Need advice caught in a tough spot

[mjhonda2002]

hey everyone. just recently i have gotten into saltwater fish(bout a month) and i have read 3 books and done tons of research. But the big thing for me is wether i want to start out with like a 55 sw or like a 10g sw. i know that a 55 is more stable but it also costs alot more. And the 10g i have the tank and i know it would be less expensive, but i know changes can occur alot quicker. thanks for any help matt

 

[kimoy]

The best advice i can give you is the same advice i got from my LFS when i started my reef tank a little over 2 months ago is what or how much can you afford?

 

[bkv1997]

I personall would recommend the 55. Start out fish only with some live rock. That will save you lots on lighting, then you can slowly move to reef if you want.

Thats just my thought.

 

[Bifferwine]

And believe me, even if you do start with a 10 gallon and are successful keeping your animals, within a couple months you will be buying the 55 gallon anyways! With a small tank like that you are limited to only 2 or 3 fish and that can be really frustrating once you see how many neat animals there are out there! I'd say go for the 55 gallon and get the bare minimum amount of equipment that you can afford, as bkv1997 said (i.e. skip the corals for now, get cheap lights and just the stuff to keep fish only, get some cheap and hardy fish like chromis or clownfish) and once you "master" a fish only tank for a while, you will have a better idea of what animals you want to keep and can upgrade your lights and equipment to be appropriate for inverts. Just because you have a 55 gallon tank doesn't mean you need to fill it all at once.

I started with a 55 gallon and regret that I didn't get a bigger tank in the first place, because at this point it would be way too expensive to get new EVERYTHING to fit a 110 gallon, for example.

 

[jhnrb]

Start with the largest tank you can, and purchase the best equipment you can. once bit by salt you will not want to go back. take it slow and think through your progress, do not spend your money unless you know for sure it is what you want and what you are trying to accomplish. good luck keep us posted.

 

[mjhonda2002]

thanks for the advice everyone. It will also help because i have a few hook ups.

 

[Viper]

I would go with a 75 gallon then you could keep it a little longer and get used to saltwater and you can put a little bit more in a 75 gallon like bigger peices of live rock or bigger fish.Just my 2 cents

 

[george]

The tank is a small part of the total cost.The equipment that you will need adds up quick.There is always things you will want to add to improve your aquarium.A 55 gallon is as small as I would go. This hobby becomes very addictive. And there never is enough room for the live stock that you want to keep

 

[minireefer]

A10 gallon will be fustrating maybe pair of fish and few frag of soft coral.I know since I had a 12 gallon.myu curent setup is a 30 gallon,and it has brought me alot joy and greif do to the size.I constant nitrate battle even with good skimmer and refugium.I have constantly wish I would have gone with at least a 55 gallon,that would be all the space available in this small apartment.So if you start small you may have decent nano,but sooner or later you will want to go bigger.The cash spent will go down the drain.