New To Saltwater Aquariums

[EMSc9771]

Hi everyone,
I have always wanted a salt water tank and finally decided it was time to get one. But, before I do that, I wanted to get educated and be prepared to keep healthy fish. I was hoping that someone here would be able to give me some advice as a first-time salt water keeper. Some specific pointers I need would be the size of tank to get, how many fish can be put into one tank, and what equipment you would recommend. Thank you in advance for your help!

 

[tzsetzse]

The best advice I or anyone else could possibly give to you would be this:
READ*READ*READ
Martin Moe's books are terrific for 1st time hobbyists. Beginner to Breeder is still on my shelf after 20 years.
Forums are nice but this is NOT an inexpensive endeavor. You want to maximize your survival odds and asking questions here or anywhere else on the Internet will result in ALL kinds of advice.
Find a good 1st reference book. Read it. Stick with it. Get your system up and running and then tweak things as you go forward.
The basics are just that. Start there and we won't see your tank at some garage sale next spring... IMO, of course =)

 

[glb]

Hi everyone,
I have always wanted a salt water tank and finally decided it was time to get one. But, before I do that, I wanted to get educated and be prepared to keep healthy fish. I was hoping that someone here would be able to give me some advice as a first-time salt water keeper. Some specific pointers I need would be the size of tank to get, how many fish can be put into one tank, and what equipment you would recommend. Thank you in advance for your help!

Welcome! You've come to the right place! You're very smart to do a lot of research before you buy anything. As far as size, nano tanks (20g or less) are very difficult to keep stable, so I'd recommend something bigger to start. A 40 or 55g is a good starter size for a lot of people. Big enough to be stable, but not so big that maintenance and cost go way up. You should buy a protein skimmer, good lights if you plan on keeping coral, live rock and live sand, good testing kits (ammonia, nitrites and nitrates during the cycling period of the tank and then add alkalinity, calcium and magnesium. You'll need a hydrometer or refractometer for salinity and some way to measure ph. I recommend a digital probe for ph and the refractometer if budget allows. You'll need fish food, cleaning sponges for the glass, and a siphon to help with water changes. You'll need ro water and a good salt mix and a place to mix and store the water. I'm sure I've forgotten something but others chime in. But the most important thing to get is knowledge! Read, read, and read some more. The marine aquarium book by Martin Moe Jr helped me a lot. Read up on how to set up a tank, learn about the nitrogen cycle and decide what kind of tank you want (fish only, what kind of coral etc) before you spend a lot of money. You'll be glad you did. Good luck!

 

[robbrouse]

These are two of my favorite books. Both are worth the asking price and a good read. IMO.

[url]http://www.amazon.com/The-Conscientious-Marine-Aquarist-Professional/dp/1890087998/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1380935504&sr=8-10&keywords=salt+water+aquarium+books

The Marine Reef Aquarium: Phil Hunt: 9780764160233: Amazon.com: Books[/URL]

 

[EMSc9771]

Thanks to all for your input! I've looked into the books and I'm going to see of Barnes & Noble has them or any others.
Now here's the dumb question of the day: what is the scoop on PetCo fish? I have bad plenty of bad experience with Pet Co.'s small animals (incorrect sexing of domestic mice led to 6x the original population) and I am still reaping the consequences so there's no way I'd purchase my fish there anyway. However, someone I attend dog agility classes with said PetCo was great for saltwater fish and I was reluctant to believe it so I figured I'd ask the popular opinion here.

And on that same topic: where do you purchase your livestock? The idea of shipping live animals has always made me uneasy so I'd prefer to have some well-experienced opinions.

 

[glb]

Thanks to all for your input! I've looked into the books and I'm going to see of Barnes & Noble has them or any others.
Now here's the dumb question of the day: what is the scoop on PetCo fish? I have bad plenty of bad experience with Pet Co.'s small animals (incorrect sexing of domestic mice led to 6x the original population) and I am still reaping the consequences so there's no way I'd purchase my fish there anyway. However, someone I attend dog agility classes with said PetCo was great for saltwater fish and I was reluctant to believe it so I figured I'd ask the popular opinion here.

And on that same topic: where do you purchase your livestock? The idea of shipping live animals has always made me uneasy so I'd prefer to have some well-experienced opinions.

I haven't had good luck with petco fish but I do think it depends on the store. I would ask people here about good stores where you are.