Drvajeep

Ok new guy here, i have been a freshy for quite a while and i have been wanting to try saltwater for a while. I have a extra 20 gallon tank i wanted to try saltwater in its 24" x 12" x 16" (i think the 16" is right, close anyway)

I want to do a trial run with this tank to see if i'm cutout for saltwater. and if i am i will invest in a bigger and better system later. Should i buy a all in one hood like the eclipse 2, should i use a hang on filter, cannister filter, undegravel filter

I want to put a couple of pieces of live rock, live sand & 1 or 2 small fish and maybe a cleanup crab or 2

Mike

Hey there - welcome to FishLore.

I would stay away from the undergravel filter and canister filters and get a hang on power filter instead. The filter media is much easier to change which means that it'll be more likely that we'll change it on a regular basis. This would help avoid any future nitrate buildups that could potentially happen in an undergravel and canister filters. Power filters are much cheaper than canister filters too.

If you only want to keep fish you'd be fine going with the standard hood/lighting setup. I'd also get a powerhead with a flow rate of 200 GPH (10 times tank volume). Stock the tank very lightly and feed lightly. Live rock is a great idea to help with the biological filtration in the tank. Plan on frequent small partial water changes too with a small setup.