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Is over-skimming possible?


lewk

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Been looking around the interwebs and it seems like the overall answer for this is 'no'. In the opinions of the folks here...is it possible to have too much skimmer on a tank? Just got the Reef Octopus NWB 150...is this OK for a 65 gallon? This particular one is rated for tanks up to 150 gallons.

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It depends on how you are running your reef and what your goals are. As far as "over skimming" goes once all of the protien is out of the water the skimmer won't do anything. So in that sense it is not possible to overskim. But protien in water includes things like copepods, reef roids, bacteria and other foods that you may want your corals to have. The main thing I would reccomend is to make sure you turn off your skimmer when you are actively feeding your corals and leave it off for a while after. Also, make sure that your skimmer is "upstream" from your refugium if you are trying to get plankton back into your main tank. (Assuming you are running a refugium for that purpose.) If you want a nutrient rich system (say for sponges or sea squirts) then you definately can overskim.

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Hm. Right now I'd say my goals are to get the tank running with some soft corals, mushrooms and eventually an anemone or two. I don't have plans to get a refugium set up, probably just the sump. I just want to make sure a bigger skimmer isn't total overkill and won't be detrimental to anything.

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One thing to keep in mind, and I've seen this firsthand, is that it can almost be impossible to overskim a regular reef tank. My skimmers stop producing when the water has nothing to offer.

I will bet a $100 bill that I have put the largest skimmer to tank volume here at ARC.

My skimmer holds 21 gallons of water and was placed on a 75g tank.

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I agree with Zarathustra2 and Mike, but I think Zarathustra2 includes an important item about what you plan to keep. SPS love uber-clean water, so power to the super-skimmer. Zoas on the other hand, like the water a little "dirty", thus still use a skimmer, just not so zealously.

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I will bet a $100 bill that I have put the largest skimmer to tank volume here at ARC.

My skimmer holds 21 gallons of water and was placed on a 75g tank.

Now that's braggin rights. Can we see a pic of the 21g skimmer?

I wish I could say my skimmer was bigger than your skimmer.....unsure.gif

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