Marine Versus Tropical

[fishygreek]

Hi All,

I am new to this forum so HI.

I am setting up a new fish tank soon, the measurements are 240cm (W) * 80cm (H) * 60cm (D).
I am torn between a tropical setup, which i already have on a smaller scale or to pay some extra on the marine setup.

If i do choose marine, how much more would it cost maybe in approx percentage?

Fishy Greek

 

[kj23502]

Wow. It totally depends on what you want to keep and if you want a sump. FO (Fish only) is a lot cheaper and you don't need very many extras. FOWLR(Fish Only W/Live Rock) will cost more b/c the rock can be spendy. Also you'll need powerheads to make sure you've good water movement. The thing is if you have enough live rock in your tank, you shouldn't need an external filter eiter.

If you want to keep corals, you need immaculate water conditions and appropriate lighting.

Do some reading around the forum. There's a lot of good pinned articles. Plus, read journals and the Realm of Knowledge. The "Relm" has some great books/websites for you to look at.

Saltwater can be little overwhelming when you first start reading about it. It was for me. Just read alot and don't start until you understand the gist of it. It's like anything else you first try. It takes practice and getting used to some new things that you didn't have to consider before

btw, I haven't set up a marine tank yet. Started 2 journals and am working on building a tank stand right now. I have read a TON of info over the last 3 or 4 + months, though.

 

[danb_1985]

its own taste to what you like really but i've just changed my tropical to marine about 3 months ago but pleased i did! imo marine much nicer n always something going on that u cant take your eyes off and in your size tank u can have pretty much anything you like!!!

as for cos im not sure on your scale? if u have heater and suitable filter already you're really only looking at a protein skimmer and suitable lighting.

Live rock may cost a bit a around £12 a kilo and its about 1kilo per 2 gallon so i was told so work that cost out. well worth it in the end when you see the colours of fish u can have!

 

[xxBarneyxx]

yeah really depends on what you want. You can pick up a lot of stuff cheap on ebay and other fish related auction sites which helps cut the costs. There are also other ways to cut costs such as doing some stuff DIY or things like mixing base rock with live rock (which in a large tank will cut the costs down a great deal). Unless you go for a really fancy tropical setup with expensive fish a marine take will cost more and it takes a little more effort to maintain. However after keeping FW fish for many years I would say that going to the marine side is well worth the effort and money. It is so much more fun and interesting then FW.

Best thing to do is take a look at some other marine tanks and work out what kind of stocking you like (ie fish only, fish with corals, soft corals, hard corals, etc) then work out the max amount you are willing to spend on it. Also dont forget the livestock for marine tanks is in general a lot higher then FW (unless you go for some odd ball fish or high grade discuss).

 

[ben1987]

For me i really enjoyed building my stand and hood. So that cost me around £35 for both. Buying them would have cost probably £200. I got my rock from a reefer who had broken down a tank so it was already nice coloured up, got that at half the LFS asking price.

There is a lot of ways to save a bit of money doing marine. IMO the fish are far more attractive aswel.

 

[Jelly]

It really depends on what floats you boat.

As someone with large freshwater predators and a marine setup.

The marine is more interesting on a day to day basis. The Fresh Preds are great when they are eating but are not so 'busy doing things.'

I would go for a reef setup rather than FO or FOWLR. There is a lot to watch with the live rock and corals, It's a system that interacts with itself, there's always something going on.

My personal preference would be to stick with a greater number of small inverts and fish rather than larger tangs etc.