We need your help!!!!(new)

[mseverns]

Hi I need your help!!
My husband and I have a 55 gal. tank and we want salt water. We have done little reasearch. I need to know what I need to get. We don't really have the money to get every thing right off. So each time we have a little extra money we are planing on getting one thing at a time. I have owned fresh water almost all of my life. So is salt water as easy as fresh water or is it harder to take care of?? Well any input you have please share it with us. I want to know is much as I can before we own one.
Thanks,
Ealicia

 

[wrassecal]

Here is a website that has some good information about getting started... reef keeping 101 You will get various advice and will need to decide what you believe will work for you. There is a lot of info and you are making a good start by coming here and asking questions........WELCOME TO THE BOARD

 

[birdy]

Welcome to the forum.
First it is good that you want to learn as much as possible before you dive in because SW is very different IMO from freshwater. I would recommend you get some current books on setting up a tank and when you get the basic idea come back and ask your questions. Also just read all the posts and more than likely most of your questions will be answered. Be prepared to shell out some buck though, even if you do it over a period of time. I have probably spent over $1500 on my 46gal.
Here are some books I recommend:
The New Marine Aquarium, by Michael S. Paletta
The Conscientious Marine Aquarist, by Fenner
Natural Reef Aquariums, by John H. Tullock

 

[ajroc31]

Try using ----. Sometimes you can get really good deals on relatively new equipment. Make sure you really know what you want to keep. Please stay away from large fish. Keeping a naso tang in a 55 is just mean. Filtration would be the main thing you want to focus on. Some Lr, so fish have hiding spaces. You do not need to get all of it right away, put some 30 pounds would be great. Oh, before you anything, if you cant buy a RO unit, make sure you have some access to RO water. Lots of LPS have it, at about 50 cents per gallon. Unlike freshwater tank, you need pretty much pure water. Oh, VERY IMPORTANT. If you ever used COPPER based medication in your tank, wash the tank very, very good. Copper will kill inverts. Sorry that I am so disorganized but I am just writing as things come on my mind.
A protein skimmer, is also very important, but you can wait for it, until few months after the cycle ends, and you get some fish. Make sure you research your fish choice very well. SW fish want to be in really exclusive company. Cross check your findings, and try to talk to people about their experianceswith them. SW fish have lots of character, and they act very differently within their species. Sorry this was so painfully long.

 

[mseverns]

Thank you so much for your time and advice. I need all the help I can get.

 

[ajroc31]

One more thing. Make sure you do not have to buy equipment twice. I wasted 100's of $ on buying things twice. If you think that there is a posibility that at some point you may want to keep corals, buy good lighting as soon as you get a dood deal. Do not build up, or make quick fix or temporary purchases. This can be very costly. For now focus on your sand bed. There are some really good posts about it here. While you water is cycling, look up your fish choices. Oh please do not cycle your water with live fish, it is barbaric. You can use any dead marine organism to do it. I used 24 cocktail shrimp for my 120 gal. Just throw them in and wait, so they will decompose providing lots of ammonia for the cycle. Oh side, note: You will probably need to give up and hour or two a week for maintence.

 

[mommafish]

Ealicia,
Welcome! If you just do a search of all my posts you will probably find most of what you need as I have asked every question in the book about starting a 55 gal over the last week!
Good luck to ya!

 

[sinner's girl]

check lfs and ask if they have any used stuff. people take down thier tanks and give/sell it to the lfs. which will set it to you. (it's how we've got a bunch of stuff).
advice off the bat? don't always listen to lfs, ask before buying any fish/invert- make sure it will get along with what you already have or plan to add, make sure you have room for and know how to care for it, read, read, read, always ask (there is no stupid question).
Your tank will have to cycle, please use a raw shrimp, lr (uncured)and/or ls to cycle.
Go to the Fish Discussion board and read the thread titled: The "DO NOT..." Advice List for Saltwater Aquarists. it has some good info and some mistakes that others have made. learn from others' mistakes.
"So is salt water as easy as fresh water or is it harder to take care of??" harder, but well worth it. you'll have to test your water, do wc, add top off water, ect.
shop around to get the best deal. after you've cycled your tank and you know what you want to get, you'll need a clean up crew (snails, stars, crabs, shrimp, hermits). the U-Build It is great for that (again, ask or read to make sure what you want will get along and not eat each other).
rule of thumb: if it can fit it it's mouth, it will become lunch.
Good luck, and weclome. spend some time reading post, and you'll learn a lot.

 

[cb]

Welcome Don't be afraid to ask questions. Some one here will always have the answer and if not then they will help you find the answer. This board has been a great help to me.