Cannot get rid of cyano!

[pseudonym]

Just re-read the study on bacterial populations and protein skimmers. It is even worse than I stated. We can't even say with any certainty that hydrophobic bacteria levels are increased. The exact conclusion is that there is an evolutionary preasure that will almost certainly result in increased populations of hydrophobic bacteria. In the words of the study:

"Aquaria subjected to active filtration via skimming present water column bacteria populations that are approximately 1/10 of those observed on natural reefs. The consequences of this disparity on the long-term health of the tank's livestock are not known. How do reef tank organisms adapt to such a bacteria-deficient environment? Is the whole food web in an aquarium perturbed, or are there compensatory mechanisms that maintain an appropriate energy transduction through all of the trophic levels? Is "old tank syndrome" related to possible nutritional deficiencies stemming from this bacteria "gap"? Alternatively, could "old tank syndrome" be symptomatic of a gradual decrease of bacterial diversity as a consequence of selective skimmer-based removal of only bubble-susceptible bacteria? At present, it is not possible to go beyond speculation on these points - further research is needed."