Small Saltwater Tank Newbie

[ctbestfisherman]

Hello so I think I've made my decision to set up a saltwater tank. I have plenty of experience in freshwater but none for saltwater. Due to limited space the tank can't be any larger than 16" by 14". What would you recommend for a tank? Biocube? Also what do I require in terms of supplies for a tank around this size? Not thinking about any live animals for it yet just what I need to get it started. Also about how much will this all cost? Any help is appreciated.

 

[JUICY JAYNE]

Personely I would not consider a small tank for marine as keeping levels stable is difficult, if you have to enqire about the cost dont even start! as this part of fish keeping is a empty purse/wallet at all times lol!!!

 

[DoctaQ]

a sixteen inch aga tank would be 5.5 gallons
with daily top offs it can be done, this was my first tank as well.
it depends on what you want to do with the tank in terms of coral or inverts because that will determine your lighting.

tank 15
heater 30
hob filter 30
powerhead 40
sand + rock = 20 to 100 bucks (depending on source)
then lighting,which could cost anywhere from 40 to 100 or something
so could be as much as 300 bucks to start up before any livestock i guess

if you are resourceful you could get it done for less than 100 i suppose

if you peice the tank together instead of getting a biocube you will spend less but biocubes and aquapods do look sleek

 

[DoctaQ]

o yeah, refrectometer, the most important part.
from 30 to hundreds
then other misc testing equipment.
a ph probe is a pretty sweet peice of equipment

you should buy salt water from your lfs for a tank that small

you might also need misc other equipment like additives and whatnot

 

[MrGoodbytes]

You should really get an idea of what kinds of animal you would like to keep, since that will dictate the kind of lighting, flow, etc you will need (basically what DoctaQ said). From there, you can determine your possible costs. Look at members' aquariums on different forums (this one, nano-reef.com, ...) to get an idea of the size of aquarium and what kinds of equipment and animals they have and go from there.