I Am A Newbie When It Comes To Saltwater!

[Neomeris]

Okay. First, ignore the three dots by my profile. That is all freshwater knowledge in my head. I am a newbie when it comes to salt. I am considering getting a salty tank. (see the link in my sig. for how you can help with ideas) Tell me what I need to know about salt water. I do not understand what you mean when you say stuff like "nano protein skimmer" and "specific gravity". Please explain, and please make considering a salt water tank less scary.

Neomeris

 

[ALW]

Okay. First, ignore the three dots by my profile. That is all freshwater knowledge in my head. I am a newbie when it comes to salt. I am considering getting a salty tank. (see the link in my sig. for how you can help with ideas) Tell me what I need to know about salt water. I do not understand what you mean when you say stuff like "nano protein skimmer" and "specific gravity". Please explain, and please make considering a salt water tank less scary.

Neomeris

Ok, nano protein skimmer is a skimmer for a nano tank (A tank less than 30g). A protein skimmer is a device that is used to remove organic compounds from the water. Specific gravity is the density of the water. For saltwater tanks it has to be between 1.020-1.025.

 

[GrayScale]

Ok, nano protein skimmer is a skimmer for a nano tank (A tank less than 30g). A protein skimmer is a device that is used to remove organic compounds from the water. Specific gravity is the density of the water. For saltwater tanks it has to be between 1.020-1.025.

just to clarify, density refers to the salinity of the water. Dont mean to step on toes but I know I might be confused if I didnt know what it was and it was refered to as "density" or "specific gravity". You measure salinity by using a refractometer.

 

[Donya]

Ok, nano protein skimmer is a skimmer for a nano tank (A tank less than 30g). A protein skimmer is a device that is used to remove organic compounds from the water. Specific gravity is the density of the water. For saltwater tanks it has to be between 1.020-1.025.

just to clarify, density refers to the salinity of the water. Dont mean to step on toes but I know I might be confused if I didnt know what it was and it was refered to as "density" or "specific gravity". You measure salinity by using a refractometer.

Density is not the same as salinity. You can vary the density of a solution with temperature, which is a problem for hydrometers as well as some refractometers.

 

[GrayScale]

I stand corrected lol. Thanks Donya. So should sw be premixed at the same temp as the tank? hope im not hijacking. Figured since it was on topic and somewhat relative to the op id ask.

 

[Neomeris]

Thanks. I know the steps to setting up a freshwater tank like cleaning the tank, then washing the gravel, and so on, but I know nothing about saltwater tanks. I assume you need all sorts of new equipment to read the density you were talking about. Is setting up a saltwater tank like setting up a freshwater, but you add saltwater instead??

 

[ALW]

Ok, nano protein skimmer is a skimmer for a nano tank (A tank less than 30g). A protein skimmer is a device that is used to remove organic compounds from the water. Specific gravity is the density of the water. For saltwater tanks it has to be between 1.020-1.025.

just to clarify, density refers to the salinity of the water. Dont mean to step on toes but I know I might be confused if I didnt know what it was and it was refered to as "density" or "specific gravity". You measure salinity by using a refractometer.

No it doesnt. Density is in SG, Salinity is in PPM (parts per million).

 

[Donya]

I stand corrected lol. Thanks Donya. So should sw be premixed at the same temp as the tank? hope im not hijacking. Figured since it was on topic and somewhat relative to the op id ask.

It doesn't have to be, but it's one way to reduce error in equipment (and a lot of people with sensitive animals do it anyway). A lot of refractometers have auto temperature correction mechanisms (ATC) now, to it's not a big issue for those. You can also measure with something that doesn't have ATC and factor in the temperature manually via tables if you know the temperature the solution is (room temp for refractometer since it's such a small amount, water temp for hydrometer). There are lots of tables on the web for that. Here's one such table, although it's perhaps less useful for mixing at room temp than measuring tank sg unless you mix in a really hot room:

http://www.algone.com/aquarium-articles/saltwater-aquarium/saltwater-salinity

There are some other better ones I've seen that go colder too, but I don't recall the sites offhand unfortunately.

Thanks. I know the steps to setting up a freshwater tank like cleaning the tank, then washing the gravel, and so on, but I know nothing about saltwater tanks. I assume you need all sorts of new equipment to read the density you were talking about.

Not all sorts of equipment really, just one or two things. Do some reading/googling on hydrometers and refractometers. Refractometers are better, particularly those with ATC as mentioned above, but I actually like to have a hydrometer around as well just to get a quick, ballpark reading much faster than I can do with a refractometer.

Is setting up a saltwater tank like setting up a freshwater, but you add saltwater instead??

As far as the mechanics of the very initial setup, pretty much - equipment/filtration differences aside, that is. Once you have a clean tank, put saltwater in to do a leak test, put the rock in (do read up on live rock if you haven't already), and then put the sand in (make sure it's aragonite!), and then let it all settle and cycle.

 

[Neomeris]

Thanks. If Ido get a tank any time soon, can you suggest fish? I'm thinking small, as I do not have a big space or budget. Ten gallons at most.

 

[Donya]

Not a lot you can do in the way of fish in a tank that size. That is a big difference between sw and fw: if you really want to go for fish then you need to go big. In fw you can put a bunch of guppies or something in a 10gal, but in sw there are few fish that will thrive in an environment that small and the environment becomes very difficult to maintain. Some small gobies are fine in tanks that small (e.g. neon gobies, clown gobies, and those that pair with pistol shrimp) but beyond that you'd really be looking at a mostly invertebrate tank.

Bigger is also far more forgiving in terms of a first tank and the learning curve. Things just happen more slowly because there is more water volume to act as a buffer. With a small tank, you run a much greater risk of crashing the whole tank from a mistake that might only result in an extra water change on a big tank. Even a small increase in size to the 20-30gal range will be much more stable than a 10gal.

 

[Neomeris]

Okay. I want to do what's right, so maybe I'll wait a couple of years until one of my twenty gallon tanks becomes empty and can become saltwater.

 

[lljdma06]

This is a good idea. Not discouraging you, but I've got three systems. They are fun, but they are hard to maintain.

 

[Neomeris]

Thanks. I'll post again in about.........two years or so.