Saltwater Aquarium? Do i NEED these things?

Question

I'm planning on using a 125 litre tank which is currentley cycling and all i have is some live rock and sand in there at the minute.

Anyway i keep hearing confllicting information about all the equipment that i need. I would make my own decision about whether or not i need them but i'm not entirley sure what they are supposed to do:

1.Why do i need live sand or crushed coral as a substrate? The sand i have now is said on the packet "suitable for marine aquariums"

2.Hydrometer - As far as i can tell that measures the salinity, but i buy mine directly from the pet shop and he said that we wouldnt haven't have to worry about that a hydrometer if i buy it from them. Confused???

3. Now, I have an Filter as it came standard with the tank, so naturally i've been using it to cycle but loads of people have said. "You dont need a filter because you have live rock!" I know that live rock is a natural filter but surely you can't over filter, would it be harm fish to have both???

4. What are powerheads??? Are they like wave machines or something??? Are they even neccessary, i've heard people say they're pointless but i cant even find out what they are!!!

5.Protein Skimmer - Still not sure what that is supposed to do either, is it worth getting one? Again like everything else i've been told its pointless - but then some people are over dramatic and say "your fish will die within the day if you dont buy a thousand pounds worth of equipment from us!!"

6. What is a power strip? Do i need one?

7. What is a Reverse Osmosis or RO/Deionization filter !!!

Please help, i really wanna do this properly! Thanks in advance, and because i'm new to saltwater, any other tips or suggestions would be really appreciated! Thanks x

Answer 1

Disclaimer: Not a marine fishkeeper. But I manage

1.Some fish like it, and it provides a source of calcium as it dissolves. you may need to provide a separate supplement.

2.A hydrometer measures the density of water, so that you can determine its salinity. I would get one anyway: they are inexpensive and come into play when you're replacing water which has evaporated. As water evaporates from the tank, the dissolved salt will not, so your salinity increases. You need to replace the evaporate with non-salted water, or else your salinity will continue to increase. You don't need an RO device: steam distilled water will do, and most likely you can buy this somewhere

3. The live rock will not remove inorganic or indigestible particles from the tank. Sometimes, these are worth worrying about

4. A powerhead is a motor that provides water flow. Some saltwater tanks have current... a powerhead is one of the components used to provide it

5.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protein_ski...

Reduces the load on your filters. Short version: Probably.

6. Like a power bar, but with a timer built in so that you can turn your lights on and off automatically at the same time of day. Saves you time and removes the consequences if you forget to turn the lights off. Not a necessity, but I would recommend having your lighting on a timer (not necessarily a power strip): it's cheap and saves you mindspace.

7. Reverse osmosis is a device that forces water through a very fine membrane to remove containments and minerals from the water. What comes out the end is pH-neutral, incredibly soft water. De-ionization is exactly what it seems like: removing ions from the water. An RO/DI device does both.  

Answer 2

1 You don`t need any substrate unless want to keep sand dwellers.It also makes higher maintenance.Soon enough the tank will be covered with coraline algae and inverts if you have decent rock and ighting.Substrate causes nitrate levels to increase in time.                                                                                                                                                                                                      2 You must keep the salinity of the water in check as salt doesn`t evaporate so hydrometers help when topping up.                                                                                                                                                                                                         3 Use the filter for mechanical filtration using activated carbon and floss only to `polish` the water.                                                                                                                                                                                                     4 Definately.They move debris to the front for easy maintenance and provide natural habitat as this is what you should be trying to achieve.Most inverts must have good flow as in the sea.                                                                                                                                                                                                       5 Definately.Removes all organic waste.Once running properly you`ll see exatly what it does.The bigger the better.If you havent`t a sump tank you`ll have to modify your cover if you have one.                                                                                                                                                                                                       6 Lighting is very important if your going to keep inverts and will help your rock flourish.Timers on all lighting is advisable.Not a great worry for fish only though.                                                                                                                                                                                                   7 These are expensive and space csuming.Ideally purchase R.O. water to start the tank and then small amounts for top ups.Seriosly find a supplier as once filled top up amounts are so cheap.Tap water is a no no.Also I hope your tank is new or has NEVER had any medications used as just about all are copper based and will ruin inverts and crustaceans.I would buy new tank without a doubt if need be.                                                                                                                                                                                           Read as many up to date books on natural reefs and compatability on lifestock but try not to get too bogged down with all the chemistry.Good rock,lighting,proten skimming and creating the natural reef and it`s local lifestock will look after itself.                                                                                                Goodluck hope you have every success and enjoy your reef.Rush.                          

Answer 3

Hi,

If you are getting a  fish(s) then I recomend that you first find out what type of fish you have got. I have two fresh water fish, and if you dont know alreddy you can always ask the pet shop owner or it might be writen on the tank where you got your goldfish from in the pet store.

Then what I recomend is that at the same time of getting your fish you should by a glass tank, the reson being is so that if your tank walls start to grow mold you can get a cleaner. In this case there are two types of cleaners: There is a cleaner that is a magnert, so that if you drop it in the water you can get it out easly, and aslo it cleans the inside of the tank and the outside of the tank because of the special soft fabrick on the outside of it (this is probley one of the most commen cleaners). There is also a "scraper cleaner" which you use with your hand and slowley scrape the inside of the tank. I clean my tank every night with my magnert cleaner, if you are getting fish you might also have to do the same. Dont be fooled if you think that the tank water is dirty and it looks clean from above! Some of the food particels might cause the tank to get a kind of cloudey effect on the walls, but you can clean that of with a cleaner!! You will also need a filter for you fish. You need to get the right filter for the right type of fish that you have e.g Fresh water fish, will need a fresh water fish filter. What the filter dose in your tank is, that is sucks up all littel bits of dirt in the tank and they will get stuck inside it in a littel sponge, there will probley be two sponges in the filter. You will have to clean it out every two weeks. You will do that by taking out the spounges and cleaning them under the sink, then putting it back in the tank after wards. After you have all of that sorted you will need to choose a bottem for your tank. e.g: Sand, stones, pebbels or you can have none. If you get stones you will need to get a bottem cleaner witch will suck up all of the fishes poo and waste and the bottem also you should do this two times a week.

Get lots of plants for your tank so that oxygen is put into the water to keep the fish healty, and also make sure to get a few bushy plants in the water so that your fish can hide.

Last of all get a colorful object in the tank which lets the fish swim in  and out of it, they can even sleep in there too

If you have any more questions dont be shy to eamil me at [e-mail]