Saltwater Beginner

[happyvac]

Hi. I just registered with saltwaterfish.com after many days of reading through topics. (Before you ask, HappyVac means happy vacuum. Vacuuming is a great hobby )After gathering some information, I have decided that if I get a tank, it would most likely be a FOWLR due to the pleasant look without the expensive lighting of corals. However, I'm still curious about several things. I've looked at the Nano Tank forums, and I'm currently leaning towards a smaller tank. On the other hand, I've heard bad things about Nanos and Beginners. The main reason I do not buy a larger (i.e. 50g+) is that I can't see myself sinking (haha) thousands of dollars into such a thing and the extensive maintenance is kind of a turn-off. Still, do you think I should get a larger tank to start off? What is a rough estimate (cost) for a basic 55g FOWLR?
Sorry for the wordy post,
-Vac

 

[r's 75tank]

Welcome Happy, I just started myself about 4 month ago with a 75g FOWLR tank. I did a lot of research before hand and am still learning tons every week through this board and trial and error. My experience so far is the bigger the better and more room for error. So far we have about $1200 invested and we only have 3 fish in the tank.
We bought everything new, so you can save if you look around for used equipment in your paper or on this board. It can be done on a budget if tou have a little bit of patients and ask lots of questions.
The maitenance I put in is weekly 5-10g water change and changing the media in the filters along with daily feeding. You probably could get away with about 1-2 hours a week of maitenance and the reward is well worth the time.
Once you get started it becomes very addicting, I'm already planning how I can do it better with my next tank.
Good Luck!

 

[mikeyjer]

We started with FO, then we added baserocks and live rocks, then we got into corals, bought the expensive lighting. Bought some stuffs new, some used and bought some rocks and corals from local folks instead of LFS. Total we have into our tank right now is around $2000, which isn't bad. But we're not done yet, so the price is going up still. It's a 55 gallon. WE got a lot of stuffs for a really good deal. Just check your local paper for deals. Another thing you can do is check for your local reef clubs, they'll have great deals there too! My estimated price that we could of spent into the tank without getting good deals would be around $3000 :happyfish

 

[unleashed]

my 1st sw tank was all brand new 125 gal I went as simple as I could I knew absolutely nothing about keeping sw fish.went to my local pet supplier not a sw fish store mind you.just a place I baught all my other pet supplies from.but he did carry some essential items I could use to start out with.this is what i started with
125 gal california custon tank(not drilled)
iron stand
2 aquaclear 300 filters(now known as the 70's)
skilter
aqualclear powerhead(they dont sell this one anymore)its a big one
2 submersable heaters 200 w each
glass tops
3 24 in 18 watt light fixtures
2 inches of cc ( cant remember how many bags it was its been 4 yrs)but its a 6 ft tank
and 2 boxes of instant ocean salt mix
this cost was just about $1000.
I got very good discounts on all my equipment and set up because we are very steady clients of this particular store for many yrs .But I ran all of this equipment for 3 1/2 yrs with no issues or water problems.this is an agressive tank and always has been and the bioload is heavy with this type of stock.but with regular maintanance and weekly water changes my tank was very healthy with minimal equipment.
I did have to go elsewhere for livestock and LRthat cost will vary depending on price of each species and price per lbs

 

[fishmamma]

Welcome! I have two small tanks, one 16 gallon and one 29 gallon. I really have enjoyed keeping these systems. The daily maintenace is a bit more but that is part of the fun of the hobby, watching and fiddling with the tank right?? Love the small amount of water needed for water changes too.
Space is an issue for me so the tank size was more important than set-up cost and honestly, aside from a small price difference in equipment the only thing that costs less with a nano set-up is less live rock to buy and fewer gallons of saltwater for weekly water changes. Buying the liverock IMO is the biggest start-up cost of a FOWLR.
I have atleast $3,000 between the two tanks, the 16 gallon bow nano reef costing more than the 29 FOWLR due to tank cost and lighting.
I think any decision you make will not be a bad one, but this hobby gets addictive and small tanks run out of room for stuff pretty quick, though you could always upgrade your lighting down the road and go reef. Having said that I am considering a third tank and am leaning towards yet another nano.

 

[happyvac]

Uh-oh...my dad wants a 50g, but he's not willing to spend over a thousand dollars...=/
Anyway, what's a good 50g stocking list? I don't want any venomous/mean fish. I want a peaceful, clean tank that I can slip my hand into without fear

 

[stevil]

Buy equipment used - you can get some fantastic deals. A guy around here (DC area) just sold a 120 gallon with custom canopy and stand for $200... just because he had to move it out.
If you are in or near a metro area you can find all kinds of good deals if you keep your eyes open. Check out craigslist and search for "aquarium" "fish tank" "salt water" and "saltwater" and you will be amazed at what you can find in your area. Sometimes things are way over-priced, sometimes you can get a steal, and then everything in-between. I think the only brand-new pieces of equipment I've purchased is a test kit, a SG meter and an algae cleaner... only because I spent an hour talking with a guy at the local fish store. Everything else I've found used - including my live-rock and sand!

 

[happyvac]

Happens that I do live in a large metro. I'll keep a look out in classifieds

Speaking of which, I saw an ad for a 105g Complete Reef (everything, VHO lighting, tank, stand, corals, inverts, fish, LR) for $800. Good deal?
Anyway, I came up with a possible fish list for my 40. Not sure about anything, just making sure it's not completely impossible.
Firefish x 2
False Percula Clowns x 2
Yellow Watchman Goby
Sexy Shrimp
10 Scarlet Hermits
10 Nassarius Snails
5 Funnel Turbo Snails
:joy:

 

[stevil]

800 for all that doesn't seem bad. If you value that Live Rock at 1.50 per pound, but most likely you will be getting it shipped to you for 3.50-6.00 per pound (plus shipping), and then you'll have to cure it. I bet you could offer less and get it. I paid $600 for a custom stand & canopy, 90 gallon tank, 20 gallon sump, protein skimmer, VHO lighting, pumps, heater and some other stuff.
The challenge would be the livestock - I don't know one way or the other, but not sure how well they would survive the stress of a transfer. You would probably want to establish a separate tank for them while you got the rock and sand all sorted out. You'd also want to have your 105 gallons water already ready (at least aging for 2 days with a pump and heater).
Maybe you could offer to buy the equipment if he has other people just looking at livestock, I've found many folks end up piecing their system out after they can't find anyone to take the package deal.

 

[happyvac]

No, no...I could pick it up. It's less than an hour away.

 

[stevil]

Oops - that's not what I meant, and I didn't even say what I meant... I mean you should put the rock (and other equipment) at some value, but the rock is going to be a good benchmark to see if you are getting a deal. If he has 150lbs of live rock and you value it at 1.50 per pound (which is the absolute cheapest you could get it for anywhere) that's $225. But its more like 3.50-6.00 pound plus shipping.. so - 3.50/lb it's $525, at 6.00/lb that's $900 and you haven't even factored in any shipping! Plus, you'd have to cure it, etc..
Oh - and by the way - by equipment, I meant rock, sand etc.. just not creatures.

 

[happyvac]

I'll try that from now on.
Mind taking a gander at my stocking list?

 

[stevil]

Your snails and hermits look good. Wait until your tank cycles and you start seeing some algae (brown) before you add them, then they will be sure to have some food.
As for your fish - I don't know very much - I haven't really gotten into selecting my fish. I know that I want to have a pair of percula clowns with an anemone, but I've also thought a firefish would be cool and I have seen a single one with clownfish do ok.
Just a quick search on Google returned this: http://www.janetsreef.com/firefish.htm - and that person recommends not having 2 of them together

. They also have a watchman goby.
If you haven't, I'd recommend picking up a copy of the "Conscientious Marine Aquarium" it has lots of great pictures and details on livestock and compatibility. Plus its filled with other useful info about setting up and maintaining your tank.

 

[happyvac]

All right...I'll keep an eye out for the book :joy:
Just so you know, nothing has yet been bought. I'm just doing some extensive planning.
Out of curiousity, what's a typical day/week/month with a saltwater aquarium? (maintenance-wise)