How to adjust skimmer to be optimal

Shark888 · 01/31/2018, 01:15 PM

Hello,

I have a newbie question, I just noticed that I can adjust how fast the skimmer can add the bad water to the top cup... lol so if someone could tell me what is the best, get the bad water to the cup fastly or slowly work best ?

I have added some pics of my skimmer, its a bubble magus new qq and my tank is 25G.

Scott07 · 01/31/2018, 01:43 PM

Hi there, this is something you'll find many different opinions on. Filling the cup more quickly is commonly referred to as skimming wet, and filling it more slowly as skimming dry. Personally i prefer my skimmate, the stuff that collects in the cup, a bit darker than what you have in your photos. Currently its close to the color of breakfast tea or medium dark coffee. Of course some of what determines the color of the skimmate can have to do with what's going on in your tank. For example an algae bloom or cyano outbreak.

flooddc · 01/31/2018, 01:47 PM

It's up to individual preferences. Wet skim, dry skim or in between.
But I believed most reefers do run between dry and somewhere in between.
Wet skim will collect more water and you need to empty more often. Also, your tank salinity drop as more saltwater were collected.
Play with your skimmer, you want to get that rich dark coffee color in the skimmate.

I personally run mine dry. I empty and clean my collection cup every 2-3 weeks. Mine is normally muddy and very little water in it.

01/31/2018, 01:43 PM	#2
Scott07 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 384	Hi there, this is something you'll find many different opinions on. Filling the cup more quickly is commonly referred to as skimming wet, and filling it more slowly as skimming dry. Personally i prefer my skimmate, the stuff that collects in the cup, a bit darker than what you have in your photos. Currently its close to the color of breakfast tea or medium dark coffee. Of course some of what determines the color of the skimmate can have to do with what's going on in your tank. For example an algae bloom or cyano outbreak. __________________ 65 gallon mixed reef Good maintainence and husbandry is a cumulative effect, not a single event.

01/31/2018, 01:47 PM	#3
flooddc Registered Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: Maryland Posts: 304	It's up to individual preferences. Wet skim, dry skim or in between. But I believed most reefers do run between dry and somewhere in between. Wet skim will collect more water and you need to empty more often. Also, your tank salinity drop as more saltwater were collected. Play with your skimmer, you want to get that rich dark coffee color in the skimmate. I personally run mine dry. I empty and clean my collection cup every 2-3 weeks. Mine is normally muddy and very little water in it.