Tank Size?

[bclark1289]

I am new to the salt game and was wondering what size is the smallest recommended size to use for my first salt tank? Also, what are my options if i use... say my 20g tank? It is fresh water right now and if its not too small, would save me some $ getting started. Then later on i could use it for a tank to put fish in before they go in the big tank. Thoughts?

 

[yazeed]

The biger the better and often easy to maintain

 

[tyler1503]

I am new to the salt game and was wondering what size is the smallest recommended size to use for my first salt tank? Also, what are my options if i use... say my 20g tank? It is fresh water right now and if its not too small, would save me some $ getting started. Then later on i could use it for a tank to put fish in before they go in the big tank. Thoughts?

I have a 24 gal at home. It's my 3rd tank and if I were to start all over again, it would have been the tank I used from the start. They say bigger is better, which it can be, but it's also a lot more expensive. You don't need fancy gadgets on a 20gal, lighting, filtration and stocking is cheaper and you'll use far less RO water and salt.
In saying that, bigger tanks are supposedly easier to keep stable chemistry wise (I haven't experienced that yet) and the livestock possibilities are far better.
In the end it's up to you, but I personally wouldn't say a 20 gal is too small to start with.

 

[bclark1289]

I think id like to start with my 20 and save up and get a big tank once i move. Any suggestions for livestock/corals that would be good in the 20 yet transitionto live well in the bigger tank inthe future?

 

[tyler1503]

What corals you an get depends on a few things. Your lighting, flow and how much maintenance your prepared to do.
There are plenty of great fish for a 20 gallon, but what ones will be good depends on what fish you like. If you want a peaceful community, then clowns, gobies, blennies, cardinals are probably the pick among a few others. If you want an aggressive tank, there's not many fish that would be suitable, but dwarf lions and small eels could be ok short term.

 

[Jimbo662]

The key to keeping a successful saltwater / reef tank is stability. Smaller tanks are more of a challenge to keep stable. I'd go with the largest you can afford. I've currently got a 75 gal. With an auto top off to keep the salinity stable, a good skimmer and weekly 5gal water changes mine is doing great and I'm seeing growth on all of my corals...it finished cycling around the end of March.

 

[Z06-Hec]

It depends on what you are aiming for. When i started i planned on FOWLR ( Fish only with live rock ).
Started with a 35 gal which i still have and use as my QT when needed.
I quickly learned the fish i wanted ( Angels ) need much more space to swim. So i started looking for an upgrade. I went to a 95gal flat back hex to place in a corner.
Although it was 95 gal it was deep and not long so still not much swimming space if you pay attention to the fish swimming pattern. They ( Angels and other larger fish ) generally do not swim the depth of the tank but rather back and forth and take use of the full length of the tank.
Anyway, i had plenty issues with my 95. not enough flow was my main one. I consider my 95 small because of the dimensions and poor flow/design. Anyway Ich wiped out most of the tank, well the treatment did. Heat and Hypo Salinity.
Anyway after some time I obtained some clams as i found them intriguing. This is where you or I start venturing into Corals... From clams.. and keeping them for a while i figured let me try coral...
At this point i am into a 150 gal 72" long.
I have an Majestic angel, blue face angel, 3 clams, LPS corals about 6-8, few inverts, 4 clowns .....

Point is as a beginner and not knowing much about it you get excited and want to try things and rush in a lot of things and lose money and have bad experiences.
With my larger tank now, great flow, i have had ich again and the tank survived with no issues.

If i was ever to do a smaller tank which i do consider from time to time, i would love to do Clowns and Anemone. Once you learn how to keep water stable clowns and nems are pretty cool and dont need to most of space. Clowns barely go anywhere and seeing them host anemone are cool.
Plus there are a huge variety of colorful clowns and colorful anemone. you could come up with some cool combo.
If i did a 20 gal i would make sure i had a skimmer, nice filter, decent lights and shoot for 4-6 clowns and maybe 3 anemone.
Thats me though.
You could also just do 2 clowns and hope they pair and breed, if they have a tank to themselves that would be cool too.

 

[Z06-Hec]

As a beginner the best advice I think I learned was not to get over excited at the LFS, see a price you think is nice and jump on it...
Go home first read about them, compare which are available to you, their needs, their temper then decide.
If you shop online you can usually find a better deal on a set of something much more nicer than a LFS.

 

[rako1]

Use at least a 40b with a 20 sump it is a good starter tank with enough water volume to keep stable water conditions

 

[LetItReef]

Yes, use that 20g tank you have. 1-2 fishes in there couple CUC's after a cycle, check out liveaquaria.com to give you an idea. Depends on the lighting you have for Corals. I would start first with Softies then move along with LPS. Some of these does not require too much light and flow. Good luck.

 

[fishroomlady]

I think a 20 gallon can be a nice starter tank to get the hang of the hobby. If you do regular water changes and keep your bioload low, you can maintain a pretty nice little tank. If I were to keep a small tank - fish I would get would be 2 clowns (designers like wyoming whites/platinum/frostbite), yellow watchman goby and pistol shrimp pair. You could look at some smaller nano gobies as well. I really like sexy shrimp as they pair up with maxi mini anemones - just something to look at. I'd look to keep some zoas, mushrooms, and some ricordeas/yumas and that would make one great 20 gallon tank

 

[Mandrew]

Go big now and save yourself the money. Because I promise you will want bigger quick

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

I'd say start with a 30-gallon...anything less will be hard to keep stable just starting out.

 

[Mandrew]

I started with 60g and it's too small!

 

[CastAway]

I like this analogy that I was told when I was contemplating tank size; if you pee in a gallon jug of water, and then you pee in a five gallon bucket, which is dirtier? If marine tanks were like juggling, the larger the tank, the fewer balls in the air. Twenty gallons, to me, would be like four flaming chain saws. LOL

 

[gidenski]

It really depends on your personality type. If you can start small and stay small for a year or two, then a 20G is a great option. However if you're like me and get really excited about new hobbies, you will quickly want to upgrade. I started with a 34 G nano tank and it taught me a lot. 1 year and 5 k later, I am in a 110 g tank with all new equipment. Whatever you do, don't go cheap, but quality will suffer and you will have to replace the broken part sooner than later.

 

[Kworker]

Just go with a 180gal, you won't regret it :wink:

 

[gidenski]

Small tank or big tank... just prepare for this

 

[Mandrew]

+1 to that! ^

 

[ReeferRookie]

My first saltwater tank was with my parents but my dad cared for.it. my own first was a 36g bowfront. I agree bigger is more exspensive but u end up.buying stuff to keep things in check on a smaller tank water changes are more frequent filtration equipment media ect.

Now what do i think a first time reefer should start with ? Thats easy the very very basic

A tank size is ur preference id keep id under 75.
Standard back hang filter sumps are exspensive and lil more challengijg to set up but they make ur tank look nicer
Heater
A good brand of salt (dont go cheap here no one told me but i learned good salt meant more trace elements )
Gfo (must must must must must)
Carbon.
Dry rock (to your liking not everyone elses )
Live rock (however much you think.is best ) now remember all rock will become liverock at some point patience is key here in this world
Led or t5 lighting. Being new id tell you to go t5 its cheaper and corals love it leds atm can be complicated and exspensive
Saltwater test kit ~
Powerheads (flow is important in a reef )

Cycle your tank you being new you should do atleast 6 weeks of cycle many things will go bad durring your cycle u might get three diff types of algae at once. Just relax and go with the flow it will work out in the end
Add a piece of thawed shrimp to.the tank. This will speed the process. Do not. Do not do not use a fish. I did and i realized it was cruel and mean to the fish if you do use a fish. Make him a hardy one. Chromis work great.


When all is said and done. Just one thing to remember. My saltwater tank is 7 months turning 8. I leaped into the hobby knowing nothing and if theres 2 things i learned one is patience everything takes time nothing comes from rushing. But the most IMPORTANT thing is research !!!! know what your getting what it does what it eats how much light it likes ect and welcome to the hobby