Saltwater And Freshwater Aquariums – What You Need To Know
September 30th, 2009 | 
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Having a saltwater aquarium can be fun and rewarding or can be upsetting if a person lacks knowledge on the proper and right ways of taking care of fish especially in the saltwater aquarium.
Setting up one requires some equipment to be used for the success of your saltwater aquarium. Filters and air pump are some of the most important facilities. Some decorations can be added such as sand and gravels, which sometimes varies in different colors. You can also include plastic or real plants, castle or miniatures ship and other fancy decorations in the aquarium, but just be very careful that it won’t clutter inside. Light is also essential in saltwater aquarium for the enhancement of the color of the aquarium and especially the fishes survival.
Saltwater aquarium requires three types of filtration. One is the Biological filtration, which involves the removal of the bacteria, which is often created by the fish on its activities, and processes that it undergoes inside the tank. Second, the chemical filtration that is more on the removing of the discoloration and chemicals on the water that harms the fish inside the tank. Third, is the mechanical filtration, which deals more with the removal of the visible materials floating on the aquarium such as uneaten fish foods, wastes of the fishes and other squanders floating or at the bottom of the saltwater aquarium, and this job is commonly done by the net.
There are many considerations regarding the proper ways in keeping the fish alive in a saltwater aquarium, unlike freshwater aquariums; saltwater aquarium is more difficult to set up. One very good example is mixing saltwater. We must remember that water evaporates while the salt is left, which means that the salinity of the water on the tank always varies, which can cause harm especially on the fishes inside the aquarium. A hydrometer may help you track the salinity of the water and add some salt to get the right salinity content of the water.
Beginners can set up their saltwater aquarium depending on what they like. You can just put fish only in the aquarium, or fish with full reef ambience, or whatever design you want, as long as it you make sure that the fish inside the aquarium would be able to survive.
Experienced aquarists and experts say that we must always find the perfect place for the aquarium in the house. If the location of your saltwater aquarium is always struck by sunlight, it may result to changes on the temperature of the water on the tank and would produce more algae due to the sun and its UV rays, which may harm your fish inside the aquarium.
Some people find taking care of fishes as a pet difficult. The reason behind this maybe is that they lack familiarity or they were not given the right information on the proper ways on taking care of the aquarium as well as the fishes inside, but the truth is, it is not that much difficult at all.
There are several steps to be considered in order to become successful on taking care of freshwater fishes.
First step is to have all the equipments to be used on the aquarium or fish tank. One is the filtration equipment, which is responsible for keeping and maintaining the cleanliness and freshness of the water on the tank and you need an air pump to keep the water on the tank aerated and to produce oxygen for the fish or plants inside the tank.
Decorations such as gravel, sand, and plants that can be plastic or real ones, depending on your choice, are great ideas as well. There are also some decorations nowadays made of plastic such as a fortress, vessel, shells and other fancy garlands and some aquarium backgrounds, which are commonly underwater views. Lights also give a very desirable effect on the enhancement of color in the aquarium and gives real plants inside chlorophyll for them to grow. However, beware of putting different decorations inside the tank because it may just pollute the water or just muddle the water inside. Always remember that fishes needs space for them to swim.
There must also be a cover on the aquarium to protect dust or other materials going into the tank. A stand for the aquarium also plays a vital role in keeping the balance of the tank. Other cleaning materials is also important such as a net, chlorine remover, heater for keeping the right temperature of the water and most importantly, fish food.
Some of the best advices is to be careful in feeding the fish because over feeding of fish may result to harm. There are also some people who put too many fishes on their aquarium, do not forget that some fish fights and it might cause inadequate supply of oxygen for the fish and real plants inside the tank if there are too many fishes on the tank.
Low Jeremy
http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/saltwater-and-freshwater-aquariums-what-you-need-to-know-106206.html
Posted in Tank Pump
Saltwater vs. Freshwater aquariums……..As for the care and upkeep, is there a difference between the two?
I have always had a freshwater aquarium, so I am experienced plenty with them, but we are debating on getting a large saltwater aquarium. Are they harder to keep up? What about corals? Any information is appreciated.
I don’t remember exactly what all he did, but a friend of mine had a salt water, and they are MUCH MORE upkeep than fresh water. If you have a little extra time, it would be a good idea, but if you don’t I wouldn’t suggest it.
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they are harder… my wife went from fresh to salt and back again… the fish are more expensive.
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fresh easier
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They are alot harder to maintain but are so much more beautiful to look at. Depending on where you live there are stores that only deal with salt water tanks. They have corals in all different colors and shapes, they will also help you maintain your tank. When you first start it is very confusing with all the different things you need. A good salt water shop will help you with everything even over the phone questions.
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To start off, one of the main differences is the price. Salt water fish generally are more expensive than freshwater ones. Also, the aquariums require a lot of extra work, the water must be a certain temperature otherwise the fish may die, and other problems may arise.
A friend of mine used to have a salt water aquarium, the fish were incredible, just beautiful…and each time he went to the store, he would buy a new fish, always a more expensive fish, some cost hundreds of dollars, at times some of the new fish would die because they didn’t adjust to the new environment or for whatever reason. In the end, he had to give it up, he couldn’t afford to put any more money into his hobby.
Make sure you do your research very very well, speak to the experts at the fish store before you decide.
Good luck.
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Saltwater tanks are really hard to get set up, the water balance, the live rock, etc. Once they are set up they aren’t as bad but still a lot more work then freshwater.
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http://www.fishtankforums.com
There is a lot more upkeep on a saltwater tank. The water usually needs to be warmer, which creates more algea, my friends have one and its huge, it needs to be cleaned a few times a month, and you have to have the right stuff, or it will kill the fish.
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i have a 3oo gallon reef tank now, and i have had freshwater tanks before this.. it is a lot of maintance, time, and ALOT OF MONEY. Everything i have puechased from the tank to the corals, live rock, fish, live sand, equipt. my tab has racked up to nearly $20,000 its def. not a cheap hobby.
And I have to spend an hour atleast every day cleaning the tank and the skimmer & filter making sure all the fish eat and healthy. Its a lot of hard earned work- but def well worth the sight it if you have the Cash and time!!!!
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fresh water is easyer and has an overall low cost.
saltwater is not harder to keep but they cost more and you have to spend more time taking care of them you have to do almost daily water test and adding and changing water takes more time as you have to add salt or just water and you have to test it every time. and if you want to keep coarls you have to but good lights and may need to add chemicals all the time to keep them alive . the key to salt water is time and money money and time and knowing how to care for what you have.
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Saltwater aquariums are much more difficult to care for. If things start to go wrong in a freshwater tank (high ammonia levels, etc), you have some time to correct them, and they go bad more slowly. If things start to go bad in a saltwater tank, they go downhill much more rapidly, and you’re likely to end up with a tank full of dead fish. If you decide to try a saltwater aquarium, make sure to do your homework and follow all directions given to you by professionals EXACTLY.
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Setting up a reef tank (which will include live rock, corals and possibly other invertebrates in addition to fish) is complicated but do-able, and will require a certain level of patience, effort and commitment. There’s a lot to know and learn before getting into it. This is probably also the most expensive saltwater set up to do in terms of the lighting and equipment you’ll need, but perhaps also the most rewarding.
Assuming you are a conscientious and experienced freshwater aquarist, a Fish Only saltwater set up, on the other hand, is, in my opinion, not much harder or expensive than freshwater set ups, especially if going with hardier marine species. With that said, I wouldn’t recommend attempting saltwater if one hasn’t had much success with freshwater aquariums.
Finally, these are two great links I found worth reading:
http://www.epinions.com/content_4447641732
Also check online forums for more info (www.reefcentral.com is a great place to gain knowledge)
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I have freshwater, marine fish-only and marine reef tanks.
Minimum start up costs for the smallest tank a beginner should attempt (a 50 gallon) is between $500 and $700, then you start buying fish. The reason for a 50 gallon is that the larger volume of water takes longer to crash (go bad) than a smaller tank.
Here is a site that has very good info on marine start ups:
http://saltaquarium.about.com/
Check the left side of the page for links to all the topics.
Water quality is the absolute most critical part of a marine tank and testing must be done constantly to maintain it.
The difference between fresh and salt is that fresh water tanks are hard to get up and running but then easy to maintain, where a marine tank is fairly easy to get started, but very difficult and expensive to maintain.
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26 years of keeping and spawning many different species of tropical fish and cichlids. 25 tanks up and running at present (partial water changes done every week to 10 days). Mostly cichlids and scavengers right now with 5 tanks devoted to various freshwater crustaceans. I have worked in both the retail and wholesale tropical fish business.
The Greatest Enemy of Truth is not the deliberate lie; Rather it is all those things we know to be true…that are not.
8 in the Corner
its not alot harder in a tank 55 or so and larger, setups are more expensive, a wet/dry and a protein skimmer can set you backa few hundred, DIYing a wet/dryt can be a huge savings. if you want coral you are looking into a big chunk of change, around 1000-1500 for a high light 55g reef, and thats before live stock, for a fish only tank with live rock under 1000 and you should be able to stock it withnthat as well, up keep is not much more difficult. empty the skimmer cup every few days and mix salt. wetwebmedia is a good place to start research. sorry this is really incohernat
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I have 22 years experiance in saltwater and 34 years in freshwater.
I will never go back to freshwater (Too dirty, too many diseases…)
I have 3 saltwater tanks running in my home at the moment (1 x 75 gal reef tank, 1x 75gal fish only with live rock and 1x 30gal tall seahorse and pipefish tank)
I set up the seahorse tank for $300 including the lights(good enough for some soft corals)
You can set up a fish only with live rock the same way.
For filtration I use 2" of live sand, 25 pounds of live rock ($3.00 per lb.) and a mix of about 20 small hermit crabs and 20 assorted snails.
I use 1x Maxijet 600 and 1x maxijet 400 to move the water through and around the live rock for Excelent biological filtration.
I also added a Aqua clear 300 with minimum water flow filled with small pieces of live rock and stuffed with Marine plants for coepods to reproduce for the pipefish (refugium)
I bought 99% of this stuff used and from people’s houses in my city. (Local classified ads in papers and on the internet)
The maintanance on this tank is a 20% water change every 2 weeks, only because I have to feed the seahorses 3 times a day instead of 1 or 2 times for the fish only tank.
I clear the algae off of the front and sides when needed.
And I add more crabs and snails when needed.
I am looking for a SMALL USED skimmer so I will not have to do the water changes as often.
Larger tanks are better at keeping water quality stable but they also come with a higher price tag to fill with rocks and livestock.
GO FOR IT
THEY are not as hard as most people say.
Do some research and ask some questions on a SALTWATER FORUM like this one.
http://ovas.ca/index.php?PHPSESSID=62f69c81e0c9fafbc1281c7d4585d5b3&
Buy as much used equipment as you can and look for an aquarium CLUB in your city where you may be able to purchase livestock at half the price of a store or even trade equipment and livestock.
Good luck and enjoy
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