How SW compares to a FW?

[tigga]

Hey,

Just like to start a thread with reasons why a saltwater tank is much better or worse than a Freshwater tank. I hope this can help others, such as me, with the constant problem on deciding whether to start a SW tank.


Lets see what others say

[weaselslucks]

SW tanks are more expensive but have so much color
FW could be set up cheeper and many fish are easier to take care of . My grandmother had a ten gallon with black mollies and she use to take out everything in the tank periodicly and wash it. Yes you all may cring now but i'll tell you no one had such big healthy mollies

[cd77]

I think I can answer this... I've had FW tanks since I was a kid. For your typical 20-30 gallon tropical fish tank, not much is really required of you.

First of all, let's be clear -- saltwater is an entirely different ballpark in my opinion, especially if you plan to keep a reef (live rock and corals) or any exotic critters. It requires more discipline (you can't just throw a Damsel in a bowl like you could a Betta), more research before you make changes, and it's constantly evolving and I've read many veterans (people who've had tanks for over a decade) are still learning.

In my area, I could take a few freshwater convict cichlids, throw them in a tank with nothing but a activated charcoal filter and an airpump, and they'll thrive -- top off the water maybe once a month, maybe do a 20% water change every three months and the little suckers will live forever and reproduce like rabbits.

Most people who get a starter tropical fish (in my experience) will throw a few tetras in it, maybe some angels, or gouramis, some fake plants and some blue colored rock and a a silly air ornament, and generally don't care too much about life expectancy. If one dies, no big deal -- it was cheap, down the toilet it goes and off to buy a new one. They are fun to watch for a little while, but tropical fish (for the most part) are pretty stupid, exhibit no real interesting behavior, and because the reward is so small, people frequently lose interest.

If you've had FW experience, and have moved into keeping brackish tanks, or planted tanks requring CO2 and special light, or even Discus, then I'd say you're more than ready to begin the SW adventure.

If you've had no experience with tanks at all, you're at the right place -- and if you're up to it after reading and researching, I think the reward definitely far outweighs the cost and time you put into it.

Now the good stuff -- SW fish are smart. They're behaviors are truly amazing. It took my less than a day before I had fish eating out of my hand. My clown pair are a joy to watch in something so simple as they chase the mag cleaner around the tank. SW fish have the most beautiful and vibrant colors you'll see.

... and that is just the fish. When I first set up my tank (which mind you, was only recently) I spent hours just watching my live rock -- there have got to be hundreds of different species, all playing their own part. When the lights are out at night, sometimes I'll take a flashlight and shine it at the tank for few seconds to see all the night critters I wouldn't normally see during the day. Some are as small as a strand of hair, while others are resemble small slugs.

Coral -- there are so many different types of coral to choose from, with (again) so much color and beautiful shape. You're going to have your own miniature ocean in your living room (or wherever) that you yourself with aquascape and choose the life in it.

Invertebrates -- When I think of FW cleaners, I think of the ugly pleco that will eventually outgrow my tank, and for the most part does a lousy job of really cleaning the tank. SW "cleanup crews" are another wonder of the SW world. Snails, shrimps, cucumbers, nudibranches, crabs, etc.. all of which exhibit their own unique behavior and play their own crucial role in your little ocean environment.

I could go on and on -- I've loved staring at beautiful SW tanks for as long as I could remember, and it's always been a dream of mine to own one. The last time I looked into it many years ago it simply wasn't feasible. Technology and resources since then have brought us to the point where you can have your own saltwater micro-reef in a 12 gallon nano tank!

All of that being said, the FW world does have a bit to offer -- African cichlids are beautiful, intelligent fish. Discus, though very difficult to keep and expensive, are also gorgeous. Planted tanks aquascaped to an appropriate, natural environment (which I've struggled with for years maintaining pH and CO2 without spending big bucks) are also beautiful.

In my opinion, the reward/cost ratio for a saltwater tank greatly outweighs freshwater.

[Saltwaterstart]

Amen to that last post Chris. That shows that saltwater is a lot better than freshwater in the long run.

Freshwater is also a bit more maintenance than that of saltwater, in my experience. I have a 150 and an 85 freshwater tank, and a 29 saltwater. I know someone who said "Wow, that 29 must take a lot of time to keep." After Actually getting help from people on RC, I realized that after the correct practice and getting used to routine, it takes about 5 minutes every day to clean off the glass, remove troublesome stuff, top off, and all the daily routines that people go through. It takes about an hour each week to do water changes for a 29, and it doesn't take long at all to keep your tank looking professional.

While I'm doing my freshwater maintenance, the fish are less demanding, and it gets almost boring seeing the same fish every time you turn on the light. Don't get me wrong, with the colourful fish you find, and cichlids, discus etc, you can have a piece of a lake wherever you want. Also, to me (because of the size of my tank), water changes take longer in Freshwater tanks than my saltwater.

[capn_hylinur]

with cd77's great elaborate post all I can add is

fresh water is boring----constant learning curve with saltwater

[Sk8r]

Well said. Let me add that you will learn [without realizing you're learning] a whole lot about biochemistry and water while keeping a reef.
You could schlep a long with a few tests now and again with FW. In a marine tank, testing is how you keep things healthy...testing for: temp, salinity [daily topoff with FW], alkalinity, nitrate/ammonia [s/b 0], calcium, magnesium [alk and cal and mg for corals more than fish]...BUT there are shortcuts: topping off with kalk [limewater, which handles calcium and alk]; learning to watch your corals [closed mushrooms means alk problems, etc.] And the fish---having, for instance, a yellow watchman goby with a pistol shrimp partner---is an absolute hoot. There's a lot of reading; but there's also this board, where you can ask questions and get experienced answers---especially if you ask in advance, as you're doing.

[demonsp]

I agree SW stock are much smarter and there are so many options. Somtimes im not sure if im watching them or there watching me.
But the commintment to the hobby is larger then most ( including me ) really relize untill your full steam into it , and by that time your either hooked or un interested in.
At my house it seems there is always someone starring into the tank just mezmorized. Best seat in the house. Njoy

Thats one fat cat hehee.

[wooden_reefer]

The reproductive behavior of FW fish is quite interesting to me. There is also a slight financial consideration.

A well-planted FW aquarium is also quite attractive.

[tigga]

Well said all...definitely switching to SW

[demonsp]

Remember , research , research , and dont forget to research before starting. The more you know up front the easier it will seem to be. From tank size to lighting and all the stock you will want.GL and njoy

[jcpatella]

I started a SW tank about three months ago and like cd77 said, I have been staring at my live rock, amazed at all the different "hitchhikers" that came on it. I just got my first clowns today (wife's request), and their personalities are something I've never seen in my previous FW tanks.

I agree with demonsp - decide NOW if you want a FOWLR (fish only with live rock) or reef tank (soft/hard coral, fish, live rock, etc). This way you can plan out as much as possible beforehand and eliminate incompatible species and useless expenses that you can't bring back to the store.

[CyboRob]

I will always love my freshwater tanks. Can't wait to have a nice Discus tank someday. Here is pic of my 36 bow from last winter, still looks the same.



The jury is still out for me on saltwater. Things are progressing well.

[cd77]

Originally posted by wooden_reefer
The reproductive behavior of FW fish is quite interesting to me. There is also a slight financial consideration.

A well-planted FW aquarium is also quite attractive.

Yes, they are. But let me tell you something -- in my admittedly limited experience with saltwater, a well planted FW tank is far more demanding than your typical 50-100 gallon SW tank. Lighting is tricky (too little: brown plants, too much: tons of algae) Keeping a nearly neutral pH can also be tricky depending upon your water sources, and the last thing you want to do with a mixed planted/FW fish tank is start adding chemicals because without buying a nice CO2 system, or you'll never be able to guage your real CO2 levels (which we calculate based on KH and pH in a planted tank) A lot of people end up using peat moss turning their tank a nice shade of puke just to deal with pH issues. You're also constantly pruning, cleaning the filter inputs and powerhead intakes of plant debris.. And like someone else said earlier, once you through some fish in there, cleaning maintenance is worse than any reef tank -- whether it's established or not.

[cd77]

Originally posted by CyboRob
I will always love my freshwater tanks. Can't wait to have a nice Discus tank someday. Here is pic of my 36 bow from last winter, still looks the same.



The jury is still out for me on saltwater. Things are progressing well.

Now that is a beautiful planted tank! Nice driftwood, excellent substrate, well aquascaped, nice rocks, and I see what appears to be a Venturi injector (Turbo CO2 Bio System by any chance or do you have a CO2 tank) and is that an Emperor filter? -- I hope one day to get my tank that beautiful. Your neon tetras also bring a lot of color to the display

No doubt that some FW tanks can be impressive -- but in my own humble opinion, you just can't beat the awe inspring beauty of an established reef aquarium.

[cd77]

Originally posted by tigga
Well said all...definitely switching to SW

Now is the time to start doing research (lots of great references here, and lots of excellent books out there) and asking questions before you dive in -- take the common advice offered and start off slowly (I myself am guilty of jumping into it a bit too fast, and it's OHH SOO very hard to resist -- but I've learned, and patience pays off in starting a SW reef (if you decide to go the LR/reef route)

Post pictures as soon as you have them!!

[tigga]

Originally posted by cd77
Now is the time to start doing research (lots of great references here, and lots of excellent books out there) and asking questions before you dive in -- take the common advice offered and start off slowly (I myself am guilty of jumping into it a bit too fast, and it's OHH SOO very hard to resist -- but I've learned, and patience pays off in starting a SW reef (if you decide to go the LR/reef route)

Post pictures as soon as you have them!!

believe me i have done a whole lot of research and have asked whole lot of questions on this. Just check the post count. I didn't enter the hundreds saying 'nice tank' to all the tank pics i see on this forum

I even have a t5ho installed on my current FW tank that is 6 months old just to be ready in case I want to switch up(now that's planning)

[demonsp]

Did i mention research Oh a good book is great idea. Good point.

[tigga]

Research is what I had done for the past year or so whenever I had the interest and time

[demonsp]

Hopefully you have also been saving some money that last year. HEHE GL and Njoy

[capn_hylinur]

Originally posted by tigga
Well said all...definitely switching to SW

keep both

[tigga]

ah no I'm more of a person that'll save for college or spend it right away but lets see what happens.

[tigga]

Originally posted by capn_hylinur
keep both

I might transfer the FW fish and stuff into a 10g tank, but I'm keeping my 29g for a SW setup. I made a DIY stand and canopy so it'll look nicer

[Lotus99]

Money is a big difference in saltwater. Everything costs more.

I, too, have a dozen freshwater tanks, most of them planted. But saltwater was a big difference in terms of how much we've spent. Even the weekly water changes add up with the salt usage and RO water.

We waited for a while to start our saltwater tank, mostly because we didn't want to have to do a lot of corner cutting on equipment and livestock. I'm really glad that we waited until we had more money available, so we didn't have to pass up the $40 corals because we had a bill that needed to be paid.

[CyboRob]

Originally posted by cd77
Now that is a beautiful planted tank! Nice driftwood, excellent substrate, well aquascaped, nice rocks, and I see what appears to be a Venturi injector (Turbo CO2 Bio System by any chance or do you have a CO2 tank) and is that an Emperor filter? -- I hope one day to get my tank that beautiful. Your neon tetras also bring a lot of color to the display

No doubt that some FW tanks can be impressive -- but in my own humble opinion, you just can't beat the awe inspring beauty of an established reef aquarium.

Thanks
Yes that's an Emperor and I have a CO2 tank running to the diffuser.
Those are Cardinal tetras, kinda hard to tell from that picture.

[MSU Fan]

yeah, echoing what's already been said - SW setups (especially reefs) are much more energetic and exciting to watch, and there is always something new to find.

I have had a planted tank running for 10 months - running highlight with CO2 - the whole 9 yards. That tank is much, much, much more work than my equivalent size 75g reef. The biggest advantage I have found to working on a med-high light planted FW tank is that you have to be very diligent with maintenance. If you keep up with that, chances are the nuisance algaes, etc of the world won't get a good foothold. SW requires the same level of diligence. That was my biggest take away.

And the money issue - double any estimate of what you plan to put in the SW tank (especially reef) unless you have a very detailed plan of what you want. I tried to keep it low budget, but I can't. I have well over $1k invested in my 75g tank, and don't any light at the end of the tunnel.