Newbie

[Mongrel]

I want to start a salt water tank. I will be purchasing a 35 gallon tank. I have been doing some researching on SW, but I would like ppl to post what their opinion is on an ideal setup for a beginner. Even post what your own setup is like for everyone else to see.

Mongrel's Place (http://home.attbi.com/~mongrel74)

[kreblak]

Ideal setup for a beginner... depends on what the beginner wants. If ease of maintanance and keeping your fish alive are the main goals, then I recommend using a live sand base in your tank, adding live rock to the tune of 1.5 to 2 lbs per gallon, and getting a good heater. Fishless cycle your tank with cocktail shrimp or uncured live rock, and make sure you have good water quality before you add fish. Facilitate water movement and water oxygenation with a powerhead or a filter, and look into getting a skimmer to get the crud out of your water.

Now, I can't stress this enough with SW fish, GET A QUARANTINE TANK! Make sure that it is properly cycled, and keep all your new arrivals there for at least three weeks. SW fish are way too expensive to have a new arrival show up with Ich, velvet, or whatever and wipe out your livestock. Plus, you WILL need some hermit crabs and snails to keep the tank algae free and detritus free, and invertabrates are exceedingly sensitive to copper based medications used to clear up most parasitic infections, as well as formulin based meds. Not to mention how they might affect corals or anemones.

There is a reason that I mention these things in particular. They are all things that I would have done properly if I had known about them when I began the tank. Read as many of these posts on AC as you can, there is some serious knowledge and experience imparted by Oriongirl, Boogiechillin, Voodoochild, Corax, and others. Oh, and get a good book about SW aquariums and diseases. If you're going to pay $79.99 for a fish, you had better know how to take care of it!

[Boogiechillin]

Hi Mongrel,
The big decision that you want to be thinking about right now is if you want a fish only system, or a tank that includes invertebrates, particularly photosynthetic ones like corals. Any ideas on what you want? It might help to browse some of the pictures on www.wetwebmedia.com and to read some of the articles and FAQs there.

BC

[Mandairn]

Im staring out in SW with a 30 (do to room and wieght constrains). Form what i was adviced and what i have read i would recomend staring with a FO tank then advance to coral.

I'm going that way just to see how well i can keep the water .... peramitors(<-- think i spelled that wroung pH and that stuff) ideal. Form what i've heard fish can be more for giving on slacking then corals. I want to see how i do with fish first then move on.

For fish im planing on:

Yellow Tale damsle

royal gramma

Flame Hawk fish

Flame Angle

plus some algea controler invertebrates.



gOOd lucK.