Starting a Marine Tank

brentnorm said:
You guys on in the evening ? Would like to chat a bit when I am not at work.
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:lol::lol::lol:

What a question, were all MASA addicts, yip were here see you then:thumbup:
 
A Newbie

Hi guys,

This is an ultimate site and just what us newbies require, there are tonnes and tonnes of questions we need to ask and im sure we'll get it from your highly experienced communities ????

I've done my reading and started and boyd nana 140 L yesterday. Spent hours on this handy site and I hope I can educate myself to be an aspiring reefies like you all are.

I've always dreamed of having my own aquarium and now taken the plunge, a bit daunting for me as i've never even kept tropical fish and taking the plunge into the 'deep' end.

Thanks again for hosting this, all the forums are invaluable ....

Sammy
 
welcometomasa

Sammy please start a thread under new members section. And we can all be involved in your new tank and help along the way.
 
Hi Sammy! A very WARM welcome to MASA - I will create a new thread for you in the "New members" forum. Then please go on and shoot with the questions! We are all VERY willing to try and help you to become a very successfull marine reefkeeper!
 
A very WARM WELCOME to MASA, Ben! Please start a new thread in the "New Members" section telling us all about yourself, your tank/s, life-stock, hard-ware and any other interesting piece of info you wanna share! ;-)

BUT - BEWARE! WE ARE PICTURE HOGS!
 
Hey Mashrie. Thanks for for the info. I have recocnized most of what I read, as my tank is now 3months old only. I am (unfortuantely) at the cyanobacteria stage now. But I now understand a bit more.

I want to throw a rock into the bushes here a bit, and make a statement. Please us what you all think about it. This is all to do with setting up new tanks, or even moving existing setups.

I have done a lot of reading on this site, books etc. Also plenty of advice from the two lfs in my area. It seems (as a newbie to the game) that there are certain ABC's to keeping marine "life." Then everybody else has another opinion about certain finer details - as this came from their own personal experience. Thing is, I think there is a lot more to it than just your setup vs. mine vs. his etc. One thing for example is actual location - both geograpically and in the room. Advice from Cape Town or Durbs might night work for us in JHB, due to humidity differances etc. and visa versa. If my tank is also situated next to a window with plenty of natural light, it will be a whole different game than someone having his tank in a hallway with minimum or no natural light (with regards to algae etc.)

My conclusion / and advice as one newbie to all the other newbies is what I have learnt in this time. That is that you MUST do research, and if you feel you've done enough, then do some more. I didn't do this, and ignorance is bliss, as I am struggling, and all of a sudden I need to do all my homework now.

Once you've done your research, you will know the ABC. So you've got the knowledge now, but no wisdom as yet. Knowledge is the father of wisdom, as you now need to put the knowledge into a deed. Then you will have wisdom and only then will you learn what works in YOUR OWN SETUP and what doesn't. And what works for you might not work for others. Yet we must still share our wisdom to broaden others knowledge.

This is what I have realized a while back when I got plenty of advice regarding filtration, algae issues etc. Some say DSB, others say bioballs and ceramic rings etc. You need to read up on what you feel is best, do it and stick with it.
 
Oh, personally, I have changed from a Canister Filter to a Trickle Filter with Bio Balls and Ceramics, and I am now converting into a DSB within this week. This all within 3 months. This is due to good advice, and a better understanding of things. Our local LFS runs there big display tanks on both ceramics and a DSB with great success, so again that showed me you need to make it work - whatever you choose.
 
Hi all thanks for the great advice. I will certainly take this advice into consideration before I start my first marine tank.
 
Hello there ChesireCat.

let me take the opertunity of welcoming you to MASA i see that was your first post. If these are the sort of threads you are reading BEFORE starting out, then you are on the right track :)

but why not starta thread under new members and let MASA welcome you properly, also let us know where your hearts desires are with regards to marines and see if we cant help you along:)

starting ones first tank is an incredible journey, one that requires amazing amounts of learning and the help that masadonians can give really will be the best advice you can find.

Welcome and happy reefing:)
 
awesome awesome

Hi All,

so glad to have found this site...

alot of reading to be done... looking to change my tropical tank to a marine tank! :)
 
What would be a suitable sized marine tank? out of your guys experience over the years... i have a moderately big 3ft tank... but dont want to start changing it over to a marine tank, if i should rather keep it as a "spare" tank and purchase a bigger tank?
 
Fish With Invertibrates Tank

Hi,

I am looking for fish with invertibrate tank setup. I have a 60gallon tank in my hand. Can you suggest me that what type of filteration,substrate,lighting & decoration are suitable for this type of setup(Also bear i mind that my budget is small)?


Alan said:
When starting out in the hobby there are basically 3 considerations, the amount of time you have to dedicate to your system, amount of space available for your system and lastly budget. With regards to budget beware as there are plenty hidden costs that lurk.
IMO the best investment you can make in this hobby is knowledge, this will ultimatly determine your success or failure, success is not determined by the amount of money you spend on your system.
One of the most frequently asked questions on forums is: How do we start a marine tank? Here are a few of the answers please read through this if you are new to the hobby and just getting started. The below article is abit dated but still has some very useful information.

''Welcome to the wonderful world of saltwater system set-up and operation where we contrive to control all things to keep our livestock alive and happy; but mostly just modulate everything. We've got more components and gew-gaws then "Carter has liver pills", with many more than a few ideas on how they can or should be put together.'' Quoted from wetwebmedia

The entire article can be found here.
[url]http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marineSetUp.htm[/URL]
[url]http://www.wetwebmedia.com/AqBizSubWebIndex/marsetupho.htm[/URL]
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Hi JIT, and WELCOME to MASA.

Why don't you introduce yourself properly in a new thread in the New Members forum, and give us more details of your current equipment, and on what is available in your country.

Also, do a lot of reading here on MASA - all your questions have been asked and answered many times in the past, and all this information is available if you just spend some time reading the various threads. After having done your homework, we will gladly answer whatever specific questions you may have.

Hennie
 
Hi.

Please elaborate on the "hidden costs that lurk" and once a system is up and running what are the monthly expenditures on carbon, food and salt? Please add if I left out something(monthly stuff being used).

Jaco.
 
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