Protein skimmer on timer

lonewonderer · Oct 3, 2017

Hello, just a quick question. Is it ok to run a skimmer for only 8 hours a day? I have a 135 gallon FOWLR tank with around 12 fishes. I feed them twice a day with very minimal and only what they can consume. I have an ASM g5 skimmer. Will this process work?

thanks,

ATI North America · Oct 3, 2017

You can,,, but why? Skimmers are huge for gas exchange as well as removing waste so what is the goal by turning it off? If you were going to only run it for 8 hours, I would recommend doing so overnight to help CO2 gas exchange and help keep your pH up at night, unless of course your home is crowded and your home air is loaded with CO2.

lonewonderer · Oct 3, 2017

Actually its a dumb question but yeah I was just wondering if its doable.

stevo01 · Oct 3, 2017

I did it on my GHL then realized other than energy saving its not a good idea. It is a pump that could be on a timer and save a few bucks a month i suppose.

lonewonderer · Oct 3, 2017

thank you for the comments guys!

Gordon Cashmore · Oct 17, 2017

stevo01 said:
I did it on my GHL then realized other than energy saving its not a good idea. It is a pump that could be on a timer and save a few bucks a month i suppose.

I just got a used skimmer. It is producing tons of micro-bubbles. It has been suggested to let it run for a few days and it should calm down. In regular water, it seemed to run very well with larger bubbles. When I hooked it on the tank, it's super heavy microbubbles, not large. I don't see a way to adjust. Is this a result of saltwater versus tap? Any suggestions? Right now this thing is just too disruptive to the tank with all the bubbles.

ATI North America · Oct 17, 2017

Gordon Cashmore said:
I just got a used skimmer. It is producing tons of micro-bubbles. It has been suggested to let it run for a few days and it should calm down. In regular water, it seemed to run very well with larger bubbles. When I hooked it on the tank, it's super heavy microbubbles, not large. I don't see a way to adjust. Is this a result of saltwater versus tap? Any suggestions? Right now this thing is just too disruptive to the tank with all the bubbles.

Skimmers don't work at all on Freshwater. What model is it?