Freshwater & Saltwater Hobbyists

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TigerDigm

New member
Hello all. New to the site (obviously) and am currently reading up on starting my first marine tank. I have 10+ years experience with freshwater, and have been wanting to get into marine for a while now. Question I wanted to toss up for discussion is this:

I'm sure lots of marine hobbyists have great experience in the freshwater hobby. Understandably, the marine hobby is more precise and requires more attention to detail. How is this adjustment for you? I guess what I am getting at is running a freshwater and a marine tank at the same time, do you find you neglect your freshwater? By neglecting I mean getting wrapped up in the marine aquarium and then treating your freshwater like a bastard stepchild (keeping it in a dark room, not showing it off any more to guests, not talking to your freshwater fish buddies every day).

Thanks for the input.
 
[welcome]

I left my FW ways far behind. My stepson has a 29g FW in his room which I'll take care of for him if he's gone somewhere for awhile or whatever. But I'll sit and look at it....and I'm just completely uninspired there. I don't know that I'd be able to go back. Maybe if I turned my big 120g into a FW tank and had huge schools of tetras swimming around or something. I dunno. Even when I had my FW tanks, though, I would often decor them to look somewhat like SW tanks.
 
I left my FW with the ex and child when I left last year.... but took my marine tank. Its completely different, and once you take that elevated step to marine tank, FW tanks are so bland and boring in comparison (of course, some people have amazing FW tanks, so not meaning to insult those people)
 
I took my 55G Cichlid tank down around the time I got my 10 gallon SW and then 14 gal Biocube SW with every intention of putting it back up. I can't see myself going back to FW now. I have to agree with Shooter7, it's just not the same.
 
I went straight to saltwater. My brother has freshwater and it just doesn't interest me nearly as much as my reef does.
 
I am laughing at the "salt-ists"... :)

If you want more of a challenge in your FW tank try live plants.

Personally I think each type has its rewards.

The saltwater has much more diversity of the animals.

The freshwater has simplicity, low cost, ability to grow a diverse array of live plants, and ease of maintenance.
 
I'd like to add another vote for the FW in addition to SW aquaria; my 225 Amazon (heavily planted home to a pair of Red Discus and lots of spawning tetra of wide varieties) requires attention on a level par with my 180 Reef. I can't really see myself neglecting either of the big tanks (nor their smaller handful of siblings), and find a great deal of enjoyment working with all of them. I enjoy seeing the Tiger Lotus bloom in the fish room as well the sparkles on the giant clam mantles.

Cheers,
Ray
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11668012#post11668012 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by McTeague
I am laughing at the "salt-ists"... :)

If you want more of a challenge in your FW tank try live plants.

Personally I think each type has its rewards.

The saltwater has much more diversity of the animals.

The freshwater has simplicity, low cost, ability to grow a diverse array of live plants, and ease of maintenance.
Click to expand...


Good to hear you're getting a good laugh out of it. :lol:


Didn't say each didn't have its own rewards, I just don't have the interest in FW anymore since I started SW, which is kinda what the question was. And no thanks on the FW planted. I've heard they can be a real pain in their own right, plus I'm not all that fond of the look. Just reminds me of a SW tank with an algae problem. :D
 
I ran both FW & SW at the same time for awhile, but eventually, the FW tank fell by the wayside. There are some really nice FW tanks out there, but I can't imagine going back myself. Reef tanks blow even the best looking planted FW tanks away...IMHO of course.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11668012#post11668012 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by McTeague
I am laughing at the "salt-ists"... :)

If you want more of a challenge in your FW tank try live plants.

Personally I think each type has its rewards.

The saltwater has much more diversity of the animals.

The freshwater has simplicity, low cost, ability to grow a diverse array of live plants, and ease of maintenance.
Click to expand...
I have both and if i could rid myself of all the FW tanks i would!
 
I had a FW and SW right next to eachother. Course it was just a cichlid tank but no one even looked at it anymore.
Guests wanted to get thier fingers cleaned by Jeaque' the fire shrimp, not look at a cichlid hovering in the water, lol.

But a freshwater planted tank, now those can be really sweet!

Not to mention Discus tanks.

Still the colors and diversity of a reef tank cannot be matched. I mean comeon its a REEF!!! lol.

Cheers to all the underwater creatures!:D
 
I mentioned this in another thread, but we've had a 29g FW tank for 5 years, and just started up a 90g SW with sump/refugium. The other day, as my 11-yr old son and I were looking at all the stuff that sprouted out of "nowhere" in our 4g refugium he remarked at how it was more interesting looking at our refugium than it was looking at our FW tank!
 
I'm presently running both. The FW is a 75g Cichlid tank. I really like the tank, but must admit once I got the "reef" bug, I've been having serious thoughts on converting the Cichlid tank over to a reef.
 
I want to try a FW planted tank. I've seen some really beautiful ones. Any secrets to success? Not trying to start a FW thread on a Reef site. Just a pointer or two?
 
I have a 55g african cichlid, 75g FW planted, and 75g reef. For color and diversity, you can't beat the reef. Hands down. But that planted tank is just about as much effort as the reef. With the reef you need perfect conditions, but with the planted, you need to maintain it like a garden, which includes fertilizing...

I would also say that reefs are exciting, whereas planted tanks are peaceful. So there is a little difference in perspective. When I hosted my local reef club meeting, we talked a lot about the planted tank I have.

GPB: go to a planted tank site, like plantedtank.net or aquariumadvice.com, and read up! There are a lot of resources there. I would start with nothing smaller than a 29g with a canister filter. PC lighting is preferred (or T5 at most). Keep it at ~1.5 to 2 watts per gallon, and you should be able to keep most plants from most LFS.
 
Once I set up the large reef tank, I went back to lo tech with the freshwater. It now has fake plants, no CO2 injection, and lots of carbon in the filter. Of course, it doesn't look as nice as a grown out planted tank, but it's less hassle for me.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11669183#post11669183 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by GPB
I want to try a FW planted tank. I've seen some really beautiful ones. Any secrets to success? Not trying to start a FW thread on a Reef site. Just a pointer or two?
Click to expand...
Wait at least 3 months and preferably 12 months before adding the plants. Do not expect to find "plant success" in a bottle. I do not care how nice the label looks, just say NO!
 
I'm starting my first salt water tank too.. Right below my 29 gallon planted tank on a dual tank stand. Agree that marine appeals to my geek side, with the advanced equipment, chemistry and husbandry demands. But I don't think I could give up my planted tank , its been incredible watching it evolve over the past 2.5 years.
 
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