prefer to accelerate or coast in your car?
 

bkhunt

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I am sorta in the middle. I am not a dry skimmer and I am not a wet skimmer. I shoot for somewhere that is in the middle. Somewhere that I am producing a darker skim but not as dark as dry.
 

Silent

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20200417_205553.jpg

I guess dry.
 

Brew12

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Would this make good compost for the garden? It just came to me that with all of the nutrients in this maybe it could be used as fertilizer.
Most people I know who have tried have ended up killing what they have tried to fertilize, probably due to the high salt content.
 

A worm with high fashion and practical utility: Have you ever kept feather dusters in your reef aquarium?

  • I currently have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 63 36.6%
  • Not currently, but I have had feather dusters in my tank in the past.

    Votes: 59 34.3%
  • I have not had feather dusters, but I hope to in the future.

    Votes: 24 14.0%
  • I have no plans to have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 26 15.1%
  • Other.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
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