How can I set up an efficient salt water aquarium?
I want to set up a salt water aquarium with my 28 gallon bow front. What to i need to get and what do i need to do to get one going thats going to last??
It is a very rewarding hobby. Here are some things that helped me.
1. A test kit: CRITICAL to success especially with a smaller tank- you need at least something that will test for ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, Ph and hardness. Consider a test for phosphate if you don’t plan to use RO water (desirable but not essential). If you plan to keep corals tests for calcium and magnesium are also very useful. Plan on testing every week until you are familiar with your tank parameters.
2. A good saltwater mix, heater and a powerhead. Get a food safe plastic bin, store it in a garage. Mix salt water according to instructions, put in the heater to approximate the temperature in your tank and let the powerhead run. Use the water atleast 8 hours after you threw in the powerhead. It disolves more completely and when you test for salinity, it will be more stable.
3. Live rock. This along with live sand is the most critical component IMO. You don’t have to buy that expensive live rock, but can "seed" common aragonite sand and base rock (far cheaper but requires more patience). Just buy base rock and aragonite sand, wash and rinse carefully, place in your tank and ask your fish store for a handful of their sand (called tank crud, grunge or gunk) and a rock covered with coralline algae from your local fish store. They will provide this for free. Toss it in your tank when you have it running for a few days at correct salinity and temperature.
4. Heater for in tank, filter rated for a tank three times your size and as soon as you can afford one- a skimmer. Some people say skimmers are not neccessary for a tank this small, but I have found that my smaller tanks are far more stable when I use a skimmer. When you start, you may mistakes like I did- over feeding being the number one thing. Skimmers prevent your tank from crashing due to nutrient overload.
5. If you plan to keep corals, you may want to look into lighting. Metal halide lights may be overkill for such a small tank. Consider Power compacts or VHOs which will allow you to keep corals but not generate as much heat. If you don’t plan to keep corals, lights are obviously not important. Still keep them on a timer and not more than 8 hours a day if no corals. Helps limit algae.
6. Limited Bioload: Stock your tank minimally. Research species of fish. A yellow tang though small and pretty when young requires a 90 gallon at the minimum (125 ideally) and will not be happy in your tank but a false percula, or a lemon goby can be happy in your tank for a lifetime. The fewer fish you have, the less maintainance and the easier on your nerves. Even small fish like mandarins starve to death in smaller tanks because they require a specialized diet. Also research compatibility. Do not rely on sites that sell fish to give you an accurate estimate of minimum aquarium size (they want you to buy after all). Consider a site like www.wetwebmedia.com instead. Bonus- if you have questions- their crew is awesome about answering your questions in a clear and honest manner.
7. A schedule: I can’t over emphasize how much it helped me when I dedicated a few hours each week for dedicated aquarium work. You are going to have to change 10% of your water weekly, scrub your tank with an algae scraper if needed (snails will keep this down) and test your water parameters. Each day, you are going to have to top off the water lost due to evaporation with FRESH (not salt) water and feed your fish once or twice daily. Your tank is a great size so it is not hard work, but establishing a schedule and dedicating 10 minutes daily and 1/2 hour weekly to tank maintainence will yeild RICH rewards.
First timer problems:
1. Impatience: I was in a hurry to stock all my fish at once. BIG MISTAKE! The aquarium needs to go through a cycle to establish beneficial bacteria colonies to process waste. Some people cycle with hardy fish and others with pure ammonia- but I just tossed in a pinch of fish food into a tank unpopulated with visible life. (Just rock, sand and fish store mud) and tested for ammonia. When ammonia tapered off, I tested for nitrates. When that tapered off, I added my "clean up crew" (snails only- no crabs as they can kill the snails) and eventually slowly introduced my fish- the most peaceful first and the most fiesty last. I had no aggressive fish.
2. Over reaction: Your tank is going to get algae. Stay calm. Keep lights on for shorter time periods, reduce feeding amounts and add phosbane to your filter if your phosphate levels are high.
3. Lack of people to answer questions: Apart from wetwebmedia.com, your city or region most likely has a aquarium society. There are also plenty of online forums where you can ask for advice or help. Many of these resources are free and provide invaluable service to the new aquarist.
4. Not knowing when to cut corners: I would rather buy base rock and spend more time letting it become "live" than buy expensive live rock. I do the sam
a good SW fish store with knowlegeable and capable staff… invaluable..
joining a reef forum would also be a great asset
and patience..
once you get those the answers will come.. there’s really too much to leave here.. but searching around and researching will be the best start
October 31st, 2009 at 1:17 amReferences :
don’t trust a pet store for advice please.
go to http://www.aquariacentral.com and go to their saltwater forum area. there are articles on how to set up a proper tank, what is needed for different kinds of set ups and how to accomplish whatever it is you have in mind. the things you need for the tank will depend on what species you plan to keep and if you want to go for rocks, live rock, coral, inverts, ect. good luck
October 31st, 2009 at 1:38 amReferences :
It is a very rewarding hobby. Here are some things that helped me.
1. A test kit: CRITICAL to success especially with a smaller tank- you need at least something that will test for ammonia, nitrates, nitrites, Ph and hardness. Consider a test for phosphate if you don’t plan to use RO water (desirable but not essential). If you plan to keep corals tests for calcium and magnesium are also very useful. Plan on testing every week until you are familiar with your tank parameters.
2. A good saltwater mix, heater and a powerhead. Get a food safe plastic bin, store it in a garage. Mix salt water according to instructions, put in the heater to approximate the temperature in your tank and let the powerhead run. Use the water atleast 8 hours after you threw in the powerhead. It disolves more completely and when you test for salinity, it will be more stable.
3. Live rock. This along with live sand is the most critical component IMO. You don’t have to buy that expensive live rock, but can "seed" common aragonite sand and base rock (far cheaper but requires more patience). Just buy base rock and aragonite sand, wash and rinse carefully, place in your tank and ask your fish store for a handful of their sand (called tank crud, grunge or gunk) and a rock covered with coralline algae from your local fish store. They will provide this for free. Toss it in your tank when you have it running for a few days at correct salinity and temperature.
4. Heater for in tank, filter rated for a tank three times your size and as soon as you can afford one- a skimmer. Some people say skimmers are not neccessary for a tank this small, but I have found that my smaller tanks are far more stable when I use a skimmer. When you start, you may mistakes like I did- over feeding being the number one thing. Skimmers prevent your tank from crashing due to nutrient overload.
5. If you plan to keep corals, you may want to look into lighting. Metal halide lights may be overkill for such a small tank. Consider Power compacts or VHOs which will allow you to keep corals but not generate as much heat. If you don’t plan to keep corals, lights are obviously not important. Still keep them on a timer and not more than 8 hours a day if no corals. Helps limit algae.
6. Limited Bioload: Stock your tank minimally. Research species of fish. A yellow tang though small and pretty when young requires a 90 gallon at the minimum (125 ideally) and will not be happy in your tank but a false percula, or a lemon goby can be happy in your tank for a lifetime. The fewer fish you have, the less maintainance and the easier on your nerves. Even small fish like mandarins starve to death in smaller tanks because they require a specialized diet. Also research compatibility. Do not rely on sites that sell fish to give you an accurate estimate of minimum aquarium size (they want you to buy after all). Consider a site like http://www.wetwebmedia.com instead. Bonus- if you have questions- their crew is awesome about answering your questions in a clear and honest manner.
7. A schedule: I can’t over emphasize how much it helped me when I dedicated a few hours each week for dedicated aquarium work. You are going to have to change 10% of your water weekly, scrub your tank with an algae scraper if needed (snails will keep this down) and test your water parameters. Each day, you are going to have to top off the water lost due to evaporation with FRESH (not salt) water and feed your fish once or twice daily. Your tank is a great size so it is not hard work, but establishing a schedule and dedicating 10 minutes daily and 1/2 hour weekly to tank maintainence will yeild RICH rewards.
First timer problems:
1. Impatience: I was in a hurry to stock all my fish at once. BIG MISTAKE! The aquarium needs to go through a cycle to establish beneficial bacteria colonies to process waste. Some people cycle with hardy fish and others with pure ammonia- but I just tossed in a pinch of fish food into a tank unpopulated with visible life. (Just rock, sand and fish store mud) and tested for ammonia. When ammonia tapered off, I tested for nitrates. When that tapered off, I added my "clean up crew" (snails only- no crabs as they can kill the snails) and eventually slowly introduced my fish- the most peaceful first and the most fiesty last. I had no aggressive fish.
2. Over reaction: Your tank is going to get algae. Stay calm. Keep lights on for shorter time periods, reduce feeding amounts and add phosbane to your filter if your phosphate levels are high.
3. Lack of people to answer questions: Apart from wetwebmedia.com, your city or region most likely has a aquarium society. There are also plenty of online forums where you can ask for advice or help. Many of these resources are free and provide invaluable service to the new aquarist.
4. Not knowing when to cut corners: I would rather buy base rock and spend more time letting it become "live" than buy expensive live rock. I do the sam
October 31st, 2009 at 2:18 amReferences :