If you started with a fish only with live rock tank(FOWLR) the setup cost is not a lot more than a freshwater tank. You still need all the basics such as tank, substrate(sand, crushed coral, etc.), lighting(normal flourescents will do), a hang on back filter(you can skip this if you use live rock with crabs and snails), a heater, and a powerhead to give current in the tank. You can go farther and get things like a protein skimmer, a sump system, refugium, etc. Not required just nice to have and they reduce maintenance.

For your maintenance concern yes saltwater needs a little more when it comes to water changes and testing, however, if set up properly they require far less cleaning than a freshwater tank. The larger the tank the less maintenance you need to do however the gretter the set-up costs. Larger tanks are also much more forgiving than smaller tanks for errors. Most people in saltwater will recommend you get the largest tank you can afford to start with. Not only because they are easier but also because once you get hooked your going to want a bigger tank.

An ideal beginner setup would be a 30-75 gallon tank. A power compact light set up. A decent protein skimmer. 1-1.5 pounds of live rock per gallon of your tank. 2 powerheads to give you around 10 times your tank size in flow per hour, a 3 inch deep substrate bed, 2 smaller heaters vice 1 large one, marine test kit and hydrometer, and your salt. After the cycle add in a cleanup crew of crabs and snails and a few brittle stars. Using the live rock and live cleanup crew removes your need to buy a hang on back biowheel type filter. The live rock is expensive but this is offset by not buying the other filter.

Do a search on the berlin filtration method for saltwater tanks. It’s the best and easest way I have found to maintain a saltwater tank.

Basically set up the tank. Leak check all the equipment once set up with freshwater. Mix and add your salt until you are at 1.022 salinity, add in your live rock and a little fish food or raw shrimp. Keep feeding the tank every few days with fish food or once a week with a piece of raw shrimp until your cycle is done( zero ammonia and nitrites and decent amount of nitrates) Once this is done which takes anywhere from 2-6 weeks do a 50% water change then add in a variety of hermit crabs, snails, and brittle stars. After another week you can add in a fish or 2. Go very slow with adding fish. It takes time for your bioload to catch up with anything you add to the tank.

There is of course much much more to starting up a saltwater tank. Be ready to have to mix up saltwater for weekly water changes and frequent water testing as saltwater fish can be more sensitive to poor water quality. Research each fish or animal you want to add as compatablity, feeding requirements, and tank size will be more important to you with saltwater.

Good luck

How much do the fish cost?

I want just a small salt water tank .Whats the smallest tank I can get and how much will it cost?

Whats the best fish for small tanks and how big do they get?

Please tell me what I need to get started.

How many fish per gallon?

Where can I buy the stuff?
How much will everything cost?

saltwater setups can be kept in tanks of any size. i’ve kept one in a 1.6 gallon hex with no issues. it all depends on the amount of attention you are willing to dedicate to the tank. as your first saltwater tank, something 20 gallons or larger would give you more room for error and allow you to keep more fish, but it will cost you more to properly set up. the 4 most important things in keeping a healthy, stable saltwater aquarium are:
-lots of live rock, at least 1.5 lbs per gallon
-lots of water flow, at least 20 times turnover (i.e. 400 gallons an hour flowing through a 20 gallon aquarium from filtration, powerheads, etc)
-good clean up crew, lots of blue leg hermits and astrea snails to eat algae, waste, leftovers, and dead fish
-WATER CHANGES

there is no "fish per gallon" rule that applies to saltwater. it’s really an issue of what type of fish it is. some fish may be several inches and only spend their lives in a territory a few feet in diameter, some fish are only 3-5 inches long but roam more open areas around the reefs, i.e. anthias. you best bet is going to be with different gobies, a pair of oscellaris clown fish, maybe a royal gramma or sixline wrasse, other small fish like those. a good starter aquarium would be a 20 gallon long. it gives you a decent water volume, and more room for space demanding fish and corals if you get into reef keeping. its pretty easy to decorate, easy to filter, easy to light, and readily available. equipment wise, i would purchase the following:

-20 gallon long aquarium (~$30)
-emperor 400 filter (~$80)
-visi-therm stealth 100w heater (~$30)
-20 lbs carib sea arag-alive sand (~$25)
-30 lbs fiji premium live rock (~$210)
-glass canopy (~$15)
-current nova extreme 2×24w t5ho lighting fixture (gives great coloration, good enough lighting for about 75% of corals you will come across, ~$80)
-coralife digital thermometer(~$10)
-instant ocean hydrometer(~$10)
-instant ocean aquarium salt (for now)(~$15)

i would find a local fish store that sells ro/di water. get the rest of your stuff there too. you don’t want to use tap water in a saltwater tank, as you will have major issues with algae. the ro/di water is purified, and all that will be in it is what the salt adds to it when you mix it.

the system i described is simple, effective, and on the cheaper side, a little over $500. also, go to www.nano-reef.com, they’re an online community dedicated to keeping smaller saltwater systems, and it’s free to join and easy to ask questions.

The water chemistry may be difficult or not. A lot depends on how much you’ve done with your freshwater tanks to monitor water parameters (the more experience you have with this, the easier salt will be), what type of water you plan to use (tapwater, reverse osmosis), and what type of tank you want to set up.

If you keep only fish, or fish-only with live rock (FOWLR), things will be easier than if you plan to keep a reef tank. But if you’re careful about your initial fish choices, you can start with fish-only or a FOWLR, then add some inverts after you’ve had a year or two of experience. To keep a fish-only or FOWLR, you’ll want to monitor ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH. A good aragonite (marine sand) substrate will keep the pH at 7.8, but ideally, you’ll want this to be 8.0-8.4. I found kalkwasser is the best product to raise it. This comes as a powder that you mix with water, then add small amounts till you get the pH where it’s needed. Then, you only need to add it when you do water changes. The amount needed will vary with the size of your tank, and the water chemistry of what water you use. If keeping a reef tank, depending on corals and other organisms you keep, you’ll want to add calcium and possibly other tests. For inverts, I’d recommend keeping the pH at 8.2-8.4.

Water source does make a difference in saltwater. I once lived in an area where I was fortunate enough to have tapwater with a pH of 8.3 and I didn’t have to use any additives. But I moved, and now can’t keep the pH above 7.8 without them. There’s also nitrate and phosphate in my water now, and these are algae fertilizers, making it necessary for me to use reverse osmosis water. This is a specific type of water purification that removes much of the tapwater chemicals you don’t want, plus a few that you do. You can add the "good" elements back with products like OsmoPrep (by Kent). But it keeps the algae under control. It also has a naturally low pH, so You’d need something to use as a buffer, like the kalkwasser. But these two products are all I use as additives in my tanks – the rest comes from the sea salt mixes and regular water changes.

You can buy an RO unit for use at home, but they are a little expensive and use about 8+ gallons of water for every gallon of RO water produced and you need to replace the filtration membranes periodically. I currently buy my RO at a SuperWalmart near me (the Culligan water at the self-serve stations uses this process and costs about $0.33 per gallon once you buy their refillable containers). Depending on the size of your tank, this might be a better option.

Keeping the water in a state of good quality is only a matter of water testing and partial water changes. A good filter system, having a large volume tank, and not overstocking go a long way. Because of the "personalities" of most marine fish, you can’t stock too many anyway. Most marine fish tend to be more aggressive and territorial than freshwater community fish, and are more comparable to "stereotype" cichlids. A protein skimmer, while not absolutely essential to fish-only or FOWLRs is a big help too, because these remove minute particles and dissolved proteins before they significantly add to your ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate.

Temperature management is relatively easy, unless you’re using a high heat output lighting system. The larger the tank, the more stable your temperature will be, and 1-2 heaters (depending on the size of the tank – for tanks over 30 gallons, I prefer 2 heaters, one on each end of the tank for more even heating and one acts as a backup if something should happen to the other) to get the water in the right range (76-80o for inverts, fish can go higher). Metal halides prodice more heat than other systems, so you might need a chiller for the tank, or at least a fan or good room-sized air conditioner to dissipate the heat.

and the lights aren’t necissary unless you want to do coral.. normal florescent lights should only be like $40-50

even if you want corals, it varies in price… from as low as 100 to as much as 700, for a 55

also add a hydrometer 5-10

salt mix 30-40 depending how much you get (i’d get at least 100 gallons worth if you dod the 55)

if youre getting live rock and or live sand you will not need to add any livestock ot the tank, and if it does cycle they’d probably die anyway…

the difference in evaporation in a 30 and in a 55 is nominal at best the… 55 is only a foot longer.

i started out with a 29 and it wasn’t that hard.. some people will tell you things that make it look like if you even look at it funny the tank will crash.. they are ALOT more forgiving than that…

3 years of exerience is a good enough start that this could be a cake walk… start slow and research, and just do a few hardy fish to start with…

if you need any detailed info on setting up, maintaining, or stocking the tank… please feel free to write me an email…

P.S I have already checked if these fish are compatible and if my tank size is sufficient for these fish to all live in.
yes my tank is 100 gallons

Yes put the least aggressive in first. So angel lion fish puffer eel
Your tank may be big enough for the largest of these but are you sure its large enough for all ???
I would not put all those fish in anything smaller than a 75 gal tank. The eel, lion fish and puffer will require a lot of food which means lots of poop and lots of polluted water.

certain triggers are so mean they cannot be housed with other fish. Damsels like the yellow tails, blues and clowns are agressive but hearty and when kept in pairs or equal size groups they do well in the same tank. Also, no starfish or anemone until your tank is older.

Check out saltwaterfish.com. Each fish listed will tell you what it can live with and what should stay out of the tank.

Feel free to email me if you wish.

Welcome to the wonderful world of salt.

But keeping a marine tank is MUCH more complex than just mixing up sea water. I suggest you go and buy a good book on marine aquarium keeping, or even start reading here – http://www.fishlore.com/SaltwaterBeginners.htm

Not trying to put you off or anything. but if you want a marine tank, do your research first. It is more technical and more expensive than fresh water, so get it right or you will kill some very expensive fish.

Ian