# Please answer these!!



## FishieFreak_882 (May 20, 2005)

Hi, I was just wondering...

Is a 10 gallon saltwater tank too little?

Are saltwater tanks harder to take care of than freshwater for 'beginners'?

Can saltwater fish live in brackish water?

Can freshwater fish live in brackish water?

Please answer these questions in an IM for me...thanks!

FishieFreak_882
:fish:


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

saltwater tanks are easier to maintain the bigger they are.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Why do you want your answer in a PM? 

10 gallons is too small for a beginner.
10 gallons is too small anyway.

Saltwater is comparable to freshwater in difficulty, but you have to know and heed the differences.

Brackishwater fish live in brackish water. 
Other fish may venture into brackish water on occasion, but they won't live in it permanently, so don't even THINK about trying to keep freshwater and saltwater fish in the same brackish tank.


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## Pac-Man (Mar 18, 2005)

i think malawain pro has a 10g saltwater so it isnt too small to do, just extremely difficult to maintain. alot of people keep "nano reefs" It is alot easier to just get a bigger tank though. and yes freshwater is cheaper and easier to maintain than salt water. If your a beginner, you should start fresh.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Don't encourage him, PacMan. Nano-reefs are just about the stupidest things ever invented, and not at all for anyone without masochistic tendencies. If it can only be done under extreme difficulty, then what's the point in doing it? Nanoreefers are the same kind of people who like to stuff 6 comet goldfish into a one-gallon fishbowl, and usually for the same reason; they're too cheap to do the job right. They don't care about the well-being of their pets, so long as they look nice and don't cost too much.
Is that fair to the fish?

10 gallons is too small. 
"Practical" and "barely possible" are two very different things.
Trying a nanoreef in a ridiculous attempt to save money nearly always results in wasted money, so just do it right in the first place. Nanos are for skilled keepers only who have time to spend on them.


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## Pac-Man (Mar 18, 2005)

im srry... i didnt mean to encourage him, i just said it could be done, thats all. i didnt mean to offend anyone... srry mom, i mean old salt! lol j/k


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

That's okay.; no need to apologize. I just get a little carried away over nanos. LOL!


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## hail_sniper (Jan 18, 2005)

i keep a nano, but i only keep a small perc in it (temp till i can get my 90 setup and put that in it, itll mainly house a goby, but all i have in there is simple stuff like zoo's and shrooms

i dont think their hard to maintain (if you know what your doing, and you dont go be stupid and do any sps


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

I agree, it's just that there are an awful lot of "ifs" involved, and too many for the beginner, who ironically is the typical person looking to start a nano for all the wrong reasons.

By the way, welcome back!


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## hail_sniper (Jan 18, 2005)

glad to be back, yep many noobies end up starting with a nano and waste their money because it turns out their options are very limited and theyll have to get a bigger tank, the best beginner size is 60, but 30 is a minimum


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

<--- Will always be a noob to Reef


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## FishieFreak_882 (May 20, 2005)

im a girl, by the way....but, thanks! i appreciate it. its just that freshwater seems to EASY to take care of, so i thought that i could use my 10 gallon for a small saltwater, but with no real coral. i think that could be too much work!


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

ah well then in that case "do you have a b/f?" lol
j/k

Even without coral the thing with thing is SG levels can drop daily! and toxic levels can rise unless water changes are kept up weekly. you'll have some diatom algae for prolly first month or two also. just some info...


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Uhm, the SG doesn't drop, it goes up with evaporation.

Freshwater too easy? Hmm... maybe you'd like a challenge, then.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

Just remember, with a 10 gallon you will be adding water quite often to keep that salinity in check. Also, nitrates build up fast in a small tank... a protien skimmer is a good way to go to control it, but not necessary with frequent water changes.


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## cameraman_2 (Mar 28, 2005)

I once wanted a 10 gallon saltwater tank and I was told that you have to have a bigger tank that you can use to change the water with it daily.


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

TheOldSalt said:


> Uhm, the SG doesn't drop, it goes up with evaporation.
> 
> Freshwater too easy? Hmm... maybe you'd like a challenge, then.


 

Gosh dang it i did it again! that's twice i believe u got me on that one correction lol. Thanx.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

not really true cameraman, adding new saltwater is better than using water from a different system. The solution to pollution is dillussion, adding water from another tank would add more pollution.


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## ingo_1978 (Jun 13, 2005)

Wouldn't a fish only setup with a good filter and skimmer be easy enough?


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

well yeah, if they went a little bigger... I mean, nanos are a lot of work... I have a 20 gallon "nano" and I gotta add water constantly cuz of evaporation. Plus I ALWAYS make sure to test every 3-5 days to make sure those nitrates don't go up or that I don't have water chemistry issues because it happens quite a bit.


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## Guest (Jun 14, 2005)

I have been running a 10gl nano reef for over one year now. As long as you read up about salt water tanks...ask questions...and DO YOUR WATER CHANGES you should be ok. I also have been taken care of fresh water for 4 years and a brackish tank for 3years. I personally do not think it is too hard to take care of a nano reef...as long as you know what you are doing. Main thing if READ a lot before jumping into it. here is an older pic of my tank in March 05. I am also a girl running 4 fish tanks.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

like we all said... nanos are harder to keep... its best to do something larger, things go wrong quicker, parameters slip faster, and you don't get many (if any) mistakes. We tell newbies to start larger because they need a halo per say. A chance to make those mistakes without throwing out huge sums of money through dead corals fish and inverts etc.


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