Future 55 gallon plans

[jhawk__]

My parents finally agreed to let me get a 55 gallon. I've been going back and fourth on if I should make it saltwater or freshwater.

I've learned so much about freshwater on the forum and now know how to properly go at taking care of a freshwater tank.

I've never done saltwater before and have no clue on care or anything. Would I need a sump? (Don't know what a sump really is) Do saltwater tanks require a different filter than freshwater? How do I do water changes ?!

I know saltwater is much more expensive but money isn't a problem , but over the past few months, I've also realized I can create a beautiful freshwater tank as well. I've figured out tons of new fish I can stock instead of the typical guppy or tetra.

I don't know anything about corals, plants, or fish for saltwater.

I think saltwater would be a fun challenge, but a freshwater tank would be a fun and easy build to enjoy.

Will Someone please chime in and give me some basic info and care on saltwater tanks so I know the gist.

THANK YOU

 

[brennae]

Yes you would need a sump. It usually sits in the stand or on the floor and its like a filter for your water. I tried salt for a year. I found it too hard. It takes much longer to establish the tank it seemed to me. Maybe go on the saltwater forum and get some opinion from some salty aquarists?

Also something to consider, a salt tank can weigh a lot more than fresh planted due to all the live rock.

 

[brennae]

Here's a picture of a sump I had.

 

[jhawk__]

Yes you would need a sump. It usually sits in the stand or on the floor and its like a filter for your water. I tried salt for a year. I found it too hard. It takes much longer to establish the tank it seemed to me. Maybe go on the saltwater forum and get some opinion from some salty aquarists?

Also something to consider, a salt tank can weigh a lot more than fresh planted due to all the live rock.

How do I set up a sump? I think I'll post another thread about this in the saltwater getting started area also.

 

[brennae]

Honestly my friend set all my stuff up for me. You need a pump which you can buy at a hardware store, an overflow box and some hoses. I also had a protein skimmer. You put live rock in the sump and you can also put a refugium on which has marine plants to filter the water. Better to ask someone on salty forum. I've shared about all I know. LOL

 

[jhawk__]

Honestly my friend set all my stuff up for me. You need a pump which you can buy at a hardware store, an overflow box and some hoses. I also had a protein skimmer. You put live rock in the sump and you can also put a refugium on which has marine plants to filter the water. Better to ask someone on salty forum. I've shared about all I know. LOL

Lol, alright! I have no idea how to do any of that. Maybe I'd be better of to stick with freshwater on the 55 and do a nano reef in the future so I wouldn't need a sump lol.

 

[brennae]

there are some beautiful freshwater fish. If you want a real challenge and money isn't an issue then try discus. Tropic Fish Hobbyist magazine has a monthly discus column that I read and find interesting even though I don;t keep them. They come in a large variety of colors and really like planted tanks.

 

[jhawk__]

there are some beautiful freshwater fish. If you want a real challenge and money isn't an issue then try discus. Tropic Fish Hobbyist magazine has a monthly discus column that I read and find interesting even though I don;t keep them. They come in a large variety of colors and really like planted tanks.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking! Maybe a few discus or cichlids or angelfish! I've never kept any of those fish before what would be a good stock list for a freshwater 55 gal?

 

[brennae]

angels are really nice, I have kept them before. They are fairly easy to take care of as long as you don't have any fin nipping fish like bettas in with them. They come in a variety of colors. Discus need a higher temp than a lot of fish, so you would need to take that into consideration with your stock list. Off hand I don't know what would work with them. Consider doing a biotope aquarium? You could do a south american biotope with angels, hatchetfish and some tetras and corys.

 

[jhawk__]

angels are really nice, I have kept them before. They are fairly easy to take care of as long as you don't have any fin nipping fish like bettas in with them. They come in a variety of colors. Discus need a higher temp than a lot of fish, so you would need to take that into consideration with your stock list. Off hand I don't know what would work with them. Consider doing a biotope aquarium? You could do a south american biotope with angels, hatchetfish and some tetras and corys.

I was thinking for a future stock list :

2 Checker Board Discus (mating pair)
2 White Blushing Angelfish (mating pair)
4 Yellow Peacock Cichlids
6-8 Tiger Barbs
6-8 albino Cory's
1-2 albino plecos


Would this stock list work or would the cichlids rip the angels and barbs apart? On live aquaria is said the peacock cichlids are only semi aggressive and the angelfish and barbs are also semi aggressive.

Also, would this be overstocked ?

 

[brennae]

Have you tried running this list through this site?
AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor
Its really good. It lets you know stocking percentages and if your future filtration is big enough etc.

Mating pair of fish can get aggressive so I am really not sure about mixing peacocks, angels and discus.

Check out long finned panda corys. They're cute!

 

[jhawk__]

Have you tried running this list through this site?
AqAdvisor - Intelligent Freshwater Tropical Fish Aquarium Stocking Calculator and Aquarium Tank/Filter Advisor
Its really good. It lets you know stocking percentages and if your future filtration is big enough etc.

Mating pair of fish can get aggressive so I am really not sure about mixing peacocks, angels and discus.

Check out long finned panda corys. They're cute!

I know for sure I want discus and cichlids, and I figured since discus are a little pricey, I could go ahead and buy a mating pair and sell their offspring to eventually make a profit.

 

[Corrupt_Tiki]

It's quite hard to make a profit on breeding fish imo, not worth the effort.

Also, Discus fish need very good water quality. So if you were hellbent on getting some discus fish into your tank, I'd say design your tank around them, and pick tankmates to suit them. Also discus don't handle very turbulent water, and the Cichlids may harass them to death.

And, angels and tetras should not be kept together, tetras (for the most part) can be quite bad fin nippers. Cichlids can uproot plants, and Cichlids tend to be very aggressive towards their own species. (The majority also prefer very different water properties compared to amazonian fish such as Discus/Angelfish.)