Saltwater Aquarium advice??.... [Archive]

HighLowLobForBig-50

12-11-2007, 02:30 AM

I just got my first saltwater tank off craigslist. Its complete, from what i have been told by my friends its got alot of money in it. Live corals, metal hallide lights, anenomies, live sand, the whole tank was full of live rock, and some mushroom pollups. Alot more came with, but i was just wonderin' if any of you are in the hobby and had some advice. I am def experienced in freshwater but only have 2 friends to talk with about saltwater. Anyway , any tips would be appreciated.

Go Spurs !

whottt

12-11-2007, 02:39 AM

My advice:

Get a freshwater aquarium.

whottt

12-11-2007, 02:39 AM

Oh...and say anemone 5 times fast.

HighLowLobForBig-50

12-11-2007, 02:48 AM

My advice:

Get a freshwater aquarium.

i already have 5 freshwaters that im sellin. 3- 55gallon 1- 33gallon 1- 10gallon !!!

its time to move on to bigger and more Spur-like stuff my friend

HighLowLobForBig-50

12-11-2007, 02:50 AM

i already have 5 freshwaters that im sellin. 3- 55gallon 1- 33gallon 1- 10gallon !!!

its time to move on to bigger and more Spur-like stuff my friend

BTW, they are all complete w/ stand and all.....all bad-ass tanks if you know someone interested.

desflood

12-11-2007, 08:43 AM

BTW, they are all complete w/ stand and all.....all bad-ass tanks if you know someone interested.
Are you here in San Antonio? We've been thinking about it for quite some time now.

And I agree, stick with freshwater - the salt are just too much of a pain :lol

mrsmaalox

12-11-2007, 10:20 AM

It's a coincidence that someone would start an aquarium thread today, because I was going to do the same. Not to hijack your thread or anything........but I have a 30 gal. freshwater tank that I am a little bored of (my interest comes in cycles). Just so happens my bio-wheel motor died yesterday and instead of buying a new one, I think I'd rather just tear it down for a while. Anyone have any ideas what to do with the fish? NO, I will not flush them.!!

tlongII

12-11-2007, 10:31 AM

I suggest a little cajun spice seasoning...

SpursWoman

12-11-2007, 10:33 AM

Anyone have any ideas what to do with the fish? NO, I will not flush them.!!

Details of fish? Kind/size?

We may have some room ... :)

mrsmaalox

12-11-2007, 10:36 AM

I suggest a little cajun spice seasoning...

Yes very little! These mother-uckers are really small! :vomit:

mrsmaalox

12-11-2007, 10:43 AM

Details of fish? Kind/size?

We may have some room ... :)

I need homes for 2 black skirted tetras, 2 serpae tetras, 1 glass catfish, and 1 red tipped shark. If you are interested PM me and we'll work something out!
:)

ORION

12-11-2007, 10:58 AM

don't let the fish fart in the water

Shelly

12-11-2007, 11:25 AM

don't let the fish fart in the water

Instant jaccuzi.

ORION

12-11-2007, 12:00 PM

Instant jaccuzi.
Lion King comes to mind

AlamoSpursFan

12-11-2007, 03:26 PM

http://www.saltwaterfish.com/site_11_03/images/632_redemperorsnapper1.jpg

This is an emperor snapper. Do not make the same very expensive mistake I made years ago. I saw one of these at a pet store for $39.99 (mid 90's $39.99, mind you) and thought it was the coolest looking fish I had ever seen. It was about an inch long at the time. I thought "$40 for a fish that kick ass? What a bargain! That is a bargain for me! I think I will buy it!" For several months, it was the star of my tank. So much so, that it decided to eat the competition, which included a $20 Royal Gramma, a $30 Neon Goby, several $5 damsels, and everything else in the tank it could stuff down its' now-sizeable gullet. When it (quickly, I might add) got big enough to eat the $100 Queen Angelfish, I decided to get out of the snapper feeding business and donated it back to the pet store.

:lol

I'm seriously considering going back to saltwater because I got bored with my old hobby of breeding and raising freshwater angelfish.

One piece of advice I would give is spend some bucks and get yourself a top of the line protein skimmer. And check it often, as in daily. Maybe even twice daily. Don't skimp on the skimmer.

AlamoSpursFan

12-11-2007, 03:34 PM

Oh and back when Sean Elliott owned Full Court Pets, the guy he hired to run the joint told me that the cool hermit crab I bought there would be an ideal tank mate for the seahorse I had in a 10 gallon tank. Which it was, for as much time as it took him to grab the aforementioned seahorse and eat it like an ear of corn.

I think the lesson I'm trying to impart here is if you aren't prepared to buy very expensive feeder fish, you might want to try another hobby.

:lol

Kori Ellis

12-11-2007, 03:39 PM

When I lived in L.A. I had five tanks over 80 gallons, two of them were salt water, two were fresh, and one was brackish. I am no expert, but I might be able to answer some basics. My biggest tank was 160 gallons, I think.

My first advice is to get puffer fish!

Kori Ellis

12-11-2007, 03:46 PM

180 gallons actually (I just looked up to see the sizes).

I had 180 gallon salt, 180 gallon tall with Oscars, 160 gallon fresh with awesome fish, 120 gallon salt, and a 80 gallon brackish tank.

I was sad that I couldn't transport all the fish to San Antonio and I sold them for very very cheap.

Shelly

12-11-2007, 04:01 PM

what's brackish? I've never heard of that.

SpursWoman

12-11-2007, 04:01 PM

I love my aquarium ... I need to do an inventory to make sure we don't have too many inches of fish before we take on anymore, though. :)

My favorites are our pair of albino zebra cichlids (huh? :lol).

https://host.secure3-hosting.net/azgardens/images/Cichlid-KribensisAlbino.gif

And the blue gourami

http://www.staceyssimplestuff.com/fish16copy.JPG

We have one last goldfish won by my daughter at Halloween carnival 2 years ago that's the bastard stepchild of the tank. All of the other fish pick on him and he's missing half of his scales, but he refuses to die. :wow :lol

AlamoSpursFan

12-11-2007, 04:07 PM

what's brackish? I've never heard of that.

Kind of half-salt, half-fresh.

Like where a river meets the ocean.

Shelly

12-11-2007, 04:26 PM

Shelly

12-11-2007, 04:27 PM

Kind of half-salt, half-fresh.

Like where a river meets the ocean.

gracias. You learn something new every day!

Marklar MM

12-11-2007, 04:37 PM

Don't add puffers to a saltwater tank with coral.

Marklar MM

12-11-2007, 04:39 PM

As mentioned, don't skimp on the skimmer. And saltwater aquariums are actually relatively easy to keep. And a word of advice...get an RO or an RO/DI water filter system. It will keep phosphates out of the tank, which should greatly reduce algae blooms.

*Yes, I have a saltwater tank. The following link is a great site for the saltwater tank keeper person. Very friendly and knowledgeable people who are willing to help...as well as a message board similar to here.

http://www.3reef.com

jcrod

12-11-2007, 05:40 PM

My wife has fresh water tank. She wants a salt water real bad, but don't want to risk the expense.

Marklar MM

12-11-2007, 05:46 PM

My wife has fresh water tank. She wants a salt water real bad, but don't want to risk the expense.

Its definately not a hobby that you want to get into if you don't have a decent chunk of change to spend. Easily can cost 1-2k just to get started.

DannyT

12-11-2007, 05:48 PM

BTW, they are all complete w/ stand and all.....all bad-ass tanks if you know someone interested.

can you post pictures of your fish tanks please and their prices

AlamoSpursFan

12-11-2007, 06:02 PM

Its definately not a hobby that you want to get into if you don't have a decent chunk of change to spend. Easily can cost 1-2k just to get started.

This is true for the most part, but it is easy to set up a beginner tank to see if the trouble and expense are worth it to you.

Salt water fish (as I discussed in my Emperor Snapper post) can be expensive as hell, mostly because most fish available in pet stores are caught in the wild (yet another thing you have to get used to...some wild caught fish do not acclimate to tank living well.).

But once you get your tank up and going strong, you'll be surprised how quickly you'll drop $50 on a fish without batting an eye.

(Quick tank cycling tip: Most experts will tell you to start with a damsel or two to set up your tank, but black mollies are VERY cheap and almost impossible to kill. If you have about an hour to invest in the process, you can buy 2 or 3 freshwater mollies and acclimate them to saltwater, where they'll quickly dirty up the water for your first new actual saltwater fish, which will in turn quickly polish off the black mollies.

The big fish eat smaller fish rule of aquarium keeping is MUCH more obvious in saltwater tanks than community fresh tanks.

Marklar MM

12-11-2007, 06:07 PM

This is true for the most part, but it is easy to set up a beginner tank to see if the trouble and expense are worth it to you.

Salt water fish (as I discussed in my Emperor Snapper post) can be expensive as hell, mostly because most fish available in pet stores are caught in the wild (yet another thing you have to get used to...some wild caught fish do not acclimate to tank living well.).

But once you get your tank up and going strong, you'll be surprised how quickly you'll drop $50 on a fish without batting an eye.

(Quick tank cycling tip: Most experts will tell you to start with a damsel or two to set up your tank, but black mollies are VERY cheap and almost impossible to kill. If you have about an hour to invest in the process, you can buy 2 or 3 freshwater mollies and acclimate them to saltwater, where they'll quickly dirty up the water for your first new actual saltwater fish, which will in turn quickly polish off the black mollies.

The big fish eat smaller fish rule of aquarium keeping is MUCH more obvious in saltwater tanks than community fresh tanks.

You don't need to use fish to cycle the tank...just a few cocktail shrimp will do the trick. I have yet to drop 50 on a fish...most I paid was 40.

Marklar MM

12-11-2007, 06:09 PM

The big fish eat smaller fish rule of aquarium keeping is MUCH more obvious in saltwater tanks than community fresh tanks.

Quick tip...DO NOT get an eel and put it in a tank with fish. :blah

AlamoSpursFan

12-11-2007, 06:12 PM

You don't need to use fish to cycle the tank...just a few cocktail shrimp will do the trick. I have yet to drop 50 on a fish...most I paid was 40.

Yep. Feeder shrimp work too, but they're hard to come by down here except in fresh and mollies are easier to acclimate.

GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI

12-11-2007, 10:02 PM

I would go to www.maast.org if you are setting up a saltwater tank. It is the Marine Aquarium Association of South Texas, most people are in San Antonio and Austin. They have a forum where you can ask questions and classified where they sell nice equipment (lights, skimmers, sumps) for really cheap. There are stores in the area that fund maast and if you become a member you get pretty good discounts when you shop at their store. The people on that site really know what they are doing, I wouldn't rely on the information you get from the pet stores around here, trust me I worked at one for 6 years and some of the garbage some of these people were told is just sad. I think most stores try to sell you equipment or supplies you don't need and you waste a lot of money. Or they give you wrong info and your fish and coral end up dying. The guys on there have amazing tanks, you should look at the pictures.

BTW, this is my boyfriend's screen name, I just saw the post and wanted to ad some info.

Clandestino

12-11-2007, 11:18 PM

man law: if you're a dude and you have any type of aquarium you're probably gay...

Marklar MM

12-12-2007, 11:45 AM

man law: if you're a dude and you have any type of aquarium you're probably gay...

What about aquariums with sharks and killer fish?

HighLowLobForBig-50

12-12-2007, 06:32 PM

can you post pictures of your fish tanks please and their prices

my camera recently took a dump on me, so it'll be difficult to do. i have to go back to work now, but will pm you very detailed info later, and if you want you can come over Sat and check it out.Somebody's gonna get some good deals, as i want them gone so i can concentrate on my salt

BTW, my bro warned me about these little red things that look like worms or little centipedes with white legs. he said they are dangerous to fish and will even irritate the skin of an humaniod. Well i got a bunch of em', can someone id this mystery bug fer me so i can research?

Marklar MM

12-12-2007, 11:20 PM

BTW, my bro warned me about these little red things that look like worms or little centipedes with white legs. he said they are dangerous to fish and will even irritate the skin of an humaniod. Well i got a bunch of em', can someone id this mystery bug fer me so i can research?

Do they look like this. If so, those worms you got sound like Bristle Worms. They aren't bad for your tank but they can get BIG. It is really hit or miss with advice...some say keep em, some say get rid of them. I wouldn't touch them with bare hands for they hurt like hell if you get those hairs stuck in your finger.

PS...you may also be fireworms, so just make sure.

http://www.reefcorner.com/images/BristleWorm.jpg

HighLowLobForBig-50

12-12-2007, 11:55 PM

Do they look like this. If so, those worms you got sound like Bristle Worms. They aren't bad for your tank but they can get BIG. It is really hit or miss with advice...some say keep em, some say get rid of them. I wouldn't touch them with bare hands for they hurt like hell if you get those hairs stuck in your finger.

PS...you may also be fireworms, so just make sure.

http://www.reefcorner.com/images/BristleWorm.jpg

thats def what they are. i heard they were bad and could hurt fish. they are mostly just 3/4 inch long. also, i have 4 or 5 of those frogapods er sumthin like that. i heard those were bad for my live coral. thanks fer yer help.

mrsmaalox

12-13-2007, 12:04 AM

Where do those bristle worms come from? YUCK!!!

Marklar MM

12-13-2007, 12:07 AM

also, i have 4 or 5 of those frogapods er sumthin like that. i heard those were bad for my live coral. thanks fer yer help.

On the pod front, how big are they? And some fish will eat those worms for you.

Marklar MM

12-13-2007, 12:16 AM

Where do those bristle worms come from? YUCK!!!

You could always go for these bad boys...about 20 inches and 3 pounds worth.

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f382/icyuod2/isopod.jpghttp://www.cryptomundo.com/wp-content/animal_esgoto_sorocaba_2.jpg

HighLowLobForBig-50

12-13-2007, 02:25 AM

the frogga-whatever things are about the size of a quarter. they have a redish base and deep green fingers. they actually look pretty sweet and the guy i bought it from said they will reproduce consistantly.however , i found out that they're not so good for live coral. all of my coral and live rock is pretty much covred in small feather-dusters.
I figured there would be somethin' out there that would eat those bristle worms. Im gonna make my first trip to alamo aquatics (for saltwater stuff) on sunday. Also my light system is a banister setup with metal hallide lights. is that good? cause my buddy has one with daylight , blue light then moonlight and its sick. so i need metal hallide for my corals? anyway thanks again, also that 3reef place that marklar posted is cool.

DannyT

12-13-2007, 02:40 AM

my camera recently took a dump on me, so it'll be difficult to do. i have to go back to work now, but will pm you very detailed info later, and if you want you can come over Sat and check it out.Somebody's gonna get some good deals, as i want them gone so i can concentrate on my salt

BTW, my bro warned me about these little red things that look like worms or little centipedes with white legs. he said they are dangerous to fish and will even irritate the skin of an humaniod. Well i got a bunch of em', can someone id this mystery bug fer me so i can research?

thats cool man we have been looking at tanks around the city so i will look forward to your pm

thanks man and good luck

shit im worried about just having fresh water fish

:santahat

Marklar MM

12-13-2007, 11:37 AM

the frogga-whatever things are about the size of a quarter. they have a redish base and deep green fingers.

Also my light system is a banister setup with metal hallide lights. is that good? cause my buddy has one with daylight , blue light then moonlight and its sick. so i need metal hallide for my corals?

So are they actually attached to the rock?

Halides are probably the best...T-5 lights are also good.