Quote:
Originally Posted by
bkweibley http:///t/393285/sump-pump-question#post_3497691
Basicly id LOVE to make this tank a saltwater tank, because it is a steal at the price I can get it for, but I dont think I can afford the fish and corals and stuff that I would like to get for it, so im considering taking some of the stuff that comes with the tank and putting it back for a 46 bowfront and using the 90 for a cichlid tank. Im curious if this pump is any good, or if ill still need to buy a filter yet because this woulnt do me any good. This is what I would be getting with this tank:
Saltwater Oceanic Reef ready 90 gallon bow front with built in overflow box
stand
glass hoods
dual bulb light with ballast
plastic canopy
sump & sump pump big enough for a 150 gallon tank
UV sterilizer
protein skimmer
80 pounds of live sand
150 pounds of live rock
misc supplies like food, test kits, nets, ect.
Now I believe the "live rock" and "live sand" have been kept dry, because he bought this setup from someone, and then turned around and bought a 150 so he never set this one up. I feel like this might be a steal on my part, but then I also feel like ill still need to put out a good bit of money to set this up for salt, which is why I was thinking cichlids
I would personally start this tank up as a saltwater tank to begin with. If you start a 46g bowfront as saltwater you will quickly want to upgrade to a larger tank. You DO NOT have to buy everything at one time, unless you have that personality. I think that starting it up on the cheap is absolutely possible.
You pretty much have everything that you need for a saltwater tank. Even the rock - being dead and everything, you may need to add a few pounds of actual live rock to the system for the bacteria... then set it up as a fish only tank with the perspective of maybe being a reef one day. (aka, buy reef safe fish.) If it's already a steal, go for it and set it up. Nothing wrong with that. You will really enjoy the hobby once you have some success.
THERE ARE a lot of cheap saltwater fish that are relatively inexpensive. Damsels are dirt cheap for saltwater fish and some of them can be really colorful. (some are even expensive!). The typical saltwater fish costs about $20. However, their lifespans are much, much longer than freshwater fish in a well balanced system.
The main cost with a saltwater tank, besides the electricity (which for me is about $20 a month for two tanks at the moment) is pure water (which I get from my RO/DI water purification unit (which I use for my coffee, boiling water, baby formula, and a host of other applications) and salt - which I like instant ocean, which is perhaps the cheapest and still the best salt out there.
