Fresh Water To Salt Water.

[dalewatkinson]

hello guys ive got a tank with my mbuna in but we are wanting to move them out and have this tank as a salt water tank. ive no idea where to start apart from shipping the buna out. what sort of things will i need. i hear alot about skimmers. but ive no idea what they are. would the water thats in now be ok if i just add salt and play with the ph.??
anyway any tips would be great thank you

 

[VictorMeldrew]

first off you need to read the pinned topics, thats what everyone told me, it does help, also check out the journals, you can learn loads from them, have a look at mine when you are there

 

[SkiFletch]

Agreed. And make sure you have a browse through some major online retailers like liveaquaria.com or saltwaterfish.com to get an idea of what sort of livestock you want to keep. Livestock choices ultimately dictate hardware choices and challenges (or lack thereof) to keeping the system

 

[dalewatkinson]

ok i will ask my g/f what fish she wants thought im pretty sure that a clown fish. and lion fish of some sort. the tank is 190 litre (uk) i have had a look around. so would i have to take out all the stones and the pebble base ? and start with new water? i see that this may not matter as i have never used any treatments. the tank already has power heads as part of the extrunal pump. sorry its just all the pins are good but its still pretty tricky to pick up. we dont want coral, so i dont think we will have to play with lighting. so just need to know what to do after we get rid of the buna. i.e
1 take out gravel
2 change water or just add salt? of course checking the salt amount with tester..
3 get live rock.

sorry to be a pain guys

 

[cynos]

ok i will ask my g/f what fish she wants thought im pretty sure that a clown fish. and lion fish of some sort. the tank is 190 litre (uk) i have had a look around. so would i have to take out all the stones and the pebble base ? and start with new water? i see that this may not matter as i have never used any treatments. the tank already has power heads as part of the extrunal pump. sorry its just all the pins are good but its still pretty tricky to pick up. we dont want coral, so i dont think we will have to play with lighting. so just need to know what to do after we get rid of the buna. i.e
1 take out gravel
2 change water or just add salt? of course checking the salt amount with tester..
3 get live rock.

sorry to be a pain guys

empty and clean tank
Add water(preferably RO water) and salt mix
turn on powerheads(I think you need 10x water turnover for FO)
wait till al salt is disolved and test salinity with Refractometer, adjust accordingly
add live sand/aragonite/whatever you choose
Add live Rock
test parameters
add fishies

 

[SkiFletch]

A quick FYI, clownfih and lionfish are not long-term compatible. Eventually the clown will be a meal...

 

[dalewatkinson]

ohhh ok cool thanks alot, now i know i dont need the skimmer. the tank i have is a fluval 190, with all the canister pump and so on that comes with it. glad i dont have to spend loads on stuff other than live rock and fish. cool thanks for your help.

 

[xxBarneyxx]

ohhh ok cool thanks alot, now i know i dont need the skimmer. the tank i have is a fluval 190, with all the canister pump and so on that comes with it. glad i dont have to spend loads on stuff other than live rock and fish. cool thanks for your help.

lol I would look at the price of LR before you get your hopes up. managed to blow £100 yesterday just on some sand, base rock and a small powerhead.

 

[dalewatkinson]

yeah should get something for the buna tho, so can i use the old rocks i have in there ? if i put live rock in there will life grow on the old stuff i had for the buna.? thanks for all your help by the way, how much rock would i need for a tank that size. its a corner tank away from the window and heater so its pretty stable.

 

[norite]

Mate, you're better off getting rid of EVERYTHING except the tank. Start from a completely clean slate. The external cannister filter can be kept, use it for activated carbon and phosphate remover - remove the bioballs. Go to your lfs, have a look around, talk to the staff. Buy books, do some research on the internet, READ, READ READ!

 

[VictorMeldrew]

Yep read and read and most of all, take your time, no rush, waiting is part of what makes it special for me, when you finally progress, i feels pretty good and knowing you are doing things the right way makes it even better. GL

 

[dalewatkinson]

hmm if i do any more reading my head is going to pop. so much info. nothing is easy. but it is life we are playing with i guess. and is going to be worth it in the long fun. cheers guys and gals.

 

[xxBarneyxx]

Yeah its a lot to take in and when your reading things it probably wont all make sense right away. However once you actually get started all of it will click into place and you will be much better able to set up a successful marine tank.

As mentioned the stickys are a good start then go through the marine journals to see how everyone else has done it.