Scared of getting a saltwater tank...
- Thread starter SamuraSun
- Start date
I'll check those out, thanks!
IPT
Active member
Lots of people gave good advice and it is true, Saltwater in and of itself is not that much harder then fresh water. It all depends on what level you want to take it too. Also how good your tap water is. I used to run without RO in NY (and currently do in Alaska too) but that's just for fish, softies, and a few hard SPS mike Montipora and Hydrophona. Start having algae issues and then RO might be needed. As usual same as freshwater watching overfeeding and nutrient import 
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For me the first automation I did and would not do Salt without again is an autotop off. If your not keeping a full blown SPS tank than the salinity is going to be the first thing to wander and need constant attending too. I like the Tunze unit myself, it's never failed me in over 15 years.
Good luck and have fun. It can be very addicting! You're lucky to be in NY. No frag swaps up here or good clubs in the boonies.
.For me the first automation I did and would not do Salt without again is an autotop off. If your not keeping a full blown SPS tank than the salinity is going to be the first thing to wander and need constant attending too. I like the Tunze unit myself, it's never failed me in over 15 years.
Good luck and have fun. It can be very addicting! You're lucky to be in NY. No frag swaps up here or good clubs in the boonies.
For a long vacation, bring a rubbermaid Brute trashcan into play as your topoff reservoir and relax. A 50 gallon tank can evaporate a gallon a day, but if you are gone 14 days, you will not run out of water, which is the biggest danger. An Eheim autofeeder poised atop your feeding port can feed multiple times a day, be it only flake, which is enough to prevent fin nippage; and your lights are on timer. If your skimmer sits in the sump, the worst it will do is overflow a bit and send some skimmate back where it got it, to no great detriment in 14 days. I have left mine as long as a month with instructions to a house sitter to switch the hose to another topoff Brute, and found my tank quite happy. We all have lives. This is an exacting hobby and you WILL learn salt water chemistry and a bit of plumbing, but it is far from rocket science. Join a reef club, best source of help. And read the information in the top of the New To Hobby forum BEFORE you spend money on wrong equipment. HTH!
Lots of people gave good advice and it is true, Saltwater in and of itself is not that much harder then fresh water. It all depends on what level you want to take it too. Also how good your tap water is. I used to run without RO in NY (and currently do in Alaska too) but that's just for fish, softies, and a few hard SPS mike Montipora and Hydrophona. Start having algae issues and then RO might be needed. As usual same as freshwater watching overfeeding and nutrient import
For me the first automation I did and would not do Salt without again is an autotop off. If your not keeping a full blown SPS tank than the salinity is going to be the first thing to wander and need constant attending too. I like the Tunze unit myself, it's never failed me in over 15 years.
Good luck and have fun. It can be very addicting! You're lucky to be in NY. No frag swaps up here or good clubs in the boonies.
Did you ever had any issue with using tap water in NY? I'm thinking of having a coral heavy tank but not a lot of SPS corals! I will start with RO water but I wanted to know if I need that for every water change.
Having the buckets ready is a good idea. I can tell my neighbors to watch over the fish when I'm gone but prepare everything in case something goes wrong!
IPT
Active member
It was like literally 20 years ago so a lot might have changed. That said, I did go to an RO system. I think it was from Phosphate and algae issues. Now I also had a crumby skimmer so that could have been part of the issue.
You can always start with tap water. It would be ideal to use RO, but not mandatory. As you do water changes it will finally replace all the RO water you started with. How are you starting with RO, but not continuing with it? Also don't forget the top off water too is a source of nutrients as well. You could actually be adding more water via top off in hot months than with your water changes.
I had mostly LPS and softies back then and they won't care. If you start having algae issues, or want to get decent SPS, or just want to up your game then the first "upgrade" I would do would be RO. It is definitely tried and true, and as mentioned it may save you some frustrations. It is however not mandatory to keep fish and "easy" coral.
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IPT
Active member
This can be true. That said, I am using city tap water right now and have been for years (in Alaska though) and I do not have algae issue at all. In fact all my stuff it totally happy. These are "easy" corals though with leathers, ricordia's Frogspawan (almost 2 feet across now!) and hammers, and some other one I can't even remember the name of. I also have an Acro colony that is brown
)) but doing just fine.It will be an experiment, but I agree if you start having algae issues the first thing I would change would be going from tap to RO.
Jesterrace
New member
One of the biggest factors with cost and maintenance are corals. If you can go without for the time being it will save you money with lighting and a certain amount of upkeep. Before we go any further you need to answer 3 questions:
1) What sort of fish and/or corals are you interested in?
2) What is your budget?
3) How much space do you have?
While larger tanks tend to be more stable, they require more equipment and can take longer to clean. In your case it might be worth trying a 20 Long with 3-4 smaller fish and seeing how it goes. Other than feeding, water changes and water top offs (you need to refill with fresh RODI water as water evaporates, since water evaporates but salt doesn't) you won't have much regular maintenance with that kind of setup once the tank is properly cycled.
