Protein skimmer break in

Can I break in my skimmer in a bucket with salt mixed water?

 

why ? if you dont have you tank setup wait till it is set up. then just add it. if you tried it and then put it on your tank/ system it would just have to break in or ajust it again.
never heard of that idea before i think you would just be wasting your time.

 

break in of a reactor like a phosban or something, yes in a bucket (two makes it easier). this is more so to break in the MEDIA within.

with a skimmer you just plug and play and let it break-in. theres nothing in it that could be damaging or harmful to the tank (obviously rinse it when you get it in from shipment)

 

This thread is confusing. You don’t break in media (tho you can rince it)….and a skimmer will be just fine attached to your system.

 

The "seasoning" of a skimmer is done in th emain system as its a slime or bacteria coating you need that is not available in a bucket of water. You need a live system and it can take up to a couple weeks or more to really get it dialed in.

 

Sure. Probably not necessary, though. Some people recommend running the skimmer briefly in some FW to clear away any oils/grease/debris from manufacturing.

True 'break-in' will only occur once skimmer is in your system, and then can take a while, over which time you'll go from no skimmate to wet skim to a good dry foam.

Hope this helps!!

 

Thanks

Thanks everyone for your input. I was considering the bucket break in because I have read that it can take up to three weeks for the bubbles to diminish from this skimmer (Marineland Marine Pro 300). I was thinking that I could take advantage of the time waiting for my tank to arrive for the break in to reduce the micro bubbles.

So - I will do the bucket break in, but with water removed from my water changes.

 

Fyi

Just a FYI on what I did.

• Ran the skimmer for two days in a bucket of RO/DI water.
• Ran the skimmer for two weeks in water taken from my tank at water changes.

Result is no micro bubbles when I installed the unit in my new system. So I believe the process was worth the trouble.