Salt Water How To?

Hi, I have a 55-gallon freshwater aquarium I want to change to a saltwater tank. I've been looking into this for years now and each website gives different information. I was wondering what everything I needed was. Do I need to invest in a new heater can I use the same one? what about filters? Do I need a special one? I want to eventually get a dwarf fuzzy lionfish so what is the setup for that? I do what to stay on a budget so not like extremely expensive stuff. ill take any help, links to other threads. Thank You!

 

Starting a Saltwater System - Part 1 - Where to start (Research)

Nart's Budget Nano Saltwater Guide For Beginners

Welcome to the salty side! Those two links should be a decent start; I reference them both. The first one is a 3 part series that’s a great general guide and the second link is more budget related and geared to smaller tanks but there’s still plenty of valuable info there.

I still consider myself new but some answers to your questions: a new heater isn’t necessary since your water volume and tank size won’t change so your old one will do for now. You may find yourself wanting something sleeker in the future like I did though so I ultimately upgraded my heater. What kind of filter do you have?

In terms of expense, a FOWLR is definitely more budget friendly then a reef. A reef is prettier IMO and worth the extra effort.

No clue on the lionfish though!

 

Starting a Saltwater System - Part 1 - Where to start (Research)

Nart's Budget Nano Saltwater Guide For Beginners

Welcome to the salty side! Those two links should be a decent start; I reference them both. The first one is a 3 part series that’s a great general guide and the second link is more budget-related and geared to smaller tanks but there’s still plenty of valuable info there.

I still consider myself new but some answers to your questions: a new heater isn’t necessary since your water volume and tank size won’t change so your old one will do for now. You may find yourself wanting something sleeker in the future like I did though so I ultimately upgraded my heater. What kind of filter do you have?

In terms of expense, a FOWLR is definitely more budget friendly then a reef. A reef is prettier IMO and worth the extra effort.

No clue on the lionfish though!

Thanks! awesome for the heater part, I use a Marineland penguin bio wheel for a 55-gallon filter. I don't know if a freshwater filter is different from a saltwater one.

 

Thanks! awesome for the heater part, I use a Marineland penguin bio wheel for a 55-gallon filter. I don't know if a freshwater filter is different from a saltwater one.

Well, its kind of the same concept except your live rock will host most of your good bacteria and hold your cycle. Most of the 55 gallon sw setups I have seen use sumps since they are larger setups. Nanos can run HOB filters like the ones you see with freshwater but with different media.

 

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but 2 things about your hob filter. Its a cartridge type so it doesn't have a lot of room in it for different media. Second it doesn't have a surface skimmer option so it may not be the best to try to convert.

 

Hi, welcome to the Salty side
The one thing about salt keeping is that you'll find tons of different approaches. It certainly had me all confused at first. I have my personal preference as to how I would set up a system, but I also appreciate a lot of the other methods/approaches out there.

I think step one is to research as much as you can (start with the links above), then once you've got your head around the basics, everything starts to make sense, and you can start to see how each approach might work, and what's best for you.

And don't worry about being confused... It took me months of research to feel comfortable... Being confused is good, it means you're about to learn something

There are some 'must haves' in salt water, like heaters and lights, but most of the rest of the equipment comes down to your setup desires. Some things just make life easier, some things are pretty much a must for high end setups.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but 2 things about your hob filter. Its a cartridge type so it doesn't have a lot of room in it for different media. Second it doesn't have a surface skimmer option so it may not be the best to try to convert.

Surface skimmer? Or did you mean Protein Skimmer?
Either way, neither are required in Saltwater setups... a protein skimmer does make life easier, but they are not 100% required, just normally means more frequent water changes (depending on the setup)

 

Hi, I have a 55-gallon freshwater aquarium I want to change to a saltwater tank. I've been looking into this for years now and each website gives different information. I was wondering what everything I needed was. Do I need to invest in a new heater can I use the same one? what about filters? Do I need a special one? I want to eventually get a dwarf fuzzy lionfish so what is the setup for that? I do what to stay on a budget so not like extremely expensive stuff. ill take any help, links to other threads. Thank You!

The first thing is that with any used tank, you will need to clean everything out and sanitize it and all equipment to be used completely. The best way to do this is a mix of tap water and distilled white vinegar (I would use about 2.5-3 gallons with that setup). Let it run through all the equipment you plan on using in your saltwater setup (ie HOB Filters) for a couple of days. Once done, completely spray out tank and all equipment, wipe dry and let sit for 24 hours. After this you will need roughly 55lbs of dry rock or live rock for your tank. Dry rock is simply dead coral with no biolife/bacteria on it. It takes longer to cycle as you need to establish active bacteria, but it is significantly cheaper. Live Rock comes with established bacteria and biolife but is significantly more expensive and can come with pests. A compromise is something like the Caribsea Life Rock, which is pest free dry rock, but with a bacteria coating, it is slightly cheaper than live rock, but more expensive than dry rock. All depends which route you want to go. The important thing to understand about saltwater tanks is that the cycle is held in the rock instead of the filter media as the rock is a big biofilter and your primary source of filtration in a saltwater tank. The next thing is that tap water is NOT recommended for saltwater tanks as it often comes with solids that will create out of control nitrate and phosphate problems for you (and tons of unwanted algae). An RODI system (Reverse Osmosis with De-Ionization) is strongly recommended as it will strip all the solids out of the tap water for you. Your goal is to have a source water with 0 TDS (Total Dissolved Solids). If you have a reliable LFS (Local Fish Store) you can buy RODI or RODI and Saltwater pre-mix from them. This could work until you get your own system if you want to go that route. RODI systems range from $60-$150 on average. The cheaper ones tend to be more flexible and portable to hook up, but require more frequent and limited and expensive resin replacements, the more expensive systems tend to require a more permanent installation but offer cheaper and more flexible options for resin replacements. So it all depends on which you prefer to compromise on. HOB filtration will work (Canisters are arguably the most problematic and labor intensive means of filtration in a saltwater tank as it is very easy for the nasties to build up and become trapped in them). 55 gallon is about the tipping point between sump and HOB, but as your tank is probably not pre-drilled it would be best to stick with HOB for convenience and cost. For the tank heater, I recommend replacing it. A Tank heater for that size tank that is specifically marine compatible will run you about $35 from Amazon or other online sources (ie Eheim Jager). A very small price when you consider the overall cost/investment of a marine tank and tank heater failure can kill things faster in a saltwater tank than just about anything else. The other issue is that while most tank heaters are marine compatible, there are some that come with kits that simply aren't. I had a kit tank heater where the saltwater peeled off the exterior coating and began flaking off in the tank. NOT GOOD!!!!!!!!!! Hence, I recommend specifically getting a tank heater that says it is designed for marine environments just to be safe. As for protein skimmer you can use an HOB one, but there are only a couple that are worth the money IMHO. The Reef Octopus Classic 100 or the Eshoppes PSK-75H or 100H models. They aren't necessary but since you are likely going sumpless on a tank that size it might be useful. I ran a PSK-75H on my 36 gallon bowfront and it was a pretty nice little unit.

Given that you are interested in a dwarf lion, I would recommend sticking with a Fish Only With Live Rock predator tank. Many of the smaller fish will become food for Lion Fish and Predators can be hit and miss with whether or not they will eat corals and invertebrates.

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but 2 things about your hob filter. Its a cartridge type so it doesn't have a lot of room in it for different media. Second it doesn't have a surface skimmer option so it may not be the best to try to convert.

The HOB Filters that would be most recommended for your tank would be a Fluval 110. These filters are pretty solid and very flexible with what you can put in them. You can run something like Chemipure Elite (a mix of carbon and GFO to reduce phosphates from feeding and fish waste) or you can turn it into a macro algae refugium with something like Chaeto (popular Macro algae for biofiltration) that naturally reduces nitrates and phosphates. They run about $80 for the 110 model from Petsmart's website (possibly less if you hold out for a coupon/sale).

 

okay, sorry there's a lot of information to take down. so I need Aqua Clear Fluval Power Filter 110, 50lbs dry live rock, protein skimmer- Eshoppes PSK-75H amazon, liquamen 5-Stage Reverse Osmosis/Deionization (RO/DI) - Aquarium Reef Water Filter System, 50 GPD, Eheim Jager Aquarium Thermostat Heater, and special lighting?

 

You have a pretty comprehensive list there, although I would bump the rockwork up to 55lbs if you plan on having a decent amount of fish in your tank. For the Protein Skimmer I would bump it up to the 100 model on the 55 gallon. The Liquagen 5 stage should work great as will the tank heater. As for special lighting, a Predator/FOWLR tank really doesn't need anything special. A 48 inch Blue/White LED should be fine both for lighting and for looks. You definitely want to get either a light with a built in timer or make sure you pick up a timer though. Any more than 8 hours of lighting in a Marine Tank will give you excess algae problems.

Oh and if you want to get an idea of the way the HOB skimmer works, here is the PSK-75H in action on my 36 gallon bowfront (the 100H is the exact same, just slightly bigger with more flow).

 

You have a pretty comprehensive list there, although I would bump the rockwork up to 55lbs if you plan on having a decent amount of fish in your tank. For the Protein Skimmer I would bump it up to the 100 model on the 55 gallon. The Liquagen 5 stage should work great as will the tank heater. As for special lighting, a Predator/FOWLR tank really doesn't need anything special. A 48 inch Blue/White LED should be fine both for lighting and for looks. You definitely want to get either a light with a built in timer or make sure you pick up a timer though. Any more than 8 hours of lighting in a Marine Tank will give you excess algae problems.

Oh and if you want to get an idea of the way the HOB skimmer works, here is the PSK-75H in action on my 36 gallon bowfront (the 100H is the exact same, just slightly bigger with more flow).

the video was very helpful, last thing I was wondering if you knew how much roughly this would cost? I have sand and the tank but that's it.

 

the video was very helpful, last thing I was wondering if you knew how much roughly this would cost? I have sand and the tank but that's it.

Don't get sticker shock.

RODI Sytem $120
Finnex 48 inch LED $60
Eshoppes Protein Skimmer $136
55lbs of dry rock from BRS (Bulk Reef Supply) $131.45
Fluval 110 HOB Filter $80 from Petsmart's Website
2x Hydor Koralia 3rd Gen 1350gph powerheads $104 from Amazon
Refractometer (measures salinity levels in water) $20-$25 from Amazon
Red Sea Marine Care Test Kit (measures Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, ph and kh) $49 from Amazon
Instant Ocean Sea Salt (mixes up to 200 gallons) $38.49
2x 32 Gallon Garbage Cans $40-$50 from your local hardware store (for premixing your saltwater and having a fresh RODI container for evaporation top ups and rinsing and cleaning equipment)

Do you have some form of lid/screen top? If not then plan on spending $25 on a screen top from Amazon

The grand total: $688.95 with the screen top, $25 less if not.