Vicgrouper_413
New Member
What equipment do I really need to start a salt water aquarium and what equipment do I not necessarily need?
Aquarium needs
- Thread starter Vicgrouper_413
- Start date
bang guy
Moderator
Can you describe what you want your system to look like? Do you want corals? Invertebrates? Just fish?
Vicgrouper_413
New Member
I will be putting mostly fish in my tank maybe one or two soft corals.
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
Only take beaslbobs advice if you like the look of his tank that crashed a few years ago that he never set up again.
Vicgrouper_413
New Member
Someone told me I would need a sump what is a sump?
pegasus
Well-Known Member
A sump is basically another tank that typically sits below your main tank, and water from the tank flows down to it. It's typically a place to put a skimmer, but not always. Some people use bio-balls in the overflow side of the sump, but that's an outdated form of filtration. My sump has a refugium chamber in the center, where I keep rock rubble, live sand, and macro algae. This helps keep your water clean by absorbing nasties. Another chamber holds the return pump that pumps water back into the tank, completing the "loop". Sumps add more water volume to the system, which helps stabilize the system. The more water you have, the better. More water helps keep bad things from happening quickly, which allows more time to catch and correct any issues that arise. As the old saying goes... the solution to pollution is dilution. 
Vicgrouper_413
New Member
Thx for explaining might need to look into getting one.A sump is basically another tank that typically sits below your main tank, and water from the tank flows down to it. It's typically a place to put a skimmer, but not always. Some people use bio-balls in the overflow side of the sump, but that's an outdated form of filtration. My sump has a refugium chamber in the center, where I keep rock rubble, live sand, and macro algae. This helps keep your water clean by absorbing nasties. Another chamber holds the return pump that pumps water back into the tank, completing the "loop". Sumps add more water volume to the system, which helps stabilize the system. The more water you have, the better. More water helps keep bad things from happening quickly, which allows more time to catch and correct any issues that arise. As the old saying goes... the solution to pollution is dilution.
geridoc
Well-Known Member
I love this response, we see it frequently here. It is like saying you are a little bit pregnant, so you only need part of a crib
. Once you house corals you need higher quality lighting than is required for housing fish, and you need to worry more about water movement, trace element concentrations, etc. It just becomes more complicated. My advice is to begin with fish, learn how to manage such a tank, and then upgrade to what you need for corals, even softies.