[Marine1]

Hi all. I am fairly new to SW fish tanks (less than a year). I have a 55 gal FOWLR.

I was wondering; how often should I be cleaning the filter or sponge in the protein skimmer (the square piece in the tank where the skimmed water exits through back into the tank)? It has a white sponge on the bottom and a black sponge for the side much like the black sponges that come with many powerheads to prevent critters from getting sucked through the powerhead.

I have a Coralife needle wheel 65. It does okay. I never get a whole lot of skimmate in the cup; probably a half inch or less. I do weekly water changes and empty and clean the cup (rinse w/ water) during these water changes. I haven't rinsed the sponges in a while, so I decided to do it today while I conducted a water change. Now it is producing more skimmate, so I wonder should I be rinsing the sponges every week?

Also, I have another question or really some advice needed. I have a 36 galbow front and I was thinking of making it a SW tank possibly a nano reef to house my two perc clowns and some coral and an anenome.

I was wondering if any of you could give me your ideas on what you would do with a 36 gal bowfront. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

[gimmito]

I think you answered your own question regarding cleaning your sponge once a week. That's what I do with mine. Eventually, I would upgrade the skimmer to a asm, euroreef, etc.
As for the bowfront...2 clowns and an anemone will give you many hours of enjoyment. I would wait 6-9 months before adding an anemone. After that try getting a tank raised bubble tip anemone...they are one of the more hardier anemones. As for corals it depends on what type of lighting you have...you can pretty much keep anything under T5's. Checkout Scotslights.com for some good deals on slightly blemished fixtures.

[Marine1]

Thanks for the help. Yah I realized that I pretty much answered my own question right after I posted it.