# Thinking of going sw



## Hansolo (Sep 10, 2010)

Currently I am rehoming all my fw fish and will have an empty 180g tank. I have an xp4 canister filter and 2 powerheads. I am going to purchase a protein skimmer very soon. Aside from that and my live rock I am close to having most of my stuff. Is there a good site to look at sw fish at. All the lfs that sell sw fish are over an hour drive and I just want to start looking at fish for researching my setup. I would like it to eventually be reef. I don't want to do anything wrong as this will be my first sw tank. Any beginner sw fish I should know about?


----------



## funlad3 (Oct 9, 2010)

Hehe. Well, stay AWAY from damsels. They're cheap and flashy, but those things are mean! Imagine a spawning pair of cichlids, shrink them down, and make them way faster. Yeah. Don't even risk it. As for looking around, here is a great tell all place with all of the basic requirements:

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/aquarium-fish-supplies.cfm?c=15

As for skimmers, I'm very partial to my ASM, and if you were going to use the same brand on a tank of your size, I'd look at the ASM G3. They're very well built, so don't be at all afraid to buy one used, as you'll save quite a bit without compromising integrity or quality. Other great brands (from what I've heard) include Bubble Magus and Reef Octopus. Just shop around and read reviews.

For rock, I doubt you want to get 180 lbs. of live rock for $8-13/lb. plus shipping, if you were to order it. Bulk Reef Supply has some incredible dry rock for relatively cheap. I got some rubble from them, and most of that was more porous and naturally shaped then my LR. 

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/products/eco-rox-fiji-dry-rock

If you were to get about 70% base and 30% live rock, you'd be set biologically and it would become indistinguishable within three to six months, again, from what I've read/seen. 

If you want a reef, lighting can be interesting. There is the obvious T5 or Metal Halide lighting, but as of late, I'm seeing some absolutely stunning DIY LED builds. They run cooler, use less energy, and don't need to be replaced for years. Can you guess what type of lighting I'll be installing as I upgrade my tank? 


Most importantly, read around forums, buy and check out some books from your library, and just take it all slow. My largest regret thus far is rushing. Be it rushing, and thus, killing new additions, or just looking forward to what I'll do next, I wish I had slowed down and just enjoyed the process. To me, the best parts of this hobby are the hands on things, like adding fish, aquascaping, or messing with my plumbing. I'm sure that given your experience with FW though, you won't make as many mistakes as I did, and yours will be a much better thought out build. 

Welcome to the wonderful world of reefing!


----------



## Hansolo (Sep 10, 2010)

Originally I wanted sw but was scared do to the money situation
I currently have a diy light I made that is centered over my tank. It has 2 46" T-5 HO. One bulb is a daylight spectrum, the other is an actinic bulb for sw. I liked the way the blue spectrum changed the whole look of my tank. Currently all my tanks have sand substrate I prefer the look of that. I will be using sand substrate in my sw setup as well if I can instead of the crushed coral. Im not sure if that's even an option.
I have a grand vision of a coral mountain on each end of the tank full of cavern and hiding spots with an assortment of fish swimming about. My canister filter should be fine. I don't rely on carbon with my fw so Im assuming I will pack it full of the rings for biological filtration. I can't wait till I get moved so I can start gradually setting up


----------



## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

Get a marine betta when you get sw! those are cool!


----------



## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i used to have a comet....they are a pretty nice fish..but they can be an occasional pain...you can't just toss anything in with them...


----------



## Hansolo (Sep 10, 2010)

Thanx for the awesome link Funlad. It was just what I was looking for. Now to start a list of my favorites. I will then see what is compatible with my favorites that are more of a beginner sw fish. I will start stocking slowly with those. After I get the bugs worked out I will start adding my favorites. Who knows the ones I like the best might be easy to keep. Thanx all. ;-)


----------



## funlad3 (Oct 9, 2010)

Good luck, and don't show me up TOO badly, okay?


----------



## FishieLuv (Feb 26, 2011)

I remember when I was at the pet shop and couldn't turn away the two clownfish. I just took them home without thinking about the responsibility. To be honest, marine fish are quite hard. Not to mention costy as well. You need to buy varied food, salt, filter wool and cleaners on a regular basis. Cleaning the tank weekly can be difficult (if you are like me who wants the tank to be spotless  ) and can take a minimum of an hour. You must also take the time out of each day to scrub the tank with a magnetic glass cleaner thing  This isn't meant to put you off, but just tell you what you are in for  Good luck!!!


----------



## kay-bee (Dec 6, 2006)

Hansolo said:


> ...My canister filter should be fine. I don't rely on carbon with my fw so Im assuming I will pack it full of the rings for biological filtration...


If you have at least 1-2lbs of live rock per gallon of tank volume (which in a 180gal would be lots of rock) you wouldn't need biological filtration media. In reef tanks and Fish Only with Live Rock (FOWLR) set ups, the live rock works as the parimary biologic filtration. I run a canister on my 65gal reef tank but it's configured for chemical and mechanical filtration, not biological.

Depending on the type of fish you get, SW fish aren't necessarily difficult to keep or costly. Going reef (that is to say adding live corals) will be somewhat more costly and complex.


----------

