How Easy Can You Convert Me To Marines

[superman1]

hello all

i currently have been reading through few journals and topics and would like some info

i currently have a 240litre fresh water tropical and would like to change it over to marines provided it doesnt cost me an arm and a leg

from what i have read am i right in thinking i could start off by keeping the external filter and running it with treat water so that i can keep marines. and as money comes in i could then start investing in power heads and liverock.

is this right. im guessing i will need speacial coral sand to start off with.

but am i right in thinking this is the basics. once the liverock is established i can remove the filter.

or would it be better to start off with maybe a nano to build up my knowledge and experience as a 240 litre could be costly.

thanks

 

[bagu]

hey!

you would need Protein skimmers, a sump would be good for a tank that size and other bits and bobs. But the live rock is needed by fishes and coral, it is the actual filter for them. Ive seen people run externals with the live rock in the tank; you could just save up a bit and invest in some live rock?
And as strange as it seems, Nano's are alot harder ad can be more costly than a larger tank! although you would need more LR for a larger tank, nano reefs can be effected drastically with a small change in params, in a larger tank you have more time to act and its effect might not be as bad!

Sorry if i put a dampener on anything ^^

 

[youngfisher]

Agree with above.
Wow, bagu you really know your things.
I think you would benifit from doing a marine also!

YF

 

[Trod]

Hi,

Yes, you could run a fish only (FO) set up, You could buy ocean rock, for decoration, which is a LOT cheaper than LR and continue to run your external filter. You don't need special sand, Aragonite sand would be fine Treated tap water is also fine for a FO set up.
I haven't had any experience of FO tanks so wait for someone else to come along with more advice

Now having said all that, if you want to go the LR route I would recommend that you do that from the start, it will be a lot easier to get the LR in your tank and cycled before any fish go in there, If you look around you can find some pretty cheap LR

Think about what is your ultimate aim, If you just want to keep fish, then the FO option is fine, if you want to go for the full Reef set up, then I would go the LR route and just take it slowly.

SO whats your thoughts on that

 

[superman1]

wow i didnt actually know that. personally i am only after a FO set up as i like the idea of having a few nemos and hermit crabs n snaills.

ive seen ocean rock at my local fish shop which gives the same effect as live rock.
only thought live rock was essential due to that acting as a filter.

because i already have the filter set up and cycled seems a waste if i would have to remove it.

ok so going by the information above i could potential invest in some live rock. change my gravel to sand put fish in and water and hey presto i could have marine fish.. is that correct?

because im not going for corals or live rock is the lighting essential as currently i have 4ft double 40watt tubes in at the moment. will that need to be changed.

im currently pricing up the equipment. but yeh i understand how nanos are harder as its similiar with freshwater. more water to dilute.

personally i was only looking to have about 5-6 fish in my 4 ft and a some snails and maybe a few sea stars and hermit crabs. so as far as water parameters are i should see much problem with them.. is that correct?

dont worry bagu. you havent put a damper on anything. if anything im more excited.. lol

i think that would be the best route for me to have the origional filter and to start off with ocean rock and not LR and go for just a FO set up.

but if i did want to go down the LR route wouldnt it be possible to just run that along side the filter untill the LR is established.

am i right in thinking that Powerheads and lighting and sump are for a set up that includes corals. as i am just interested in a FO set up will that mean i dont need rest.

Thanks

you have been alot of help guys

 

[Trod]

wow i didnt actually know that. personally i am only after a FO set up as i like the idea of having a few nemos and hermit crabs n snaills.

ive seen ocean rock at my local fish shop which gives the same effect as live rock.
only thought live rock was essential due to that acting as a filter. Yes, you only need LR if you have no other filter

because i already have the filter set up and cycled seems a waste if i would have to remove it. Exactly

ok so going by the information above i could potential invest in some live rock. change my gravel to sand put fish in and water and hey presto i could have marine fish.. is that correct? Well nearly, but nothing is ever as simple as that if you are having some LR then you will need powerheads too

because im not going for corals or live rock is the lighting essential as currently i have 4ft double 40watt tubes in at the moment. will that need to be changed. The lighting would be fine, fish don't mind about light

im currently pricing up the equipment. but yeh i understand how nanos are harder as its similiar with freshwater. more water to dilute.

personally i was only looking to have about 5-6 fish in my 4 ft and a some snails and maybe a few sea stars and hermit crabs. so as far as water parameters are i should see much problem with them.. is that correct? I think that would be fine, as long as the fish aren't that big, or messy eaters, what are you looking at?
dont worry bagu. you havent put a damper on anything. if anything im more excited.. lol

i think that would be the best route for me to have the origional filter and to start off with ocean rock and not LR and go for just a FO set up. Go for it

but if i did want to go down the LR route wouldnt it be possible to just run that along side the filter untill the LR is established. Yes many people run external filters with LR
am i right in thinking that Powerheads and lighting and sump are for a set up that includes corals. as i am just interested in a FO set up will that mean i dont need rest. Yes, as far as lighting and sump are concerned they really aren't essential for a FO set up, not sure about powerhead though, as I would have thought some movement would be necessary, but wait for someone else to confirm that one.

Thanks

you have been alot of help guys You are more than welcome

 

[superman1]

ok well ive been checking up on prices on the internet and have been looking at the warehouse aquatics site and i have found a 25kg box of 10-20cm pieces of ocean rock at £38.89 would this be sufficient for a 4ft tank. with 45cm height

and also found:

Oolite Coral Sand 24kg £15.50
Seachem Silver Shores Substrate 10kg £23.89
TMC Coral Gravel Fine Grade 25kg £17.89
Seachem English Meridian Substrate 9kg £24.89

also what kinds of salt is best

http/warehouse-aquatics.co.uk/marine/sal..._79.html?p=shop

currently i have a spray bar at one end of the tank so am assuming that this can act as a powerhead and im thinking i could add a power head on the other side.

in a 4ft what kind of lph am i looking at.

im currently looking at a blue luminair to change from the current white and purple one i have.

does that sound good so far

which would be best?

 

[superman1]

sorry forgot to mention.

im after a pair of clown fish (obviously)

a clean up crew of maybe about 8 mixed snails

maybe about 4 dwarf blue hermit crabs

and maybe an emerald mithrax crab

and maybe a red sea urchin

was also looking at butterfly fishes

this is what im interested in at the moment.

also a royal gramma baslet n maybe a school chromis

 

[Trod]

ok well ive been checking up on prices on the internet and have been looking at the warehouse aquatics site and i have found a 25kg box of 10-20cm pieces of ocean rock at £38.89 would this be sufficient for a 4ft tank. with 45cm height Yep thats a good starting point, you can always add more if needs be

and also found:

Oolite Coral Sand 24kg £15.50 This would be fine, I recently added 24 kg to my 5ft tank and it was more than enough
Seachem Silver Shores Substrate 10kg £23.89
TMC Coral Gravel Fine Grade 25kg £17.89
Seachem English Meridian Substrate 9kg £24.89

also what kinds of salt is best This is all about personal choice, I use Tropic marin, others use D&D H2O, Instant ocean is also fine

[URL="http/warehouse-aquatics.co.uk/marine/sal..._79.html?p=shop"]http/warehouse-aquatics.co.uk/marine/sal..._79.html?p=shop[/URL]

currently i have a spray bar at one end of the tank so am assuming that this can act as a powerhead and im thinking i could add a power head on the other side. That sounds like a good idea

in a 4ft what kind of lph am i looking at. 15x flow rate should be fine in a FO set up

im currently looking at a blue luminair to change from the current white and purple one i have.

does that sound good so far Sounds good to me

which would be best?

 

[superman1]

ok well i think first things first is i will need to sell off my tropical fishes and decor to make way for my new project.

hopefully that will help pay for the change over.

this will be a birthday present to me.

any more help would be greatly appreaciated.

so now that i know the basics i will study and do research on it all religiously.

i will start a journal to let you know how that all goes.

does the fish recommendations sound good.

 

[Trod]

Can't see any problem with the fish

Research is the fun part of starting up.

Look forward to your journel, keep us up to date on your progress

 

[superman1]

THANKS ALOT...

yeh its quite exciting. will definately take my time with it though. want to do everything properly.

btw am just curious.

the sea salt is obviously to keep the saltinity at a certain level.

does water changes need to be similair to tropicals and if so does salt need to be added with each water change as it seems like water changes will be fairly expensive.. lol

 

[Trod]

Yes unfortunately salt can be rather expensive If you can invest in a 25kg bucket this will be more economic in the long run.

When you do water changes, you must heat and mix salt to the same as the display tank.

Get a large bucket, add water, heater and powerhead, heat to desired temp. usually around 26c to 27c then add salt to bring your sg to same as tank, between 1.024 to 1.026. Then leave to dissolve and mix for around 24 hours then you should be ready for a water change.

Again the frequency of water changes depends on tank. I do 20% on a weekly basis. But some people will do a larger one on a bi weekly or monthly basis

Can't comment on tropicals as I know nothing about them at all

 

[kj23502]

because i already have the filter set up and cycled seems a waste if i would have to remove it.

If it was cycled w/fresh water you'll have to recycle. Bacteria colonies are different freshwater vs saltwater.

edit-- adding more info

Just chuck a frozen shrimp in a mesh bag and put in your saltwater w/you filter running. The shrimp will start to decay and start the cycle. The mesh bag is to make it easier to pull it out when you're done w/it. Otherwise it'll fall apart if/when you try to pick it up.

 

[kj23502]

does salt need to be added with each water change as it seems like water changes will be fairly expensive

Yes you need to mix it up for each water change. However, you can keep the specific gravity at say 1.021 instead of the 1.025 or 1.026 that most do for a reef set up. that will save a bit in salt. In fact some lfs keep their fish tanks at a lower sg to save on cost (but they keep their coral tanks at 1.025 or 1.026).

Have you decided what you're going to measure the sg with yet?

Having a powerhead as well as they spray bar will be good. It aids in oxygenation as well as keeping it natural for the fish. there is always some current going on in the ocean. I have frequently read of clownfish surffing powerhead currents