I'm sorry, I split the topic. We were very off-topic and I really felt that the original intent of the thread was getting lost in what was, IMO, a complete misunderstanding in both parties. If you two want to continue the discussion on dsb, a very controversial subject in which there are many diverging opinions even among celebrated scientists, then I'll restore the material and put it in a new thread.
IMO, Xraymark, depends on the size of the tank. For I'd say 20g or less and you're not employing a sump, refugiums are very handy at nutrient export and can offer multiple functions. For larger tanks, skim away... That being said, if you don't want stuff hanging off the tank. If you really don't want that.
Put macro in your display. You'll get the nutrient export and you wont' have to deal with either a skimmer or a refugium. Macro can be very successfully incorporated into a display tank if you take some precautions such as added surface agitation.
Thank you.
L