welcome!
there are LOTS of th DIY skimmer plans to be found on the web, some good, some not so good, very view will perform as well as a quality commercial brand like the remora (read the review article above). I think it depends on the size tank your are using and what you bio-load is.
as for the ocean water, I think that depends on your source of it. for example, I'd avoid it if you live in southern Louisiana. knowing what we dump in the Mississippi here in Missouri, I wouldn't want traces of that in my tank
that said, I know there are some in here that do use ocean water, hopefully they'll chime in.
as for the arguement about the necessity of a skimmer: I hate to be devil's advocate here, but I think its largely situacional and dependant on your tank size, its bioload, and your maintanence level. as much as I REALLY want one for my 20 gal, its problably not necessary as I am religious on weekly water changes. Its not that the skimmer wouldn't produce foam, I'm sure it would, but that the price of the skimmer would not out perform the organic removal of my water changes. the need for a skimmer also is going to be effected by the life in the tank. some things need those proteins to filter for food, some find those organics toxic. and again, it (the skimmer) will not lower levels of the big 3 (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) but will lower the concentration of chemicals that degrade into or that bacteria can eat and thereby produce the big 3. you really just need to know your tank life and find that critical balance between nutrition and toxin. ideally, the skimmer removes not all organics, just the excess. I have read the argument repeatly about "dirty" water causing corals to grow better. seems like an off argument to me. after all, if you over-feed your dog, it bets bigger (fatter) but thats not exactly a good thing is it?
same thing here, its finding that balance thats important. the skimmer is an efficient tool to helping you find that in your tank.
and as someone else said, if you think I'm off my rocker, please chime in! thats what forums are for
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Originally Posted by dbarrs Hello everyone I am a newbee at this and I wandering if there is a way to build my own skimmer or should I purchase a new one. Also I was told to use ocean water in my tank instead of the salt mix. Can someone let me know which way to go. Thanks. |