55gal tank or 75? First timer...

[fatmatt]

Well hello, its bin a long time since ive done the fish thing. But ive always done fresh water, atm i have a 55 gal tank and 75 gal tank, each hae a fluva 404 canister filters. I would like to tke one tank down and set up the other as a salt water tank. Im not sure which is best and if i need both filters or just one? Or maby i need something else? What fish can i have? I was thinkin triggers or lion? Id like to have 1-4 fish that dont get to big but not to small. I have no clue about salt water so plz all help is welcome, are there steps i need to do what do i need, the entire thing i need to do. Id like to do this the correct way and have healthy fish. I have about $400 to spend.

 

[renogaw]

i'm sorry to say, but $400 isn't going to be enough for either of those two tanks. live rock will cost half that if not more, plus the filtration, lights, skimmer, etc will chew that up in no time.
i'd suggest the 75 if you can get more money--it gives more choices of fish.

 

[adroitmind]

I am new to the hobby myself. I think you can get away with spending $400. Just buy half the live rock you need now and the rest base rock. Just keep your bio load down until the base rock sarts to grow algae. It's slow (like around a year from what i have heard) but after two months my base rock is showing signs of growth. The key is to be creative when buying, shop used online and in the paper, and make friends in the hobby localy to find the best deals. I spent about $500 total on my 75g setup and i had nothing to start with, and I bought everything used, even the fish!

 

[renogaw]

my 75 cost me more than $2000. my live rock was $650 alone. the salt alone he will need to buy will be over $100. you could do what i did: start a 20 gallon with some live rock, a couple percs and some hermits/snails. get used to the water change routine, get used to everything else that needs to be done with a salt water tank. then, when you're financially and mentally ready (i went through a lot of stress with that darn 20 gallon and almost gave up) then step up to the 75 and use the 20 as your quarantine tank.

 

[adroitmind]

you must have a very nice tank for that kind of money. I am just saying for someone who is new you don't have to spend the big bucks to get in to the hobby. I haggle prices with my LFS and stuff like that. Go to ***** and petsmart and look at the sales. most LFS will pricematch because they know they are overpriced anyway, and they want your business. I saved the most money by finding someone online who was tearing down their tank and buying the live rock & sand from them for a fraction of the cost. It was better stuff anyway because it was in a 4 year old tank and very well established. Just be patient and wait for the right deals. You need to learn to be patient anyway in this hobby so might as well start learning now.

 

[adroitmind]

Oh and i almost forgot. Do a fish only tank for now. Reef tanks require much more money, time and effort to setup from what i have read. Plus if you are new like me i think just keeping a few fish alive and happy for 3 to 6 months should be you main goal anyway.

 

[renogaw]

well, i hope i have a nice tank lol. i'm still seriously jealous of the pics a lot of people post. i put most of my equipment on layaway, and paid for it over 8 months. i got 20% off by buying it all at once and paying for it while i could. the tank i got for free, the stand i retro built (took an existing crappy tank stand that i got with the tank and redid the exterior).
for 8 months i had the 20 gallon going, and had that experience of the saltwater-woes before i commited everything in the 75. i still cannot see someone setting up a 75 gallon for $400 even if everything is used. there's just too much you don't know you need until you need it.

 

[jeeperrs]

I agree with starting with a fish only tank if it is fish you want. I am trying to set a 75 gallon up for a reef and with the lighing and skimmer alone, well......it is a more than the entire cost of my 55 gallon fresh water tank. Once you get your lights and rocks the cost is not so great, just have to get past that ha-ha.

 

[tanglove]

Where in the world did you buy your salt? I have a 55 and paid $30 at my lfs for the instant ocean and that was for a 100 bag. Is things really that high in CT?

 

[adroitmind]

I agree with what you said about needing things you never though you would. That will drive the price up for sure. And i am not saying getting a 75g set up for $500 was easy but it was all the money i had so i just had to work to find the deals. I will also say that my tank is no where near where i want it to be and in a years time i could easily break the $1000 mark. I just did not want to throw down all the cash i had right at the start.
In case anyone is wondering, here is what i did.
75g tank & stand, Cacade 1000 canister, Emporer 400 bio wheel, seaclone 150 gallon skimmer, 2 Power Heads, and 10g QT with small hang on back filter and stand - $300 USED
Argonite, 35 lbs lace rock (base), heater - $80 NEW at LFS
Salt, Test Kit & Hydrometer - $50 Package deal at *****
35lbs Liver Rock, 10 lbs Live Sand, Clarkii Clown Fish, Royal Dottyback, 4 Stripe Damsel - $50 USED
All my friends knowing i am way cooler than them because i have a saltwater aquarium - Priceless

 

[renogaw]

the big 5 gallon bucket of salt costs me about $90 iirc. that does last a couple months though.
and yea, CT does i guess cost a lot more to live than anywhere else. but it also goes hand in hand with what people supposedly earn here. I certainly don't see it though lol.

 

[specialreef]

Fat man what would you like in your tank? Fish only or reef with fish. What are you actual plans. In my opinion, you should study alot/enough until you feel its time. I agree with most of the response on this thread but if you get more spesific you can get a more narrowed down answer.Like for instance with what you asked,it would be hard to tell you that you can get the trigger and the lion in the same uhhh lets say 75 gallon, because even still this would be small tank in a couple of months for them especially if you want to add other fish. On top off all that they are aggressive fish,not reef safe(they attack certain reef species), so you would have to chose wisely.
I am not trying to be negative just give some pointers even still ive missed some that would need to be added so that your aware. Its good that you have a fix budget something that i didnt do when i started. For a 400 hundred dollar budget you can get something started in one of those tanks but you would need to invest and research wisely as you go on.

 

[pikapp168]

Originally Posted by Fatmatt
Well hello, its bin a long time since ive done the fish thing. But ive always done fresh water, atm i have a 55 gal tank and 75 gal tank, each hae a fluva 404 canister filters. I would like to tke one tank down and set up the other as a salt water tank. Im not sure which is best and if i need both filters or just one? Or maby i need something else? What fish can i have? I was thinkin triggers or lion? Id like to have 1-4 fish that dont get to big but not to small. I have no clue about salt water so plz all help is welcome, are there steps i need to do what do i need, the entire thing i need to do. Id like to do this the correct way and have healthy fish. I have about $400 to spend.
I'm brand new only 2.5 months old and went with a 75G. It really isn't that hard to deal with. Expensive upfront but well worth it.

 

[fatmatt]

Well i guess ill go with the Fish only, is there some kind of rocks i can put in that are safe and wont mess with the water? Pretty much im lookin for a active fish and would like to have more then one but no more then 4. And would like some fish with personality. So if i go fish only what would i need? i have i normal light for both tanks alrdy.

 

[jessica47421]

i had the tank and stand and filters heater and one power head for a 55 gal all i got was live sand lr and lights bacteria and clown fish glass tops and i am at about 1000.00 i am now looking for a skimmer but dont want to spend much more then 100.00 looking for a good one for that price

 

[renogaw]

you will still need live rock and live sand. but you can do baserock with some live rock and have the LR seed the baserock.
most fish will be fine with normal lights. coralline algae may do ok for a while as well. you can get blennies, jaw fish, hawkfish, tons of different clown fish, pygmy angels (such as coral beauties or flame angels), gobies--just about everything. just watch for compatability issues, especially for fish/invert problems.
and definitely save up for a skimmer.
to save on some money, look in the DIY section on setting up sumps and fuges on your own for filtration. there are some really cool ideas there.

 

[fatmatt]

what are sumps? skimmers and such?

 

[jonnydubs]

I got my 55g for free with stand, filtration, skimmer, and fish. Ive already spend over $1300.

 

[renogaw]

sumps are a type of filtration. skimmers remove protiens and waste from your water. this may be one of the most important pieces of equipment you will buy.

 

[fatmatt]

are they a must?