What is a protein skimmer?

[ogre929]

cpr backpack ain't bad for a tank your size especially if you don't have a sump. If you're doing fish only that is. You'd need something more powerful if you were going to keep sps

 

[craig]

Remora is an excellent choice for a protein skimmer.

 

[jelly]

Excuse the ignorant noob question, I really am uneducated when it comes to salt.

My only exp. is freshwater.

From what I gather, this is an essential part of the filtration - what what is it exactly? What does it do? How does it work?

I'm thinking of trying a saltwater tank when I move, I'd just like to get a better idea about how things work.

I was surfing this forum for the same info, as I intend to setup a salty when I move as well. Great minds and all that

Would I need a skimmer if I was to keep a fish only setup. basically a 100gal with a few dwarf Lions (Fu man chu if I can find them) or a single Grouper. I need a marine monster

 

[Scuba Oz]

There are many choices out there for skimmers, Sump skimmers and HOT (Hand On Tank)skimmers. You say a 55g might be your salt setup when you move, If you are looking into a HOT style I would recomend a Remora Pro with skimming box. If you plan to have a sump I would look into an ASM. The ASM is the same as Euro Reef skimmers but at half the cost and Euro Reefs are known to be the best. The owners split up and one started his own company (ASM). The skimmers are designed the same and have little to no differences. HTH. Good luck with the move!!

 

[andywg]

I would say skimming is more important on a FO system as the bio-load tends to be much higher with the larger, more waste-producing fish. General advice for FOWLR systems is to skim at least twice, if not 3 times the recommended size for the tank.