how to go brackish?

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ahollland92690

Aquarium Advice Activist
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ok so i have a freshwater tank that's cycling right now, but just wanted a heads up kinda... if i wanted to do brackish water i know i add aquarium salt (it is aquarium salt right?) to my tank, but how do i go about doing that?

what is the process about turning freshwater into brackish water? with the right amounts or time frame???

im researching fish right now to decide on which ones i want to get so that i know if i need brackish water (mostly defiantly will need brackish BUT just in case)

by the way i like pretty fish, so if you have any fish in mind please feel free to give me their name and ill look em up....i know what guppies are ;) so im not talking about those. lol
 
it depends how big of a tank youre planning to get.
you cant go wrong with a nice tank with archers, monos and scats. but they will need a large brackish tank.
 
i agree with mfdrookie516. i didnt see your sig.
youre probably better off going with a simple tropical set up since this is your first tank. get your feet wet, learn the basics, then maybe move on to something more complicated like brackish.
 
whats different from tropical and brackish. because i know for guppies you have to have a little bit of salt, and it seems like everyfish out there needs a little bit of salty water mixed with fresh...so are there any jus plain fish that will live in plain freshwater that will fit my tank size lol idw a huge like catfish in my tank lol
 
I think you have been given some poor information.
First. Brackish tanks aren't as easy as just adding a pinch of salt here and there. In order to keep a healthy brackish aquarium you will need to constantly monitor and maintain the specific gravity of the tank. Even simple evaporation can cause a change in the SG of the tank. While brackish fish tend to be pretty tolerant, it is best to maintain the proper brackish SG. On top of the SG, brackish fish have different needs in regards to water parameters. (PH, KH, etc) as well as temp and diet in some cases.
To put it simply, it is quite a bit more work to maintain a brackish aquarium, and migh not be the best way to get started. But if you're willing to do the research, get the proper equipment, and put in the work, more power to you.

Also, I'm not sure who told you that tropical fish need salt added to their tanks, but this is not true at all.

There are many options to stock your tank, it really depends on what you're in to.
 
I think you have been given some poor information.
First. Brackish tanks aren't as easy as just adding a pinch of salt here and there. In order to keep a healthy brackish aquarium you will need to constantly monitor and maintain the specific gravity of the tank. Even simple evaporation can cause a change in the SG of the tank. While brackish fish tend to be pretty tolerant, it is best to maintain the proper brackish SG. On top of the SG, brackish fish have different needs in regards to water parameters. (PH, KH, etc) as well as temp and diet in some cases.
To put it simply, it is quite a bit more work to maintain a brackish aquarium, and migh not be the best way to get started. But if you're willing to do the research, get the proper equipment, and put in the work, more power to you.

Also, I'm not sure who told you that tropical fish need salt added to their tanks, but this is not true at all.

There are many options to stock your tank, it really depends on what you're in to.
+1...
also a side note, aquarium salt and marine salt are totally different. You can add aquarium salt to a tank with guppies, but they definately dont require it. The only reason i would see a need to add aquarium salt would be for treating ich along with heat... but that in itself is a well argued topic around the fish keeping community
 
thats soo strange, i guess you really cant trust your lfs. thats where i got this informtion and it was not from a human being, it was off one of those little care sheets on the end of the isles. the one for guppies said that they needed aquarium salt....but iv been doing research for a while today and found alot of fw fish that i like, but just to get straight cuz idw mess up lol:
in a fw tank i can do:
swordtails?
fresh angles?
Discus?
killifish?
loaches?
mollies?
plecos
snails
these are just some that i have looked up using this website: liveaquaria.com
theres a list there for fw fish, just wana make sure the site is right so that im heading in the right direction
and i know some of these dont get along with others so before purchase i will look up adult sizes and compatibility charts.
 
o i also saw a fw clam somewhere on that web site and thought that would be cool to have...maybe
 
discus are very sensitive fish, i would not recommend them for your first fish, and i think they require a bigger tank too... most loaches get too big for your tank... Angels also need a bigger tank. Swordtails, platies, mollies, cory cats, dwarf gourami, something along those lines... Plecos are nasty and get too big as well, plus usually do more harm than good. Snails are fun to watch, i have malaysian trumpet snails and mystery snails... Keep in mind, these are just ideas, if you like some of these awesome, if not, post some other ideas. Liveaquaria is a good place to look, they have a ton of fish to choose from
 
ya i like the snails, i only suggested plecos because the suck to the sides of a tank and help clean algea...i think lol... im pretty sure theyr cleaner fish, unless i was told wrong on that too lol. i do know there is a morph where the plecos will stay small but those are really really expensive. so i guess ill stick to snails for cleaners lol. unless there are other kinds of fish or nonfish thing that helps with the cleaning? that you could name and i could look it up.
 
corydora catfish are a good bottom feeder... they wont clean algae, but as long as you dont keep the lights on too much and feed too much, you wont have algae :) I love cory's, they are soo neat to watch... and snails will clean too
 
discus are very sensitive fish, i would not recommend them for your first fish, and i think they require a bigger tank too... most loaches get too big for your tank... Angels also need a bigger tank. Swordtails, platies, mollies, cory cats, dwarf gourami, something along those lines... Plecos are nasty and get too big as well, plus usually do more harm than good. Snails are fun to watch, i have malaysian trumpet snails and mystery snails... Keep in mind, these are just ideas, if you like some of these awesome, if not, post some other ideas. Liveaquaria is a good place to look, they have a ton of fish to choose from

+1
 
If you want an algae eater, for your size tank, I would suggest Otocinclus. They are small & do a good job of cleaning up green algae. They are however, a bit tricky to keep (poor stocks mostly), so I would suggest having them only after your tank is established.

Snails are fun to watch, but they don't really do too good a job in glass cleaning. <Actually, I find a scrubby & elbow grease the best algae cleaner of all!>

For your first tank, livebearers are hardy & easy. <Mollies, Swordtails, etc.> If you want to try something more challenging, by all means research
the fish & maybe post some more ideas.
 
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