First Saltwater Tank

[Mourinho18]

I'm still in the preliminary stages, but I'm considering setting up a 75 gallon salt water tank. I already have the tank but the current inhabitants are african mbunas im trying to get rid of. I was gonna do C/A cichlids, but I decided that I want to venture into saltwater.

Just curious as to what else I need. Protein skimmer i need, I want to do live rock too, and use a penguin 350 as a hot filter. Whats the affect of using live sand? and crushed coral? Anything I should know before I do anything?


What I basically want to stock it with are smaller, beautiful fish, which arent incredibly aggressive.

I heard that you should start the tank up with damsels since theyre cheap and hardy.


We've got a flamed hawkfish at my petco which I've got my eye on. Is 44 dollars a reasonable price to pay?


Feel free to add anything. Thanks

 

[Mourinho18]

with my discount, hes gonna cost 30 bucks by the way. 20 percent in store with another 10 i can scrounge up.

 

[Mourinho18]

Are there any sites with reasonable prices for equipment and fish with reasonable shipping prices too?

 

[Miles]

Just curious as to what else I need. Protein skimmer i need, I want to do live rock too, and use a penguin 350 as a hot filter.
Whats the affect of using live sand? and crushed coral? Anything I should know before I do anything?

Sounds like a good start.. Try to focus on having the HOT filter be for water polishing, and not as much biological. Live Rock is the best filtration you can have, as it breaks down fish waste as well as consumes nitrates. Live Sand or Deep Sand Bed also has a similiar effect. Crushed Coral is no good, use fine aragonite, as crushed coral will develop 'bad' spots in it over time which can release harmful gases.. Spend alot of your cash on live rock and a good skimmer, and some quality lighting if possible.. Nothing to intense, but strong enough to keep your Live Rock growing nicely. 2x48" Bulbs would get the job done, but it isnt required by any means..

What I basically want to stock it with are smaller, beautiful fish, which arent incredibly aggressive.

Alot of choices, again a good idea with that size tank.. You will get alot more diversity and color when choosing small fish for a larger tank. Adding alot of live rock will give them cover and make them more comfortable, and apt to come out.

I heard that you should start the tank up with damsels since theyre cheap and hardy.

Yeah they are good cycling fish, but then they get very aggressive, keep that in mind. Clownfish are in the same family, and can have a nasty disposition as well..

We've got a flamed hawkfish at my petco which I've got my eye on. Is 44 dollars a reasonable price to pay?

Always do your research first, and plot out your compatability later. Alot of fish are very hard to catch once they are released into a tank full of live rock, so you don't want to have to tear it apart just to remove 1 unwanted fish. As far as the cost, I am unaware of the market, but I would check your local saltwater shops first, as they sometimes offer higher quality fish at more reasonable prices.


Good Luck Bro! My advice is to start simple, Live Rock and Fish only.. be very patient and do things as slow as possible. Rushing things in saltwater tanks can only cause problems. You will learn alot as you go, especially since Saltwater is so diverse.. That is when you can start thinking about advancing yourself into reefkeeping..

 

[Mourinho18]

would it work if i used the crushed coral i have now, but broke it down to make it finer so that there wouldn't be any bad spots. Hope i explained that well enough. But thanks for the help miles. What would you suggest using as filter media for the penguin 350 i have?

In terms of stocking, the only real MUST have fish for me right now, is the flame hawkfish.

 

[guppy]

I have read that the banggria cardinals are very hardy, would they work as a first pair of fish for cycling?

 

[Mourinho18]

i was wondering if i could use the "fishless cycle" like in freshwater. would that work just as efficiently.


What i meant with the crushed coral i have, since i have about 20 lbs or so, is, could i crush that crushed coral to turn it into a fine substrate, and would that be fine. Then use live sand and place it on top of that.

 

[Miles]

If you can, return the crushed coral and get fine aragonite. Don't waste your money on purchasing live sand.. Some people claim it works, but most of the pet stores who carry it fail to realize their is an expiration date. I think its overpriced, and you are better off buying 2 or 3 bags of aragonite, and -1- or -2- lbs of live sand out of a LIVE TANK from a local reef shop. They should sell some to you if you ask..

I suppose crushing up that coral could work. One thing I have been told about corals and aragonites in saltwater tanks is you should not rinse them. Let the dust settle, as it works as added surface area for the many organisms that will live int hat sand bed. After bacteria begins to develop around the fine sand particles, they will become 'sticky' and not get blown around as much. I still would be careful of 'dead spots' developing in anything that is not a fine sand..

Cardinals are also a good choice for cycling. However, in the long run they are not very colorful or aesthetically pleasing IMO.. Fishless cycling is a great idea. I have seen alot of people just throw a raw prawn into the tank, and let it sit for 1 month. Also, Live Rock will help to cycle your tank to some degree. When the Live Rock is placed into a new tank, alot of organisms and bacteria will die off causing an ammonia spike, and then the live rock itself will eat that ammonia to re-establish the bacteria and organisms that had just died off. The combination of Live Rock and raw fish over a months period of time would be your safest bet. Some people combine that with chemicals such as Bio-Spira and Stability, as they help speed up the process to some degree..

Make sure you do research on each and every fish you buy.. That flame hawk might be cool now, but if come to find out later that he is limiting 90% of your other choices of tankmates, it will be a ***** to work around him or have to remove him..

For Filter media in the HOT, I would use just filter floss. Keep it clean, and change it regularly. Alot of people believe that you need tons of canisters and lots of Biological media on a saltwater tank.. The one thing they fail to realize is that detritus and bio-media combined with mechanical filtration just creates an explosion of nitrates over time.. While on the other hand, Live Rock will break down the waste and consume it simultaniously.

Also, when you are out purchasing your Skimmer and other goodies, take a look at investing into a few good powerheads. Current is very important in saltwater tanks, and you want to make sure you have no 'dead' zones. Detritus will build up on these areas, and can cause problems in the long run.. During your regular maintenance, use these powerheads to 'blow dust off' the live rock, to help keep it clean.. You don't want a build up of filth on your live-rock, as it will kill it. Also you want that current to be blowing accross the live rock, just like you would want current passing through your filtration media. When you clean off your live rock, you will be thankful you have that HOT polishing all the detritus it will put in the water column, and the current from the live rock will help keep it suspended so the HOT will polish the water.. The current from the powerheads will also keep organic waste suspended so the protein skimmer can produce more 'skimmate' aka green sludge.

Hope that helps!

 

[MaJiKTeRRoR]

If you can, return the crushed coral and get fine aragonite. Don't waste your money on purchasing live sand.. Some people claim it works, but most of the pet stores who carry it fail to realize their is an expiration date. I think its overpriced, and you are better off buying 2 or 3 bags of aragonite, and -1- or -2- lbs of live sand out of a LIVE TANK from a local reef shop. They should sell some to you if you ask..

I suppose crushing up that coral could work. One thing I have been told about corals and aragonites in saltwater tanks is you should not rinse them. Let the dust settle, as it works as added surface area for the many organisms that will live int hat sand bed. After bacteria begins to develop around the fine sand particles, they will become 'sticky' and not get blown around as much. I still would be careful of 'dead spots' developing in anything that is not a fine sand..

Cardinals are also a good choice for cycling. However, in the long run they are not very colorful or aesthetically pleasing IMO.. Fishless cycling is a great idea. I have seen alot of people just throw a raw prawn into the tank, and let it sit for 1 month. Also, Live Rock will help to cycle your tank to some degree. When the Live Rock is placed into a new tank, alot of organisms and bacteria will die off causing an ammonia spike, and then the live rock itself will eat that ammonia to re-establish the bacteria and organisms that had just died off. The combination of Live Rock and raw fish over a months period of time would be your safest bet. Some people combine that with chemicals such as Bio-Spira and Stability, as they help speed up the process to some degree..

Make sure you do research on each and every fish you buy.. That flame hawk might be cool now, but if come to find out later that he is limiting 90% of your other choices of tankmates, it will be a ***** to work around him or have to remove him..

For Filter media in the HOT, I would use just filter floss. Keep it clean, and change it regularly. Alot of people believe that you need tons of canisters and lots of Biological media on a saltwater tank.. The one thing they fail to realize is that detritus and bio-media combined with mechanical filtration just creates an explosion of nitrates over time.. While on the other hand, Live Rock will break down the waste and consume it simultaniously.

Also, when you are out purchasing your Skimmer and other goodies, take a look at investing into a few good powerheads. Current is very important in saltwater tanks, and you want to make sure you have no 'dead' zones. Detritus will build up on these areas, and can cause problems in the long run.. During your regular maintenance, use these powerheads to 'blow dust off' the live rock, to help keep it clean.. You don't want a build up of filth on your live-rock, as it will kill it. Also you want that current to be blowing accross the live rock, just like you would want current passing through your filtration media. When you clean off your live rock, you will be thankful you have that HOT polishing all the detritus it will put in the water column, and the current from the live rock will help keep it suspended so the HOT will polish the water.. The current from the powerheads will also keep organic waste suspended so the protein skimmer can produce more 'skimmate' aka green sludge.

Hope that helps!

 

[cabouta1]

great info miles, looking to start a 58 gallon saltwater tank. Already have the tank, just need to decide what it is I want.