Is a skimmer and roller mat too much for a Red sea reefer 250?

peterhos

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I have been in the hobby for 20 years. I have always suspected that my tanks have at times been overskimmed. Do you think a Red Sea reefer 350 skimmer plus Red Sea 500 roller mat is too much for a new Red Sea reefer g2 250? I would like to see some growth in SPS corals. Maybe I should keep both the above on a timer. Any thoughts on the ideal balance between filtration and feeding etc Many thanks all.
 

Snoopy 67

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Thoughts on using both nowadays are;
Downsize the skimmer @ least 1 size to allow for a decrease in solids the roller mat will remove.
 

Devaji

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I have a RS 300xl and I went way overboard on the skimmer and have a reef mat 500.
however this is going to be on a seahorse tank and they are considered high bio-load.

that said i was/am curious to see how this plays out. until fully stocked i was thinking running the skimmer on a timer.
 
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peterhos

peterhos

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Thanks all. How about putting either or both on a timer, say for 8 hours a day each?
 

brandon429

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no its not too much, you can simply feed hq feed to keep it in suspension and that is catching it before it becomes tank detritus. you're inputting more feed to handle the quicker throughput but its better in every way. high throughput low catchment (except where designed to be) and always having quality suspended feed in the water = oligotrophic coral growth conditions and low invasion potential, it's ideal in fact.
 

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I'd run the skimmer only at night If you start to get 0 nitrate and 0 phosphate. Alternatively, you can simply feed more like brandon said above.
 
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peterhos

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Maybe my tank is still new after 4 months and being only 250 litres or so liable to variable parameters. It is hard now to get live rock over here, so I started with dry stuff which seems slow to ‘get going’. Maybe as Brandon said I should feed more liberally to keep stuff in suspension while doing more water changes in these early months. Makes some sense?! Incidentally, I like Brandon’s rake on a lot of things…..l
 

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I have a RS 300xl and I went way overboard on the skimmer and have a reef mat 500.
however this is going to be on a seahorse tank and they are considered high bio-load.

that said i was/am curious to see how this plays out. until fully stocked i was thinking running the skimmer on a timer.
Same tank. Been running a Red Sea 300 skimmer and Reefmat 500. I turn off the mat some nights. I generally get a paler brown skimmate (never the very dry, almost black, black that some pull).
 

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