First saltwater tank

[Verdict]

Hello!

Late last year we moved into a bigger home with my partner & kiddo and have ever since been thinking about a saltwater tank in our living room. Earlier this week I brought up the idea to my S/O and she loves it!

Now, I’m relatively young and have only really had 2 freshwater tanks in my entire life and from what I can remember… it wasn’t exactly a “fruitful” experience. However! I am now more than ever motivated and disciplined that I can achieve a nice looking saltwater tank.

BUT! (There’s always a but) I am a bit overwhelmed though to say the least. I’m torn between saving a couple bucks and going used tank (waterbox, Red Sea, etc etc) or going all out and purchasing brand new. I’m also unsure whether to pull the trigger on an AIO or sump tank. I’ve been doing crazy amounts of research on the differences and everybody points to an AIO for beginners. But, on the flip side they also rebuttal their own words by saying sump tanks allow for more DIY/upgradable equipment down the line. And that’s more or less where im a tad bit confused. I’m a tinkerer at heart but I also don’t want to nuke my tank because I was too ignorant to notice something wrong due to too much equipment.

For a clearer picture, I mostly want more corals & anemones than fish. Something with fast flow maybe? Movement looks so nice and relaxing to me in saltwater tanks. I’m not dead set on a tank size yet but definitely want something at least 30g+ so we could be able to fill up the living room space a tad bit. We wouldn’t mind a cube tank but lagoon-type style would be preferred.

I’d also like to add that this is NOT my forever home, my partner is finishing her masters in 2~3 years time and I’ll be reaching close to the top end of my salary within that time as well. So a new home within 2-4 years is quite expected. Not sure if that means much but sounds to me like I shouldn’t go bat crap crazy either and do a 200g+ tank just to start fresh in a new home half a decade from now.

I’d truly appreciate your guys’ thoughts and concerns. Thank you!

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

You are going to get a whole range of options for tanks to choose from. Personally, with this being your first tank, I would get something around the 40-50g mark. These are perfect sizes for beginners, and allow you to have a good variety of fish and coral.

Onto the question of Used or New. When it comes to tanks, I prefer buying new over used. You can get equipment that is used, but always make sure you know the condition it is in and how long it has been in use.

AIO or Sump. I like AIO's because they have everything you need, and it's a good way for new people to get into the hobby without being overwhelmed. They usually have everything you need, and you can progressively upgrade the equipment on it if you want to.

 

[Waters]

Welcome! An AIO is just a tank with a built in sump. It removes some of the stuff that some people struggle with like plumbing and choosing equipment, which is why it is often recommended to beginners. Most people that do start with an AIO normally end up upgrading at some point as they become more comfortable with tanks and how everything works. I would always recommend sumps over AIOs just because you can hide all equipment in a sump (skimmer, heaters, pumps, etc.) much easier than you can in a smaller AIO sump compartment. You also normally get inferior equipment with the AIOs (to reduce cost). Taking down a system with a sump isn't much more work than taking down an AIO so I wouldn't worry about that. You really can't go wrong either way.

 

[kitti-fish]

As a relatively young reefer who isn’t in their forever home (we own but it’s not my dream home) I want to say try a secondhand tank. You’d be surprised what people are getting rid off. Try to buy a reputable brand if going secondhand and nothing more than a year if possible. I’ve already told my husband that I’m hoping my tank last 10 years because I want to move out of our house by then. Good luck it’s gonna be a fun learning curve!

 

[get-salty]

Howdy.

 

[Verdict]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

You are going to get a whole range of options for tanks to choose from. Personally, with this being your first tank, I would get something around the 40-50g mark. These are perfect sizes for beginners, and allow you to have a good variety of fish and coral.

Onto the question of Used or New. When it comes to tanks, I prefer buying new over used. You can get equipment that is used, but always make sure you know the condition it is in and how long it has been in use.

AIO or Sump. I like AIO's because they have everything you need, and it's a good way for new people to get into the hobby without being overwhelmed. They usually have everything you need, and you can progressively upgrade the equipment on it if you want to.

Thank you for the warm welcome! I still haven't fully decided on whether or not to go AIO or not. I have found some very nice deals on FB Marketplace and have 1-2 lined up to see them this weekend (hopefully I'm able to find something suitable). The two that I've found are 88g and 110g and are both coming with tank, stands & a heap of decent of equipment for a relatively decent price - WAYYY under retail.

Also visited my local fish store and chatted up with the store manager who who is a super chill and knowledgeable guy so definitely going to continue going there from here on out. Oh! and I got my hands on 3 bags of caribesea fiji pink sand. Even if I have a surplus I'd rather have some extra then have to bust out a trip mid tank setup. On that note, I live in Florida so was completely unaware that I could run natural sea water in my to-be tanks.

Welcome! An AIO is just a tank with a built in sump. It removes some of the stuff that some people struggle with like plumbing and choosing equipment, which is why it is often recommended to beginners. Most people that do start with an AIO normally end up upgrading at some point as they become more comfortable with tanks and how everything works. I would always recommend sumps over AIOs just because you can hide all equipment in a sump (skimmer, heaters, pumps, etc.) much easier than you can in a smaller AIO sump compartment. You also normally get inferior equipment with the AIOs (to reduce cost). Taking down a system with a sump isn't much more work than taking down an AIO so I wouldn't worry about that. You really can't go wrong either way.

Hey! appreciate the welcome. So as of today I'm leaning more towards a sump pump tank, the equipment seems a bit more daunting considering the additional plumbing BUT! that's no threat to me yet... LOL. The used tanks I've found are both sumps so... lets see what happens! Thanks for the insight btw.

As a relatively young reefer who isn’t in their forever home (we own but it’s not my dream home) I want to say try a secondhand tank. You’d be surprised what people are getting rid off. Try to buy a reputable brand if going secondhand and nothing more than a year if possible. I’ve already told my husband that I’m hoping my tank last 10 years because I want to move out of our house by then. Good luck it’s gonna be a fun learning curve!

Hello, that definitely resonated with me quite a bit. I am more likely than not going with a used tank over buying new for the first experimental learning tank. However, in the future if I decide to stick with the hobby I'll buy a proper brand new tank in whatever new home we go to. Also, yeah! there are some very niceeee deals on my local FB marketplace for namebrand tanks (waterbox, IM, red sea, UNS) just trying to find what is suitable for my "start up budget".

Howdy.

How do you do sir!?

 

[PharmrJohn]

Concerning used equipment, one can get some pretty good deals out there and you'd do well in many cases. However, I'd purchase a new tank. And get a good one. No RedSea. Take a look at Glass Cages for quality (as but one example). My reasoning with a new tank is based on my own experience with a used tank and the subsequent leak that sprouted 6 months down the line. I failed to adequately check out the seams when I bought it.