Joeganja
2500 Club Member
I just want to give my 2 cents on here and there will be people that agree and disagree and that's okay but I think this will help a lot of those who are trying to find the right sized tank to start with or to downsize to. What would be the recommended and or adequate size to go with based on the room you have, your budget, and most important how much your willing to devote to this hobby. Well it all breaks down into those three categories (others may disagree). I'm not professional but I'm speaking for the average hobbyists. It's a honor to house these animals and in doing so it's rewarding.
Room/Space available: For anyone who's just getting into this hobby and just want to get some clownfish, name them nemo and end up getting a hippo tang (dory) and placing it into a 20 gallon please don't do that. Tangs are more on the delicate side of fish, they are more prone to disease, get larger than other fish, and also need plenty of swimming space. Maybe your just trying to see how this tank goes and you'll maybe upgrade in the future. By the time you get this tank up and running, have fish in there, you'll be ready for a new tank, you'll have your old tank filled with hundreds of dollars you've poured into it only to find out some of the stuff is not able to be put into a larger tank (lights, filtration, heaters, powerheads, return pumps). Now there are certain tanks almost everyone on here would recommend. Usually a 29 gallon is almost perfect for anyone who's just getting in and wants to see how it goes. Water parameters don't fluctuate as much as they do in a 10 gallon. It's easier to keep parameters in check, you can have a couple of clownfish, a 3-4 other small fish such as dottybacks, gobies, some wrasses, as well as invertebrates and then your golden with that tank. Until you figure out you can't add more fish or you want larger fish and then you gotta go buy a new tank. Next step up would be a 40 gallon breaker for depth maybe a juvenile tang for a year or two and then move him out, or get a 55 gallon and put the smaller tangs like a kole or scopas tang in there. You'll know what I mean when your 11 years in it lol.
Budget: this hobby is not cheap. People always ask me how big of a difference it is from freshwater and I say it's not comparable. Everything you know and have learned about freshwater that's after the nitrogen cycle, throw it out the window. Patience is the number one thing in this hobby and the less patience you have the more money you spend. You rush into things and you make mistakes, but you learn from them. It's a learning process but you are dealing with live animals so you want to be cautious, and caring. To start up a saltwater tank depending on the size you want and what type of filtration, lighting, and fish you want to house you'll have to do your research and ask around. Be ready to spend 5x as much as you did on a freshwater tank. You can set up a freshwater tank 20 gallons and be ready for fish in no time for under $100. The sand, rock, saltwater, and chemicals alone are gonna cost you and upwards of $50-100 easy depending on the size of the tank. 29 gallon tank (2 20lb bags of live sand $40-60. Rock 20lbs at $3.99-5.99lb just off the top of my head whether dead or live rock. Filtration and lighting all depends on the size of the tank and what you plan to house in it. All in all $300-500 on a 29 gallon fully filled with everything you need. This would be a regular glass tank with a good hang on the back filter, led strip lighting, sand, rock, water, possibly a skimmer, and then livestock will run you around $10-30 average small sized fish. Clownfish are usually no more than $15 so $30 for two, a royal gramma dottyback $20, a six line wrasse $20, algae blenny $20, clean up crew $30-50. Yeah. Just giving you guys an idea off the top of my head. In the comments below I know there will be disagreements.
Devotion: Last but not least this is the most critical one. A good chunk of hobbyists quit within the first year just because they don't want to keep failing. We are impatient and I understand we want to fill up our tanks with beautiful animals but there is a whole process in which you should undergo and see step by step how it's all laid out, see how others have done it, and find your own approach. What works for others may not work for you. Especially in this hobby. A lot of people start out failing saying I got fish but they all died because they didn't wait for the nitrogen cycle to finish, people fight hair algae due to high nitrates, overfeeding, not doing enough water changes. If you are serious about coming in this hobby talk to anyone you know who's in it and get their two cents, ask them to help you, sometimes pet stores aren't the best place to go because they might just want to sell you a tank, the employees may not even have ever owned a saltwater tank and you end up talking to the wrong person and failing and spending all your money only to end up wanting to leave by the time the holidays come around. Talk to hobbyists and learn as much as you can. Below I'll post some playslists of youtubers that I recommend watching the videos and getting an insight on how you want to do it and how to approach it smart and with patience.
For setting up a tank, what needs to be gotten, what you may need in the future:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLauu_E-gQtvKCxfBvBuv94XiKUG14pnLM
For tips and tricks and something to think about: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLauu_E-gQtvJFD0WktbO0uZrgwzsXrHix
Credibility goes to:
Tidal Gardens Inc.
Mr. Saltwater Tank TV
Coralfish12g
Bulkreefsupplycom
Melevsreef
Marine Depot Aquarium supplies
Thanks for reading this. Now to hear the comments [emoji848]
Room/Space available: For anyone who's just getting into this hobby and just want to get some clownfish, name them nemo and end up getting a hippo tang (dory) and placing it into a 20 gallon please don't do that. Tangs are more on the delicate side of fish, they are more prone to disease, get larger than other fish, and also need plenty of swimming space. Maybe your just trying to see how this tank goes and you'll maybe upgrade in the future. By the time you get this tank up and running, have fish in there, you'll be ready for a new tank, you'll have your old tank filled with hundreds of dollars you've poured into it only to find out some of the stuff is not able to be put into a larger tank (lights, filtration, heaters, powerheads, return pumps). Now there are certain tanks almost everyone on here would recommend. Usually a 29 gallon is almost perfect for anyone who's just getting in and wants to see how it goes. Water parameters don't fluctuate as much as they do in a 10 gallon. It's easier to keep parameters in check, you can have a couple of clownfish, a 3-4 other small fish such as dottybacks, gobies, some wrasses, as well as invertebrates and then your golden with that tank. Until you figure out you can't add more fish or you want larger fish and then you gotta go buy a new tank. Next step up would be a 40 gallon breaker for depth maybe a juvenile tang for a year or two and then move him out, or get a 55 gallon and put the smaller tangs like a kole or scopas tang in there. You'll know what I mean when your 11 years in it lol.
Budget: this hobby is not cheap. People always ask me how big of a difference it is from freshwater and I say it's not comparable. Everything you know and have learned about freshwater that's after the nitrogen cycle, throw it out the window. Patience is the number one thing in this hobby and the less patience you have the more money you spend. You rush into things and you make mistakes, but you learn from them. It's a learning process but you are dealing with live animals so you want to be cautious, and caring. To start up a saltwater tank depending on the size you want and what type of filtration, lighting, and fish you want to house you'll have to do your research and ask around. Be ready to spend 5x as much as you did on a freshwater tank. You can set up a freshwater tank 20 gallons and be ready for fish in no time for under $100. The sand, rock, saltwater, and chemicals alone are gonna cost you and upwards of $50-100 easy depending on the size of the tank. 29 gallon tank (2 20lb bags of live sand $40-60. Rock 20lbs at $3.99-5.99lb just off the top of my head whether dead or live rock. Filtration and lighting all depends on the size of the tank and what you plan to house in it. All in all $300-500 on a 29 gallon fully filled with everything you need. This would be a regular glass tank with a good hang on the back filter, led strip lighting, sand, rock, water, possibly a skimmer, and then livestock will run you around $10-30 average small sized fish. Clownfish are usually no more than $15 so $30 for two, a royal gramma dottyback $20, a six line wrasse $20, algae blenny $20, clean up crew $30-50. Yeah. Just giving you guys an idea off the top of my head. In the comments below I know there will be disagreements.
Devotion: Last but not least this is the most critical one. A good chunk of hobbyists quit within the first year just because they don't want to keep failing. We are impatient and I understand we want to fill up our tanks with beautiful animals but there is a whole process in which you should undergo and see step by step how it's all laid out, see how others have done it, and find your own approach. What works for others may not work for you. Especially in this hobby. A lot of people start out failing saying I got fish but they all died because they didn't wait for the nitrogen cycle to finish, people fight hair algae due to high nitrates, overfeeding, not doing enough water changes. If you are serious about coming in this hobby talk to anyone you know who's in it and get their two cents, ask them to help you, sometimes pet stores aren't the best place to go because they might just want to sell you a tank, the employees may not even have ever owned a saltwater tank and you end up talking to the wrong person and failing and spending all your money only to end up wanting to leave by the time the holidays come around. Talk to hobbyists and learn as much as you can. Below I'll post some playslists of youtubers that I recommend watching the videos and getting an insight on how you want to do it and how to approach it smart and with patience.
For setting up a tank, what needs to be gotten, what you may need in the future:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLauu_E-gQtvKCxfBvBuv94XiKUG14pnLM
For tips and tricks and something to think about: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLauu_E-gQtvJFD0WktbO0uZrgwzsXrHix
Credibility goes to:
Tidal Gardens Inc.
Mr. Saltwater Tank TV
Coralfish12g
Bulkreefsupplycom
Melevsreef
Marine Depot Aquarium supplies
Thanks for reading this. Now to hear the comments [emoji848]
