Want to go marine. Please help :)

Joshifer · 08/02/2013, 01:06 AM

Hello all. Josh here. I read this forum alot. I just registered.

I currently have a 26G. Bow. Aquaclear 70 foam block. Carbon. Biomax rings. DIY white felt filter floss. And a aqueon 30 power filter. Stock filter cart with felt and plastic pot scrubbies. 100watt heater (I think it's fluval?) and a 92GPH fountain powerhead (could upgrade that their cheap at freight harbor tools) and full hood. Idk what kinda bulb all I know is full spectrum has a purple tint. Anyway I've been cycling that for two weeks and I'm dreadfully bored with it freshwater offers nothing exotic I'd like to keep besides cichlids but bah anyway . I want to convert to marine. Would my current equipment be suitable for fish only and some live rock and of course live sand? I don't want corals or anemones (not for a long time til I know what I'm doing)
Now do I want to kill whatever bacteria I have in my filters or will they convert to salt water ala instant ocean? If not then what's a good way to clean all my media since its new. (Soak it in hot tap water over night ?) I want to keep a pair of tank raised known paired clowns (nemo) and feather dusters. A little cleanup crew. And possibly one bigger display fish (that won't bother my clowns) or if I can't have a display fish how many clowns can I keep in a 26G bow? I'm sorry for all the questions one last question is my pet store sells fully cured live rock kept In vats. The manager assured me he does not sell them until they "cooked" for a month or two. If I buy that. And live sand. The one that comes packaged in a water pack (I'd only buy if the date on the bag is recent) how long would it take to cycle my tank if I stick some raw prawns in some nylons ? Again I'm sorry for all the questions I just wanna get this right so I don't kill anything.

Sn8kbyt · 08/02/2013, 01:59 AM

Hello Josh and welcome to the site!!

I would recommend reading through all of these forums most importantly the stickies. I would also buy a couple of good saltwater books to read. I had freshwater tanks for over 20 years before going marine and spent over 6 months reading and doing research before taking the plunge.

I will also add that after getting myself updated on the hobby I used next to nothing from my old saltwater tanks. That doesn't mean you can't just saying that if you do your homework FW vs. SW is really night and day different and you most likely will want to take a different path.

Joshifer · 08/02/2013, 02:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sn8kbyt

Hello Josh and welcome to the site!!

I would recommend reading through all of these forums most importantly the stickies. I would also buy a couple of good saltwater books to read. I had freshwater tanks for over 20 years before going marine and spent over 6 months reading and doing research before taking the plunge.

I will also add that after getting myself updated on the hobby I used next to nothing from my old saltwater tanks. That doesn't mean you can't just saying that if you do your homework FW vs. SW is really night and day different and you most likely will want to take a different path.

Thanks. As I would love to buy new equipment I can't at the moment. Once I get some extra money I want a cannister and a skimmer as I read their a big help. But most of my questions I can't seem to find answers to on the stickys.

athompson · 08/02/2013, 02:36 AM

If I were you I would save my pennies and buy stuff as you can afford it. Don't skimp. save and buy the best. You can reuse some freshwater stuff, but honestly, it will not do you any good. Everything has to be pretty much "sterilized" to like new conditions.

Another thing, I would forego the cannister. They are nitrate factories. invest in a sump instead.

Freshwater and saltwater are two horses of a completely different color. If you are planning on keeping corals at any time in the future I would go ahead and invest in good lighting. A skimmer is almost a must. Salifert or red sea test kits are the best for marine tanks. You will need at a minimum ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, ph and dkh testers. You want your flow in your tank to be atleast 10-20x the total tank volume so make sure you have powerheads to provide that flow. Flow+live rock+sand=biological filter unlike freshwater in which you are pretty much trying to grow the bacteria in your filter.

Other things I see as a must are a refractometer for salinity, an RO/DI unit (tap water is a no no for marine, it has too much TDS), a good salt mix, and lots of research.

As far as the full hood goes, in general saltwater keepers do not use hoods. They don't always allow for proper air exchange and can make ph shift. Also the salt can build up unto the glass and decrease your lighting. This is not a hard and fast rule because I know people do keep full hoods on their saltwater tanks successfully. If you decide to use your hood, make sure you clean the glass frequently and watch your ph

dkeller_nc · 08/02/2013, 07:57 AM

Josh - There's a certain minimum of equipment when it comes to saltwater. That's not a huge amount of money, but it is going to run you several hundred dollars. My thought is that without the funds to buy some of this minimal equipment list, you will be very frustrated by trying to fix issues in your tank that could've been avoided.

For example, you will at least need a salinity measuring device, a set of test kits to measure ammonia, nitrate and pH, a set of stuff to mix saltwater for mixing changes (a minimum of a plastic trash can, a powerhead and a heater), some means of either generating purified water or the means to transport and store purified water from the fish store, a better recirculation pump than the pond pump, some bonafide filtration media, a bottle of activated carbon, etc...

If your tank is going to be fish-only (no invertebrates or corals), then whatever light you have will be fine, and while you're probably going to have to switch out the pond pump for something with more flow, your other equipment will get you by. Except - you must not use dish scrubing pads - they often have leachable materials in them designed as anti-fungal and anti-bacterial preventatives. You can also get by without a skimmer on a fish-only tank but you will need to do much more frequent water changes. The cost of the saltwater will probably exceed the cost of an appropriate skimmer within a few months.

08/02/2013, 01:06 AM	#1
Joshifer Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2013 Posts: 4	Want to go marine. Please help :) Hello all. Josh here. I read this forum alot. I just registered. I currently have a 26G. Bow. Aquaclear 70 foam block. Carbon. Biomax rings. DIY white felt filter floss. And a aqueon 30 power filter. Stock filter cart with felt and plastic pot scrubbies. 100watt heater (I think it's fluval?) and a 92GPH fountain powerhead (could upgrade that their cheap at freight harbor tools) and full hood. Idk what kinda bulb all I know is full spectrum has a purple tint. Anyway I've been cycling that for two weeks and I'm dreadfully bored with it freshwater offers nothing exotic I'd like to keep besides cichlids but bah anyway . I want to convert to marine. Would my current equipment be suitable for fish only and some live rock and of course live sand? I don't want corals or anemones (not for a long time til I know what I'm doing) Now do I want to kill whatever bacteria I have in my filters or will they convert to salt water ala instant ocean? If not then what's a good way to clean all my media since its new. (Soak it in hot tap water over night ?) I want to keep a pair of tank raised known paired clowns (nemo) and feather dusters. A little cleanup crew. And possibly one bigger display fish (that won't bother my clowns) or if I can't have a display fish how many clowns can I keep in a 26G bow? I'm sorry for all the questions one last question is my pet store sells fully cured live rock kept In vats. The manager assured me he does not sell them until they "cooked" for a month or two. If I buy that. And live sand. The one that comes packaged in a water pack (I'd only buy if the date on the bag is recent) how long would it take to cycle my tank if I stick some raw prawns in some nylons ? Again I'm sorry for all the questions I just wanna get this right so I don't kill anything.

08/02/2013, 01:59 AM	#2
Sn8kbyt Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Manitowoc, WI Posts: 607	Hello Josh and welcome to the site!! I would recommend reading through all of these forums most importantly the stickies. I would also buy a couple of good saltwater books to read. I had freshwater tanks for over 20 years before going marine and spent over 6 months reading and doing research before taking the plunge. I will also add that after getting myself updated on the hobby I used next to nothing from my old saltwater tanks. That doesn't mean you can't just saying that if you do your homework FW vs. SW is really night and day different and you most likely will want to take a different path. __________________ 220 gallon DT and 90 gallon sump, all DC powered, APEX gold with DOS, feeder, and a few extra modules, Avast Marine swabbie on Skimz Monster 258, 6 Rapid LED Onyx fixtures, BRS dosers, 4 Jaebo RW-15. Current Tank Info: 220 Gallon, 29 Gallon, 2-20L QT, and a 20 gallon tall octogon tank waiting to be setup for a seahorse tank.

08/02/2013, 02:36 AM	#4
athompson Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Mobile, AL Posts: 233	If I were you I would save my pennies and buy stuff as you can afford it. Don't skimp. save and buy the best. You can reuse some freshwater stuff, but honestly, it will not do you any good. Everything has to be pretty much "sterilized" to like new conditions. Another thing, I would forego the cannister. They are nitrate factories. invest in a sump instead. Freshwater and saltwater are two horses of a completely different color. If you are planning on keeping corals at any time in the future I would go ahead and invest in good lighting. A skimmer is almost a must. Salifert or red sea test kits are the best for marine tanks. You will need at a minimum ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, ph and dkh testers. You want your flow in your tank to be atleast 10-20x the total tank volume so make sure you have powerheads to provide that flow. Flow+live rock+sand=biological filter unlike freshwater in which you are pretty much trying to grow the bacteria in your filter. Other things I see as a must are a refractometer for salinity, an RO/DI unit (tap water is a no no for marine, it has too much TDS), a good salt mix, and lots of research. As far as the full hood goes, in general saltwater keepers do not use hoods. They don't always allow for proper air exchange and can make ph shift. Also the salt can build up unto the glass and decrease your lighting. This is not a hard and fast rule because I know people do keep full hoods on their saltwater tanks successfully. If you decide to use your hood, make sure you clean the glass frequently and watch your ph

08/02/2013, 07:57 AM	#5
dkeller_nc Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Central NC Posts: 5,062	Josh - There's a certain minimum of equipment when it comes to saltwater. That's not a huge amount of money, but it is going to run you several hundred dollars. My thought is that without the funds to buy some of this minimal equipment list, you will be very frustrated by trying to fix issues in your tank that could've been avoided. For example, you will at least need a salinity measuring device, a set of test kits to measure ammonia, nitrate and pH, a set of stuff to mix saltwater for mixing changes (a minimum of a plastic trash can, a powerhead and a heater), some means of either generating purified water or the means to transport and store purified water from the fish store, a better recirculation pump than the pond pump, some bonafide filtration media, a bottle of activated carbon, etc... If your tank is going to be fish-only (no invertebrates or corals), then whatever light you have will be fine, and while you're probably going to have to switch out the pond pump for something with more flow, your other equipment will get you by. Except - you must not use dish scrubing pads - they often have leachable materials in them designed as anti-fungal and anti-bacterial preventatives. You can also get by without a skimmer on a fish-only tank *but* you will need to do much more frequent water changes. The cost of the saltwater will probably exceed the cost of an appropriate skimmer within a few months.