How long can I go skimmerless?

[gar732]

My skimmer pump quit on Friday, I have a new skimmer coming but won't be here for another week or so. I did a water change on Friday but won't have the opportunity to do another until Thursday. My system is about 80 gallons with nine fish 8 of which are clowns. I have a bunch of different macro algae in one tank and mostly sps in the other. I run biopellets but I'm not sure if I should keep them going without a skimmer and how long can I go before my corals will start to decline? Should I run gfo? Please let me know what you guys think or any suggestions you might have. Thanks

 

[saltyhog]

I went 2 1/2 weeks without my skimmer while treating with Prazipro and saw no ill effects. I usually run carbon and GFO but those also had to be off during the treatment. My corals seemed to tolerate it fine (mostly sps and zoas). My nitrates did rise a little from 0 to 2.5 but everything has done well.

 

[TruRacr314x]

I'd say you just need to keep a close eye on your nitrates. I also had my skimmer cup off during a Prazipro treatment with no ill effects. My nitrates did spike from 10 to 20 though...

 

[Tahoe61]

I am uncomfortable with the idea of running the biopellets without a skimmer, other than that I see no issue.

 

[Reefing Madness]

I agree, ya might want to take the pellets out of the mix until your set up again.

 

[gar732]

Thanks for the replies. I took the biopellets offline and I'm going to run gfo just in case. My sps has been doing well and I'd hate to ruin that by not having the skimmer going. I'm hoping the new one comes in this week.