Starting a 50g saltwater tank, tank feedback and advice.

[doogie8]

I've decided it's time to start my aquarium, very very slowly. I wanted to do this 8 months ago, I bought two books, and at the same time, bought a puppy. So the dog ended up taking all my free time, and the aquarium was put on hold. I haven't read the books lately, so I need to go over them again, but here is what I have planned.
I want to get a corner aquarium, i think they are around 50-55 gallons. Are these aquariums okay to use? From the looks, they are 'deeper' then regular 50 gallon tanks, so I wonder if this will affect fish at all, because of the lighting and depth? Any feedback on these corner tanks? (with the rounded glass)

Second, I know it'll take some work and maintenance for a salt water tank, but I'm curious, to exactly how much time per week do I need to spend on maintenance? I'm looking to start with just a few fish, until I learn more about the hobby, then I plan on getting more advanced/expensive fish.

Any advice is welcome, I've been reading everything I can on this board, and other boards.

[speccialj922]

its best to decide whether you ever plan on doing a reef from the beggining. a reef tank and a reg. saltwater tank are about as different as freshwater is to saltwater.

on your tank choice, corners tend to look ok, but its a huge pain getting to the back of them (for maintenance). i have a 50g tank (its my first tank - was estabolished when i got it, and has been here for 10 months or so). i have to say that i love my tank. 55g are nice n long, but theyre so thin (back to front) that its hard to aquascape. honestly i cant imagine doing a tank thinner than mine is now.

this hobby has a reputation for being near impossible as well as extremely time consuming. it does take more time than a fw tank, but if you break up the "chores" to different days, its really not that bad. i probly mess with my tank about 20 min a day. sometimes way more, sometimes less.

hth
justin

[doogie8]

I don't have a problem with 20 minutes a day.
I'm trying to decide if I want to go with fish only or not.

How much easier is a fish only tank to maintain and handle?
I'm worried that if I just get a fish only tank, I'll be missing out. :)
But I seen some nice fish only tanks, so it's difficult for me to decide. Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you very much.

[sesegal99]

go bigger if you are doing a reef!!!!

I have a 150 gallon, 72"x18"x28". Length and height are good but i wish i went with somthin with agreater depth. If you plan on having tangs or angels, def go with a bigger tank as these fish need swimming room as do most of the fish you'll prob want to buy. I doubt a 55 corner is going to give you that type of room. It may be ok though if you plan on just doing small fish that don't swim all over the place.

[doogie8]

Hmm, maybe I should just go with a fish only tank.
Is live rock considered reef? I'm not really sure.
I don't have much room, so I was thinking of going witha simple corner tank. Maybe I should go wtih fish only and keep it simple.

[Jimbo]

A properly set up marine tank with live rock takes less time than a freshwater tank to mainain. That is, if you're maintaining the freshwater tank properly. I have a large reef tank, but don't have time for any freshwater tanks anymore.

Jim

[speccialj922]

there are 3 types of saltwater tank

fish only(FO)
fish only with live rock (FOWLR)
reef

fish only is by far the easiest. when you go to fowlr things get a little different. if you want pink coralline algae to grow on your lr, you need to monitor calcium and alkalinity. you also need at least moderate lights and need to have moderate flow. my suggestion is to invest in a few good books (particularly robert fenner's "the concientious marine aquarist") and calculate what you plan on spending. then decide which is right for you. as helpfull as this site is, people forget to post things, not to mention everyone does things differently, so a book is a little bit of a safer bet for someone just starting the hobby.
hth

[doogie8]

I bought a couple books, I'm going to find them and go over them again.
Am I limited to certain fish with a fish only tank?
I was reading one of the tangs, and it said they need rock to hide in.
I think I might start with a FO tank, to keep it simple.

[pixburg-reefer]

well it depends on what kind of fish you want and if they are compatible. Like you don't want a lionfish and a damsel, he'll eat the damsel. But then it depends on how big of a tank you get, the bigger the tank, the more fish/bigger the fish. And if the fish are preditors or not will effect what kind of filtration you will need.
hth
Kelly

[doogie8]

Thanks for the help.
If i get the 50gallon corner tank...
What are the brightest/colorful fish I can get, and put together.
I'm thinking the basics, the most popular ones, like:

yellow tang
blue hippo tang (?)
clownfish, dont' know the one, the common one, similar to the animated fish movie that Ican't remember right now, lol.
Angel fish (?) Is a 50gallon tank too small for angel fish.
I want something like the Emperor Angel - Juvenile, but a 50gallon is too small. Is there something that looks like that, which I can have?
Thank you all.

[pixburg-reefer]

you need to also think about the future of your fish. Tangs will out grow 50 gallon tanks, the blue hippo tang will get very big, not a good choice, you can't put 2 tangs togeater very well in such a small tank. Maybe at first but when they grow...
clownfish are a good choice.
Angels are veggie eaters and need algae/supplemented food such as lettuce. Angels grow big and fast but the more smaller angles are the flame anelfish and the coral beauty. And when you stock your fish you need to add the most docile fish first. Chromises are a good choice, even tho they are a damsel (usually agressive) I find them nice fish. But they like schools of 4 or more. So you need to pick small fish that don't get very large (SOME wrasses, damsles, hawk fish, clownfish, etc.)
hth
Kelly

[Peabody]

doogie: I agree with the above. You will not want any tangs or angels in that small a tank. If you want fish that large loot at tanks in the 6 foot range.

[Jimbo]

Originally posted by pixburg-reefer
you need to also think about the future of your fish. Tangs will out grow 50 gallon tanks, the blue hippo tang will get very big, not a good choice, you can't put 2 tangs togeater very well in such a small tank. Maybe at first but when they grow...
clownfish are a good choice.
Angels are veggie eaters and need algae/supplemented food such as lettuce. Angels grow big and fast but the more smaller angles are the flame anelfish and the coral beauty. And when you stock your fish you need to add the most docile fish first. Chromises are a good choice, even tho they are a damsel (usually agressive) I find them nice fish. But they like schools of 4 or more. So you need to pick small fish that don't get very large (SOME wrasses, damsles, hawk fish, clownfish, etc.)
hth
Kelly

Angels are NOT just herbivores. Some are spongivores, and many are rather ecclictic feeders and some are rather carnivorous. This is evidenced not only by observation of wild specimens, gut samples, etc, but also by simply looking at the structure of the mouth itself. There are even a few that practice coprophagy (eat feces) Your tank is too small for any large angels, but several dwarf angels are appropriate.
Anyway, doogie. Feel free to drop me a line here jmcdavid84@target.com and I will be happy to help you further. I don't have time to check here enough to give you the help you need. You're getting good advice here, and will get more I'm sure from the knowledgeable people on this board.

Good luck
Jim

[speccialj922]

id scratch the tangs and angels. (you can have a dwarf angel, but not a reg one). tangs have alot of needs, one being lots of swimming space. since they are such a demanding species, i would totally scrap the idea of keeping them in your first tank, especially one this size. your best bet is to either go to a fish website that lists what thier requirements are (www.liveaquaria.com) or invest in scott michael's "marine fishes" (<-----great book). get an idea of what you want to keep and go from there.

[doogie8]

Thanks for all the help.
Looks like I'm going to have to replan what I want to do.
I was hoping for a small tank, but it doesn' tlook like I can have the fish I want in a 50 gallon tank.
There are 90 gallon corner tanks, would that give me more options?

[hokiefish]

Bigger is always better. It is easier to avoid sharp changes in water parameters with larger volumes. Bigger also means you need a bigger bank account in terms of lighting, equipment, stocking, electrical bills. Think long term as well. If you start off with a FO then decide to upgrade to FOWLR or reef then it will cost you more money than if you prepared for an upgrade from the beginning (you will be in the LFS and say "wow that is a nice anemone. That clam sure looks good too". B4 you know it your dog is for sale because it is taking money away from your aquarium). 90 Gallons will keep your tang but is more space to light.

Good Luck

[Peabody]

A 90 gallon corner gallon I wold still not put any tang in. A 90 gallon regular I would put one tang in, but the corner is restricted with swimming room.

If you plan on a reef in the future wou would probably be happier without a corner tank. THat would mean more swimming room for fish as well.

[doogie8]

What would you all suggest are the most colorful fish that I could put into a corner tank, 50 or 90 gallons?

Here's the thing. My upstairs living room isn't too big. The way I have designed it now, leaves a corner spot for a corner tank. A regular sized tank wouldn't fit, tough to explain the setup. I could put it downstairs, but one, my upstairs is where I want it to be because it'll make the room look even better, and two, I don't go downstairs much so I feel like I would be neglecting them. Also it would be easier for me to care and maintain them when they are up stairs with me.

So, in my situation, are there some really nice colorful fish anyone would suggest for corner tank?
I was really looking forward to a tang, and/or angelfish.

THank you.

[Peabody]

With a corner you should still forget those angels and tangs...there's just no way.

BUt, there are MANY colorfish. CLowns, blennies, wrasses, grammas, etc

[speccialj922]

even a 90g corner still gives fish little swimming space. what it comes down to is what do you want more, a tang/angel or a corner tank?

[doogie8]

Crap, there is no winning! lol.

[Peabody]

NOt really. I wish I could have a tang, but my tank isn't big enough either!

[Jimbo]

A 90 gallon corner tank is plenty big enough for a yellow tang, for quite some time anyway. They don't grow to their full 8" in captivity usually. I had one in my 90 corner until I tore it down and cosolidated everything into the in-wall 150.


Jim

[Dazz]

I have a 50 gallon tank, and I just wish I had started with something bigger, like a 100 or 125. Go bigger if you can.

[Jimbo]

Glass corner tanks come in 50 or 90 gallons.

Jim

[speccialj922]

the only thing about 90g tanks is that they dont provide much swimming room. even though they are 90 gallons, its just consolidated into a small pie sliced area. a 90g is most definatly not the equivalent of a 90g standard. therefore id question a yellow tang's possible happiness in a corner. if you are looking for anything that needs to swim distances (this incl anthias' too) then id be careful about getting a corner tank.

[Jimbo]

Understand what your're saying, but it's just fine for the smaller zebrasoma species. I wouldn't put any other tangs in there besides a scopas or a yellow. Remember, I have actual experiental data going for me here. ;)
Yellow tangs are the smallest of the zebrasoma species, and juvenile specimens do fine in tanks as small as 70 gallons. They tend to grow to about 5" or so, then slow way down. Yes, a 90 gallon would be too small for a dinner plate sized adult. However you'd be hard pressed to grow one up this big from a 3" juvenile in most home aquariums if you tried.

Jim