Freshwater Vs Saltwater - how much harder?

[TropiCOOL]

hI guys

just wondering what is harder to maintain Freshwater or Saltwater tanks? also how common are Saltwater fish to buy?? I live in ireland so most of you won't know lol

x

 

[Parlay]

I don't feel like it's really that much harder to maintain. Although I don't personally work on the marine tank at our house as that's my hubby's baby. We have easy access to marine fish in our town. There are a few key things I've noticed though,
The stocking requirements and the fish requirements are NOT alike.
The fish seem to be, on average, more expensive for SW.
The start up costs are a little higher in a Saltwater tank.

From what I've picked up on watching his tank maintenance and listing to him talk about the few problems he's had with it I can give you some tips for if you make the jump to SW. Start with a LARGE tank, our first Saltwater tank was 29 gallons and it was way to small for any real interesting stocking (we felt) and get an RO filter. You don't want tap water in one of those tanks.

 

[dee34]

hI there , I think Saltwater is the harder to grasp. I have Saltwater now for nearly a year now and I'm still learning all the time. the tank is 450lts and was a Freshwater tank but I converted it over to a reef tank . it is also a lot more expensive to set up and maintain than Freshwater tank . the main thing about setting up a Saltwater tank is research as much as you can before setting up plus having a lot patients is a must ! also bigger is better .

 

[TropiCOOL]

hI there , I think Saltwater is the harder to grasp. I have Saltwater now for nearly a year now and I'm still learning all the time. the tank is 450lts and was a Freshwater tank but I converted it over to a reef tank . it is also a lot more expensive to set up and maintain than Freshwater tank . the main thing about setting up a Saltwater tank is research as much as you can before setting up plus having a lot patients is a must !

do you find it hard to find fish for your Saltwater tank?(I see your ireland) most pet shops near me only stock fw fish!

 

[dee34]

I live in Co Louth , there are plenty of fish shops near me either in dublin or I can go up the north of ireland aswell. will you go Saltwater in the future ?

 

[jetajockey]

SW fish are way more expensive than freshwater. We have a wide variety of Saltwater fish in particular here because of our location on the coast, and the prices on many of them are crazy. I was in petland yesterday and saw some kind of seahorses in there for $50 each.

This is to be expected since so many are wild caught.

It looks like Saltwater tanks involve more equipment and seem to be slightly more involved in routine maintenance. The process doesn't seem too daunting to me at all, I just don't have the drive to invest in a proper Saltwater tank at the moment. I considered getting one as a living room display in the future, but after pricing equipment/fish I still kind of lean towards an extra large Freshwater setup.

 

[TropiCOOL]

I live in Co Louth , there are plenty of fish shops near me either in dublin or I can go up the north of ireland aswell. will you go Saltwater in the future ?

I'm living in co tipp! so id probly get a shop that sells sw fish in limerick or cork! there within an hour 1/2 away! I would defo like to have one of each for varity think ill master the fw 1st then get a bigger tank and then keep the tank I have now and sart a sw tank!

 

[dee34]

I'm living in co tipp! so id probly get a shop that sells sw fish in limerick or cork! there within an hour 1/2 away! I would defo like to have one of each for varity think ill master the fw 1st then get a bigger tank and then keep the tank I have now and sart a sw tank!

that's what I did , I had 4 Freshwater tanks and got to the stage were I needed a challenge plus I always wanted a Saltwater tank . altogether I had about 5 years Freshwater experience before I started with Saltwater which definitly helped !;D

 

[TropiCOOL]

that's what I did , I had 4 Freshwater tanks and got to the stage were I needed a challenge plus I always wanted a Saltwater tank . altogether I had about 5 years Freshwater experience before I started with Saltwater which definitly helped !;D

LOL think ill wait awhile before attempting an sw tank! 4 fw tanks must keep you busy? wat size are they?

do you breed any of your fish?

 

[dee34]

LOL think ill wait awhile before attempting an sw tank! 4 fw tanks must keep you busy? wat size are they?

do you breed any of your fish?

ive only 3 now at the mo 450lt Saltwater bow front the stock is yellow tang , regel tang , 4 green chromis , 2 percula clowns ,1 royal gramma, 4 turbo snails ,3 pepperment shrimp , 3 hermit crabs and defferent types of soft coral. then a 190lt Freshwater with 2 discis,2silver dollors,3 glass catfish and a bristlenose pleco. the third is a 60lt cold water with 4 white clouds and 2 black moors .

 

[Bdriver55]

I am new to the forum, I have had lost of different kind of freshwater fish but as I get older I am fascinated with the science of the hobby and the variety of color. My issue is that I cannot decide rather to do something different and do saltwater or if I decide to continue with freshwater my top choices are cichlids or discus. Currently and temporarily whichever I decide they would be in a 40 gallon tank. Please feel free to help me out.

 

[happygolucky]

An African Cichlid tank or a Discus tank would require probably 55 gallon +, that's the recommended size I've seen. Discus should probably be in a 75g, as they need close to perfect water parameters, and they get quite large.

Basically the only difference is, with saltwater, you are looking at a much more expensive hobby. If you want to take the plunge, go for it! It is not much harder than freshwater (or so I've heard)

 

[Anders247]

Welcome to fishlore!
If you are experienced, I'd go with saltwater. Make sure to start out with a large tank.

 

[Bdriver55]

Thanks, I'm looking to upgrade to something larger probably at least a 75 gallon which will probably get really expensive with saltwater, but the discus or cichlids can probably give me that colorful look I am going for

 

[jpm995]

Saltwater is much more expensive, fish are beautiful but even water changes get expensive. With Saltwater you start with fish than want to add corals and it more pricey and doesn't work. You really have to be disciplined to make it work. With Freshwater once the tank is established your home free. Discus are probably one of the hardest Freshwater fish to work with but their beautiful. They used to be referred to as the king of Freshwater fish. They have special needs [higher water temp, lots of room] but their worth it. They can be finicky eaters [mine only liked live tubifex worms] but if you get one from a good breeder their supposed to eat flake food. If you have the bucks try SW, a good set up tank has great wow appeal.

 

[Bdriver55]

So would you guys say that saltwater fish are more hardy then discus as I have heard that discus are not hardy at all and of course very sensitive as I have done plenty of research.

 

[AndreDecasa]

I have done freshwater and saltwater aquariums and yes saltwater is the most full of color but then I don't like a lot of color though. I would much rather accept a few driftwood, sand, some stones and sparkling gouramis. Saltwater is expensive and in that tank you need a protein skimmer. IMO there's much more going on in saltwater so you need to be VERY observant.

 

[Anders247]

So would you guys say that saltwater fish are more hardy then discus as I have heard that discus are not hardy at all and of course very sensitive as I have done plenty of research.

Aquarium bred discus are probably a lot more hardy than some saltwater fish.

 

[jpm995]

So would you guys say that saltwater fish are more hardy then discus as I have heard that discus are not hardy at all and of course very sensitive as I have done plenty of research.

That's a bit of an overstatement. Saltwater are similar to Freshwater in that some are easy and some are hard [or impossible] . The biggest issue with some Saltwater fish is their diet can be almost impossible to replicate without an ocean in your house. Some butterflys, mandrians, moreish idols, Pinnatus bats are hard to adapt to aquarium life. Most are similar to Freshwater though and adapt to a varied diet. That said it's still more expensive from the salt, to the food, to the equipment [skimmers, sumps] to the price of the fish. Corals are an entire different level as the water needs to be treated with many chemicals [iodine, etc], a degree in chemistry is recommended.

 

[jpm995]

Should have added discus aren't really that hard. The fact that everyone and their brother breeds them is indicative of that. The thing is discus keeping is down to a science and everything is well known as opposed to some Saltwater fish that even has scientists not sure how they reproduce.

 

[Bdriver55]

Thanks for the information

 

[N13]

Hello ! I am currently deciding to continue to make my 20 gallon long freshwater or saltwater, so I want to see which one is preferred in the community! Do you like saltwater (reef tank) better or freshwater (planted tank)

 

[smalli]

With saltwater you have way more colorful fish vs with freshwater you have some cool plants and some cool fish depending on where you go. Personally i would go with freshwater

 

[Donthemon]

Saltwater fish seem more colorful and unique. 20 gallon seems small for saltwater. Main difference is the equipment Have you looked into a sump and a protein skimmer yet? Also Fish only, fish only live rock or reef tank, all different setups for saltwater.

 

[N13]

Saltwater fish seem more colorful and unique. 20 gallon seems small for saltwater. Main difference is the equipment Have you looked into a sump and a protein skimmer yet?

Yes, I am still deciding to go the freshwater way or the saltwater way, If I go saltwater I'll try to do a soft coral reef tank but if I go freshwater I'll do a planted moderate tech tank

 

[fish 321]

I switched to saltwater because my freshwater tank kind of started ro bore me. Saltwater tanks are more hands on and require closer attention to parameters especially if you have corals. There is also way more biodiversity in saltwater and it really cool to see all little creatures pop up in your tank as long as they aren't pest.

 

[Alejandro]

We struggled with saltwater until we built larger systems. More water = greater stability

It seems to me that saltwater is a lot of trouble unless you go big. The tech is expensive so you may as well have a bigger system.
Don't want to talk you out of it but you'll probably want a bigger marine tank soon - so if you do it maybe you can oversize the tech so a tank size upgrade can be accommodated

 

[Debbie1986]

King of DIY got into saltwater again. Great channel, I recommend for research.

I never went saltwater because of cost and fear of killing a very expensive pet.

my upside down catfish cost me $1.00

The most I ever spent was $24.99 for a very fancy betta.

but cost aside, do what tickles your fancy

the amount of time & care involved, do what you love.

 

[bluesky2111]

Sorry for being late. I was in the same situation and decided to switched my 75gal planted tank to a reef. Cost me around $1000 (not including fish). I think your 20gal Long is a great size for salt (though I recommend bigger is better). You might have limited livestock but thats ok.

 

[Mudminnow]

I once had a 20 long planted saltwater tank. It was planted with macroalgae. I enjoyed the tank quite a bit, and it was no more work than my planted freshwater tanks. In fact, other than mixing salt, I'd say it was less work...just something worth considering I think.