Skimmer??
 

would you need a skimmer when starting a big tank or can you get it later?

Should have it before you put water in the tank.

so it's necesary?

There's no rules. Some people run tanks without skimmers. I think it would be fair to say that MOST people run skimmers.

choices
 

ultimately its up to you but if it is a large tank, a skimmer in my opinion would be advised...:biggrin:

my tanks skimmerless, and crystal clear as far as water goes, but theres no room for skimping on filtration then. i do water changes every week and change my filter media frequently. mind you the majority of my corals are soft so they don't mind at all, but even the hard corals look great, different for everyone i guess

For my tank i'm going to start with fish only (skimmerless?) Then in a year or so FOWLR (maybe a skimmer) And another year reef (skimmer) would this work?

What do you consider a large tank? You could use your current skimmer, filter socks and do water changes to keep things under control for a fair bit of time before getting the BIG skimmer. Just plan your load real carefull. Adding a lot of fish without the right skimmer could end up being a lot of work and you could end up spending a lot more on salt than expected. I think you can get it later as long as you have time for the extra work and take it slow.

Scott

i have time and i don't have a current skimmer. i have a 60g tank and a 60g sump.