A Little Help- New To SW Aquariums

[tumbleweed]

I am completely new to saltwater aquariums. I had many freshwater aquariums as a child and enjoyed them so much. I have an 80 gallon aquarium and I was wondering if :
I add water today can I add the sand at a later time?
Should I use live sand or regular sand? I'm going to have a fish only tank for now.
(At least, until I get the hang of it and can add other little creatures). :notsure:
All I have at this point is the aquarium.
What is the first thing I should buy?
Is there an order of which you need to add things?
I have a salt water hobbiest book--but it doesn't really say much about setting up the aquarium. I'd like to do it right the first time.
I'd really appreciate your help.
Thank you,
Tumbleweed

 

[vi3tb0i]

Welcome to swf.com
You can add water now and than sand later
The first thing you should buy is salt water and live sand and some liverock and chemicals the lfs guy will tell you wat to buy!

 

[tumbleweed]

Can I use regular tap water and add sand later?
Does the salt come in a bag or do you have to mix it with water?
Can you use regular sand or does it have to be live sand?
Sorry to sound so novice.

 

[feixjai]

depends on what you like. i personally dont mix with tap water. i buy R/O water from like safeway or albertsons. you can buy water from the lfs that is premixed which is good. if you decide to mix you own then buy a bag of salt. mix it with the water and use the hydrometer. live sand is better because it has lots of bacteria in it for the tank and IMO looks kind of better. do not put in the live sand or live rock in the water if you have not mixed the water with salt yet. and yes live sand has saltwater in it already but always mix your water first then put in the LR and LS. and welcome to the forum. if you have any questions just ask. there are many people here that would be glad to help you. remember patience is everything in the saltwater hobby. enjoy

 

[sweetdawn]

save until you can put in the live rock if you cycle your tank without it and then add it later you will have to wait for it to cycle again if the rock is live it may just be a mini cycle you will need about fifty pounds of live rock this costs between 3 and 9 dollars a pound. patience is important but so is money not a cheap hobby. my sister gave me a 55 gallon tank and stand for my birthday and it still cost me 600 dollars before the first fish went in my tank

 

[bchdfldian]

I just set up a tank this week and here's what I did:
Day 1, got and cleaned tank
Day 2, added water and salt (this is the only time you can add salt directly to the tank)
Day 3, tested salt - once it was to my liking, I added sand. Live sand is a great filter and will help kick start your cycle. If money is an issue, I would suggest getting part live sand and part regular and mixing it together. The regular will eventually become live.
Day 4, After sand has settled, add live rock
Now you should be doing daily water tests, at the same time, and keeping track so you can monitor your cycle.

 

[mister t]

IMO the first thing you should do is read as much as you can, a book that really helped me is The new marine aquarium step by step setup& stocking guide by Michael S. Paletta it's a great book! and as much info. as you can from this site good luck

 

[blu11]

Well said Mister T
That book helped me out so much. The best thing you can do is research & read alot. There is alot more that goes into SW tanks than I ever dreamed of. I have too kept FW tanks since I was a kid and SW is a whole nother ballgame.