Does a protein skimmer use up more water?
 

Hi all. I recently revamped my hardware setup and added a skimmer to my new- to- me 135 gal FOWLR tank. It has a sump tank with three separate compartments... the return from the overflow goes in the tallest part, the submersible skimmer is in the middle part, and the sump return pump is in the lowest part. However, since I got the skimmer it seems I have to add a gallon of water every day just to keep enough water in the sump for the pump to run. Is this to be expected? Do all the bubbles in the skimmer cause excess evaporation? If I just made the wall lower so more water travelled from the middle compartmetn to the lowest compartment, would that solve the problem? Am I back to having a flood risk then? My hubby made some beautiful custom acrylic lids for the sump, so perhaps the evaporation will be less.

Also, although the water is now crystal clear and beautiful, when I did my chemical checks I found I had a small amount of nitrate(5) and nitrite(.25), which I almost never have. That surprised me, I thought the skimmer would remove those even more thoroughly. Unless it's related to the water drops in the sump, as this morning when I got up it was partially sucking air, as was the Fluval filter. Any thoughts?

I would imagine that there would be some evaporation through the use of a skimmer. The pump that is being used for flow through the skimmer will add heat and thus evap as well. As for the the water properties changing I have no idea, Im sure someone else on here will be able to chime in. If the skimmer was bought used than maybe there was some additions through that. But what do I know... Im a blonde :razz:

There will be some evap through the bubbles in the skimmer... I've been told that a skimmer can humidify air quite well, the more air through the skimmer, the more evaporation (seems logical to me).

OH yeah, you're running a fluval filter? Do you have bioballs in it? The reduced water flow through it when it was sucking air likely caused some bacterial die-off, which could cause a mini-cycle (where the nitrite could come from). As far as having nitrate, I have no idea... skimmers don't remove nitrite or nitrate, they should actually remove some waste products before they break down to that point.

+1 on the fluval. It is ok if you are using it for extra flow, but if it has filter media, then you should be cleaning it every 2-3 days. Otherwise, it just becomes a nitrate factory.

Yes, a protein skimmer will increase evaporation because of the increased surface area created by the bubbles. More evaporation is GOOD in reef tanks because it aids in gas exchange and temperature regulation. You will find that your pH will fall and your temperature will rise if you purposely prevent evaporation. Furthermore, if you are using kalk then more evaporation means you can add more kalk.

I agree with the others with the NO2, NO3 spike being caused by the canister. Get rid of it. It is not required and will usually do more harm than good.

If you need the canister for circulation, it will work fine for that... but do remove the media, it will move more water and won't cause issues if this happens again.

All right, I'm more than I little confused. I thought having proper filtration and ripe media were an absolute MUST for an aquarium. You're telling me I don't need either? What filters the water then?

I have had the tank since May 2, and was just starting to wonder when/how I should do filter maintenace on the Fluval. It was going to be my goal for this weekend. I had a vague idea what I should do there, but now even my vague idea is out the window. ACK!

Also, what is kalk? I can see how evaporation affect salinity, but I can't follow the issue with pH dropping. BTW, my pH has always been 7.8... is that too low?

Thanks,

Sump, skimmer, live rock and in some instances the sand bed provide filtration in saltwater systems. As mentioned, the canister may be used for extra flow, water volume or to run carbon or GFO for phosphate removal. All other media in the canister is counter productive.

My understanding of what everyone has said (fairly new to this myself) is that when you do your filter maintenance, which should be done soon. You should remove all the media (Bioballs, filter pads) as these add more problems than they their worth. Run the canister empty (or with Carbon) if you need the circulation, if not don't even bother using it. The sump is going to do the job of the canister, with the skimmer housed inside is your filter pads. The live rock is your bioballs (sorry bad analogy).

Sell the Fluval and go buy more fish with the bounty :mrgreen:

Actually, you can still use filter pads... the cheap white fluffy stuff that is sold for this use is excellent. Change it every couple days and you're good... forget to change it and it becomes a problem. The skimmer is more like an advanced form of carbon, in that it removes dissolved organics (like how carbon removes the yellow coloration). It also removes proteins, aminos, lipids, and heavy metals.

I'm actually new to all this too, I've just been reading about it for over a year and finally have gotten my act together. Also, I retain a lot of what I read :mrgreen:

I'm going to add a little bit here for you, jassz. Most people seem to have between 1 and 2 lbs of live rock per gallon of in the display tank. Less than this, and I suspect that there may not be enough surface area for the bacteria that keep reef aquariums going to colonize. Also, sand seems to be optional given enough live rock. It seems that the majority of people have around 30x circulation in their display, and around 10x through the sump (often less). These are my observations from reading a lot of posts. Most people use a skimmer... I wouldnt' run a FOWLR without one.

So yeah, go ahead and ditch that media! I followed up on another thread where the same thing was suggested, and the guy's corals have stopped dying, and are actually starting to come back.