Saltwater aquarium

blaise · Oct 21, 2025

Hello everybody my name is Blaise im 14 years old and am almost done cycling my 40 gallon breeder. Im new to saltwater but have been doing freshwater most of my life, and was just wondering if you guys had any tips/trick. Also i want some fish recommendations i know i want either one or a pair of maroon clowns and a puffer, and for my tank i have a Tidal110 hob filter because i just didn't want to spend the money on a sump, and thank you for your input.

Mr. Mojo Rising · Oct 21, 2025

It looks great but IMO it would benefit from more rock, thats not much rock IMO. Also would need a pair of powerheads in that tank, flow is super important in saltwater tanks, and surface agitation is also super important. Saltwater doesn't hold oxygen as well as freshwater so does, so surface agitation helps oxygenate the water, when you get your powerheads, point them up towards the surface to get heavy ripples going across the surface.

A sump is not needed, but keep in mind a hob filter doesn't export nutrients or organics, so keep up regular water changes. Puffers are messy eaters and cause a lot of waste in the water. Down the road the tank might benefit from a protein skimmer, this helps export organics from the system.

This is a good article for beginners. Good luck

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is nowhere near simple. This task is going to take patience, a...

www.reef2reef.com

blaise · Oct 21, 2025

Mr. Mojo Rising said:
It looks great but IMO it would benefit from more rock, thats not much rock IMO. Also would need a pair of powerheads in that tank, flow is super important in saltwater tanks, and surface agitation is also super important. Saltwater doesn't hold oxygen as well as freshwater so does, so surface agitation helps oxygenate the water, when you get your powerheads, point them up towards the surface to get heavy ripples going across the surface.

A sump is not needed, but keep in mind a hob filter doesn't export nutrients or organics, so keep up regular water changes. Puffers are messy eaters and cause a lot of waste in the water. Down the road the tank might benefit from a protein skimmer, this helps export organics from the system.

This is a good article for beginners. Good luck

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium

The Supreme Guide To Setting Up A Saltwater Reef Aquarium Introduction The marine environment is one of the most complex systems on the planet. The aquarium you are about to set up is only a tiny sliver of the vast ocean, but it is nowhere near simple. This task is going to take patience, a...

www.reef2reef.com

Thank you for your input i have a power head that i haven't put in the tank yet, but how do i tell how much flow is to much because the hob filter looks like it gives the tank alot of flow but i also have no idea what im doing so i may not be right

Mr. Mojo Rising · Oct 21, 2025

blaise said:
Thank you for your input i have a power head that i haven't put in the tank yet, but how do i tell how much flow is to much because the hob filter looks like it gives the tank alot of flow but i also have no idea what im doing so i may not be right

freshwater folks tend to underestimate how much flow is used in a saltwater tank. I have also have a 40 breeder, I have the return flow plus 2 gyres. Flow means pushing water from one side of the tank and back over to the other, this can't be accomplished with a hob filter. Low flow means that detritus will settle and harbour bad bacteria which will grow algae. Algae is not an issue in freshwater tanks but its a major issue in saltwater and prevention is the best method, algae's loves low flow. As long as sand is not blowing around, its not too much flow.