New to the hobby

[Dmh596]

I would like to get into this hobby I have had fresh water tanks in the past,however I was wondering what would be a good starting tank for salt water for myself thanks in advance.

 

[lionfish]

i would say start big because if you go to small by the time you know it you will wanna be upgrading so i would say 120 or even a 90gal. i started with a 55 gallon and ended up upgrading to a 90 now i just got a 120

 

[Frankie Marble]

Try to stay away from anything to small. Most people who have nano size reefs are a bit more experienced, due to the fact that if something starts going wrong in the water column it's gonna go wrong fast. With larger volume systems you will have more time to figure out what's happening & correct it. I would say 55g is a great starter size system, & 90g should be max for now. Focus more on equipment, do your homework & ask lots of questions. MR has great people that can offer lots of help. Good luck with the build.

 

[dubs]

Ok am going to say go both way nano are cool if u can contain ur addiction but if think ur interested is going to grow get 100 g or better i have both and still currently own a 150 and a nano

 

[Dmh596]

My friend is selling his 125 g ,stand refugium sump hoses ,overflow I was wondering what a good price would be for all of that and also what else I would need for the set up and also thank you for giving me ideas already

 

[jvu61]

buy the largest tank you can afford.
Any one I know that starts small always wants something bigger. I have a 300 gal and dream of a 1,000 gal. if I get the 1,000 im sure I will want a 1750. kind of like boats. if you have a boat you will always want a larger one lol

 

[Dre]

40 Breeder you can use it as a sump later,,,

 

[Rookie2reef]

I would say play it safe with 75 gal reef ready, and let run for a month or two to get thru cycle and don't rush anything, at least with a tank that size you can have more options as far as fish.

 

[kkaz642]

55,75,90 all have the same foot print. Stay away from non reef ready, those siphons can be a mess waiting to happen, i started with a 55 non reef read then went to a reef ready 55 then a 90 reef ready. I would start it with at least a 55. The larger you go the more forgiving they are with mistakes. I always tell people check the boards and craigslist for used tanks many people rush into this hobby get frustrated and leave fast their loss your gain. Also Avoid tall Tanks stick with the the longer tanks the taller the tank the more powerful of a light you need to have an effect. if you have any other questions just ask lots of experience on this board.

 

[cmantis]

55 is 48x12 75/90 is 48x18. I would not recommend a 55.

3' long by 18" wide go 40, 57 or 65

4' long by 18" wide go 75 or 90

 

[Dmh596]

Thanks everyone I'm sure I'm going to have a ton more questions coming at you in time.

 

[Dan_P]

I would like to get into this hobby I have had fresh water tanks in the past,however I was wondering what would be a good starting tank for salt water for myself thanks in advance.

I like the advice coming in, so, I will add something to consider. Keeping a salt water aquarium can result in addictive behavior more so than keeping a fresh water aquarium. This means the larger the aquarium you have, the more money you will be able to spend before you overload the aquarium. This is an expensive venture.

You also spend more cash and time on maintenance, for example, salt and doing water changes. Bigger tanks need larger pumps and lights. If electricity was free that would not be an issue.

If you can, visit homes with salt water aquariums and take a look at how much space the operation takes up for the system and storing ancillary equipment.

Dan

 

[fredro]

40 breeder you can use it as a sump later,,,

+1

 

[richiero]

First off right down your budget ?Are you thinking of doing reef or fowlr? I started with a 75 2 1/2 years ago and its doing great, i really have had no desire to upgrade. 75 g tank with 30 gal sump , skimmer and 2 power heads i recommend one mp 10 and one mp40 or tunze powerheads. I also recommend an apex controller it makes things a lot easier. if you are doing fish only then lighting is not really an issue, but if you go reef you will need strong lighting, mh, leds t5's but its all dependent on what coral you want to keep. I use diy leds which have worked well for me, my reef is mixed.