New To Saltwater Fish

[lkkmateo]

I have ben into freshwater fish for about a year now. My only problems were diseases. I dont know where to start with the saltwater aquarium. I have a 30 gallon tank and love coral and reef fish, but also some non reef safe fish. I just dont know to what extent i can mix and match, and what to start with. Any help at all would very much appreciated.

 

[meowzer]

Welcome to SWF...sounds to me like you have a lot of research to do...SW and FW and like night and day.....I have both, so I can tell you this from experience
A good book is the Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Fenner...also marine Fishes by Scott W. Michael (all about fish..lol)
I would also suggest that you read the top threads in this section
think really hard what you want in your tank....andthen research each item
good luck, and you came to a great place to learn....
P.S. READ A LOT OF THREADS you really will learn a lot

 

[rlablan]

Why don't you start by posting a list of what you like and what fish you are interested in. There are some fish that you can mix and match, a bit. BUT you will be taking risks. That is part of the interest and fun of this hobby.
Do you plan to change the 30 gal over to saltwater or are you going to get another tank? what size tank you have will depend on what fish and how many you can keep.

 

[posiden]

Originally Posted by LKKMateo
http:///forum/post/3164851
I have ben into freshwater fish for about a year now. My only problems were diseases. I dont know where to start with the saltwater aquarium. I have a 30 gallon tank and love coral and reef fish, but also some non reef safe fish. I just dont know to what extent i can mix and match, and what to start with. Any help at all would very much appreciated.
Well, like you said. You can't mix reef, and non reef safe fish. As meowzer said, think real hard about what you like and want. A 30 gallon tank will fill up VERY fast. So, if reef it what you want, look into that side of it.
I will ask you to do one thing,
While you are waiting on your tank to cycle..........set up a QT tank. Everything you buy, place it in the QT tank first. Take it slow, and by QTing everything, you will save yourself a lot of head ach. You will be ssssooooooo glad you did. You mentioned disease in fresh water..............
Also, like meowzer mentioned. READ about everything. If you can't find the answer, post a thread. Don't just go out on a limb. Don't just take the LFS word for it. If you do, then you can't be mad at them, since you went in unprepaird.
Welcome to salt water. Have fun and stay dry.

 

[lkkmateo]

Thanks for info. I have a 30 gallon just waiting to be filled up.
I guess as for a "quick list" of fish i would like would be...
Despar Anthia
Bangaii Cardinal "mabey later"
Tamato or False Percula Clownfish
and mabey a dottyback.
I've read some on protein skimmers and wet/dry 3 stage filters but i dont know what would be better for a reef aquarium lol. I'm going to look into those books and folow up on some more threads, but please keep the advise coming.
Thanks

 

[clslvr6spd]

I don't know if the anthia is the best bet for someone just starting out. They need to be feed a couple times a day to really be healthy. Not that they are impossible just more care then other fish. The other fish on your list sound great to me.

 

[rlablan]

Alright, so
despar anthias- online and in my books I am seeing a minimum tank size of 55 gallons. Also, they really like to be kept in groups or at least a pair. Otherwise, they are prone to disease and don't feed well. I am not sure that this is the best choice for your 30 gallon. I would choose something else with the same color or body shape that can be housed in a smaller tank.
bangaii cardinals- This is a good choice for a 30 gallons. Keep only 1 or a pair. I have heard that keeping them in odd numbers is bad because in small spaces, they pair up and kill the odd one out. You could keep 4, but that is going to take up all of your stock room.
tomato clown- you could do one of these, they do get quite large for a 30 gallon. Clownfish have a tendency to get territorial and in a small tank, You may have some issues. I am not 100% but it may be safer to go with the percs instead, and they you could have a pair.
dottyback- you could go for the magenta, or the fridmani. These fish are known as semi aggressive but you should have no issue if you pick one and don't add any others. Otherwise they would kill each other. Also, no fish that are similiar shaped either. These little guys can get really crazy if they feel threatened. Also related with similiar behavior, but cheaper and more easily attained, are the royal gramma. With a half purple, half golden yellow body, these guy have great color and personality. I have had mine forever and he is really a hardy little bugger. I have read that they are jumpers and have known people to have theirs jump out of open top tanks, but mine is in a shallow tank now with an open top and he is fine. He has never tried to jump and I have never seen him near the top of the tank.

 

[lkkmateo]

Well i seem to have run into another problem. I've read up on the equipment etc. i'll be need for the tank.
But the 4 things that keep eluding me are:
1. What kind of lighting would i need (reef)
2. How much live rock (moderate for 30gallon)
3. How much live sand (adaquet for 30 gallon)
4. Where to buy this stuff? (Mainly skimmer and lighting.)
thanks

 

[rlablan]

lighting depends on what type of corals you want to keep. I only know the basics about lighting, but I only keep basic corals. If you wanted to keep a whole reef of jut softies, a basic fixture would be fine. I run a 2x 96 watt light fixture. 1 actinic/1 20k white. It's just a coralife fixture and I am really happy with it. Everything seems very happy under it. I keep things like mushrooms, zoanthids, gorgonians (non photo synthetic), various leathers and maybe some other things.
There are many types of lighting you can have. t5, t5-ho, metal halide, PC, even LED.
You have a few things to consider. 1 is heat output. 2 is light penetration, 3 is how much energy usage you can afford.
LR- I like as much LR as I can fit. You can never have too much. Fish like the rock because it makes them feel safe and it makes them alot happier and healthier. If it were my tank, I would want at least 30 lbs or LR. You can also use some base rock, and mix it with LR.
LS- I would go with a nice 3 inch sand bed. That should be plenty.
are far as where to buy, I am a firm believer in buying used. but any LFS should have all of the things. there are also some good places online. I would steer clear of 'the bay'. Alot of things on there are fakes, so it is hard to tell what you're getting into.

 

[lkkmateo]

Attached are the 2nd and 3rd aquascape. No picture of the 1st.
I've got a temp. filter. The last heater i got was from a friend and
had a hole. When i plugged it up it started spewing greyish black clouds
into the water but i didn't know what it was so immediatly put a small filter on
there and have let it sit for several days. The only thing im able to test
atm is the salinity which is low because of my mistake. I'm gratefull for all the help everyone has given and now my 55g is on its way!