Protein skimmers are a staple of the reefing hobby and today we are going to talk about what they do, how they work, and if they are required to be successful at reefing. We'll cover advantages and disadvantages of different skimmer designs and brands as well as tips on how to select the right skimmer for your tank, maintenance, and what we selected for the BRS160. When it comes down to it, we are polluting the tank every day with foods and sometimes other additives that we add to the tank. Some of these things will be consumed by fish, corals, crabs, basically most of the living organisms in the tank. The net result of all these biological processes pollutes the tank with unwanted nutrients like phosphate and nitrate, among other unwanted pollutants like yellowing color pigments, odors, and toxins. In a vast majority of cases a huge amount of the food added to the tank doesn't get eaten by the fish and it is broken down into these unwanted elements by bacteria and other processes. Really the easiest way to control the nutrient load in the tank is by controlling how much food we add to the tank. However, feeding the tank is half the fun of owning it and most people desire a large volume of fish. Proper nutrition is at the core of fish and coral health. Proper feeding and low nutrient, low toxin water kind of seem to be at odds with each other. This is where protein skimmers come in. they are designed remove organic compounds before they fully break down into the unwanted nutrients and reduce the need for water changes. For instance if we can remove half of then uneaten fish food, fish waste, and decaying matter in the tank like algae, bacteria and organic particulates we can probably cut our water change schedule in half as well. *Legal Stuff* The purpose and content of this video is to provide general information regarding the products and their applications as presented in the video. Aquatic sales solutions, inc. And its officers, directors, employees and agents disclaim all express or implied warranties, in any way, related to the products and their application as presented in this video, make no representation or warranty regarding the products and the application as presented in this video and shall not be liable for any direct or indirect losses or damages of any type, including but not limited to punitive damages, or from personal injury or death resulting from or in any manner related to the video, and the products in and contents of the video. The viewer expressly agrees that aquatic sales solutions, inc. And its officers, directors, employees and agents shall not be liable for any damages or losses related to the products in and content of the video and hereby agrees to hold the foregoing harmless from any such losses or damages.