salt water fish tanks?

Question

what equipment do i need for a saltwater tank and what does each thing do. ive tried to look this up on the internet but its hard to find a direct answer.

Answer 1

There are several methods of keeping saltwater, so you won't find the same answer no matter where you look, or who you ask. What equipment is needed will depend on your tank size and what types of organisms you plan to keep. There's lots of options, if you have the money to spend.

Basics for a set-up are tank, lighting, temperature control, and filtration/water quality. Plus some things for maintenance/cleaning.

tank - different mateials are available (glass, acrylic); acrylic is lighter, better light transmission so it appears "clearer", but scratches more easily and costs more; can be formed into different shapes so there are some tanks with more "rounded corners" than glass, but these can also distort the view; longer and wider is better than tall and skinny, both for swimming and territory area and for oxygen exchange at the surface

lighting - depends on what you're keeping; for fish, standard hood lights work; if you're planning photosynthetic organisms, you'll need more intensity (compact fluorescent or metal halide, or a combination of these - depends on the organisms and tank size/depth); wattage and color temperature make a difference in photosynthesis efficiency

temperature control - depends on the origin of your organisms; if your keeping temperate fish in an air conditioned room, you might not need any; if you're keeping commercially available saltwater species, you'll need to maintain water temps between 76-80o for most reef tanks, temperature can get higher (mid 80s) for fish-only; this may require a heater (or multiples for a large tank) or chiller (if the temps get too warm)

filtration/water quality - everyone will have an opinion of the size, brand, and methods on this:
filtration - can be undergravel filter, plenum, hang-on power filter, cannister filter, fluidized sand bed, wet/dry trickle filter, etc. All have some pros and cons, I would say that the wet/dry provides the best filtration, undergravel is probably the cheapest (if you use undergravel, I would recommend setting powerheads on everse flow). Powerheads can be used to provide additional filtration (by using a filter attachment made for these), but also provide water movement to keep debris stirred up (and prevent dead areas, keep foods moving for filter feeding organisms).
protein skimmers - definitely recommended, these produce a fine column of bubbles to remove small organic particles from the water to reduce the nitrates in the tank (and also give additional aeration and water movement from the outflow) - two types, one works from an air pump with airstone, the other (Venturi) suctions air from the outside by water movement through the uptake (same pronciple as the Python vac that's attached to your sink to clean your tank)

UV sterilizer - not needed IMO, uses ultraviolet radiation to "kill" algae spores and small disease organisms; as these are located outside the tank, their efficiency depends on the ability of any gravity flow or pump attachment to move the water the organisms are in TO the unit - this won't take care of algae growing on surfaces or organisms that are more than a few cells in size. And the UV lamps need to be replaced yearly.
water test kit - one of the best purchases you can make - you can monitor your tank through the cycling process, determine your pH (and if any additives are needed for your tank to raise pH or hardness/alkalinity) before you add fish or other organisms, determine a tank cleaning schedule based on the buildup of wastes in your tank
hydrometer - to measure salinity when mixing replacement water for the tank
glass cover - this will keep your fish where they belong and reduce evaporation
quarantine tank - small tank (10 gallon, unless you want really large fish), extra heater and filter, cover - this will help prevent diseased fish from passing on their ailments to an established tank.

For cleaning, I'd recommend an algae scraper of some sort, long aquarium gloves, 5 gallon buckets (for cleaning and mixing new water), and siphon. Depending on the tank size and volume you'd be replacing, you might want a larger tub, plus and additional powerhead to mix the salt and a heater to bring the temperature up to that of the tank.

Answer 2

I am now under the impression that with time and effort you can do anything; I am not sure if you just got the tank or the tank with all the supplies; sand, salt, filter, heater, light , piece of live rock about 6.99 a piece or 6.99 a pound depending on type of rock; hydrometer to test the salt level; test kit to test for nitrates etc ; de-chlorinating chemical; water evaporates , salt does not so when you make water changes you don't add new salt; small crab/snail to clean up the sand; protein skimmer; I just bought 2 clown fish(Nemo) for 12.99 each and damsels 3 for 9.99 ; it will be a cost to set up ; if you want it bad enough , give it a try; limit the number of fish to 2 ; I have a 29 gallon tank and have 4 fish , 1 crab and a starfish ; hope this helps ; I love mine !!

Answer 3

There are many different ways to set up a saltwater tank depending on a number of things.
Fish only, FO
Fish only with live rock, FOWLR
Reef
Reef with fish
All of these will determine what filter you need, What lighting you need, what water quality you need and so on.

I can go on and on but you can PM me for an email and I would be more than happy to get you started.
DON"T listen to people telling you to start with freshwater, If you wan't saltwater, GO FOR IT.
It's no harder but it can be WAY more expensive and I find the results are WAY MORE STUNNING and interesting than most freshwater setups.

Answer 4

If you are a newbie at fish, I would suggest freshwater...

Saltwater fish are more sensitve and harder to take care of...

Answer 5

If your new to fish, you should start with freshwater fish.

Answer 6

try aquariacentral.com