Reef vs. Fish only tank

[finfighter]

Wut are the advantages and disadvantages of both reef and fish only tanks? Is there a way to mix both good (like soft corals with low light requirment)? And is coral hard to care for and if so is having something that just sits there worth it?

 

[teen]

personally i like a fish only tank with live rock. i had a coral tank, but to me, there too much maintanence, because a lot of things can be bad for them. a fish only tank gives u the advantage of lower lighting, which is cheaper. corals are really nice if u know what ur doing, and if u have the time and knowledge. fish need work and time too though. most zoo's and mushrooms dont require high intencity lighting, but they will still need quality lighting. corals will rule out fish such as butterflies, box fish, puffers, and other aggressive fish because they will most likely make a meal of corals. the only down side to a fish tank imo is ick, which is seen quite often, and become a pain in the as$. thats my 2 cents, and im sure ppl with reef tanks will say do a reef tank, but imo a fish tank with live rock and some shrimp and snails and hermits is a lot of fun :cheer:

 

[finfighter]

If i had a fishonly tank id have tons of inverts. I like watching them do all the weird things they do lol. Id like to have a lionfish but theyre to uncompatible to keep really. Ill probly get a 4x65w outer orbit with 2 actinics and moon lights on it to watch the lil fishies and inverts at night.

 

[murph145]

it seems most people start out with a FO tank then they keep seeing the cool animals in the coral aquarium at the LFS and wish they could keep them too....
thats what happened to me... grantid a FO tank was much easier to maintain.... but a reef tank is much more rewarding in the end.... knowing that you have made an environment that simulates a real reef situation....
u can keep fish in your reef tank .... its all about how involved you want to get in corals.... you can also set a FO tank up to look like a reef with lots of LR and inverts like dusters and hermits things like that will look good too.... if you have enough lighting you can experiment with an anemone and a clownfish
thats the best thing to watch your clownfish hosting in an anemone