How expensive are saltwater tanks (including the fish, equipment, and upkeep)?

Question

I have had freshwater tanks but I really want a saltwater tank. What is an ideal size for a beginner? Is it a good idea to buy a used one? If I bought it new (say like a 40 gallon), how much would the tank and equipment be? What equipment do you need? How do you get the "salt" in the water? Most private saltwater tanks I see are filthy! How often would I have to clean it to keep it clean and how do you clean it? I would want maybe 3 different fish. What kinds of saltwater fish get along with each other? I also heard it is nearly impossible to keep seahorses alive in a tank. Is it possible? What are some of the average prices of fish? Are there special cleaning fish to help cut down on algae and what kind of live plants and coral can I add? Overall, with the tank and equipment and fish about what price range could I expect to pay (if I got used stuff and got 3 of the lesser expensive fish)? Sorry about all the questions. Even if you answer only one, it'll help!

Answer 1

Saltwater is more complicated and much, much more expensive.

Well, actually, saltwater tanks can be easy to maintain, IF you did everything right from the start.
Fresh water fish are, for the most part, more forgiving of mistakes and neglect. For example, if you forget to turn on the fish light one morning, it's no big deal. If you forget to clean your water one week, no big deal.

Saltwater is not so forgiving.
To be succesful with saltwater, you need a large tank. No 10 gallons or anything; at LEAST 50 gallons. Bigger is better - because of things like evaporation, salinity, temperature, ammonia, nitrites, etc, salt water needs to be constantly monitored.

You also need a lot of (expensive) equipment for a salt water tank.
For fresh, you need: a tank, a lid, lights, a heater, a filter.
For salt you need:
A tank and a lid
You will need actinic or metal halide lights, perhaps some moon lights, to keep your corals alive. These fixtures can cost upwards for 300-500$+
You may need a large, canister filter, 100$+
You need a protein skimmer (this cleans the gunk that accumulates at the surface of the water) 50-200$
You need power heads (oceans have a lot more current than lakes do, and so your water needs to have more current. that's what water pumps do) 2 or 3 @ 10-50$ each
You need at least 2 reliable heaters @ 50$ each
A sump or refugium is highly recommended. This is like a smaller tank or rubbermaid that is placed, usually under the tank, and where more water can be (which constantly cycles into the tank and back into the sump). A sump is just more water (so, if you have a 50gal tank and 20gal sump, that's 70gallons of water). A refugium (fuge) is like another tank, with a light and live rock.

Then you will need live rock. That's rock from the ocean that has lots of organisms growing on it. 1 pound per gallon is recommended, and it costs 5-15$ per pound.

Then, the fish and corals are considerably more expensive than freshwater fish.

Saltwater is perfectly possible, and not too hard, like I said, if you do it right. If you try to make it work and cut corners, like using smaller tank, or no powerheads or no sump/fuge, you will find yourself rapidly killing your fish.

An upside to freshwater, is that a lot of FW fish are captive bred. In SW, however, corals and fish and inverts are taken from the oceans, which are being depleted of creatures. So, it is not cool to experiment and mess up with saltwater fish.

On the whole, I'd say you need to put aside a good $1000 to $1500 if you want to have a good, succesful SW tank.

As for your actual question ;) (I do prattle on) - you can buy used, definitely. Try to locate your local aquarists society. Sometimes you can buy entire saltwater setups when people are moving, getting out of the hobby, etc. You definitely still need to read books and do research, but it can be a less expensive way to start. I've seen complete setups go for 500 to 1000$, which is less everything costs new.
However, if you're on a budget, keep your eye on your local aquarists' club classifieds. Occasionally, saltwater equipment goes up for sale. Buy it and hold on to it until you have everything you need.

You get the salt in the water by buying Marine Salt and mixing it in. Instructions on the package. You can buy Marine Salt that has all other minerals needed. You'll need a salinity reader, too.

You should not have to clean a SW tank too often. Your Live Rock, and live sand, and cleanup crew (hermits etc) should do the cleaning for you. Once a month you can replace some of the water, but you will need to top off the water on a weekly basis, as it evaporates. remember: when you REPLACE water, you need to add new salt, because you took some salt out. When you ADD WATER BECAUSE OF EVAPORATION you do NOT need to add new salt, because the water evaporated, but the salt is still in the tank.

It is not necessarily difficult to keep seahorses alive. However, you need experience first. Get into saltwater, get to know other hobbiests, most of them are happy to share experiences and valuable knowledge.

There are lots of saltwater fish available. One problem with small SW tanks is that the fish are so beautiful, you want more! Keep that in mind when setting up your tank :) I can recommend some basic SW fish like clowns, tangs, damsels, gobies, blennies, wrasses... but your best bet is to go to your local fish store, or browse saltwater forums, and see what you like. Research it, and see if it'll work for you. They are more expensive than FW fish. Some of the cheap SW fish will run you 5-10$, and it goes up (and up) from there to 100, 1000, 10000$.

You want algae grow in your SW tank. If you look at established SW tanks, you see red crusts of algae growing on the sides and back of the tank. Those are good things! You can scrape them off the front for viewing purposes, of course.

Good luck :) Read, read and READ. There are some great saltwater books out there, buy lots of them. Read a couple of books, set up your tank with the live rock and salt water - then, it'll take 4 weeks before you can add fish so you can read your books again. :)

Answer 2

For a beginner in the saltwater hobby, I'd recommend at least a 50 gallon tank. The reason for this is that it is easier to maintain the appropriate chemical balances in a larger volume of water.

Buying a used tank is fine, but be sure to clean it well and rinse it thoroughly before using it. If you plan to get fish that may be sensitive to certain elements, like copper, you may want a new tank. Copper residue, found in many fish medicines, can be toxic to a variety of saltwater inhabitants - mostly the invertebres.

Getting the salt in the water is one of the simplest processes in a saltwater tank... You simply buy sea salt (not the kitchen kind!!)
and mix it per the package instructions.

The varieties of saltwater fish that can cohabitate peacefully is almost endless. Check out http://liveaquaria.com for a fish compatibility chart.

The saltwater hobby is not for the faint of heart (or tight on money). There is an incredible amount of work that must be put in to properly care for the fish, with water changes, checking chemicals, cleaning the tank, feeding the fish and more.

My saltwater tank is about 18 months old. We started with a 45 gallon tank, but only kept it for about 2 months. Then we moved up to a 75 gallon. We choose to go for a natural sand/rock environment, which ran our costs up by an additional $500 or so. Not counting that, we probably spent somewhere around $1000 on the tank, stand, equipment, and fish. On average, it costs us about $50/ month to maintain, with occassional months that are more expensive from upgrading/replacing equipment, test kits, etc.

Please take the time to read through the tank set up articles found here:
http://wetwebmedia.com

Answer 3

i have a 55 gallon. i bought two 20lb bags of live sand they were 39.99 each. its easy to work with and good for your tank. You don't really need a expensive filter just one that will do for the size of your tank this varies in price depending on what you want the more filtration the better. and then you'd need a bag of salt enough to do 50gallons or better a 50 gallon bag i paid 23.99 for then you need to get RO water to fill up ur tank, of course u could use tap water despite what alot of people say because i did and i have some coral even. the lights and all that doesn't matter much intill you start keeping coral. a protein skimmer comes in handy also but u don't have to have one. the upkeep is actually as easy as fresh water you will check you salt levels once a week or so and add fresh water when needed to keep them level other than that its all the same. Also you will need to buy some live rock probably this can range from 4.00 to 7.00 a pound depending on the store you buy it from its best to buy 1lbs per gallon but this can be added as you get the money it doesn't have to be the first thing. any other questions u may have just message me [e-mail]

Answer 4

If you don't mind doing a little rading and research I'll tell you to go to the same ppalce I gathered all my knowledge. The concienscious Marine Aquarist is the best SW book to help you on your way. Aside from the book, the best resource I've found is friends and fellow hobbiests at reefcentral com. I check there daily and you may even find a local SW group/society that can aid you in your SW adventure. We were all new once, and most everyone who has a SW tank will pass on their knowledge so you won't have to go through the same mistakes we did. GL

Answer 5

Follow the links.

Answer 6

salt water is alittle more money but so much funner than fresh water.we are glad we made the switch,so much we setting a 110 gal reef tank now.

Answer 7

40 gallon is a nice size...more water better circulation....invest in a kit...meaning tank with filters, pump, and sometimes they come with gravel...new maybe close to 200....