Beginner saltwater questions for fowlr tank - filtration

fhawk362

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Oct 24, 2009
1,282
2
36
Royal palm beach, FL
So I set up a 100 gallon fish tank for salt water. I can't seem to figure out the difference in filtration for salt and fresh. Everything I read makes it sound like the only route is live rock. I have rock in my aquarium but its not live rock, will it become live once its been in there long enough? I also have a sponge filter and two hobs right now. I was wondering whats different about saltwater if its only a fowlr tank. What sorts of filtration should I avoid and which should I implement. I can't afford live rock, I live in FL and will be collecting the fish for the aquarium. Are sponge filters good, canister, hobs, or should I make a wet/dry? What type of media would I use, are spongies still effective?
 

ckcdrummer

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 21, 2012
1,062
0
0
CA
The rock in the tank needs to be seeded with live rock in order to become live rock so you have to get live rock and over time the rest of the rock will become live, and for filtration your best route would be a sump and protein skimmer, you could do a wet/dry as well if you wanted and I would stay away from canisters or HOBs cause they tend to become nitrate factory's not to mention they won't hold up long if you don't clean them constantly because the saltwater will destroy them.


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Nighthawk

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 1, 2007
259
1
0
In the woods
Yes, the rock in your tank will become 'live rock' as it matures. It would be great if you got a few pieces of 'cured' live rock to help the process. FOWLR means fish only with live rock. So, if you don't have live rock it's FO, fish only. You can use just about any filter that you use in freshwater for saltwater. I've been in the hobby 20+ years and have used just about every type of filter (except sponge filters). The big advantage of natural live rock is that most of it is porous and will allow anaerobic bacteria to grow deep inside of it which will turn nitrate into nitrogen gas.

Nitrate can also be removed by good ol' water changes. If you're not planning on keeping inverts a good canister and/or h.o.b. and water changes can be all you need. Keep the tank properly stocked and don't overfeed. A protein skimmer is not needed but I recommend one, even a cheap one. Especially if you plan on keeping invertebrates which are more sensitive to water conditions. A sump is also great to have but again it's not necessary.

Please keep in mind that this is only very basic information. You need to take into consideration what fish and/or invertebrates you are going to keep. Then research and ask more questions. When you know what you want to keep it will make it easier for you to find information and for us to answer questions.
Happy Fishkeeping
 

Inglorious

Piranha
MFK Member
Oct 27, 2010
2,214
29
81
Stuck inside my own head
I agree with pretty much everything nighthawk said, you can always pick up 80% of your rock "dead" and only 20% "live" that will cut down on the costs a lot and still have the same benefit in the end, it's just a bit slower process.
 
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