15 Gallon marine tank.

[frostiex]

Hi all I have been keeping a couple fresh water aquarium for over 6 years. I recently upgraded one of my 15 gallon to a 33 gallon. and since my son is really into nemo so I am thinking about starting a marine tank with the 15 gallon. I am wondering how to start off?

I have some sand and stuff, a powerhead filter and a aquaclear 200 from before, is this enough for filtration?

Would it be ok to use tap water from a water softener?

 

I have been thinking about starting a marine aquarium for a long time. and now it is just more motivating to start the marine since my son is staring to really like fishes. (he looks at my fresh water aquariums all the time)

 

any help would be great.

 

thanks,

 

Frostiex

[aqua_aaron]

go to the information link at the top of this page and click on it. it'll lead you to the basic information you need.

the actual filtering is done by live rock which you add to your tank. the ac200 w/o the media (except for the occasional use of carbon) will be fine for flow along with the powerhead.

as for the tapwater, no. distilled is cheap at the local supermarket and should be used.

a 15 gallon is just fine for a clownfish and another small peaceful species.

HTH

aqua_aaron

[Tempest]

Please read up on marine tanks before attempting this. I read books and on-line articles for 6 months before starting my first marine tank. Julian Sprung is a good author. A good starting book is "The Conscientious Marine Aquarium" (different author, don't remember name.) Below are the basics (equipment) for a 15 gallon tank.

 

1. 20-30 lbs live sand (Arag-Alive would be fine - try Petco)

2. 20 lbs live rock

3. AC 200 is fine

4. 30 - 70 gph powerhead

5. 75 watt heater with guard

6. Use water purified by reverse osmosis or distilled water.

7. Salt mix.

8. Swing arm hydrometer or, preferable, refractometer - to measure salinity/specific gravity.

9. Test kits to measure ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, high range pH and alkalinity.

 

 

Equip tank. Fill with RO or distilled water. Add salt mix. Check salinity (should be 1.023-1.025). Add live rock. Add sand. Wait 2 days then check water for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH. pH should be 8.1-8.4 (8.3 is ideal). Wait until ammonia and nitrite are at 0 = cycled (this can take anywhere from 1 week to 2 months depending on the quality of rock. Using fully cured rock and the arag-alive sand will greatly reduce cycling time. Wait at least 2 weeks just to be safe). Add snails and hermit crabs (five astrea, turbo or margarita snails and 5 blue leg or red leg hermit crabs - as the tank ages you may want to get more for algae and waste control). Wait a week. Add fish.

 

Good luck.

[palaegic]

Highly recommend this book as an intro to reefkeeping:

 

John Tullock's: Natural Reef Aquariums

 

Here is a link to the articles that you have been referred to:

Nano-Reef Articles

 

Your tap water question is a common one. It cannot be stressed enough, tap water is not acceptable for use in a reef. It won't kill your fish overnight - and the impact won't be seen immediately at all. Simply put, the chemical composition of tapwater; (prescence of nitrates,phosphates, and silicates) is counterproductive to the long term success of your mini-reef.

 

Keep asking questions, welcome to the forum.

[Crakeur]

but the flouride in the water will give your teeth a very white smile.

[quiksilver5768]

I would read up about marine fishes before starting. Make sure you know everything that you mihgt need to know before you start so that if something goes wrong, you will know how to handle it.

 

As for the water, i would have to disagree with everyones automatic NO. I would say to test your tap water first, see if its high in phospahtes, or nitrates (since those are the main things you dont want from your tap water to be put into your fish tank). By using a water softener like you said, you shouldnt have any problem with any traces of metals in the water. So my advice is to test it, and see if its alright. In very crowded city areas (NYC, Chicago, etc...) the water will most likely not be alright to use. I live in Columbia, Maryland and my water is perfectly fine. I just fill up my bucket with tap water, put some tap water conditioner in, and im fine.

[frostiex]

thanks for the help, I am gonna do more research, I really like how elegant the salt water fishes are compare to the fresh water fish.

 

thanks again.