Question: What basic equipment and supplies do I need to start a marine aquarium?

Answer:

1. A tank:
Contrary to popular wisdom, starting with a small tank is not always the best option. A larger volume of water is less apt to be affected by the sudden changes in water chemistry common in a beginner’s tank. Simply put, a larger tank is more forgiving. A good size to start with is 24 to 30 gallons.

2. Water:
Not all water is created equal. Tap water can contain a variety of chemicals, heavy metals, and other impurities. There are lots of options for getting pure water, the most common of which is water purified by Reverse Osmosis and De-Ionization (RO/DI). You’ll find RO/DI water at your Local Fish Store (LFS). There are also home RO/DI units widely available to marine aquarists. In the long run, consider getting one of these units- lugging heavy water containers isn’t much fun.

3. Filtration:
There are many different options and many, many different theories regarding the best type of filtration. The most common and accepted method is the use of live rock (LR) and a deep sand bed (DSB) along with a quality protein skimmer. In order to provide enough LR to be an effective biological filter, you want to have between 1.5 to 2 lbs of live rock per gallon of water. A Deep Sand Bed (DSB) typically is at least three inches deep and provides lots of surface area for beneficial bacteria. A protein skimmer removes the fish waste, excess food, and other compounds from the water. There are several types of protein skimmers, but they all have one thing in common - using bubbles to remove waste from the water. But no matter how effective a skimmer is, you will still need biological filtration. Some supplement biological filtration with chemical- namely activated carbon.

4. Lights:
The type of lighting you provide will depend on what you choose to keep in your tank. If you want to keep corals, you will need lighting stronger than normal output fluorescents. The rule of thumb is 3 to 5 watts per gallon. You have lots of lighting options to choose from, but most are a combination of four technologies: Power Compact (PC), Very High Output (VHO), T5 High Output (T5), or Metal Halide (MH).

5. Circulation:
The goal of every marine aquarist should be to replicate natural ocean conditions as much as possible. By doing so, you have the greatest chance of creating a hospitable environment for your livestock. Circulation is typically provided by powerheads or a closed loop system.

6. Heat:
Keeping the temperature of the water in line is very important. A rule of thumb is three watts per gallon of heater. Most aquarists strive to maintain 78-82 degrees Fahrenheit.

7. Miscellaneous
Some other things that will come in handy in the first few weeks are an algae pad or mag float, a refractometer to measure salinity, and test kits for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, calcium, and alkalinity.

Question: How do I set everything up?

Answer:

Start with the water. When filling the tank for the first time, it is okay to mix the water and salt in the tank. Regardless of which salt mix you choose, you will want to mix it to salinity between 1.024-1.026. For your initial setup, don’t fill the tank all the way. Remember you are going to displace water with large amounts of rock. Once you have water in your tank, you will want to place and plug in your powerheads and heaters.
The next step is to add your substrate. Remember, a deep sand bed (DSB) is considered to be three to five inches deep.

The next step is to add your live rock. You want to make sure that it is stable and will not topple over once you add livestock. Many of the larger pieces of rock are quite heavy and could easily break your glass. If you plan on having fish that burrow under the sand, you will want to either put your rock down on the glass, or create a structure that can’t be toppled.

Once your live rock and sand is in place, and the water is clear, your tank will begin to cycle. Cycling is the process by which the bacteria are established in your tank. You need to provide a food source for the bacteria- namely ammonia. You can either add a pinch of fish food to your tank each day for a week, or drop in a raw table shrimp and leave it in the tank for three days. Once the Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate levels drop back to zero, the cycle is finished. At this point, you should begin to slowly add livestock. In order to keep a bacterial balance, it is wise to wait a week or more between livestock additions to your tank.

Question: What next?

Answer:

Be sure to thoroughly research your potential livestock purchase before bringing it home. You will find that many creatures are not compatible with one another or your corals. Other creatures fare poorly in home aquariums and should be left in the wild. Be mindful of the order that you add the fish- add the more territorial ones last so that the less aggressive fish can establish territories of their own.

It's highly recommended that you set up a quarantine tank. It is used to monitor your new livestock for several weeks to make sure they are free of disease or parasites before adding to your main tank. It is much easier to treat for disease in a quarantine tank.

One final tip that is especially true in this hobby, take your time and make sure you make informed decisions from the start. Only bad things happen quickly in a marine aquarium. All the good things take time.