I was at the pet store and saw some cool ass saltwater fish today...now I want a fish tank....anyone have a saltwater tank? Is it hard to maintain? How much $$ are we talking?
-Cy
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I was at the pet store and saw some cool ass saltwater fish today...now I want a fish tank....anyone have a saltwater tank? Is it hard to maintain? How much $$ are we talking?
-Cy
My stepdad used to have one, so I'm not sure about costs, but I can tell you it's a bit of work to maintain. They are definitely awesome to look at...I loved having it. Just hated changing water, etc every so often...
salt water tanks are badass. i cant give you an exact price but they are expensive. the fish get expensive too, depending on the type. and the maintenece is a bitch, but chicks dig em!
true...the fish can be expensive unless you go down to Mexico and get them yourself :dg:Quote:
Originally Posted by symatech
I have a huge one out back in the Gulf of Mexico
those are definitely the best...damm i miss scuba diving!Quote:
Originally Posted by Da Bull
I have had one for about 4 years now. I started out with fresh water and then moved up. It was pretty expensive to get the entire thing started. The fish are pricey and most stores don't have a 30day guarantee on the fish like they do with fresh water. The live rock (fiji rock)can be expensive as well. For example up here in Canada you can pay up to $7.99lb. And don't kid yourself a rock about 5" X 5" can weight 3-5 pounds depending on how dense it is.
Things are a little more fragile but as long as you do your regular water changes and make sure your salt is at the right level you will be fine.
All in all you can't compare a fresh water to salt.
I have one........its beautiful....but its such a hassle.....you have to clean out every month......and that gets pretty expensive.....about 150 a month
Tried that once..to much work!
I have been given a corner aquarium, its 45 gallon....I have been reading up on the web about how to get it started....anyone know of good websites, books for beginners....I heard it takes like a month to cycle the tank to get it ready...I think its gonna be a cool challenge.....what are some cool fish to get?
If you got a tank, post some pics...mass and shredz--I know you got camera's--dont be shy....thanks for the replies.
-Cy
I dont have to many fish....Just a few sharks....they keep eating everything else.... :dg:Quote:
Originally Posted by IronCy
sharks? eat fish? who knew?Quote:
Originally Posted by mass junkie
go figure. :lol:
^^^lol, i know......quit bull****tin mass and post a pic....btw, have fun moving that big ass thing to your new place.
-Cy
I've had an aquarium for over 10 years now. Started with fresh water like most people. go figure!
I found salt water much easier to care for then fresh water, cause the salt stops some bacteria from developing.
BUT, Like most things I do, my filter system is major overkill, my aquarium is 50 gallons. and my filter system is designed for 500+ gallons. I love the filter system, I haven't changed the water or cleaned the aquarium in over 4 years. but I still do clean the filter every few months.
Also, if you want even less maintance, buy one of those under gardening shrimp (forgot what their called) they take care of planets in the aquarium by doing AMAZING things, I've seen some move plants around (actually pick it out of the rock and move it)
It ain't cheap, but their beautiful scenes. here's some prices I remember (in Canadian funds)
filter: $600
salt: $50
Aquarium: $200 (bought at bad time, their cheaper now)
fish: $15 to $ 200
gravel: $5 lb.
I had a 150g reef aquarium for about 4 yrs till i got rid of it this last year. It was a lot of work but it really was worth it. Make sure you have some extra flow laying around cause its not cheap... after a couple years and your tank is established its a lot less work. Id love to answer any of the questions u might have so shoot me a PM.
My best advice since it seems that youve never had even a regular aquarium. Get some gravel, a fliter, some water detox, and some FRESH WATER FISH.
You need to learn how to take care of a fresh aquarium before you dive into a salt or else you will be killing your salt water fish on a daily basis.
There are some pretty cool looking fresh water fish to keep you happy.
Just little tips: When you get the fish, keep em in the bags and place the bags in the aquarium water. This will bring the fishs bag water temp to the temp of the aquarium water at a gradual pace instead of just placing the fish in the aquarium. The temp difference could kill them.
Some fish need gill treatment and water detoxifiers cause regular tap water has a lot of toxants that will kill the fish right away.
Some fish like different temps than others. You need to make sure you have the same types of fish.
Make sure you have algea eaters
Just a bunch of little crap that you need to learn.
Best of luck.
Just for decorations, you could spend 500 dollars or more on salt water.
I have had freshwater tanks before, nothing as big as a 45g (which is still a small tank), but I have had the experience....believe me, for the money this **** costs, Im not going to jump in head first, this will be a long process....any websites you guys recommend?
any cool fish to get once the tank is ready?
-Cy
There is a salt water fish Vboard out there somewhere. I have a buddy who goes there to ask questions. I will try to dig up the name.
what exactly a reef tank, is it just a tank with live rock and corals?
-Cy
A reef tank is much more complex then just your regular saltwater aquarium. Invertebrates are much more sensitive to water quality than fish. Also a reef aquarium is far more expensive due to the amounts of live rock you need to help with the biological filtration of the water. It really is cool how everything takes care of itself after you have it set up for a couple years. When i get out of college Im deff going to have another one.
Been a hobby of mine for over 10 years... Have 2 tanks right now... PM me if you have any questions...