Salt or fresh water help me decide.

[patron253]

Ok so I have been taken care of my sons 12 gallon fish tank, he has cichlids fish in there, anyways I enjoy it and ive decided to put a fish tank in my man cave, Im looking to get a 55 gallon-70 gallon corner aquarium.

Im not sure if I should go fresh or salt water, im still new to fish tanks and im dont know what kind of species of fish there are for fresh and salt water. This is what im wanting for my fish tank.


I like "rare fish" Anything I do I like to go big, so I want rare fish weather I have to buy them online or find them local I would like for them to be rare, I also Would like to have a nice size shark in my fish tank ( so i assume I have to go salt?) I have seen small shark for fresh water so im not sure if there is bigger.

I also dont like to feed fish with fish food (flakes) I would like to keep it all natural and feed my fish with feeder fish. I also want nice sized fish I dont like a bunch of small fish. I would like 12"+ fish. I also am into more of the aggressive fish Like the cichlids fish are pretty dope. Im just wondering if there is fish like that, that get bigger and more pretty for salt water. I also like fish that swim in schools, like if you have 4 of them they will stay together.

Is there a list of fish species for both home fresh and salt water I can read up on the different fish that would help me alot to decide what i want.

Thanks for any information and help. This is going to be a fun hobby and im looking forward to it, and i want it to be perfect lol.

 

[bribo12]

To keep 12"+ fish in sw you will need a much much larger tank. Think 2-300 gallons for the smallest shark species. Liveaquaria has a huge inventory of fish and recommended tank sizes, I'd start researching there


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[patron253]

There are no mini sharks that grow 12-24 inchs long?

 

[MICEY]

salt water is better for someone with experience, sharks are one of the hardest fish to keep and a 75 gal corner tank is much to small and the wrong shape
fresh water sharks are not really sharks
there are tons of colorful fresh water fish , but I would not start out with rare fish , learn with common ones
feeding fish feeders is usually not a great idea unless you raise your own , most feeders from fish stores are sick and have parasites
there are lots of live food to feed your fish , like earthworms, shrimp
a 75 gal tank would only fit 1-2 large fish, a Texas cichlid would be a great first
large fish , they will eat almost anything and are not sensitive to water conditions as much as many other fish(best to keep ph and nitrites under control)
there very colorful and have a great personality , there like pets
wait a few years to start with salt water and maybe 10 years for sharks
if you buy anyfish for fresh water that is called a shark do your research , most of them get huge 2 feet or more and need a much larger tank
any large fish is going to require a really good filter and weekly or more water changes , if you decide to feed feeders they can get expensive when they eat half a dozen at a time each a few times a week
and almost all fish would be happy eat freeze dried krill and pellets very few fish need to eat live fish
I have been raising fish for over 50 years and the only fish I could not get to eat anything but live fish was a red snake-head(there illegal now in many states in the USA
I feed many of my fish fresh squid, shrimp, clams , and mostly pellets
most cichlids love meal worms and earth worms

take your time and learn how to care for your fish right then go for rarer fish
I raise mostly the most common fish they are common because they are easier to care for look great and people love them
a 75 gal corner take with fresh water angels in it and a few clown loachs (5) would look great

 

[patron253]

Thanks for the advice, Im looking for that wow factor when people look at my fish tank.

 

[MICEY]

you get much more wow with live fish than dead ones
2 10" severums that come up and kiss your fingers are plenty of wow and they come in many colors , some are even rare , they are the poor mans discus just as nice but cheaper and a lot easier to keep and they don't kill everything else in the tank like many large fish do, if there to big to eat they usually leave it alone