Starting a saltwater tank

[Jay jay]

What do I do? Right now I have a freshwater tank. What do I need to get it ready for salt?

 

[Bectan01]

Empty it, clean it, throw all your fresh water stuff away and buy a good salt water reference book! Read on here the stickies on how to set up a tank. Each set up is different so you will need to decide what you want to keep first. How big is it? Research is the key, salt can be time consuming and certainly more expensive than fresh so if you rush it you could be wasting money. It's very addictive and hugely rewarding when you get it right

 

[TommyP]

yeah man. Just be careful and don't rush ANYTHING. I wasted so much money because I was impatient. You'll need lights/ skimmer/ tank/ sand (unless you wanna do bare bottom which actually looks pretty cool)/ rock/ circulation pumps/ power strip/ timers/ a sump if you want to do that. It adds up but totally worth it. If you have time - skim through my page for Tom's 55g and just see...

 

[TommyP]

Oh, and salt. You'll need test kits/ buckets/ airline tubing (to drip acclimate fish.coral.inverts)

 

[TommyP]

You also need to use rodi water. So you need an RODI machine which is around $150 but it's cheaper than buying water at the store over time. And a refractometer

 

[Jay jay]

Wow there's a lot I need

 

[Jay jay]

I useing a 10 g tank to learn

 

[Bectan01]

Yup! Loads to learn and lots to spend. If you serious about taking the plunge I highly recommend a bigger tank for starting off. Smaller tanks are actually harder to look after and you could spend similar sorts of cash on the set up as say a 29. I started with a 55g and almost instantly wished i had gone bigger! Very addictive and totally rewarding

 

[Bsnow0410]

Hey man I'm new to saltwater too and yea the bigger thing I've learned over the past month is just be patient. I already wasted some money on dumb things but you live and learn. I'm starting a 20 gal long tank and bought the filter and stuff but wished I just woulda Waited and got a sump but ill be upgrading everything as I go.

 

[TommyP]

I useing a 10 g tank to learn

Honestly, Jay. A 10g is a really nice tank when it's done right but since it's so small the parameters are harder to keep under control. I started with a 10g as well. You can only have maybe 1 small fish and some snails and stuff. Freshwater is different than salt. You can't put 5-6 sw fish in a 10g tank. It's a different world. I'd recommend to go big or go home. I found a 55g and stand on craigslist for $100. Look for some good deals. Wait it out.

 

[TommyP]

Not saying a 55 is big - put perfect to begin. I wish I went bigger though. I wanted a yellow tang and a powder blue and regal.

 

[Weaver]

I started with a 29 two years ago, thats about as small as i would recommend for saltwater. Just a couple months after starting the tank i upgraded to a 75. I would say about 50 gallons is where the fun possibilities begin. What kind of saltwater critters were you considering in this adventure?

 

[Jay jay]

It will be a long time before i do this. I have 2 tanks but there freshwater tanks. Is there a diff in tanks? To start off I wanted a clown fish.