Potential New Hobbyist - Please Help

[animalman]

Hey everyone,
My name is Mike and I am 16 years old. My parents and I are moving into an apartment type building and we had to give up our three cats since we aren't going to be allowed more than one animal of that size and we just couldn't choose one. I feel like I will be missing something since I have always had animals in my life. I have narrowed down the choices of pets that I might want to look into getting based upon ease of care, level of intelligence and interaction, and a few other various things. I think that fish are cool and I have kept many freshwater fish of all kinds and sizes in the past and have had from 2 and 1/2 to 29 gallon fish tanks. I enjoy watching them and seeing them come to me when I feed them. They are easy to care for, don't smell, and don't take up much space.
Anyway, as I said, I have only had freshwater fish. I know, from my now limited knowledge, that saltwater fish tanks can be harder to get right, cost more, and are a little harder to maintain but I believe that the payoff is greater, in my opinion. I was wondering what a good tank size would be so that I would have a good amount of choices of fish. I am just about to start summer vacation for 11-12 weeks so I have time to do my research, set up a tank if I decide to, and even have time to enjoy it before school starts again. I was thinking a 29 gallon tank would be a nice size that would fit in my room or in the family room so that everyone could enjoy it. I just don't know about say a 15 gallon, I mean what kinds of fish can be nicely kept in there. I would be interested in a small 15 gallon or 10 gallon or so with maybe 1-2 fish and an invert because it would be simpler I think and cost a little bit less but also just for sizes sack. Lets say 10, 15, or 29 gallons for now, what are some basic choices for each and what would you reccomend for each? I just want some basic ideas to get me started and anything that you all can let a new saltwater fish hobbyist know would be great. Thanks in advance everyone.

 

[fish1031]

Saltwater Fish is a great hobby. It is defineltly more expensive and harder to care for than fresh.
There is more to it. You have to test the water, mix salt, feed a variety of food not just a pinch of tetra flakes. You have to consider lighting if you want corals. You need sand not gravel.
Summer break is a great time to learn about it. You can learn a lot on this forum. Look under the New Hobbiest Forum and read up for a few days you will learn a lot. You can trust most people on here. The local fish stores can steer you the wrong way sometimes. I sure wish I found this forum when I started my first tank.
I personally wouldn't do anything smaller than a 29 gallon if you have the room. You still don't have a huge selection there. Saltwater fish need a lot more room than fresh.
In a 29g you can do a pygmy angel, clownfish, blennies, gobies, or cardinals.
You could do any invert pretty much. Anemones need stong lighting not regular flouresent. But if you get really into this hobby you will want to upgrade to a larger tank soon. 55 is a great size. You will also need live rock.
Check this out:
https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/264597/a-list-of-extremely-helpful-threads-for-all-hobbyists
Hope this helps get you started!

 

[animalman]

Thanks for the information and the link fish1031, this forum does already seem very welcoming and nice. I am going to check out the link right now.
I just wanted to add, I think that "some" of the fish/inverts that I might be interested include clown fish, gobies, and shrimp.

 

[earlybird]

Welcome. Sounds like you are interested in a reef. It's good that you have an idea of the fish that you want. It's best to now research the fish that you must have and learn its habbits, needs, etc. That alone will bring you to other questions that require research. I wouldn't buy anything yet. I say that because you are going to change your mind a lot especially in the first month of research. It's best to keep things simple and do things slow in this hobby. I have a 29 and researched for 4 months before I filled it with water. In my opinion and just so you know, you can only have 3-4 smaller fish in a 29. Use the "search" link above to check out the archives which are awesome. It allows you to sort through and come to your own conclusion based on the experience of others. If you choose to read books then you should note that a lot of books are out dated. Good luck.