I need some tips for starting my first saltwater tank

[tutusandunicorns]

Hello everyone!
I plan to start a saltwater tank within the next year, but I want to do all the research I can before I start as I know it will be difficult to maintain (at least compared to my 10 gallon betta tank).

Things I want to know:

-Good fish for beginners
-Compatibility of fish (I found a lot of fish that seemed like they would be good for a beginner, but I have no idea if they will thrive in a tank together)
-I'm looking for fish that don't require the feeding of much live food as I live in a big city away from the ocean


Advice anyone?

[MCluett]

For an idea of which fish are best for beginners and if they are compatable or not you should have a look at www.liveaquaria.com . they have a listing of fish best suited for the beginner and there should be all the specs on what they eat, water temperature, there temperment, and there should also be a chart to see there compatability. Hope that helps and if you have anymore questions dont hesitate to ask, you will all the answers you should need on AA

Matt

[divedeep1689]

alot of people will start of with damsels they are the goldfish of saltwater imo they are compatible with clowns ime some say they fight a little at first ,tangs, royal grammas, and blennies but i wouldnt get a tang as a first fish not the easiest to keep fish as for the live food why did you say live near ocean? you wouldnt want to get live food from a ocean that could introduce all kinds of diseases into your tank most people buy brine shrimp eggs ofline and start a small brine tank to feed live food but most people skip the live food all in general. i just recently started doing it alot. most people just feed flake foods. how big of a tank are you planning i wouldnt go below a 30 gal small tanks in saltwater are a everyday job of keeping check.

[tutusandunicorns]

thanks for your advice!

I plan on a 50-70 gallon depending on the fish that I end up getting.

[mtlion]

That size tank is a good size to start with, you shouldn't have any problems with water stability in a tank that size. Get one as big as you can afford/accommodate you will kick yourself in the future if you don't!

[divedeep1689]

great tank size mine is a 55 wat about a sump tank will you be having one of those? i highly recomend you do

[tutusandunicorns]

well I had never heard of a sump pump before, but I am reading a little about it and so far getting the general idea and it definitely sounds like something that would be usefuL!

[divedeep1689]

a sump tank and fuge can be a very usefull addition to any aquarium the sump hides all your tank equipment and hardware and th fuge is a great place to grow macro alage to help keep your nitrates low look up some pics of sumptans and refrigums