anyone into saltwater aquariums?

[INJEN78]

ive had several freshwater tanks over the years and recently bought a greenspotted puffer(pet stores sell these as freshwater puffers but theyre actually brackish water fish) so i got it home and put it in freshwater and have been using a drip system to get it acclimated to brackish..but i think im going to invest in atleast a 55 gallon and convert to full salt..just wondering if any of you guys are into marine life?? post your setups if so.

 

[neonmike]

Yep I have a 10 gallon nano tank right now but have a 40 gallon tank I am goin to start setting up eventually. All I can say is be very careful when you get your live rock and make sure it doesn't have any aptasia on it, if it does and you don't treat it right away you will be fighting it for the entire time you keep the affected rocks in there, ask me how I know lol

 

[FLounder]

i have a 75 gallon reef tank. Started it from scratch about 3 years ago, took about a year to get it established well. When i was in school i worked in a saltwater aquarium store, where i learned a lot about caring for them. Like you, I had several different freshwater setups throughout my life, and was alway interested in salt. 55 gallons is a good size, believe it or not, bigger tanks are usually easier. Keeping the water more stable is key, and lots of water changes. I do 15 gallons every 3 weeks in mine. when the tank was newer i did them every 2 weeks.

lemme see if i can find any pics...


heres a few creatures (actinic lights on only)

this pic is old, the live rock is much more established looking now, but it still gives you an idea....

 

[TurboMirage]

im hoping to do a small freshwater tank eventually. just need some room to set one up.

 

[Drake]

I dont have a tank of my own but salt water tanks are pretty damn cool. A friend of mine has a rather large salt water tank not sure on the size. He has had his for 7 or 8 years. Its cool to pull up a chair and watch all the critters swim around. In for more pictures if you guys have them.

 

[INJEN78]

awesome..yea ive been doing alot of research and feel comfortable with the task..

 

[Hondadude141]

If you are going to do a saltwater tank, I would recommend going no smaller that a 75. Just do your research. I have a 285 gallon saltwater setup, and I'd take pictures of it, but my phone camera is busted.

Just remember the saltwater takes require a hell of a lot more maintenance and setup compared to freshwater, but if you've got the money and time, I say go for it.

If you have any question feel free to ask. I used to setup and maintain salt water tanks professionally for 2-3 years.

 

[efhondakid]

I had a 55 freshwater for a while, got rid of it when I moved. My boss has a 75 saltwater setup, Ive talked to him about doing one. The biggest thing is you have to have time and patience for it. He said he spends an hour and a half to two hours every other day with it. Fish really are an awesome hobby, pretty relaxing to just sit and watch.

 

[FLounder]

I had a 55 freshwater for a while, got rid of it when I moved. My boss has a 75 saltwater setup, Ive talked to him about doing one. The biggest thing is you have to have time and patience for it. He said he spends an hour and a half to two hours every other day with it. Fish really are an awesome hobby, pretty relaxing to just sit and watch.

jesus, he is making love to it

in my experience, salt tanks arent too bad for maintenance once they are well established and balanced. mine requires cleaning the glass twice a week if you want it perfectly clean, about 5-10 mins. partial water change and basic clean of the glass tops, filters, etc every 3 weeks, about 45 mins. and thats it!

i dont ever have to clean the sand, rocks, or the sump.... got a living cleaning crew for all that.

 

[Celerity]

Mexicans ?

 

[INJEN78]

from what im gathering..as long as i have adequate water movement,good chemistry and proper filtration it should be alright

 

[efhondakid]

jesus, he is making love to it

Hes a bit of a perfectionist.

 

[hosmer]

Had a ghost knife fish, blue arrowana, albino rope fish, and a few others in an old 40gal breeder setup I had back when I still lived at home...years ago

Now I've got a 46gal bowfront in my basement...a small mix of African and North American Cichlids the coolest one being a blue peacock (about 5") and a 7" Motoro sting ray

All freshwater but I enjoy them...actually took the family to the Mystic aquarium yesterday for my youngests 1st bday

 

[FLounder]

This is from when i first set my tank up, and as you can see, it was pretty sterile looking.

This picture is from fall 2010, and the tank was coming along pretty well. I had spent a good bit of money adding coral, and sadly most of the pieces here are no longer living. had a crash last year and lost a lot of it.

Here are some more recent pictures (probably 4 or 5 months ago). You can see how much more natural growth is on the rocks compared to the earlier pictures.