just want a cheap protein skimmer

[maroon clown]

hi guys
i was just wondering if the coralife super skimmer 1 is any good, i have a 6 gallon eclipse and was looking for just a little something to clear the water up better without spending a fortune- if any of you have this skimmer feedback would be appreciated, tia!!

 

[nhkimmy]

How often do you do a water change. I run a 15 gal without a skimmer. I do weekly water change and all is fine. Take out bio wheel. Use DSB and liverock

6

 

[MIKE NY1]

Ditto, a tank that size LR,DSB and a weekly water change should keep your water quality and clarity.

 

[maroon clown]

i have a bed of CC right now, is sand better? i do have a good amount of life that sprouted from the cc, like featherdusters. Is it bad to have the bio wheel in? ive been doing partial water changes every month so far

 

[nin0]

I would go with sugarsized aragonite sand it would be better in the long run plus you wont need to add any calcium supplements to encourage good corralline growth(also helps clean your tank if u get little critters in the sand) ...id just go with about 1-2inches and some LR too...as for the biowheel i dont see any harm in leaving it in...

 

[zip_case]

Don't the bio wheel harbor unwanted nitrates? That's what I've heard, but I could have been misled...

[ December 05, 2001: Message edited by: Zip_Case ]</p>

 

[maroon clown]

ok.. just realized something.. what does DSB stand for?! kinda new at this
and also, so is it better to have the bio-wheel out then? i notice mine is very brown

[ December 05, 2001: Message edited by: maroon clown ]</p>

 

[nin0]

DSB stands for deep sand bed....which is 3-4 inches of very fine sand(to promote anaerobic bacteria activity thus reducing your nitrates that cause undesirable algae like brown diatoms and stuff...hehe) but i think for a small tank like yours an inch or two would be good enough....and as for the biowheel, I think that it would be good to leave it in..giving you more surface area to break down organic waste. Hope this helps...

 

[Ben1]

I personnaly see no reason to use the biowheel. Live rock is all the filtration you need to break down ammonia and nirtite. The Nitrate will be broken down in the inner core of live rock but very very slowly. IMO use at least 3" of oolite or southdown sand. This not only is for completing the nitrogen cycle but to give a place for sand bed flora and fuana. This benifits the tank greatly IME. I use a 6" sand bed in one tank and a 4 inch bed in my SPS tank. Both always test 0 for Nitrate and are teaming with life. I traded sand with many reefers to get the bed this way. If I was you I would stick to no skimmer, water changes with RO/DI water, a DSB and no biowheel. JMO HTH Ben

 

[Lunchbucket]

i asked Dr. Ron about a DSB in a nano and he said it is worthless. can't get the area you need to make it work

i guess

later
Lunchbucket

 

[stilmas]

The biowheel nor any type of biofilter does not "harbor" nitrates, it simply produces them since it can't complete the nitrogen cycle. LR and DSB will help with that end of the cycle. Once the biowheel breaks down the organics into nitrate they will build up in the water and need to be exported. If you let the LR and the DSB be your biofilter it will work slower, but completes the cycle due to the close proximity of the aerobic and anaerobic bacterias in the rock. DSB's also harbor anaerobic bacteria at the bottom to also help in denitrification.

 

[maroon clown]

thanks for the help guys..
i was kinda thinkin bout gettin the next size up eclipse (12) cuz the 6 seems kinda small to do anything.. ill have to see cuz my lighting comes soon and i dont wanna cut up the 6 if i want to get a 12

 

[thardin]

I would not give up on the little tank yet! My wife has a 7 gallon bow-front that Amazes me. We have a sand bed of 1.5" southdown with another 1.5" of live sand and about 15-20# Premium Live Rock from Paragon Aquaics. I have installed a 64 watt power compact fixture and run no equipment other than a small heater and a small powerhead for water movement.
As far as water changes, she does not always keep up, but the tank is thriving. I would reccomend a 10% change once a week. I keep a constant supply of heated, aerated, cured saltwater, so a change takes about 2 minutes.
If you've already got the tank set-up, why not keep it and get the bigger one too?