Marine Or Freshwater Tropical

[TheQuo16]

Hello this will be my 2nd topic starter.

Long story short. ....I have a juwel rio 210 aqurium I used to keep freshwater tropical in. I wasnt very clued up on it and had fish die. Eventually moved house and the aqurium sat empty in garage for last 10 years or so. I didnt know about cycles then.

I have researched tropical freshwater and best way to fishless cycle and looking at mbuna cichlids but now also looking and tempted by marine.

Is marine that difficult to keep? What equipment is the best for my size tank ie brands and sizes.

I don't quite quite understand the whole process of live rock and filtration clearly. I get that live rock is a type of filter used along with the internal filter of the rio210 tank?

I like clownfish and tangs and lionfish. Know a lot about lionfish but is that really suitable for a novice?

ALso stocking the aqurium what sizes and how many fish can I put in it?

Understand this is a lot of questions and I am doing my own research. Just looking for others points of views.

SHould I abandon marine and just stick with the idea of cichlids.

Aim to get whatever up and running in next few months. Just want to take my time to get everything set up and researched fully first.

THanks

Ian

 

[Lunar Jetman]

I had a similar conversation with a fellow poster on here about Marine. He didn't think it was that complicated but more expensive to keep Marines. I have often wanted to go Marine but get put off by the expense required.

I am fairly interested in Marines but I've stayed away from them due to the cost. That and I like planted tanks which you can't have with Marines.

If I were you I'd get into Freshwater Tropicals first, get used to keeping fish again and then maybe switch to Marine at a later date.


I'm also sure there are a few "Salties" on the forum that will be able to give you a better idea what it takes to keep Marines and answer your questions to help you make a more informed decision.

 

[techen]

The tank size is a very good tank size to start marine. First thing to be aware of is to have a lot of funding if you want to go marine as Lunar said it's not cheap in the slightest.
 
I'd be looking at drilling or getting someone to drill the tank for you so you can set up a sump system, I can tell you about that as well if you are interested.
 
Live rock breaks down ammonia etc just like bacteria in a filter only it does not make nitrate where filters for FW do. You do not want nitrates really at all in a marine so its best to avoid using filters and instead having a good amount of live rock and a few powerheads.
 
You'd need a skimmer, heater, water pump, PVC, Powerheads, Good lighting if you want corals, Salt, testing kits etc.
 
Its a fair bit of gear to start with.
 
Tangs are more suited for 120gal tanks and so if I were you there's tons of fish that could go into a good sized tank like that you just need to suggest what you like the looks of.

 

[TheQuo16]

Awesome advice thanks.

Really don't know anything about powerheads or sumps. What do you mean by drilling the tank? Also what is a PVC?

Skimmer is the device that takes the proteins out water right? What would thr water pump do? Just Just circulate the water?

 

[techen]

Haha, Lots of questions then. You will have to research a lot into marine before taking it on.
 
If you google powerheads you'll see what they are, There just big underwater fans that push the water around.
 
A sump goes under your display tank being the 200L one, After drilling a few holes in the tank and adding PVC( Which is just white tubing). The tubes come down from the 200L and into the sump, The sump holds all your gear like the heater, skimmer and the water pump pushes the water back up into your main tank.
 
The skimmer removes all the nasty stuff like fish poo, protein etc. It's key for keeping a healthy marine tank.

 

[TheQuo16]

Ah ok excellent. Thats what I was thinking. Been doing lots of research on live rock at moment and also about water type. Aberdeen area has soft water but no idea about the ph etc.

ALso read you can have sumps and skimmers that hang at back of tank. I guess thats for a much smaller tank then.

The holes in the tank would be drilled near the bottom? Not too keen on the idea of drilling a hole or two into the glass. That a big problem?

Sorry for all the questions. Just looking for a basic idea. I plan to research so much more ontop of info I get here. Like I say it will prob be another 6 months maybe a year before I actually get set up. Want to get everything right and the best equipment set up.

 

[techen]

Haha, I stay in blairgowrie. Between perth and dundee. Only two hours or so away
 
Please be warned, I highly recommend you do not use tap water for marine. We in the hobby use something called RO water. Now, You can buy RO units but there quite pricey and some LFS still RO water to you for fairly cheap. You'll also have to buy salt and mix it in the RO water.
 
Nano tanks are more suited for hang on sumps. Due to the size of that tank you are better off with a sump under the stand and a skimmer that sits in it.
 
If you aren't keen in getting holes drilled there's a lot of people out there that will happily do it for you and even stores that will do it for you.

 

[TheQuo16]

Ok cool so your not far down the road ha ha

Unit around 100 quid and takes the stuff out of the tap water right? Or is it connected to the tank?

Thats prob going to be my last question til I read up on alot more.

 

[techen]

Yea they are around 100 quid, Plugs into your taps and runs off the pressure from the taps.

 

[stanleo]

I have both and I must say that I love my freshwater tank a lot more than my saltwater. Honestly the maintenance is not all that different but the algae is harder to control in SW and it is a lot more expensive. I like freshwater better cause I like the look of the plants more and they are easier than coral to keep healthy. Plus now in FW I think the fish are just as interesting and pretty as the saltwater and with the verieties of shrimps out there you can have just as much diversity in the FW as in the SW. But this is all my opinion. Except the cost.

 

[DrRob]

All told, you're looking at around £1000 set up for a reef tank that size if you're going to do it properly. Then there is the ongoing investment of time, checks, salt, and expensive stock that you get addicted to.
 
Treat it like a high tech planted set up with similar maintenance requirements and a higher price tag and you have a reef. Fish only is cheaper but I've not seen many go that way as the reef is so tempting once you've got the bulk of the kit.
 
I have a 255 litre tank that I've been pricing up to go marine on, but have to decide where the current stock will end up before I take any plunges.

 

[techen]

Love my marine

 

[xXLeafeonXx]

I use tap water with no problems...

 

[Donya]

I use tap water with no problems...

 
Then you have very good quality tap water and/or a tank that isn't sensitive enough for it to cause problems. Tap is used by many people and causes disasters for many others. In my current location, I also used to be an avid tap water user for a few years and then my water quality slowly declined and caused problems in my tanks as a result. There is no such thing as generic tap water, and in some areas it's so loaded with things like nitrate and metals that it's not even ok to drink all the time (I have lived in such places in the past - even caused problems for my fw systems). The huge variation in tap quality and the problems that can come from even small levels of nutrients and carbonates being added with every WC and top-up are the reason that most of the marine community avoids tap water and recommends that newcomers to the hobby do the same.

 

[xXLeafeonXx]

I use it with prime.But if I do have algae problems I will switch over to RO water.