1st fish tank, Fresh or Salt???

Question

I got a used tank for next to nothing, 55gal, what should a newbie start off with, fresh water or salt?
What are tough fish that can put up with a rookie owner?
Thanks

Answer 1

Freshwater, definitely. Salt water is way, way more complicated, the fish are more delicate, and everything is way way way more expensive.
I suggest you read through some of the stuff on www.fishforums.com.
You have lots of choices for stocking your tank. If you want a lot of movement and variety, and lots of colour, you could go for a community tank with:
3 angelfish
10-12 tetras (such as cardinal tetras, neon tetras, black neon tetras, rummy-nosed tetras, lemon tetras, harlequin rasboras...)
8 corydoras julii
2 kribensis cichlid OR 2 bolivian ram
1 bushy-nosed pleco

OR you could get a cichlid tank... for these, provide lots of rocks and caves and hiding places, and you could get some electric yellow labs and some blue labs.

Or you could get lots of little schools fish, like 3 schools if 10-12 fish of the different tetras I mentioned, and a couple dwarf gouramis and corydoras.

Anyway, before you decide, you still need to set up and cycle your tank:
http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-cycling.html

This is a very important step that cannot be overlooked or rushed, or it will result in the death of your fish.

While you're cycling, go to your local fish store and write down the fish you like. Come home, research them, ask about them on fishforums.com... and put together your ideal fishtank!

Good luck!

Answer 2

A newbie should definately start with fresh water fish! Salt water tanks are a pain, you have to keep the salinity constant all the time. I'd start off with some of the cheaper fish, you don't want to go killing a fish that you paid $15 upwards for.

Answer 3

FRESH WATER please. 55 gallons is a good size for a saltwater tank, but the price of setting it up will run you a few thousand dollars and a lot of aggravation. Saltwater tanks are only for skilled fish keepers, not a novice. If you do well with a freshwater tank, the tank can be converted later on into a salt tank, when you know more about taking care of an aquarium. I recommend tetras and mollies for a first time fish owner. Just stay away from the neon tetras as they die very easily.

Answer 4

Salt water tanks are for very experienced people..the water costs money, the fish are very expensive. Stick with fresh water...and you can have plants with a fresh water tank. Angles are all but indestructable, so many tropicals are very easy to keep. Just ask at the shop who gets along with whom. Pick peaceful, pretty fish that you like. good luck

Answer 5

Get a fresh water tank then salt water tanks are very hard to keep up... Depends on what type of fish I went with the aggressive fish... Texas chichlad I think thats how u spell it that one wouldnt die for nothing very durable ...Just be careful of what you put in the tank with him they are territorial

Answer 6

Get freshwater fish. Salt water is very complicated and very hard to deal with unless you are very experienced. There are many beautiful and easy to care for fish for freshwater-

Barbs
Danio
Rasbora
Sharks
Tetra
Oscar
Discus-very pretty
Black Molly
Angel Fish
Gourami
Catfish
and tons more.

Petstores will help you choose the fish that get along well with each other. Good Luck.

There is a great book called Eyewitness Handbooks Aquarium fish that is very informative and has color pictures of the fish.

Answer 7

Yep, fresh water and cheap fish is the way to go. And a good book on setting up a new tank-it has to cycle through some stages in the beginning until you get good bacteria growing. This cycle often kills the first batch of fish, so cheap is the way to go.

Answer 8

I'm sick and tired of people saying that saltwater is bad and hard to take care of. lets get this straight. the only differance in freshwater and saltwater is u guessed it the salt. everything else is the same. really go for the saltwater tank! all you need is a filter,heater,and sea salt, you will also need a hydrometer "it measures how much salts in the tank." the salt will cost you 15-20 bucks every other month and the hydrometer will run you a one time fee of 10-15 bucks. thats all you need for a fish only tank!!! as far as the setup and cycle time of freshater and saltwater tanks, yep it's the same amount of time about 3-4 weeks. most people say that saltwater fish are expensive, well SOME are but not ALL!!!! your a beginner so start off with damsil fish"damsil fish are harder to kill then a goldfish!" they run you about 3-5bucks. freshwater fish run 2-5bucks so whats the difference? do you have kids get them there own nemo!! clownfish run 15-20bucks. but it's worth every penny when you see your kids face light up when they see that you got them there very own nemo!! there are lots of things that are cheap in saltwater like crabs, sea stars, snails,shrimp and clams just to name a few. as far as maintenance of a saltwater tank yep u guessed it again, it's the same as a freshwater tank. even less if you get snails,shrimp and crabs. they take care of the bottom of your tank for you!!! the only thing you really got to do it when the water evaporates put tap water back in the tank. sounds a lot like freshwater doesn't it? the only difference is if you take water out of the tank you have to replace it with saltwater. this means that you have to mix up some saltwater. dont worry this only takes 5-10 min. so please dont listen to people when they say saltwater is more expensive and harder to take care of cuz i just showed you that it's not!! I agree that SOME people go way out of control and buy a lot more then what they need to. and thats what all these people base there saltwater vs freshwater argument on. so go saltwater your gonna love it! the fish are brighter, more colorful and more exotic then you'll EVER see in freshwater. I promise you!!!!

Answer 9

If you want to invest money, salt water takes a little longer but in the long run it is much easier to maintain with cleanings & chamicals. To get it up and running quick a hardy fish is the Molly there is also a Balloon Molly whitch is very interesting looking. it will allow for the water fluctuations untill you get it stabalized. Good Luck!!!

Answer 10

Go fresh water to start.It's a lot easier to setup and keep running.Now for some fast and hard rules #1. one inch of fish length per gallon of water,#2. set the tank up with the filter,the heater,the gravel,the water and any tank decorations you want and let it run EMPTY NO FISH for at least one (1) week two (2) weeks is better before putting any fish in.#3. add only two (2) to three (3) fish at a time and wait at least two (2) weeks between fish adding events.#4 only put "community fish" with other "community fish" mixing "community fish" with "semi aggressive" or "aggressive" fish is a sure recipe for disaster.#5 keep the tank in a dark area to retard algae growth.#6 change out twenty (20) percent of the water every other week.#7. invest in a water testing kit,a tank vacuum and a small net at a local pet supply store like "petco" or "petsmart"#8. BUT DO NOT BUY FISH FROM EITHER OF THEM BUY FISH ONLY FROM A DEDICATED AQUARIUM ONLY STORE.something about fish from either "petco" or "petsmart" causes them not to live very long. #9. only feed your fish ONCE EVERY OTHER DAY.As for what kind of fish are "hardy" "zebra danios","plattys" are a good investment