Tank without...fish?

[Rotten Peaches]

Hello everyone. I'm new here and to the hobby in general. I have an empty corner in my living room that is just begging for some aquarium beauty!

I've always admired salt water tanks because the fish/rocks/plants are just beautiful. That said, I've never, until now, had the time/money/space to join the hobby.Well, now I kinda do.

The thing is, I don't really want to mess with maintaining a tank everyday. I don't really have time and some days I don't even make it home. That said, I'm really interested in a salt water aquarium without fish (feeding 2-3 times a day).

I don't know much about the intricacies of this hobby, but it made sense last night when it hit me. If all I had were pretty corals and plants, would the tank not be able to thrive with relatively little maintenance? Changing water every few weeks or adding chemicals/"food" 2-3 times a week is no big deal. What I want to avoid is the routine feeding schedule generally associated with fish.

I'd like to reiterate that I have next to no idea what I'm talking abut when it comes to stuff like this so I could be way off. I tried to google my idea but I mostly got links to fake plants and decorations; no real information. So here I am, asking the experts, is it possible? If so, what do I need to be cautious of? Am I wrong about the maintenance requirements of fish?

I'd appreciate any input you're willing to contribute. Hopefully I can become a fellow hobbyist!

 

[Mebbid]

There are tons of nano and pico reef owners on this forum with nothing but some inverts and corals in a 10g or less tank and they are every bit as nice looking as some of the larger tanks. As for fish requiring a lot of maintenance, as long as they get fed once every other day or so they are perfectly fine.

Regardless of whether there are fish in a tank or not a saltwater tank really should get approximately a 10% water change weekly. If you keep a 5g bucket of saltwater with a heater and something for circulation this could be done easily in 5-10 minutes on a small tank.

 

[Dubs1281]

Salt water tanks require much attention either way. Live corals can be a pain to deal with sometimes. And require more attention then 2-3 times a week. Also I think your idea is neat, but what happens when someone else sees the tank, is interested, goes over there to look at it but you see no fish. The tank would be more complete and even beneficial with some fish. It would be good to have some easy careing fish. Such as damsels or chromis.(both spelled wrong I assume). Or if you want to and do something really cool, you could create a self sustainable ecosystem. But if I would suggest something, go freshwater. You can get really cool plants and fish cheaper and easier. But whatever you want is really up to you.

 

[Rotten Peaches]

There are tons of nano and pico reef owners on this forum with nothing but some inverts and corals in a 10g or less tank and they are every bit as nice looking as some of the larger tanks. As for fish requiring a lot of maintenance, as long as they get fed once every other day or so they are perfectly fine.

Regardless of whether there are fish in a tank or not a saltwater tank really should get approximately a 10% water change weekly. If you keep a 5g bucket of saltwater with a heater and something for circulation this could be done easily in 5-10 minutes on a small tank.

10g seems a bit small, even for the corner in my living room. I don't want a huge 200g tank but I figured something between 30 and 50 would look "right" in the corner. I will go check out the pico tanks though, they sound neat.

The weekly water change is doable, not as infrequent as I'd hoped, but doable. What kind of inverts are commonly kept in a tank like this?

 

[Rotten Peaches]

Salt water tanks require much attention either way. Live corals can be a pain to deal with sometimes. And require more attention then 2-3 times a week. Also I think your idea is neat, but what happens when someone else sees the tank, is interested, goes over there to look at it but you see no fish. The tank would be more complete and even beneficial with some fish. It would be good to have some easy careing fish. Such as damsels or chromis.(both spelled wrong I assume). Or if you want to and do something really cool, you could create a self sustainable ecosystem. But if I would suggest something, go freshwater. You can get really cool plants and fish cheaper and easier. But whatever you want is really up to you.

I thought about the ecosystem idea but decided I was FAR too inexperienced to even know where to begin.

As for coral maintenance, what makes them so intensive? The whole idea was sparked based on how pretty and colorful saltwater tanks are. I don't recall ever seeing a freshwater tank that was nearly as colorful.

 

[dmolavi]

I'm going to wait until my 56 gallon FW tank has run it's course (probably another 4-5 years based on the lifespan of most of the fish I have), before turning into a reef only tank. I might toss a couple fish in there, but I'd like it to be more of a coral showcase.