I'm interested in going with a salt water tank. My current setup is a FW 75 gallon tank with a Filstar XP2 Canister Filter. Is this enough to have a SW tank without coral, just fish and rock? Or do I really need a Skimmer? I would like to make it as painless on my wallet as possible. But if it is not possible, what would you reccommend as far as hardware? Such as, would I need a sump as well as a skimmer? Any help would be great. Thanks.
New to Salt water
- Thread starter jgsketch
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
haus
Aquarium Advice Freak
A skimmer is not required but is reccomended. A sump wouldn't be needed if you have a good canister filter. The expense will come with the substrate and LR. You could get base rock and a few lbs of LR, but you should get about 1-1.5lbs per gallon. Do you already have any power heads? You will need good water flow. There are a lot of little things that can begin to add up. Hydrometer, test kits, salt, etc. You can upgrade over time, but if you have the tank and filter already, that will definitely reduce start up cost.
seaham358
Aquarium Advice Addict
SW is not a cheap hobby and cost more the FW....
Like haus states a skimmer is not needed but reccomended, without a skimmer you will be doing more water changes to help keep the water quality of the tank.
Sump or w/d are not needed but they add water volume to the tank which helps keep things stable and they are a good place to hide ugly heaters and skimmers.
LR is very important to a tank so save up the $$ needed and get at least 1 lb per gallon or go with what haus says about using base rock w/lr.
Stay away from crushed coral and go with a sand bed.
Going cheap in the beginning will IMO only cost more money in the long run so save up and get the things needed to do it right the first time and you will be happy you took your time.
Like haus states a skimmer is not needed but reccomended, without a skimmer you will be doing more water changes to help keep the water quality of the tank.
Sump or w/d are not needed but they add water volume to the tank which helps keep things stable and they are a good place to hide ugly heaters and skimmers.
LR is very important to a tank so save up the $$ needed and get at least 1 lb per gallon or go with what haus says about using base rock w/lr.
Stay away from crushed coral and go with a sand bed.
Going cheap in the beginning will IMO only cost more money in the long run so save up and get the things needed to do it right the first time and you will be happy you took your time.
Thanks for the advice. My main concern was being the huge cost of getting new equipment. But I have no problem buying more items over time. I can start early with the test kits and salt before I start my tank. Thanks.
lando
Aquarium Advice Addict
As mentioned, LR is going to be the biggest expense. For good biological filtration you will need 110-150lbs. There is some ways to save money. Check out www.liverocks.com for some of the best aquacultured LR around. They are in FL so if you are close enough to drive there you can save money on shipping. Many people actually start with a mixture of LR and dead base rock. Over time, the LR will seed the BR and you will have all LR. Check out www.hirocks.com for some good base rock. A 50/50 ratio would be good. You do not need to buy expensive sand from the LFS. Check out local home improvement stores for an aragonite based play sand. It makes a good substrate. Only about $5-$8 for a 50lb bag. You can use your exsisting canister for mechanical/chemical filtration. Rely on the LR for biological filtration. Your canister will also provide some flow. If you plan things out and start buying the dry goods now it will have less impact on your wallet.
Similar threads
