saltwater help!!!

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sal123

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Feb 16, 2009
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pennsylvania
ok i was thinking about setting up another tank this summer... only a 30 gallon. at first i was going to make it a freshwater community tank but now i was thinking about making it a saltwater tank....i don't know anything about saltwater setups so i have a few questions


would it be expensive to get it setup and to keep it running?
Best way to set it up?
stocking?
and maintenance?


thanks
 
I'm about to start my first saltwater tank, initial setup is more expensive but if you do FOWLR over all maintenance and upkeep doesn't seem much different.

As far as setup the way that most seem to agree on is having 1 - 1.5lbs of live rock fper gallon at about $5-$7 at most LFS which so far is the most expensive part of the setup, salt is relatively cheap and then some power heads to circulate water around the live rock is supposed to take care of the bio, the live sand that I have seen goes from $20-$30 for a 20lb bag and you'd want about 1lb per gallon.

The only part of the maintenance that would seem different is matching water specs when doing water changes and remembering that when doing top offs to only use non-salt water.
 
Saltwater fish-only tanks are not difficult at all in my opinion. I would cram that thing full of live rock (30+ lbs.) as it'll act as your main source of bio-filtration. I'd also look into an Aquaclear 30-50. I don't know what you're planning on stocking this with but I doubt you'll actually NEED a protein skimmer.

With that much live rock, and an Aquaclear packed with mechanical filtration, I would think you'd only need to do a 5 gallon water change every two weeks or so. However this all depends what you stock the tank with, how often you're feeding etc.
 
I would never do a SW tank without a skimmer IMO. You might as well get the skimmer and a good set of lights. Because, you WILL eventually get corals.. Mark my words, SW is not a hobby, it's an addiction, borderline sickness...
Spend as much as your budget allows to get a good skimmer.
If you can make an overflow and a sump too. (you can put the skimmer in there, gives more options for size and brand)
 
:iagree:

Buy the best skimmer you can afford. Other things to think about like and ro/di unit, heaters, temp controller, (your gonna want one if you ever have a heater fail and stay on) salt mixing tanks and ro water storage, what kind of tank you want to do will affect what kind of lighting you have to get. If this is going to be a fish only tank then t-12 bulbs will work, but i guarantee after you have the tank set up your going to want corals so look into metal halide and t-5 ho. Depending on where you live and your lighting you may need a chiller. If you have a reef tank then your going to want to look into a phos reactor, calcium and or kalk reactor. This list could go on forever you can spend a ton of money on just equipment. Just take your time and read up before you go out and set anything up nothing good ever happens in reef keeping when you rush it.
 
sal123;3063647; said:
ok i was thinking about setting up another tank this summer... only a 30 gallon. at first i was going to make it a freshwater community tank but now i was thinking about making it a saltwater tank....i don't know anything about saltwater setups so i have a few questions


would it be expensive to get it setup and to keep it running?
Best way to set it up?
stocking?
and maintenance?


thanks
Click to expand...

Well to be honest at first to purchase some of the filtration ex..Protein Skimmer's etc.. is a little pricey but shop around online look for clearance's and you'll save. the best way to set it up is first obtain your filtration and pumps heater and decide what you want a Fish Only With Live Rock ( FOWLR) or a reef setup then go from there. maintenance is easy after the tank cycle's mostly siphon out 5% every 2 week's or do a 15% twice a month. depending on what you decide then we can figure what will be your best beat and to help save your money. I would encourage you to buy the book The New Marine Aquarium step-by-step setup & Stocking Guide By; Michael S. Paletta. great book 137 pages easy step by step guide I think there about $15.00 well worth the money.

hope this helps you out,

Mr.Reef24

:)
 
a tank with a bunch of live rock and a decent skimmer would be all the filtration you really need

upkeep is about the same as FW + $2 a month for the salt

stocking would depend on a few things

community?
predator?
reef? (eventually)
 
well i found it quite simple and easy for my salt water 30 gal.. I did it with under gravel filter 2in of crushed coral a tidy and 1in of coral sand on top of that.. its working well so far.. for fish I would start with demsel fish. Its like putting gold fish in a regular fresh water.. after the chemistry is all settled it should be all smooth sailing after that. leave it running for a couple weeks though before adding any fish i forgot to mention that.. Good luck
 
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