thinking about taking the plunge into SW

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liquidelusion

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Jun 24, 2004
Messages
69
Location
adelpi, MD
i have an extra 10 gallon tank laying around my apt. i was considering turning into a small SW tank with some live rock and some inverts. i think 10 gal would prolly be to small for fish.
any advise for me? what kind of filter should i get? i have a whisper 40, but ive heard those suck, so i am not sure if i should get another one or not. also, do i need a skimmer for a small setup like this?

anything else i should get besides a heater? i have test kits that are for both SW and FW, so i should be set on that.
 
I wouldn't recommend a 10gallon to a new SW person. SW has more variables to worry about, and most discussions I've seen say nano tanks are for experiences SW keepers, not the novice.
 
thats true, i have also heard that before. but what it comes down to is that i live in apt with no room and will be here for a while probably. so i wanted to start a small one, with minimal life to keep it easy and give me some practice
 
its good that you realize that it would be nearly impossible to keep substantial livestock in a tank so small. i know that what malkore said is probably true, but my first salt tank was a 10 gallon too. on mine i had a simple penguin 125 HOB filter (yes, whisper does suck), 50 W visi-therm titanium heater, and a BakPak skimmer. i would def. just stick to inverts tho, maybe try some of the more exotic shrimps or some hardy LPS, like mushroom or leather corals. (since this is your first experience in salt!)

my biggest advice to you is to NEVER neglect water parameters!!! esp salinity- a little evaporation can do a number on salinity in a small tank. make sure you give your tank lots of time to cycle and use plenty of LR and LS for added filtration. also, dont skimp on your equipment. a heater that goes haywire can be far more devastating in a small tank than in a large one.

my 10G nano has been operating happily and without incident for years now, despite the fact that everyone told me i would never suceed with such a small first tank.
 
I've never had a SW tank, just FW but I felt like reading this. A person down here in my city is setting up a 2.5 gallon nano and has been successful. I think that is cool. Just wondering can there be anything smaller, like a one gallon?
 
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