Saltwater or not????

[Paul_B]

Hi All,

I just bought a new 30g tank, Heater, Filter, Pump etc...

At first I wanted a saltwater setup so I could keep clownfish etc... but I'm not sure if I'm way off mark and will need alot more equipment for it to work.

Is it very similar to freshwater in getting the ammo, nitrite, nitrate levels right, and just having the correct amount of salt? Or do I need a specialist pump, heater, filter other than the ones I have.

I would really like to have a salt-water aquarium, but being relatively new to fishkeeping would like some honest advice.

Many thanks

Paul

 

[Bloo]

Someone in the beginners sections asked almost exactly the same thing a couple of days ago. This might kick-start some opinions for you


http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=94795

 

[Paul_B]

Hey Bloozoo,

Thanks for the quick response.

There are some quite negative opinions about salt-water for begginers, which is understandable.

I do want to have a salt-water environment and am happy to put in the work.

I really want to know if the tank/filter/heater etc.. would be suitable for salt-water. If not, then I can forget it and carry on with freshwater.

However, if it is suitable and just requires the addition of marine salt, and perhaps some live rock then I would be interested to know what else I would need.

Many Thanks,

Paul

 

[Bloo]

I'm afaid I cannot give you the in's and out's of marine fishkeeping as the huge outlay involved and recommended size tank for beginners have always hindered that from progressing.
However what I can tell you for a fact :

just requires the addition of marine salt, and perhaps some live rock

is that if that was true, I'd have a marine tank tomorrow

Edit: this pinned topic I actually found very good.

 

[Mr Miagi]

Id recomend reading through some of GL's pinned topics in The marine section to get a feel for what marine keeping is all about. They are some great pinned topics!

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=3220 - And this link is one of quite a few, but outlines the basic first few steps!

 

[Dragonscales]

Best advice if you want to go saltwater paul is to read up on the subject a bit, find out the basics in terms of water perameter upkeep, maintenance, tank setups, fish care requirements, money involved, etc, etc.

If you successfully get through this stage (I.E: not give up due to boredom, lack of funds, complexities of keeping marines successfully, etc, etc) then most likely your heart is still in it and you will be hungry for more knowledge on the subject, then you know this hobby is for you. I would encourage you to stick with it though as the pros well outweigh the cons. Good luck

 

[steelhealr]

I agree with Dragonscales. I have a FW tank too, and, not to degrade my own system, marine tanks just don't get thrown together and up and running. You need to read a lot first. Look at the pin above on the library of books. Try Amazon.com for Paletta's book and Kurtz's book....great starters. Eg....you wouldn't need a filter at all...live rock and powerheads and a skimmer. among quite a few other things. SH

 

[Navarre]

OK lets talk basics...

To run a marine tank you need the following basic things. Patience, Tank, Salt, Patience, Liverock, Skimmer oh and patience.

Seriously though, Patience is very important, its the absolute key for success. The tank of course goes without saying as does the salt. The liverock is your next most important step in marines and is needed for your filtration, a ratio of 1kg per 2 gallons of tank is required as the minimum for a fully stocked tank in terms of filtration. A skimmer is also important and i would say its essential if you intend to follow the setup lines i have given you. A good skimmer will reduce or remove nutrients in the water before they even enter the biological cycle.
So if you have a tank that is run with liverock and skimmer its known as the Berlin Method, you will also need to increase the flow in your tank to 10x volume so in your case you need 300 gallons per hour.

This is basic but also tried and tested method for tanks with no sumps. I started out on the berlin method and it wroked very well for me. You will need to splashout ojn the expense of liverock and skimmer as these are the most i mportant parts of the filtration but if you are willing to do this then it can work.
Simply adding saltwater to the tank and calling it marine is leading to alot of problems, normal filters that are available for freshwater are not ideally suited for marine setups as they produce enormous amounts of nitrate which is far less tollerated in salt water than freshwater tanks.

 

[Paul_B]

Thanks for all your replies.

Navarre, can you recommend an online shop which I can get some pricing information from on a skimmer, and the live rock etc...

Also, does live sand have a positive impact on filtration?

My Tank Spec:

Rio120 (33 US Gallons)
Internal Filter/Pump/Heater

So I would need a skimmer (can you recommend one, I'm in the UK), and some live rock? No additional powerheads etc...?

Thanks again,

Paul

 

[Dragonscales]

Live sand can have very positive effects on the tank if utilised correctly.

You will need powerheads (without any filtration media attached, I.E: sponges, etc) to maintain good flow within the tank and to push water through the live rock.

 

[steelhealr]

Ask Chac or Navarre..there are two highly rated skimmers available mostly in the UK. SH

 

[chkltcow]

Paul: I'd pick up a Seio 620 powerhead for that tank, if you can. I LOVE mine... wonderful little bugger. Lots and lots of water movement without a strong head to blow polyps off of corals or toss your poor fish around should they happen into its stream.

And I don't know about the UK, but people in the local club here don't seem to shut up about the Remora C skimmers. Supposedly they're the best thing going for smaller tanks.

 

[Paul_B]

Thanks guys,

From looking at some prices its probably gonna cost an extra £160 ish for the skimmer (unless someone has a link to a site which sells them cheaper), an extra £30 for a new (additional) powerhead, and then whatever the cost of live rock/sand is.

Does anyone have a reliable source for live rock/sand in the UK?

Cheers,

Paul

EDIT: Oh yeah sorry, I forgot. What about lighting? The Juwel tank comes with lighting, can I just upgrade the tubes, and if so what to?

 

[Chac]

HI Paul

This is a couple of places I use in the UK


Ultimate Aquatics

Aquatics Online

The Coral Garden

These are quiet goods places and are resonably prices

For a 30g tank I would go for the Aquamedic Biostar Flotor Skimmer (rated to 65g)
(Check Coral Garden & UDA, they both sell these, I think CG is Cheaper)

Aquamedic Biostar Skimmer

Also have a read of This Post

Del

 

[Chac]

Try

Ultimate Aquatics for Rock & Sand
Aquatics Online for Lighting
Coral Garden for the Skimmer
Ebay for the Powerheads

Any Questions give me a buzz

Del