do you have a marine aquarium?

Question

I would really like to set up a marine aquarium (have had tropical in the past) as the fish are gorgeous and you can have live rock. I'm not going to rush into things and i have read book after book on the subject but they all say how extemely difficult it is and that you shouldn't use live rock if not experienced. This tends to put me off lots! Is it a difficult as they say (i.e. alot more difficult than a tropical tank) and does anyone have any good advice? thanks.

Answer 1

I have three marine tanks right now! Personally, I don't think they are any harder than freshwater once you have them set up. Yes, you do need some different equipment - protein skimmers, hydrometers, and such - a tank chiller if your room regularly gets too warm - and you have to mix up the salt for every water change - and there are a few more tests you should do for water quality (salinity, calcium). But it's not that much more.

As far as difficulty with the fish, there are those in freshwater that are hard to keep as well! The expense is there, but not all SW fish have to cost that much - there are a number of species that are less than $30. You can even cycle your tank by using guppies or a molly - these can be acclimated slowly to marine conditions and are fish you've maybe even kept in freshwater. One big difference is personality - marine fish tend to be more territorial - actually cichlid-like in their behavior. This, plus their intolerance for poor water quality, means lighter stocking rates than freshwater tanks. If you want several species, add the more peaceful fish first, and be very cautious with colors and body forms - some fish will be aggressive toward anything else that remotely resembles them. The key here is to do research on the fish before you get them and you seem to be on the right track there by the reading you're doing!

I don't know where you heard that live rock shouldn't be used if you aren't experienced - I've had live rock from the very first SW tank I ever set up (8+ yrs ago). The only reason I can figure for this is if there are corals and macroalgaes that need more intense light to grow. I've always used a double compact fluorescent lighting system (1 tube 10,000K and 1 tube 03 actinic), so I've never had any trouble with it. In fact, I love watching all the life that comes out from the rock - I've gotten 3 species of shrimp, several macroalgaes, sponges, coral, fan worms, a sea cucumber, urchins, sea stars, a rock anemone, tunicates, several types of snails, some crabs (have to watch out for these - some aren't reef-friendly!) and more. I'd recommend its use to anyone for marine tanks. It gives your tank a more natural appearance, provides hiding places for the fish and inverts, and is a good source of beneficial bacteria for cycling the tank.

Best advice for the marine - if you decide to do it, research the fish first. The combination of species you decide to keep (and their compatability and adult sizes) will determine everything else. If you have an unused 30 gallon or larger tank from your tropical fish keeping, you can start with that, or go for the largest tank you can afford/have room for to keep water chemistry and temperature stable. A large tank will also give you room to expand. A quarantine tank is a good idea so once you have fish, you don't spread any sicknesses from new fish to your tank. A quarantine tank is also a good place to medicate fish - inverts are very sensitive to medications, especially if they contain copper.

I don't know which books you've been reading, but if you haven't found "The New Marine Aquarium" by Michael S. Paletta, I'd suggest you find a copy. It gives lots of practical advise, compares methods and equipment for saltwater, gives good info on the fish, and has lots of "checklist" pages (set-up, maintenance). Best of all (IMO), it focuses on giving you enough information to make your own (informed) choices on what to get and how to do things so you get a tank that will fit your needs, budget, and abilities (with lots of photos of impressive marine tanks that make you want to be able to do even more!).

Good luck and welcome to having the SW bug!

Answer 2

Is it only a a pair of times click? if so then it may well be a Pistol Shrimp. I had aquaculture stay rock from the gulf of Mexico and it got here with a pair. I have by no potential considered them, yet I have chanced on there skeleton at the same time as molting. If its a continuous pop/click sound some situations in a row, it may well be a Mantis Shrimp. it may even connect your kit and or merely noises on your head. :-) make positive you change each little thing off, in case you nevertheless listen it, attempt to confirm if any of the shrimp gobies made a pal. maximum suitable regards!

Answer 3

keep reading!!
you can get alot of information (and there is a message board) on www.saltwaterfish.com

Answer 4

Congrats! No salt is really no different. There are a few different rules with salt but for the most part, just as easy. Here is an answer I had given to someone else who wanted to start a salt tank.

Oh yes, and live rocks really need no care. That is until you see what creatures have been living in there! Everything from bristleworms to cuddlefish, large clams and even coral polyps! Live rock doesn't need special care hun.

I have had marine tanks for more than 30 years. the answer below, was for someone also needing pricing.

At least you are starting on the right foot. Figuring out what you will need to get started. First and I would like to stress this one word, PATIENCE.

First step for your tank is figuring out where you are going to put it. Remember with a salt water tank, you are going to have to leave room behind the tank for access, filters etc. About 8-12 inches. (This will also help to protect walls from salt evaporation. I'll explain later) Once you have that, we are ready to start.

Do you have a local fish store to trust? One that relies on good fish keeping and good advice to stay in business. Find one even if you have to drive a few miles out of your way. They can be a large asset when it comes to fish.

Do you have any ideas on what you might want to keep? Or is this a "we'll start with a blank canvas and see where it goes?" thing?

To start, a regular hood, no special lights will suffice for now. (until you see if this is what you really want to advance to)

To start, you do not NEED a skimmer. They are prefered but, my 30 gallon has never had a skimmer or power heads and still doesn't. I hate to use the word cheap, just less expensive. And you can still have a healthy tank.

A rear whisper filter designed for a 75 gallon tank will suffice for now. This will run around $50 at walmart of all places. Your best bet is to shop around. You can if you choose to go with a back pack filter which come preequiped with a protein skimmer for around $150.00. This could save time and money later when upgrading.

For a beginner, I would suggest dolomite (Crushed coral) for the bottom of your tank (Easier to care for). If you are not going to be runninga protein skimmer, this will make cleaning much easier. You will also want to get a gravel siphon for cleaning (these can range from a couple of bucks to upwards of $50. You don't need anything fancy, just a siphon). A heater is a must $10-15), thermometer $1.95 In the tank only a floater of one that attaches doesn't matter. It should be placed the farthest from your heater as possible.) A hydrometer These can run from a few dollars and up. Just a floating hydrometer is fine. around $4.00. Some packages of salt you will purchase sometimes come with a hydrometer, so this may help. Instant Ocean makes a quality synthetic salt. ($22.00). (When you start moving up in the salt water I would suggest switching to Red Sea Salt.) Power heads are beneficial, but at this point not necessary. They can be added on at any time. Get a quality Dechlorinator. (DO NOT USE start right or stress coat in your marine tank) AquaNova + is a good dechlor and it also adds back trace minerals to the water. One or two 5 gallon buckets. $2.29 each at home depot.

Ok I think we are ready to start. Be sure your tank is clean. You can use a salt water mix to clean your tank. There is also an aquarium cleaner you can buy but for your tank, a mix of 1/2 cup of salt dissolved in a gallon of water will do. (no specifics here.) Clean the tank rinse and let's get started.

If you chose to use the dolomite you do not want to use more than will cover 1 1/2 - 2 inches across the bottom. (Sand will require the same) Use a kitchen sive and clean the gravel by rinsing it. Dump the gravel into the bucket and swish the heck out of it. Drain and rinse again.

(You will only do this if you are using dry dolomite. LIVE dolomite and live sand do not get rinsed)

Pour the gravel into the bottom of your tank. Doesn't need to be flattened yet since you are going to be dumping water into your tank and this is going to dislocate it anyway. Using your 5 gallon buckets, fill just about 4 gallons or 4 1/5 depending on how much you can lift. Add the required amount of Dechlor and then the salt. (Usually 1.5 pounds or 24 oz per 5 gallons, however I have never used that much to obtain a 1.022 gravity in my tank.) I start by adding a cup mixing to disolve (and I use warm tap water here) I will check the hydrometer to see how far off I am and either add more salt or more fresh water. Since you are setting up your tank, obtaining an exact 1.022 is not that important right now, getting close is. Continue dissolving salt and new water until your tank is about 3-4 inches from the top. Attach your filter (be sure it is rinsed well as well as the filters) if you choose to use a rear filter. Even so a back pack filter also needs rinsed. Now we have water movement.

I did not mention anything about live rock or any other items for your tank yet. At this stage since you REALLY should not try to cycle your salt water this early with live rock. If you only knew what things grow on and in the rock, don't waste your money now. It really isn't needed. Now that your tank is running. Check the water with the hydrometer. you should be pretty close to your 1.022 range. Slightly higher or lower isn't going to matter. Turn your heater on and set it for around 78. Finish topping off your tank with salt mixed water. Don't forget to add dechlor to every bucket. Congratulations, your tank is now set up. Now comes the waiting. And you will wait. To aid in the tanks cycling, but does not replace cycling, take a few pieces of raw fish or shrimp, chop them up and toss them intothe tank. This will help the bacteria establish more quickly leading to a healther tank later. Get a notebook. Markdown the day you set your tank up and what you did and what you used. Do this with water changes and tests. This way you have a record of what was done.

Let it run. Continue to run the lights during the day and off at night. After about a week, check your water quality. I would suggest a really good test kit, and strips. I use the strips (I call them dummy strips since they are very broad ranged and are not accurate enough for fishkeeping) to initially test. Then I compair them with what I get from my water tests. I mark the results down in my note book with the day. If you don't trust yourself enough to read the water, take it to your LFS. They will do it for you. Your tank will have to run a minimum of 6 weeks with nothing in it. Do not try to rush this process. Salt water is not the same as fresh water. Shrimp, anemone or even fish are less tolorent of water conditions.

If you really MUST have something swimming around, after 3 weeks, you can buy a black mollie or a couple of guppies. They will live fine in your tank at this time. They are the only fish to attempt. Placing damsels would kill the damsels since they are not the same kind of fish mollies and guppies are. You really do not need to do any water changes during the break in time. If you are showing spiking of nitrates, you may want to do a 20% water change. After your 6 week break in period, test your water. If all the parmiters are ok, you can begin with the lower end fish. Damsels. DO NOT TRY to place triggers or tangs or puffers into your tank. The bacteria is present, but not established and it will kill these fish. If your damsels are doing fine in two weeks, you can start adding live rock to build up your substraight. You can buy as little as pound or ten pounds. You can buy dead corals, fake corals, or whatever you want to decorate your tank. Your tank will need to sit for a minimum of 6 months before you can attempt the higher end fish.

I test my tanks every three days. I only do a water change of 25% once every three to four weeks. My tanks are established however and are pretty much on their own.

A few rules of thumb when dealing with salt fish. Keep your hands out! The more your hands remain out of the tank, the better your fish will be.

DO not spray anything in the room your tank is in.

Now you can start thinking about breeding brine shrimp, and what other fish you are interested in getting. Remember to do your research, since fish require different lighting, water paramiters and are or are not compatable with reef, invertabreas etc.

Good luck. If you have any additional question feel free to email me.