Starting a saltwater tank...

[rockstarta78]

So I have been dealing with freshwater aquariums for a while and they aren’t satisfying me lately. I am sure now that I want to start a saltwater tank. But first I have a few questions. (I have been doing endless research and can’t find these anywhere)
1 - at my home we have well water. Could that be used in the tank or do I still need an RODI unit? I use the well water for my fresh water tanks but I am aware saltwater is more sensitive.
2 - I really want a tank with corals. Do you think I should start with that and add fish after or vice versa?
3 - is 30g a good starting point?
4 - I’ve watched videos on this one and read articles but it still confuses me, what lights do I need to have for the tank?
I think that’s it – if fish related questions are not allowed on this site please let me know. Thanks!

1 - at my home we have well water. Could that be used in the tank or do I still need an RODI unit? I use the well water for my fresh water tanks but I am aware saltwater is more sensitive. I am biased to RODI. So I would say RODI is the way to go, plus you are planning on keeping corals. So it will just be beneficial down the road. Again, I am biased towards RODI.
2 - I really want a tank with corals. Do you think I should start with that and add fish after or vice versa? It does not really matter. Personally I'd start with Fish, let the tank go through it's uglies and then add corals. Plus you can figure out your parameters and dial them in the way you like.
3 - is 30g a good starting point? Sure it is. Only challenge with small water volume is, changes happen fast. If you stay on top of maintenance you'll be fine. I'd highly recommend an ATO.
4 - I’ve watched videos on this one and read articles but it still confuses me, what lights do I need to have for the tank? Can I confuse you even more? You can chose from MH to T5 to LED. Take your pick. LOL. Research lights, but go for something that's going to grow coral. For my next build I am thinking T5 + LED. Currently I am using all LED. But LEDs can be pricey.

 

[Shanlee]

I want to thank everyone for all of y’all’s feedback!!! I know it has been a little while but I found a Black Friday sale with a 40gal bow front and stand ($399) for $120!!! So I jumped in on it it’s in the spare room now. Hubby gave me the OK to make this one a saltwater experiment. Wish me luck. Also it came with LED’s and a 45 gal filter (200 gals per hour I think?) not sure if I needed to replace the light or filter or not. It says it can be used for saltwater too but feedback would be appreciated...

 

[Crabs McJones]

Welcome to R2R!!

 

[iemsparticus]

I want to thank everyone for all of y’all’s feedback!!! I know it has been a little while but I found a Black Friday sale with a 40gal bow front and stand ($399) for $120!!! So I jumped in on it it’s in the spare room now. Hubby gave me the OK to make this one a saltwater experiment. Wish me luck. Also it came with LED’s and a 45 gal filter (200 gals per hour I think?) not sure if I needed to replace the light or filter or not. It says it can be used for saltwater too but feedback would be appreciated...

They CAN be used for saltwater. That doesn’t mean it’s ideal, or that it will work if there are Corals involved... that’s the main issue.

The filter it came with will process your tank’s water 5 times every hour... which is certainly doable. You may struggle to get your water parameters to where you need them to support Corals, but that depends. What kind of Corals do you want? Softies, LPS, SPS, mixed? Also, are you planning to get a slimmer? I am assuming that you were not planning to use a sump, so you would need a HOB Skimmer if you were going to use one.

As far as the light, do you have any information on it? Fish don’t care what light you use, but corals depend on it. Any information on it would be very helpful... my assumption is that it will not cut it for Corals, but that’s only an assumption based on having no information on the light itself.

Can’t wait to see the build thread!

 

[Shanlee]

They CAN be used for saltwater. That doesn’t mean it’s ideal, or that it will work if there are Corals involved... that’s the main issue.

The filter it came with will process your tank’s water 5 times every hour... which is certainly doable. You may struggle to get your water parameters to where you need them to support Corals, but that depends. What kind of Corals do you want? Softies, LPS, SPS, mixed? Also, are you planning to get a slimmer? I am assuming that you were not planning to use a sump, so you would need a HOB Skimmer if you were going to use one.

As far as the light, do you have any information on it? Fish don’t care what light you use, but corals depend on it. Any information on it would be very helpful... my assumption is that it will not cut it for Corals, but that’s only an assumption based on having no information on the light itself.

Can’t wait to see the build thread!

I actually am interested in using a sump, but don’t know much about them. Could you explain to me a little about how a sump works & what I would need for it? Also some information with skimmers?

 

[Crabs McJones]

I actually am interested in using a sump, but don’t know much about them. Could you explain to me a little about how a sump works & what I would need for it?

I'll throw my 2 cents in there. A sump is basically a second tank below your main tank that houses all your filtration and other equipment. You can make your own or purchase a pre-built one. You can get either a hang on back overflow or drill your tank for the water to make its way down to the sump. Go through some sort of mechanical filtration (filter socks or filter pads) then through your equipment (skimmers, reactors, ect...) possibly a refugium. and then your return pump back up into the display tank.

 

[Shanlee]

I'll throw my 2 cents in there. A sump is basically a second tank below your main tank that houses all your filtration and other equipment. You can make your own or purchase a pre-built one. You can get either a hang on back overflow or drill your tank for the water to make its way down to the sump. Go through some sort of mechanical filtration (filter socks or filter pads) then through your equipment (skimmers, reactors, ect...) possibly a refugium. and then your return pump back up into the display tank.

Oh!!! I DEFINITELY don’t want a hole drilled in my tank, lol.
Would the hang on back sump be harder to do?

 

[iemsparticus]

Oh!!! I DEFINITELY don’t want a hole drilled in my tank, lol.
Would the hang on back sump be harder to do?

A hang on the back over flow is, to some, less visually appealing, as you have something hanging on the back of your tank. The other issue with them is that they can cause flooding if the syphon is interrupted. Drilled tanks are safer and, arguably, look better. But people use hang on the back overflows and they do work.

The hang on the back overflow simply syphon water from your display tank into an overflow box on the back of your tank, and from there the water is fed to your sump under the tank. A return pump would then be used, just like if you had a drilled tank, to pump water back up from your sump to your display.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Oh!!! I DEFINITELY don’t want a hole drilled in my tank, lol.
Would the hang on back sump be harder to do?

Well its a hang on back overflow. Its basically a continuous siphon overflow that carries your water down to the sump, and then the water goes through your sump, then a return pump back up into your tank.

 

[Shanlee]

Well its a hang on back overflow. Its basically a continuous siphon overflow that carries your water down to the sump, and then the water goes through your sump, then a return pump back up into your tank.

Is a protein skimmer the same thing? Like could I have a successful tank with a hang on filter & skimmer?

 

[Crabs McJones]

Is a protein skimmer the same thing? Like could I have a successful tank with a hang on filter & skimmer?

Depended on the size of the tank and how many fish you have and feeding schedule, you don't need a skimmer if you do regular water changes (on smaller tanks), however in my own personal opinion with a skimmer is better. You can do both a hang on back skimmer and a hang on back filter if you don't want to go the sump route.

 

[40B Knasty]

Guess I will throw my 2¢ in since this works for me. I use a FLUVAL C4 HOB (w/ sponge, Purigen, Marine Pure block cut to size to fit in the basket, & the ceramics in wet dry that comes w/ the C4), Reef Octopus BH1000 HOB, and Cheato Reactor HOB. These were all on my 40B and now on a 65g.
(HOB=Hang Off the Back)
All I do to clean is rinse the sponge out every 3 days. Clean collection cup every 2 days for the protein skimmer. Super low maintenance. Those 2 things literally are 2 minutes to do each and I don't have to go digging around under the stand. Yes the extra water volume is nice and hiding equipment, but I painted the back of the tank black. Which hides it all.

 

[carlson]

Is a protein skimmer the same thing? Like could I have a successful tank with a hang on filter & skimmer?

If you stay in in the saltwater hobby long term your going to find out you want a sump for many obvious reason. It will als be much easier and better looking than having hob equipment, and you can put your heater, ATO and other things in it. As for lights, there's no certain type you need to have to grow corals, you can grow corals with many different type of lights. This just depends on your budget really.

 

[iemsparticus]

Guess I will throw my 2¢ in since this works for me. I use a FLUVAL C4 HOB (w/ sponge, Purigen, Marine Pure block cut to size to fit in the basket, & the ceramics in wet dry that comes w/ the C4), Reef Octopus BH1000 HOB, and Cheato Reactor HOB. These were all on my 40B and now on a 65g.
(HOB=Hang Off the Back)
All I do to clean is rinse the sponge out every 3 days. Clean collection cup every 2 days for the protein skimmer. Super low maintenance. Those 2 things literally are 2 minutes to do each and I don't have to go digging around under the stand. Yes the extra water volume is nice and hiding equipment, but I painted the back of the tank black. Which hides it all.

This sounds like great advice for going with HOB filtration as opposed to a sump... and I believe I’m correct that @40B Knasty keeps Corals thriving with his setup.

This is a great place to point out that, whenever we say “it doesn’t look as good,” that’s always subjective. What matters is what looks good to YOU, balanced with what works for you in keeping your desired livestock thriving. There are so many ways of doing things, and so many styles of reefing... I think half the fun is finding your own style!!

If HOB is more your style, I would definitely look at builds with people using that equipment, and pick people’s brains that keep successful tanks that way, like 40B.

 

[40B Knasty]

This sounds like great advice for going with HOB filtration as opposed to a sump... and I believe I’m correct that @40B Knasty keeps Corals thriving with his setup.

This is a great place to point out that, whenever we say “it doesn’t look as good,” that’s always subjective. What matters is what looks good to YOU, balanced with what works for you in keeping your desired livestock thriving. There are so many ways of doing things, and so many styles of reefing... I think half the fun is finding your own style!!

If HOB is more your style, I would definitely look at builds with people using that equipment, and pick people’s brains that keep successful tanks that way, like 40B.

Agreed there are many different styles. What you want to do IMO from experience is have what your tank needs. Flow that works best for your coral type, lights that work from the start, something to control Phosphates(cheato reactor), something to hold a lot of good bacteria(marine pure & 1lb of live rock per gallon), protein skimmer(to pull the shedding of slime coats, food, algae, pee, & poop out) so your good bacteria and clean up what is settled, don't be lazy and clean out your sponge/filter floss/filter socks that collect, don't over stock, get a stable pH at 8.2-8.4, do every little bit of research that is out there for better results of success for pairing inverts corals and fish, and most importantly find the right salt and DO WATER CHANGES to replenish what your corals use up and also to help assist your tank with the export of nutrients. When you find that balance it is a great thing!
I will say I wish I knew what I know now at the beginning. With that being said. Have fun learning through your ups and down and enjoy going out meeting new people and sharing experiences with LFS, frag shows, and forums. You will love it when you get that cherry for your tank. Whether it be a fish, coral, or invert. My $120 gold torch is mine. Which is splitting to another head in just under a month. I don't care if it is worth $240 soon. It is my cherry on top.
First day home and the 2nd pic is now