Hello I am new here

[lv4paints]

Hello I have always wanted a saltwater tank and am thinking of starting with a biocube 14gallon I think it is. How do I get the tank started from nothing to the end.
I am assumong I would first put the sand in then any rock then water???? Having a saltwater tank is like a dream for me. But I am scared at the same time.:whew:

[prof]

Welcome to MAAST!

That is an very broad question. It is hard to know where to begin.

Do you have any previous aquarium experience?
What do you want to keep? - This is the place to start. We can guide you from there.

[lv4paints]

I do have freshwater tanks. I hadn't really thought about what I want to keep. I know I want like the decorator crab and really stuff that will be fairly easy just starting out. Guess I should get an idea on what else I would like to have. Any suggestions would be good for a first timer.

Missy:lightbulb:

[alasg001]

The best thing to do is read up on everything and dont rush. Tons of content here and on many different forums, and different websites. Wet Web Media is a good resource to ask questions and also get tons of information on livestock. Join a fish/aquarium group or club and check out other peoples setups. Just remember what works for one person does not mean the animal will act the same for you in your tank. There are basic reef water quality peramiters that should be met to keep the animals happy, and the initial startup cost can be excessive. Be careful on what livestock you mix as they can and will consume each other if that is their calling in life. One thing to remember with equipment; you often get what you pay for. Go slowly because that is the best way to set things up and also to progress forward. I recommend getting the best skimmer you can afford, and the brightest light setup. Also use liverock and get the largest tank you think you will want because you will end up changing to it later. Dont use any tap water, stay away from the skillter filters, powersweep powerheads. If you are to have a substrate use aragonite sand. If you want to jumpstart the cycling process use a piece of fresh shrimp from the grocery store not damsel fish. It is cheaper in cost and will be easier to take out later. Good water flow is very helpful in keeping corals. Lastly be ready to watch your bank account shrink, and take all information with a grain of salt. You will get some rude opinionated peoples know it all answers from different places and forums. If your close enough I would love to stop by and help you get started. Good luck and happy reefing.

[g-ray]

Welcome to MAAST its hard to know where to start there are alot of opinions out there, are you looking to do a fish only or a small reef in the bio cube?

[Morena_Model]

Starting off, you do need to bleach out the tank or clean it well enough that all previous fresh water bacteria is gone. Then you can start replacing your gravel with some sort of calcerous material (crushed coral, dolomite, argonite, etc). Which I think you said you were going to use sand. Then you should check all your equipment for anything metal. Saltwater will rust anything except the highest grade stainless steel. There are stainless steels which will rust when exposed to saltwater. Needless to say, you need to replace or get rid of anything made of metal. The filtration system used in your freshwater system will usually be adequate for a saltwater system. However, you can use this opportunity to upgrade or change filtration mechanisms and lighting depending on what you want in your tank. Also, which ever type of filtration system you are using, you should add some sort of extra water circulation to the tank. Saltwater is known to have a lower dissolved oxygen content than freshwater, so you need to keep the water in the tank moving at all times. Actually, it needs to do more than move. You need to disrupt the surface of the water to maximize oxygen transfer with the atmosphere. Unless the livestock you're gong to be using doesn't require current in the water. In that case, you need to be sure that any other livestock you aquire will also not be needing current. The lighting you used for you freshwater system should also work for a fish-only saltwater tank. However, if you want to keep invertebrates, you will need to upgrade (more that just your lighting). I'm sure you know that one part of a freshwater system that needs to be replaced is the food. Marine fish need varied diets. You need to supply your fish with a combination of fresh, frozen and live food. Flake food, although adequate, should not be the major portion of your fish's diet. Finally, when you are ready to make the switch to saltwater, you really should replace all the water in your system. It is best to start with nitrate free water to minimize the potential for algae problems. Alot of people think that adding salt to a cycled freshwater tank will yield a cycled saltwater tank. But it's not true...saltwater nitrifying bacteria are different than freshwater nitrifying bacteria, so they must be cultured from scratch. *As a note, nitrifying bacteria seem to be pH and temperature sensitive. So moving some gravel from a warm saltwater tank (~85F/24C) to a temperate saltwater tank (72F/21C) will shock the bacteria enough to nullify any advantage from using the gravel (e.g., to shorten the cycle time).* But make sure you do cycle your tank for at least a week or so. If you want to throw in some sort of livestock before hand...although I don't recommend it...you should start out cheap. As for what type of livestock to add to your tank...after cycling and measuring out your water for nitrate, etc. levels...if you did it right then you should pretty much be able to add anything to your tank without it dying. But just to test the waters...I would start out small, cheap, and with not too much stuff all at once since you really shouldn't be introducig a ton of stuff all at once anyway. Once everything's set up and your water levels are perfect, it's pretty simple to maintain....feed live stock, water changes, upgrades...simple enough. Good luck...I'm sure you'll enjoy it once you've gotten the hang of it :)

[Iplantz]

this is a great place to start, welcome.

[Morena_Model]

O yea...and if you ever used any type of medicine for your fresh water fish when they were sick...best advice would be to get another tank because no matter how much you wash out your tank it still stays in the creveces so although it may not happen right away...chances are that some where down the line it'll kill everything in your salt water tank.

[lv4paints]

Thank you all for the info. The 14gallon bio cube will be brand new by Oceaninic(spelling sucks). I would love to have corals as well.

[MKCindy]

Welcome on board!
I started by checking out every book my local library had and some they transferred in for me. Read, read , read. Understanding how and why salt water has to cycle, is the beginning. Don't add any fish or other livestock until your tank has cycled. This can go faster by using "Live Sand" from the store (a little pricey) or sand (no play sand) mixed with sand from an established tank (just ask and we will donate), but it still has to cycle. A basic test kit is a must too. Even after it begins to cycle, you will have mini-cycles for months and algae cycles. Don't panic, it is all part of the process. Each type of algae gets snuffed out by another type until pink trumps. (Books explain it in scientific detail) Don't rush it, save yourself time, money and frustration. Read back in the files and there are thread on what people did wrong and why being patient is priceless. Good Luck, be a turtle, slowly one step at a time wins the race.

[Morena_Model]

I have live rock/sand for sale. If you're interested let me know.

[ErikH]

www.nano-tuners.com (http://www.nano-tuners.com)

There are tons of nano mods there, and they cover just about every single nano known to man.

On most SW systems you need a skimmer. They are hard to find that actually work well on small systems. I would research nano skimmers on multiple forums and get a feel for what seems to work well. That being said, on a small tank as such, you will need to change your water frequently to keep your levels at an optimal level. I highly recommend purchasing a floating hydrometer, and/or a refractometer. They measure salinity, in which accuracy is crucial, especially in a nano tank. You want to make sure that the new water is the same PH, temp, and salinity prior to adding it to your tank. Reason being that 14 gallons is relatively small, so any change could cause a drastic change in a tank that size. I tell everyone to go as big as they can afford. I would start off with live rock from and established system, and some dry sand from a local fish store (LFS). This way the critters from the rock will liven up your sand naturally, and the sand will not have any die off like bags of "live sand" tend to have. If you have about 1-2 lbs of rock per gallon in your tank, and a small bioload, the tank will pretty much self sustain without the need for a skimmer. If you go skimmerless though, you MUST keep up with your water changes to keep unwanted nuisance algaes from taking over the tank. This is why people tell you to go slow! Every change or addition in a tank can be considered a major one. A good place to plan a fish list is on www.liveaquaria.com (http://www.liveaquaria.com) They have a section just for nano fish. I would recommend a shrimp/goby combo for a tank that size. Good luck and welcome.
Oh, once you learn how to use the search feature here, it's on!