What to do

[jden092901]

Hey everyone, i'm new here and have some questions. I have been doing freshwater cichlids, and want to get into salt now. There so beautiful, fun, and a challange. I would like to get a tank of around 100-150 gallons to start with. We will be putting it into our wall of our new home were going to build. What should I get first and do? I Know I need to have some live sand..and rock. I want to start with just fish for now...then work into corel. I will buy as im using corel now, so I do it right the first time. What fish would you start with? What should I do first? Just dont even know what questions to ask...
Thanks for you help,
Josh

 

[lsu]

I'd recommend buying The Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert M. Fenner. It is an awesome book that will answer pretty much anything you can think of.

 

[geoj]

I recommend three books
The New Marine Aquarium by Michael Paletta this will get you started all the nebee stuff
Marine Fishes 500+ by Scott Michael a good reference of fishes
Marine Reef Aquarium Handbook By Dr Robert Goldstein a must have all you will ever want to know about “real reef keeping.” At first this book felt hard to read but every time I have come across something new it is in this book!

 

[robdog696]

Welcome to the boards! Have you looked into where you are going to purchase the tank? The company that sells you the tank may include free delivery and setup. They will also be able to provide you with tons of invaluable advice. Let us know where you are located so that some members might be able to reccomend a good lfs or tank builder to you!
I'd suggest you start browsing fish and seeing what interests you. Look for fish that say REEF SAFE: YES! That means you can have corals with them. Find a compatibility chart and get a good starting list of some fish and corals you'd like to eventually have. From there we will be able to tell you what size tank, what type of filtration, what lights, and how much sand/liverock you will want. Knowing exactly what you want to do with your tank will help you to make the fewest mistakes. Good luck!!!

 

[pondy]

I would do a ton of research both here on this site by using the search deal up top and also I would start researching what fish you would like like said before.
If you are going to set your tank up like you are going to have corals in it right now then one of the first things I would buy is a skimmer big enough for the system that you are going to have. I like to over kill the size of the skimmer, if it is too big then you can turn the flow down in certain skimmers. But buy a really good skimmer. dont go for a cheap one, they just make life a ton more difficult. Once you get into corals or have a bad algea bloom you will know what I mean. The skimmer makes a huge difference on your saltwater experience. Second, be patient and dont get to far over your head from the get go. Just take time and learn. Its a slow process, but if you jump to fast then you will hate this side of the hobby and you will refer back to what you know best. I did this for a while that is why I say be careful. 3 ask alot of questions, people on the board are here to help. youmight run into one or two people that are smart A$$e$ but hey, dont get mad at the whole board. We will help just let us know what you are wondering and we will point you in the right direction weather it be the search button or our opinion or what works for us. Have fun learning. Dustin

 

[fishy7]

Hi Josh

Welcome to the boards.
I installed a 215 in wall in our new home. I was able to make spefic changes such as eletric and spacing to fit the tank perfect. Drop me an email and I can share with you what I did from the purchase of the tank to finishing out the canopy. To many ghings to cover. Rkingtxtx@yahoo.com
Good luck it is a big project but SO worth it. Wife and I love the tank.

 

[renogaw]

One thing you really should do (besides all the research people are telling you) is set up a quarantine tank, put some rock in there, cycle it, and keep a couple clowns alive for a while. this will give you experience in keeping a salt tank alive, plus give you a quarantine tank to use when/if you decide to go bigger. a lot of people go huge right off the bat, realize how expensive this hobby is, find out that the upkeep is a lot harder than freshwater, then all of a sudden they are selling everything at a loss.

 

[jden092901]

thanks for all of your help. I have about a year to plan this..so I will be making this right the first time. Thanks again everyone.
Josh