Diggly

Hello,

I have successfully set up and had a freshwater tank for about 4 months now, and I recently upgraded to a 125g tank leaving me with a spare 17 gal!

I was wondering what the best thing is to do with it, whether its just corals and live rock with 1-2 small fish. I am looking forward to a new challenge and the FW dudes have been so helpful that I thought I would ask here for options then do my research. I wont be setting up for 1-2 months as I will be researching etc and cycling the tank for SW (I dont know how different it is to freshwater so I cleared everything out reasdy to start again).

I look forward to your replies!

MizRamzi

Welcome to FL and the wonderful world of SW!!! Your on the right track already with researching. Don't get overwhelmed with all the info you are about to receive, you'll get a lot from many people.
It's very different from FW. First I would get an API Master test kit. As far as fish, your going to be very very limited. However there are a few out there you can go with. 2 being the max.
Be prepared to get frustrated, discouraged and down right mad. But hang in there this all goes away as you see your corals growing and all the little hitch hikers appearing out of your LR. It's wonderful!!
Last but no where the least. Be prepared to spend a lot of $$$. Unlike FW the supplies you'll need for SW abound. Even with a small tank. Trust me I know. I have an 8g biocube and I stopped adding after 500.00$

Diggly

does the equipment vary significantly for bigger tanks? for example I know you can get filters which cover 100 litre to 250 litre tanks, cost isnt an issue as I am looking to spread it out over a few months while making sure I start out right (it took me about 6 months research before I started up my fw tank and it was definitly worth it!). I will probably upgrade the tank as I become more confident which is why I asked about the equipment . If it isnt compatible then I am better off buying a bigger tank and keeping the small one for guppies or danios lol (MTS )

I was thinking of 2 of the smaller varieties of clown fish and maybe 1 tank cleaner unless that is too much!

MizRamzi

Most Clowns get to be at least 3+" So yea I wouldn't go with more then one. They also go hand in hand with anemones and they have special requirements. I personally wouldn't own a clown without an anemone.


Yes equipment does vary very much the bigger you go. Unless you go with an all in one and as far as I know they only go up to 34g, with a cost of 600.00 to 800.00 for the setup.
Your doing great with researching though. When your ready try looking for used items. You can find a lot, for a lot less. Great way for a beginner to start out.

Diggly

I think I will save up and go for an all in one tank and go for reef / corals then when I am successful (failure is not an option ever!) at that I will add in a fish and when that goes well I will do a victory dance and slowly convert my 125g tank to a marine or buy a 125g marine tank - I have mts bad . Expect lots more questions!

MizRamzi

Question on my Fishlorien friend! If ever I get the chance to upgrade to a bigger tank, we can do it together. (failure not an option) For now I'm pretty content with my little 8g nano. The all in one's are great for pro's and newbs alike. Someday I'd like to get the 34g Red Sea Max. Man what a tank! Plus everything I've learned here and at NanoReef show's many different modifications you can do to the tanks to increase the filteration.

Diggly

Alright then its a deal! we will upgrade our tanks together!! less chance of failure sounds good to me!

Would you suggest a nano for a beginner? I want something easyish to get me started then I can progress .

MizRamzi

IMO, yes I would. As a beginner just learning about SW I wanted to be able to put all my energy into what goes in the water. Just the thought of all the equipment that is needed for a larger tank other then a all-in-one, intimidated me. I just don't know enough yet. I truly believe that the all-in-one tanks were made for people like me Besides these tanks show me what all is needed for a larger tank only on a smaller scale. Check out Nano-Reef.com, look at some of the others tanks, some have tanks as small as 3g. Way cool!!

Diggly

Yeah to be honest when I started reading about everything I needed my head started to spin! So I think I am going to go for a small tank and try the easy corals so I can get the gist of it.

How long have you had your tank?

JoeSmo

I know that is your opinion and you are entitled to it, but I disagree. I know many people who keep clowns without anenomes and they do just fine. The purpose for anenomes in the reef is to protect the clown, but a single clown won't need much protection if he is the only fish in the tank will he? Also, sometimes clowns won't even pair with an anenome in the tank, especially when they are tank bred specimens.

You could go for a single clown without an anenome IMO.

Diggly

well first I need to get a marine tank going before I even think of fish.

Would a single clown not prefere a tank friend?

MizRamzi

Pic 1, when first set up June 11th

Pic 2, 2 months later

Pic 3, today!!!

It's just over 3 months old. For some reason it seems much longer. I've had some up's and down's with it, nothing that's not normal. Algae, and of course the dreaded ICH. So for now it's fishless until the ICH dies out.

I wasn't saying NOT to get a clown but only for me, having a clown without an anemone is like having a bike without a seat. You can ride it but it wont be comfortable.

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Diggly

Wow that looks amazing!! and it is definitly helping me decide I want to go for it .

It must be such a good feeling knowing you nutured something that beautiful.

MizRamzi

It's been a blast!! Now I can't wait to see your pic's!!! Build on my friend build ooooon!!!

aquarist48

Best of luck with your salt endeavors Diggly. Keep us posted.

(beautiful MizRamzi!)
Ken