Are Reef Tanks For Newbies?

[jmeeter]

Been a while since I've had a fish tank, but would love to have a go with a marine/reef tank. Are these difficult to setup/maintain?

I am quite of the initial cost of setting one up, but I just want to know if they are easier/harder to maintain.

 

[n3ont3tra]

I have a 29gallon planted FW and a 37 gallon reef and the reef is easier to maintain. I don't have a lot of corals, though. But it's really simple, and not a lot of work. The initial cost is more, but I get more enjoyment out of my saltwater than I do my freshwater. Besides, you don't have you have a reef. You could have a fish only, or a fishonly with live rock.

For more info, try asking in the Marine section down near the bottom of the forum index.

 

[lil.guppy]

Yea if your a newbie research as much as possible and then maybe get one of those smaller already set up ones. I hear they are a newbie easy.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

just to be absolutley clear, if you want a reef tank, i.e. saltwater with corals then yes it is more difficult that keeping a tropical tank.

long term maintenance is generally a little easier because people set them up more as an eco-system than a tropical tank. however to do this you do need a fair amount of scientific knowledge of the various aspects of water chemistry and a big open wallet!

I don't mean to discourage you, i find keeping saltwater tanks rewarding and enjoyable and it's perfectly possible for a beginner to fishkeeping to keep one. however you should be prepared for a lot of research before hand and a lot of expense.

as others have said though it may be appropriate to start with a fish only set up and then work up to adding corals later.

there's a saltwater section of the forum here, so go check it out for a load of info

 

[STD]

Not to difficult but work out a lot more expensive

Go for the biggest tank you can

A big marine tank is easier to maintain than a small one

 

[xxBarneyxx]

Not much more difficult then a FW tank once you know what you are doing (more work involved and more sensitive though) it is a hell of a lot more expensive though and I wouldn't recommend it unless you do a fair amount of research first. You need to understand the water chemistry which is a bit more complicated then FW and there is a lot more research involved when stocking it.

I spent about 8 months researching marine tanks before I started. I have had mine running for about 9 months now and while it is not as complicated as I thought it was going to be it does reuqire more thought and care then a common FW setup.

It is worth it though and a fish only with live rock is really not much different to a normal FW setup (its only when you add corals that it can get complicated).

A bigger tank is better and a smaller tank does not mean it will be cheaper (My marine nano to date has cost about £600-700 so far and it is only about 23g in total).

 

[andy_j]

As mentioned, do your homework. Read lots of books and subscribe to lots of reef forums. There may even be a local "reefy get together" in your area.

http/www.ultimatereef.net/forums/ is a good, if not a bit daunting site to try.....there's a good beginners section.

Ask lots of questions....no matter how stupid the questions seem....the only stupid question is the one you don't ask !!! Visit different lfs and be a right pain in the bum to them....well maybe not that much but ask them questions about setting up, stocking and maintaining a reef.

You will get a host of conflicting advice and it will probably be your descision to pick through the bones. Generally, none of them are right, none of them are wrong.

Good luck, it's a fascinating, all be it expensive hobby

Andy