Would you turn OFF your skimmer

I'm doing an experiment; I'm stopping my skimmer 12 hour per day, to see if my sponges 13 of them will pick up the slack. What do you think.



I'm trying to determine the best time slot for it.



First the context; Its a hight nutrient tank, because of its inhabitant;



Its LPS dominated

85 corals +



12- gorgonians

4 NPS

13 sponges ( they pump 50 gallons an hour altogether)





Then i have a huge display refugium for which i have to dose suppliments for the macro's to live. The system need a fair amount of nitrates and phosphate for the macro's to survive or they die, i did loose my first batch of macro becaues my skimmer really too efficient cleaned the water so well nothing was left to create nitrates lol. My skimmer is rated for a 300G and i have a 150 G reef and a 75 G display refugium for a 230 G system with 65G sump that's with all the water and rocks taken into account.







$195 worth of macroalgaes gone. So maintaning a 0.5ppm nitrates is perfec for the size fuge i have 75 Gallons display refugium for my 150 gallons reef tank. And the phosphate at 0.47 ppm as well if not i loose my red algaes. I have 37 different species, in there this is not a chaeto caulerpa fuge, its a display and pleasant fuge with good specimen.









So why do i want to shut down. i've noticed my sponges have started to starve. i red a few good article on their feedings and bacterias is their primaty sources, phyto the second. Since they pump 24liters or 5 gallons per day per square cm that a lot of water, i've calculated with the sponge matter that i have that my system is being pumped at a rate of 50 gallons /hour so not enough nutrients are going throught them. I dose every day mind you but if simply turning my skimmer 12 hours can help these guys survive. And i must tell you my water in the morning is cristal clear. because no feeding all night and filtration is done so many times during the night and by them and the skimmer.







So this is my thinking, if i can reduce the mechanical filtration for the sponge to take over they may survive better, but what would be the best time is my next question. My first reflex would be day time since i feed and dose during the day.







So Off daytime ?

ON night time?



Please vote and leave me a comment about what you think about the whole thing thanks for your time.



Their' a few vis about people who run tanks without skimmers but i'm not there yet....