Convert reef tank to freshwater?

[Jamie D.]

My dad is upgrading his 75 gal reef tank to a 180. He's offered to give me his 75 when that happens sometime next year. He already has the new tank, just needs to get it up on the new stand (a job in and of itself) and move everything over.

I'm curious as to how difficult it would be to get the salt out of...well, everything. The tank of course, but then there are the hoses and the sump too. And whether I'd even want to use a sump on a planted freshwater tank - I've been reading conflicting things about that.

It seems like kind of a big job, but also...free upgrade to nearly double my current tank volume (this would replace my 38 gal.).

Any advice or thoughts, yay or nay? Has anyone here done this before? Am I overthinking this, as usual?

 

[Colin_T]

Salt is easy to wash out, just use tap water. You can take things apart, carry them outside and rinse off under the hose.

Sumps work well on fresh, brackish and marine tanks. They offer extra water holding, a place to put the heater and filter, and you can put sick or injured fish in them. Some people keep shrimp or plants in them.

If you want African Rift Lake cichlids, then a sump is a great thing to have. The Rift Lake cichlids like lots of hiding places and that means rocks. The rocks displace a lot of water and having a sump helps to add some water and compensate for what you loose due to the rocks.

You don't need a sump and the choice is yours. But if it's free, don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

 

[emeraldking]

And even if there's a bit of salt left in the tank, it won't hurt in a freshwater tank. When I use salt for my freshwater fish, I also use marine salt.

 

[Jamie D.]

Salt is easy to wash out, just use tap water. You can take things apart, carry them outside and rinse off under the hose.

Sumps work well on fresh, brackish and marine tanks. They offer extra water holding, a place to put the heater and filter, and you can put sick or injured fish in them. Some people keep shrimp or plants in them.

You don't need a sump and the choice is yours. But if it's free, don't look a gift horse in the mouth.

I like my plants too much to do an all cichlid tank, but I did not know you could put sick or injured fish in the sump...I could see that being very handy on occasion. And the filter's built into it, I'd just have to replace the media. I just read in a couple places that a sump could pull too much CO2 from the water in a low tech tank, and make it harder to grow plants (I have no desire to go high tech). But if that isn't the case, that could be a handy setup.

And even if there's a bit of salt left in the tank, it won't hurt in a freshwater tank. When I use salt for my freshwater fish, I also use marine salt.

That eases my mind a lot - somehow I thought they were different. Getting all the salt out of a tank that large might be a challenge (just because it's not like I can pick it up and tilt it to empty it), so that does make me feel a lot less anxious about the whole thing.

Now I just have to convince my husband that it won't be *that* much bigger than the 55 stand I currently have the 38 on (I'll tell him how much that setup is worth, which might help). And also find a temporary spot for the smaller tank to run while I get the new one cleaned out and 'scaped, which is a whole 'nuther issue.

Thanks to you both!

 

[Colin_T]

Trickle filters and sumps are regularly used on plant tanks. One of the first Optimum Aquarium plant tanks I saw had a trickle filter under it.

All my plant tanks had lots of aeration and a high oxygen level and the plants did fine. There is sufficient carbon dioxide in aerated water for true aquatic plants to grow. A good quality liquid aquarium plant fertiliser will make more difference to the plants than carbon dioxide.

 

[Jamie D.]

Trickle filters and sumps are regularly used on plant tanks. One of the first Optimum Aquarium plant tanks I saw had a trickle filter under it.

All my plant tanks had lots of aeration and a high oxygen level and the plants did fine. There is sufficient carbon dioxide in aerated water for true aquatic plants to grow. A good quality liquid aquarium plant fertiliser will make more difference to the plants than carbon dioxide.

Great info- thanks! I have an HOB filter on my current tank (it's sized for a 55), and I have it running at about half-speed so one side has decent flow, and the other is calmer for my honey gourami. My plants are doing pretty well with that, but I really need to get my fertilizer game on (to deal with algae too, from what I've been reading recently).

I have a bottle of fertilizer. The trick is remembering to use it.