FIRST SALTWATER TANK

[TheRealJenky]

Good Day everyone!

My name is Joshua. My wife and I are looking to officially "Dip our toes" (had to do it) into Saltwater Reef ownership! Due to the literal complete ONSLAUGHT of conflicting information, terminology, and downright opinions I've received from YouTube, I decided to attempt to get more from the forums. In this thread I'm looking to get information, such as like a helpful items list, things that are nice to haves, etc. I know the most essential items, tank, level stand, a filter, wave maker, substrate, etc. However, I'm downright intimidated by the sheer size of the market.

Questions:
Would buying a kit such as the ones from Red Reefs (con very pricey) be easier for a beginner? Or should I just slowly build up a roster of all the items and DIY it?
There are SO many different wave makers, lights etc, we don't even know where to begin?
I've heard larger is better since its easier to avoid severe drops over night in levels, is it worth going for something like 200 Gallons as a brand new owner, or would a smaller 50 gallon be the wiser purchase?

I apologize for these seemingly "noobish" questions, and my wife and I are dedicated to this hobby, we just want as much information as possible so our reef and fish thrive! We plan to update this along our journey, going from zero's to full on exhibit level heros.

Thank you all

 

[Ron Reefman]

First, welcome to Reef2Reef!



If you haven't been in the hobby before, it can be VERY confusing and sometimes even irrational. One of the issues you'll face is that there are many paths to a successful tank, but once you commit to going down one path, some options and techniques that others use, won't be available to you with your system. Now you can always go back, but that can be quite expensive. And through all of that, maintaining a saltwater tank REQUIRES hours of weekly work, sometimes even more. And emergencies do happen. So as the meme says... "gonna be a wild ride"

BTW your questions are encouraged. And studying some of the articles here at R2R may be of help.

So, on to your first questions:

1) Would buying a kit such as the ones from Red Reefs (con very pricey) be easier for a beginner? Or should I just slowly build up a roster of all the items and DIY it?
Both methods work and I've done both. As a real beginner a smaller Red Sea system may be a good solution for getting started. Most reefers start with smaller tanks and then up grade to bigger tanks as they gain experience and the addiction deepens (oh heck, did I just admit that in writing?).

2) There are SO many different wave makers, lights etc, we don't even know where to begin?
You need to see some other people's systems. Go to an LFS (Local Fish Store) and look at the hardware, not the fish and corals! See if there is a local club in your area, that can be extremely helpful. There is a list of local clubs here at R2R.

3) I've heard larger is better since its easier to avoid severe drops over night in levels, is it worth going for something like 200 Gallons as a brand new owner, or would a smaller 50 gallon be the wiser purchase?
Bigger can be better (not so much for over night issues, but other issues). A common saying is, the solution to pollution is dilution. A bigger tank helps dilute issues like adding too much of something, or the toxic effect of a fish dying in the tank and not being able to get it out. But it's not all that important. I've been in the hobby for almost 20 years and I've gone from a 30g tank at the start, to 4 tanks totaling 600g of saltwater in the house, and back down to a 40g tank that was crazy beautiful. Big is expensive, both up front and long term. It's also expensive to stock. Smaller is less expensive and can look full, mature and beautiful in less time (2 to 3 years) and for less money.

 

[theMeat]

Welcome to r2r

Go as big as you can. Buying smaller only to buy bigger later doesn’t save money.
Lighting and set up depends on what type of tank you want.
The more expensive or latest and greatest is usually not the best choice.
You will hear many ppl and companies say this is the “best” way or the only way to go. The truth is there’s many ways to have a successful tank. With that said, there’s usually good reason why most ppl do it a certain way.

 

[Cell]

Personally, I would start on the smaller end until i knew for sure this hobby was for me. It is such a huge investment up front, I wouldnt want to find myself with a 200g tank, thousands of dollars invested and no desire to continue.

 

[PacoPetty]

Welcome to Reef2Reef, my name is Andy, and I am addicted to reefing and soon you will be too!

 

[lilgrounchuck]

1). Welcome, this is a great source of info.

2). Buy whatever your budget and space restrictions allow. You don’t need to worry about having all the fancy equipment that makes your tank look like a space ship to be successful either. Take it slow and feel it out, but you can absolutely have an awesome reef tank going the petco $1/gal route with an hob filter vs spending thousands on a Red Sea system.

 

[lapin]

Howdy

What I did and why. May work for you or not.
I started with a used 125 acrylic tank. Came with a 55g tank for a sump. Cheap chinese back box lights and powerheads. Return pump, heaters, RODI, rock and all that stuff. cost was about $1000.00. I had many fresh water tanks, years ago, while breeding fish so I knda knew my way around and what is required to maintain a tank. Over a 4 year period I added things to make the tank work. Upgrades like better lights and power heads. Added an apex to see what that was all about. It was a great learning experence and taught me what woulkd be required to have my dream tank. When I moved I sold the stuff and gave away the livestock. My new house has a tank room and an in wall tank.
I think picking the right tank has to do with how of a commitment you are willing to make and how much money you have to put into the hobby.

 

[TheRealJenky]

Thank everyone for the replies! Blew up faster than expected! I appreciate you all, I happen to be in a very lucky spot to get into the hobby, as I’m located in Okinawa, I’m thinking of going smaller, as my current station here has 3 years left, so a smaller tank to try it out, see where it goes, and get every “warm and fuzzy” before I go home to the US and hopefully “go BIG and go HOME” once I’m back stateside. Probably going to do a 40 gallon breeder size and go from there, going by the LFS tomorrow to see what all they have in stock for reef aquariums and salts etc, but my hopes are low due to the language barrier, my Japanese isn’t the best lol. So might have to pick up most of my gear online. Will update tomorrow on decisions there’s so many to make! Super excited!

 

[New&no clue]

My advise as a fellow new person would be to first look at what type of tank you want. Full reef, or fish only. These will need two different things. If you want to go down the reef route next pick what type of corals do you want. All softies, LPS, SPS a mix of all. This will determine what type of equipment is needed as well. Softies will be the least demanding on lights, flow, and dosing. SPS will be the most demanding and more expensive.

As far as tanks I would go with as big as you want. I wanted a big tank but was talked into a smaller one with less equipment, and I ended up upgrading only 4 months later. It was more expensive and I wish I had just followed my gut and went with the tank I wanted originally. I like the red seas or waterbox for new people. I think it is easy to set up and learn the basics of a sump and filtration system. I own a red sea and am very happy with it.

Also another good resource is to go onto the Member Tank forum here and looks through peoples build threads. Or a lot of the "tank kits" have thread on here. I am on the Red Sea thread as well as the IM NUVO thread. Both have lots of information about the specific tank you have. So once you pick you can checks those out and get some ideas for equipment or stocking or tips and tricks.

Good Luck and Happy Reefing.

 

[TheRealJenky]

Went by two LFS, pretty disappointing fish collection, one had several tanks just over grown with algae and covered with feces, went to another that had a healthy collection of very basic fish, clowns, tangs and adult wrasses. And only 3 corals which were polyps, anemone frags, and an unidentifiable brain coral that was either stressed or fresh to the tank. All in all, LFS in Chatan Okinawa are depressing. Will check the surrounding towns soon.

Good news, great prices on tanks and had a few tank stand combos that are promising and relatively affordable considering the conversion rate for Yen to USD.