Getting started... 40G Breeder

[HopefulHobbiest]

I have a 40 gallon breeder in my garage that i haven't used yet and i've been thinking of setting up a SW tank.

couple questions...

is a 40G big enough?

is it exspensive to start a SW tank?

what would i need? currently all i have is the tank and a 3 piece glass lid for it.(may use an AC110 from my 125G FW after i get a canister but i also feel that would be way too strong)

best substrate to use?

i've heard of a Reef tank but still haven't really invested the time to research what it actually is, are there other types of SW setups? what are they?


i'll most likely have a few more questions later on so i'll post as they come to mind, thanks in advance for your assistance

 

[Bectan01]

I think a 40 breeder is an excellent first salt tank. You can set it up as fish only to begin and move onto corals later. To answer your question, yes saltwater can be expensive and is certainly more expensive than fresh. A few things to think about is filtration - many ways to do this, me personally have a 55g and use the live rock for my main type of filtration (I have a growing reef) I also use a good skimmer and two powerheads for water movement. I don't believe canisters are good for salt but I do know some people use them with success. I have a shallow sand bed and about 60pounds of live rock (purchased live which is more expensive but helps the cycle) you will need a saltwater test kit and a refractometer for measuring salinity, hydrometers work but not as accurate. The most important ingredient is your water, no tap water I am afraid. You can buy ro-di water from a LFS or make your own. Water changes are crucial, I do 20% weekly but you could do 10% or fortnightly. You can drop a lot of cash on lighting for a reef but not so much for fish only. I always think its a good idea to start fish only and 6months to a year later when you have stable water conditions and have the hang of it you can introduce corals. Slow and steady wins the salt water race. Oh, and research, plenty of research!

 

[54seaweed]

initial start up on a fowlr is aprox $500.

initial start up on a reef is aprox $1000.

most of your cost is rock and sub straight
light fixture
skimmer/filter
power heads
test kits
salt mix
heater
hydrometer
ro/di system
I'm sure I missed something

this is just a ruff draft to kind of give a idea nothing is set in stone

 

[HopefulHobbiest]

Oh wow. Thats quite a bit of information, looks good though lol I know ill have to Google some of the items you mentioned cause I have no idea what they are.

But this is definitely good enough to get me started with researching.

Thank you both for the help