Thinking about a salt tank- talk me out of it, please.

lujor

Feeder Fish
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May 8, 2007
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I have been getting an itch to try salt water in the near future. I know the price tags are bigger. I am thinking totally from the standpoint of level of difficulty and hassle. One of my main concerns is what will happen if I want to go on vacation? Do I haveto have someone that knows what they're doing come take care of tank? Can I automate enoughstuff so that I can leave for a week (like auto top off & feeder)? Just in my "thinking-it-through" stage, so advice is appreciated. Thanks.
 

Heathd

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Mar 9, 2010
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lujor;4416413; said:
I have been getting an itch to try salt water in the near future. I know the price tags are bigger. I am thinking totally from the standpoint of level of difficulty and hassle. One of my main concerns is what will happen if I want to go on vacation? Do I haveto have someone that knows what they're doing come take care of tank? Can I automate enoughstuff so that I can leave for a week (like auto top off & feeder)? Just in my "thinking-it-through" stage, so advice is appreciated. Thanks.
Sets your lights on a timer, have an auto top off with a bucket large enough to last for the week you are gone, automatic feeders can be used depending on what you are feeding. What is really going to make or break your success while you are gone is reliable and solid filatration.
 

lujor

Feeder Fish
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Heathd;4416494; said:
Sets your lights on a timer, have an auto top off with a bucket large enough to last for the week you are gone, automatic feeders can be used depending on what you are feeding. What is really going to make or break your success while you are gone is reliable and solid filatration.
I usually don't skimp on equipment, especially filtration. I don't know much about daily maintenance and water chemistry monitoring/adjusting. I occasionally need to be able to leave town for up to 9 days. Don't want to invest the money if it is going to greatly restrict my lifestyle (other than financially).
 

BTB0923

Candiru
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I don't think there is any part of saltwater tank maintenance that can't somehow be automated. That being said, I still wouldn't want to frequently leave for 9 day spans without a tank sitter. More automation=more parts that could fail and require tinkering. If you are only gone occasionally you should be fine if you have everything set up correctly.
 

BigO6687

Jack Dempsey
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Mar 23, 2010
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VLDesign;4419378; said:
If you are already wanting to be talked out of it then you know deep down it's not going to work out.

I ran salt for a few years and it was a huge pain in the ass and I simply do not miss the water change ritual needed to do it.
skimmer + algae scrubber = less wc

container + water + prime + salt + powerhead to send the water into the tank = wc

what method did you use if you don't mind my asking?

btw whats that in your avatar its awesome
 

FLESHY

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Jan 7, 2006
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First off...a properly ran SW tank is really no more work than a fresh tank. There are two main differences.

Top offs need to be more regular because they affect salinity. AND
You need to add salt to your water when you do water changes.

They are no harder than freshwater tanks other than that.

Leaving may be easier or harder depending on what you want to keep. I would say that a reef tank with a auto-topoff could EASILY be left for a week maybe more depending on stocking levels and what kind of fish you had.
 

Heathd

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If he had a reef with auto dosers/reactors, full probes, ato, mature fuge, etc he could easily leave it for two weeks. But now you are talking about more money being spent on equipment then livestock, which i know some people do.
 

VLDesign

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BigO6687;4422266; said:
skimmer + algae scrubber = less wc

container + water + prime + salt + powerhead to send the water into the tank = wc

what method did you use if you don't mind my asking?

btw whats that in your avatar its awesome
Always use a skimmer on Salt is my opinion too.

Container + water + prime + salt + mixing pump is what I used too but on a very large salt tank (1000 gallon system) this made the water change task very much a pain in the rear. Multiple 55 gallon trash cans were needed just to hole the new water. But, Now with my 1500 gallon fresh its just prime + water straight into the tank. Soon to be auto fill or continous drip.

And that's a Coral cat shark.
 

VLDesign

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FLESHY;4422662; said:
First off...a properly ran SW tank is really no more work than a fresh tank. There are two main differences.

Top offs need to be more regular because they affect salinity. AND
You need to add salt to your water when you do water changes.

They are no harder than freshwater tanks other than that.

Leaving may be easier or harder depending on what you want to keep. I would say that a reef tank with a auto-topoff could EASILY be left for a week maybe more depending on stocking levels and what kind of fish you had.

Lol that one difference is the exact reason why it is in fact more of a pain.. I'm sorry but adding prime and water straight into the tank is no where near the same as fill a temp container with water, add prime, add salt, mix, then put into tank.
 
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