wanting to do salt water with tons of questions

[bald57]

I have wanted to get into salt water aquiriums for a very long time but have tons of questions. I know aquirium stores are in it to make money so I have decided to ask the best people I know these questions.

I have a 30 gal tank that at this time is being used for freash water fish so here is some question.

What is the best type of salt to use?
How much would I need for a tank this size?
When mixing is it advisable to make more than is needed and store the rest for top ups and water changes?
How much time in advance should I mix up the salt and water .

Will stop here for now. Do have more questions but will ask them later.
Thanks in advance.
Bill

 

[jjamontan]

As for salt I use instant ocean as do lots of people on this forum. When mixing salt it is about a half a cup per gallon of fresh water. I would only mix the amount of water that I need. You do not use saltwater for top off. When water evaporates the salt remains in the tank. When mixing water for my water changes I mix for at least 24 hours.

 

[bald57]

is that brand sold in all LFS? I live in Alberta, Canada so not sure if that is sold here.

 

[Phranque]

What is the best type of salt to use?

Which is better, Ford or Chevy?? You will get a wide variety of answers on this one. And are you wanting to keep fish only or get into reefkeeping?

How much would I need for a tank this size?

I would buy a bucket of salt, which with most brands will make about 175 +/- gallons. You will need enough for the initial fill, a complete change after the cycle is complete, and that will leave you enough for later water changes...... plus the larger buckets are considerably cheaper per gallon than the smaller packages.

When mixing is it advisable to make more than is needed and store the rest for top ups and water changes?

Absolutely..... except for top-offs, you want to use fresh water, since evaporated water leaves salt/minerals behind. I keep about 20-25 gallons mixed at any given time in a Brute trash can.

How much time in advance should I mix up the salt and water .

Some people say overnight, some say a full day....... so 12-24 hours ahead of time with a small powerhead for circulation and a heater to have it at temperature.



It could be included in one of your later questions, but I'll address it now..... you do not want to use tap water to make saltwater. You will want to use what's called RODI (reverse osmosis deionized) or distilled water. Tap water has way to many bad things in it.

 

[bald57]

I have been told by the LFS that "sea salt reef crystal is a good type as well.

 

[bald57]

I think I am leaning towards a fish only but haven't made up my mind totally. For a newbee, what seems to be the trend.

 

[bald57]

when first starting out, does the salt water have to be at a temp of 78, or will it be okay to mix it up, put it in the tank and let the tank heater bring it up to temp

 

[jjamontan]

I think I am leaning towards a fish only but haven't made up my mind totally. For a newbee, what seems to be the trend.

Lots of people start with FOWLR, I started with the plan for a reef and knew nothing about how to do ether one lots of time on YouTube and this forum. Reef tanks get more expencive but IMO look much better and the posibilitys are endless.

 

[mr_X]

when first starting out, does the salt water have to be at a temp of 78, or will it be okay to mix it up, put it in the tank and let the tank heater bring it up to temp

Yes. Without any livestock in the tank you can put the water in cold and let the heater heat it.

 

[Crystal A]

I put my water in the tank already mixed and let it come to temp in the tank.

 

[Jake337]

when first starting out, does the salt water have to be at a temp of 78, or will it be okay to mix it up, put it in the tank and let the tank heater bring it up to temp

It doesn't have to be 78 when your mixing the saltwater but the warmer it is the easier the salt dissolves. Just make sure the water in the tank gets to the 78 range once you start out.

 

[kdpuffer]

Where in Alberta are you? I'm an albertan and will happily help answer questions. If you start with a fowlr tank then any salt mix is good. Once you have a reef you need a better mix. I know big ALS has big buckets of salt on sale right now (in Edmonton anyways). How are you planning to cycle? Do you have live rock yet?

 

[bald57]

I live just half way between lethbridge and calgary. I have been in big al's in calgary and there is a place in lethbridge called tropical fish importers.
I plan on doing fowlr. I haven't done anything at all yet. Just wanting to learn as much as I can and make sure I have all my ducks in a row before I do anything. Being new, I want to take it slow and do it right the first time. My tank is 30 gal with two good hang on filters and a 500w tank heater with the lighting that came with the tank. I have read that they should be ok.

 

[kdpuffer]

They should be ok, I recommend going onto YouTube and searching for BRStv. They have a very good video set on how to start a salt water tank.

 

[Mr. Crabs]

Welcome to the addiction Bill. First thing I would do is to replace the 500watt heater with a 100 watt heater. Reason being, if it ever goes bad, which it will eventually, it will fry your fish VERY FAST. A 500 watt heater is a massive overkill for a 30 gallon tank. Generally 2-3 watts per gallon is the recommended size. Some even get 2 heaters (say 2 50 watters) to avoid the possibility of failure even more.

30 gallon is a good size to start. The going saying is "as big a tank as you can afford". Bigger the volume of water, the more room for error and additional stability for the creatures you keep. Stability is important. Salt in a fish only tank is not all that important when it comes to brand. I use Instant Ocean. Works fine. Tap water is "ok" for fish, depending on what you have in it, but it is VERY important to use some sort of dechlorinator like Prime to remove chloramines from it.

The important thing is to go slow. Mix the saltwater to give you a salinity of about 1.025 measured with a hydrometer. The big floating glass hydrometers are good and affordable. The swing arm styles are a bit less accurate and tend to become moreso over time.

Temperature wise 75-79 degrees is where you want to be and I would opt for sand and live rock (or base rock if cost is a factor) over crushed coral or gravel. 1-3 inches of sand on the bottom of the tank is good and if you are not using a protein skimmer, it is important to do bi weekly water changes around 20% of the total volume of the tank. I am a big fan of running carbon in the filter as well.

It is crucial to GO SLOW when it comes to adding fish. The tank needs to cycle in order to establish beneficial bacteria that can process the fish waste into unharmful nitrate from ammonia. Think of the fish as living in a toilet. The cycling process takes about 4-6 weeks. I don't advocate this, but many cycle the tank with A damsel to get the process going. I like to use a decaying frozen shrimp to start it.

A 30 gallon tank can generally hold 3-5 smaller fish. Clownfish, pygmy angels, cardinals, grammas, and damsels are some of the types that work well in a small tank.

Hope this helps. Good luck.