Recomended skimmer for a mm set up

[leon]

Right after seeing countless post about whether to "skim or not to skim", and peeps deciding TO skim now, im going to follow that route also, and have a miracle mud "PRO" sytem , i was wondering whats the best to get for my set up, ideally i want it in the sump or even hang on the sump (if it can be done?) and where to put it, before or after the MM, whether to under skim??? ect, ect blah....
leon

 

[Navarre]

Im actually testing this method myself at the moment. I have been skimmerless for so long but when i read about the MM pro system i thought i would give the method a trial run. I intend to keep teh skimmer running whilst the new setup is being prepared.

I am using a Prizm Skimmer which is notorious for not being the most efficient skimmer you can get therefore i guess its safe to assume that it does underskim.
I was very suprised to see just how much junk it took out the system and considering its efficiency that means far more is still in the system Saying that, i have not seen any problems with the tank since running a skimmer (the tank has had some horrendous troubles over the last few weeks but they are not skimmer related ).
The water is far clearer than before, when i did water changes without a skimmer i foud the water was very yellow in colour but this is not the case now, the discolour is still there but far far less noticable.

Im still a firm believer in underskimming but this is mainly due to the unique water that i use, if i used artificial salt then perhaps i would try a skimmer that was a bit more efficient.

 

[leon]

Im still a firm believer in underskimming but this is mainly due to the unique water that i use, if i used artificial salt then perhaps i would try a skimmer that was a bit more efficient.

like a ..............?, i know nothing about skimmers, apart from they take crap out of the water, dont know whats better/worse than another, how much to pay ( i know this can be alot!) ect, a complete dunce basically!
leon
oh, would a 2nd hand off ebay be any good, or is it better to have new?

 

[andrew catling]

By using a skimmer on a MM system you will be stripping nutrients from the water which is what the macro algae in the fuge feeds on.
This will make the algae more prone to crashing IMO.
The whole idea of a mini Eco-system is to be as natural as possible.
If I did use a skimmer I would only use it periodically and set it so it underskims.

Just a thought...

 

[Navarre]

This is what the makers of Mineral Mud an d Miracle Mud want you to beleive Andrew. In fact they aruments are very believable. However they are now producing Miracle Mud Pro. Guess what.. they recomend a skimmer!
So this is what i have been experimenting with since Christmas and until the new tank is ready. I have put a Prizm Skimmer on the tank to see what effects i can find. Its taken out loads of crap and these skimmers are defiantely not the best in the world!

Macro algae seems unneffected... The tank doesnt look any healthier IMO so wether its actually doing a better job than before but i also feel its not doing the tank a worse job.

 

[andrew catling]

Those darn manufacturers, changing their minds all the time

One minute it's the best thing since sliced bread then all of a sudden they recommend a skimmer
Navarre, now youv'e switched to a skimmer after such a long time without one, It would be interesting to see if there are any benefits or not.
I'm gonna stay skimmerless for now but dont rule out the possibility of adding a skimmer at a later stage.

 

[leon]

could the fact that you use natural water and not synthetic, explain why its not made any noticable difference? Obv. that natural is way better than synthetic.

 

[Navarre]

its possible i gues. however i know that Steve at Coral Garden now advocates using a skimmer on a mud system.
Personally i dont like to use a skimmer with the natural water in case it removes the plankton that i am trying to keep in the system. A prizm is a good comprimise as its not the most efficient so its a definate underskimmer.