Hi (1 Viewer)

[fishboyt]

Hi, I'm new to the fourm. I have been in the freshwater hobby for over six years and am looking to try saltwater. I hardly know anything about saltwater other than how to mix the water and salt together. That is why I decided to come to you guys. Any info would be great!

 

[jdeveaux]

Why not start with what you have and what you would like to keep.

Are you planning just to keep marine fish or a reef?

Regards,

 

[fishboyt]

Thanks!

Right now I have a 55g African Cichlid tank, a 55g planted tank with puffers and angles, a 20g tall with a puffer and a 29g planted. I also have many tanks that I use to breed bettas, and some other little tanks with fishes in them.

I'm wanting to make a reef and fish aquarium. I think it's cool to see the fish, the corals, the shrimp and the crabs all climbing around. I just need some help with telling me what fish get along with what shrimp and what shrimp get along with what corals.

Thanks again,
Treston

 

[flexrac]

http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/compatibility_chart.cfm

www.saltwaterfish.com

 

[flexrac]

when purchasing fish, always ask if it's reef safe, don't buy on impulse no matter how cute it looks.
here is a small list of reef safe fish.
most blennies are safe, all clownfish are safe,depending on the size of your tank, tangs are safe. anthias are safe, cardinals are safe, damsels and dottybacks are safe, but becareful, they are aggresive fish, gobies are reef safe, rabbifish are safe, they are two types of wrasses, reef safe and non reef safe, be-careful which you choose.

inverts:
hermit crabs, some becareful which shrimp you buy, some have special needs, snails are good, but some are large and can knock things over.
brittle starfish are reef safe and a good part of the cleanup crew.

choose your substrate wisely as some fish require it to burrow in.

 

[fishboyt]

Thanks! What kind of substrate should I get? Live sand, or PFS?

 

[paraletho]

Even as flexrac has said most charts are a pretty good guide but they are not perfect. Some fish will have individual personalities and preferences so you still need to watch them closely for a while. Also study some on the interractions between fish species, some do not get along or may be in competition for a certain food source. #1 rule in this hobby GO SLOW and read, read, read.

 

[Kemah]

I prefr no substrate just a Bare Bottom.

 

[flexrac]

that's a choice you have to make on your own, most people are using aragonite, i'm using crushed coral in one tank and oolite sand in another.

crushed coral can be a detritus trap from what i have read, but i like the fact that it maintains a good ph, and i can use a strong water flow without blowing sand all over the place.

my oolite sand would be fine if i did not have an engineer goby, he keeps moving sand around and there is constantly free floating sand in the tank and on the rocks.

you can also go barebottom. you will get a lot of folks who have done this and love it. you will need lots of flow to keep waste off the bottom and keep it suspended in the water until the filters get it.

you will also need good lighting, t-5 or metal halides are the optimum choice for reef systems.

 

[fishboyt]

that's a choice you have to make on your own, most people are using aragonite, i'm using crushed coral in one tank and oolite sand in another.

crushed coral can be a detritus trap from what i have read, but i like the fact that it maintains a good ph, and i can use a strong water flow without blowing sand all over the place.

my oolite sand would be fine if i did not have an engineer goby, he keeps moving sand around and there is constantly free floating sand in the tank and on the rocks.

you can also go barebottom. you will get a lot of folks who have done this and love it. you will need lots of flow to keep waste off the bottom and keep it suspended in the water until the filters get it.

you will also need good lighting, t-5 or metal halides are the optimum choice for reef systems.

OK. I think I'm gonna go with T-5 lighting because they don't overheat. I'll read up on which sand is best for me.

 

[Kemah]

If you do use sand use aragonite, imo it is the best choice, it doesnt blow around too bad and it doesnt cause as many problems and crushed coral. (my first tank had crushed coral and I had lots of problems, but there were other contributing factors) but you may want to try bare bottom and if you dont like the look add sand later.

The next thing you need to consider though is how deep to make the sand bed if you use sand. My opinion is to use no more than 1.5 - 2 inches but 1 inch would be better. This is so you can easily clean it by vacuuming on a regular basis. A deep sand bed is more likely to cause you problems in the future and needs to be 6+ inches to be effective. The solution for this is a RDSB (Remote Deep Sand Bed) There is a thread about these in the DIY section.

Please remember this is all just my opinion, there are a lot out there.

 

[fishboyt]

If you do use sand use aragonite, imo it is the best choice, it doesnt blow around too bad and it doesnt cause as many problems and crushed coral. (my first tank had crushed coral and I had lots of problems, but there were other contributing factors) but you may want to try bare bottom and if you dont like the look add sand later.

The next thing you need to consider though is how deep to make the sand bed if you use sand. My opinion is to use no more than 1.5 - 2 inches but 1 inch would be better. This is so you can easily clean it by vacuuming on a regular basis. A deep sand bed is more likely to cause you problems in the future and needs to be 6+ inches to be effective. The solution for this is a RDSB (Remote Deep Sand Bed) There is a thread about these in the DIY section.

Please remember this is all just my opinion, there are a lot out there.

Yeah, I read up and everyone seems to like aragonite more than anything else. What do you mean it has to be 6+" to be effective?

 

[mpwolken]

Hi, I'm new to the fourm. I have been in the freshwater hobby for over six years and am looking to try saltwater. I hardly know anything about saltwater other than how to mix the water and salt together. That is why I decided to come to you guys. Any info would be great!

I wouldn't take mixing the salt and water for granted.

1. Have you figured out your source for RO-DI water?
2. Have you figured out which brand of salt to use and why?
3. Do you have a refractometer?
4. Have you determined how long you will run your mixing pumps before using the water?

Just some food for thought. You might want to do some research before mixing your salt and water.

 

[flipside]

Excellent point, mpwolken!