DT's and skimmers

[BCReefer]

How many people turn off their skimmer when they add DT's?

I don't but i am think about it.

Cheers,
Patrick

[StirCrazy]

I wouldent waist your time.. only about 10% would be removed at max by the skimmer.. this was acording to some big wig doning tests that I can't remember whare I read it or who it was .. :lol: so you can take it as my opinion only I guess LOL

Steve

[Biogeek]

If I remember correctly, that study was done by DT's using a CPR bakpak. The simple answer is that it depends to a large degree on the skimmer that you are using and how much water flows through it relative to the size of your tank. If you're running a bakpak on a 55gal, then you're likely to not remove a lot of phytoplankton before it is consumed by the animals in your tank. If, on the other hand, you're running a Remora Pro or ETSS Reef Devil on that same tank, you'll notice that the skimmate is solid green within an hour of feeding...

I think that it is a personal choice, depending on what proportion of your tank goes through the skimmer within the hour following your adding of phytoplankton to the tank. Some people worry about forgetting to turn it back on, or find that it is inconvenient, and prefer to use a timer to accomplish the temporary shut-down. It seems to me that after you pay good money for the live phytoplankton, why do you want to send any of it into the skimmer cup? I guess the bottom line for many people comes down to convenience versus cost: how much effort does it take to shut off the skimmer, and how much does it cost to buy a little extra phyotplankton to cover that loss....

Rob

[Canadian Man]

Nice to hear from you Rob :D ,

I usually feed ESV's spray dried phyto with my dt's and the ESV'S shut's down the skimmer for a while so my dt's stays in the tank.

If I just feed DT's then my skimmer dosent shut down but I don't turn it off either.

[titus]

Hello,

You can alternatively try shutting off the circulation between the sump and the display, thus allowing the in-sump skimmer to continue without shut down during the fest.

Titus

[ldzielak]

I agree with Jonathan, feed something else at the same time that shuts down the skimmer. Mysis does the trick for me.

Lee