Newbie converting from fresh to salt

[Jr2525]

I just recently set up a 75 gallon glass freshwater tank. After less than 2 months I am not real happy with the way it looks and am considering converting it over to saltwater.
My current filtration is a MegaFlow Stage 3. I have a few questions to help me make my decision. What would be the most economical way for my to convert this? I am not necessarily looking to go coral to begin with, but would like to have the option of adding coral little by little as the tank matures. Is this possible? From what I have found so far, I would need a protein skimmer, powerheads and lighting. Is there anything else I would need?
I appreciate any insight anyone is willing to provide me.

Thanks,
Jr

 

[alan214]

I would recommend getting a sump as well. Unless you tak already has overflow box built into it, that poses 2 options for you. 1) A hang-on-the-back overflow setup or 2) drilling your tank and installing an internal overflow box (my personal preference).

A lot of people get by without a sump but it really gives you a lot of flexibility. First, it increases your tank's overall water volume (always a good thing). It also gives you a place to put necessary equipent like heaters, your skimmer, etc.

 

[wojo]

be careful with that "economical" way, i went the same way when i converted from FW to SW to only find myself replacing every "economical" piece of equipment i purchased couple of months after. i suggest if you decide to go into SW do it right, if you are not ready now wait until you are. buy good quality stuff and you wont regret it. it doesn't mean you have to pay big bucks either, check out For Sale section of this forum, people sell good quality stuff there for good prices all the time.

good luck!

 

[virginiadiver69]

"I would need a protein skimmer, power heads and lighting."

Not true. Though a skimmer is nice it is not absolutely necessary. Good live rock will suffice. As far as lighting goes... If you are not going to keep corals than normal output fluorescents will be fine. A simple(read inexpensive)power head will be good for a little water circulation. You will not need anywhere the water turnover that you would for corals.

 

[ssbreef]

Skimmer Skimmer Skimmer Skimmer. The bigger the better.
Flow Flow Flow Flow. The more the merrier.

 

[catdoc]

There are tons of start-up threads here (IF you can get the search function to work) and that'd let you know how other folks have done it--some go all-out the first try, others start out with a minimalist approach and learn as they go.

My first tank was sumpless with a HOB skimmer, HOB fuge, and emperor filter (just to run carbon). After a year, I did decide to upgrade (to bigger tank, added a sump). No matter what you start with, you WILL want to upgrade soon. It's a curse, I think. Just expect it.

 

[Wrench]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9155748#post9155748 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wojo
be careful with that "economical" way, i went the same way when i converted from FW to SW to only find myself replacing every "economical" piece of equipment i purchased couple of months after. i suggest if you decide to go into SW do it right, if you are not ready now wait until you are. buy good quality stuff and you wont regret it. it doesn't mean you have to pay big bucks either, check out For Sale section of this forum, people sell good quality stuff there for good prices all the time.

good luck!

Agreed 100%. I started about 5 months ago and tried to go the economical route. I've since upgraded nearly all my equipment.

Do lots of research ahead of time. Make yourself farmiliar with the forums, local reefers and the library.

Skimmer IMO is important to any reef. After seeing (and smelling) what it pulls out of the water, I would never have a tank without one. A skimmer will physically remove particles and protein based wasted that live rock will not. Live rock is the primary means of biological filtration, not mechanical.

If $$$ is of concern to you, start out with a FOWLR setup. This will let you get your feet wet without diving in all the way. Learn the basics of the equipment, water chemisty and biology of how everything works. It's similar to FW which you're farmiliar with, but it's different enough. You may add corals as your budget and education allows and you'll also be able to slowly upgrade the lights instead of shelling out the $$$ right away. I started with a dual PC light setup. I had that for a couple months then I came across a used 2x175w MH retrofit setup that I added to my canopy. The PC's were ok for zoos, shrooms and softies but with the MH's I can keep nearly anything. Slowly upgrade as money allows.

Keep an eye on the forums. There's always someone breaking down their setup.

 

[RichConley]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9155920#post9155920 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by virginiadiver69
"I would need a protein skimmer, power heads and lighting."

Not true. Though a skimmer is nice it is not absolutely necessary. Good live rock will suffice. As far as lighting goes... If you are not going to keep corals than normal output fluorescents will be fine. A simple(read inexpensive)power head will be good for a little water circulation. You will not need anywhere the water turnover that you would for corals.

Telling a newbie he doesnt need a skimmer is like telling a newbie rock climber he doesnt need ropes.


Buy a skimmer, and buy the biggest one you can.]


I disagree with their being no economical way to do this. There are plenty of good, reasonably priced skimmers out there now. (Check out the Reef Octopus line). There are maximods for flow. T5s aren't all that pricey.

 

[virginiadiver69]

"Telling a newbie he doesnt need a skimmer is like telling a newbie rock climber he doesnt need ropes."

I understand you are over exaggerating to make a point but give me a break!

I said that a skimmer is nice to have. Not absolutely necessary. Though it is much easier to run a tank with one... a fish only tank can most assuredly be run without one. Same thing goes for water flow(return from a canister filter is fine) and lighting(normal output if fish only is good enough).
Jr. before going much further I would recommend you check out this thread.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1033370&perpage=25&pagenumber=1
There are definitely two ends of the spectrum when it comes to this hobby. If you are just starting out, go slow. When people start telling you that "you must have this" do your research and think twice. Merchandising and marketing has been very successful when it comes to hobbyist with more money than brains.

 

[Wrench]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9157125#post9157125 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by virginiadiver69
Same thing goes for water flow(return from a canister filter is fine) and lighting(normal output if fish only is good enough).

No way is a single output going to be sufficient. You need the water flow over the rock to give the bacteria a chance to work their magic. Granted, he's not going to need 20x turnover rate but a single output wont even be close. I've got 450gph return pump (after head loss) and a single MJ900 on my 45g reef and it's plenty. I just need to be careful where I place certain corals like SPS.

 

[virginiadiver69]

*

 

[virginiadiver69]

Yea your right. I was underestimating on the water flow. I use a mag 12 and that seems to be just fine. I'm also not keeping any corals yet either. When I do decide to try my hand at some corals I am sure I will have to up my turnover rate.

 

[tang named junkyard]

I would fill the bottom of the tank up with 3 inches of sand, buy a decent amount of live rock and hang a protien skimmer on the back and be done with it.

 

[ssbreef]

Skimmer Skimmer Skimmer Skimmer. The bigger the better.
Flow Flow Flow Flow. The more the merrier.

 

[Sk8r]

Ah, the wonders of RC..."there are nine and twenty ways of composing tribal lays, and each and every one of them is right"---MacAulay, I believe.

We ARE really all right, you know, each for different and very convincing reasons, coming from different applications of the hobby. We argue how-to's, and have different priorities: some want fish, some want corals, etc, etc, and there are whole tanks of clams.

Let me add another can of beans to the pot: that you're going to need to clean out that tank and start over with the sand and rock: the bacteria don't translate, fresh to salt. Get everything marine: rocks, sand, etc. Don't try to re-use: you'll get foam. Lotsa foam.

If you want corals eventually, then plan for them: get the equipment necessary for them or know how it's going to fit in, when you do need it, particularly applicable to lights and sump. The stonier the coral, the fussier.

What corals don't like: nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia. And phosphate. A fish-only tank can tolerate a bit; a coral reef will die if it's not outa-there. How does it get outa-there? Two ways: live rock/sand and skimmer. Live-rock/sand can take care of a lot. The stonier the coral [acroporas being the stoniest, with a thin living skin on a calcareous skeleton] the more light it needs, all the way over to metal halide lighting; and the softer the coral the less light it even wants, or at least---over to less power-hungry lights.

THere are some very good "how to" threads in the newbie forum. Nobody wants to scare you off [we love new members!] with buy-this-buy-that fever; and yes, there are very good ways to get through on less than mega-equipment. Just be sure what you want to grow matches what you buy and none of it will have to be traded in and rebought. Used equipment can be very good. Join a reef club. You can build a system off what members have in their garages.