derrick719 Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 hello i will be a new guy to salt water but 4-5 years cichlids. my issue is my buddy will be moving at some point and giving me his 45 salt water tank thats thriving well. i would love to swap tanks. does any one have any tips or links to help me out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cainechow Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 What is the 45 got in it now? FOWLR? Sand? Skimmer? Fish? Coral? What kind of lights? Depending on the coral, the lights may or may not have enough punch to reach the bottom of the 90G. The rest is probably just a simple move to the new tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckmullin Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 If you've never had salt water....you need to read read read BEFORE you touch that tank. I'm sure you'll think this isn't of huge help to you but realistically it is the best tip you'll ever get. Read for a full month before you even see that tank. https://www.google.ca/webhp?gws_rd=cr&ei=2K9eUvKZE4iLiAL684GABQ#channel=t6&q=saltwater+aquarium Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrick719 Posted October 16, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 my cichlid tank has a salt water light i belave have 3 sets of lights a white a blue and leds. not sure on sand its a gravel i believe. it has 2 clowns 3 damsels a few hermitcrabs and a urchin. has some live rock with anenomies on it.hit has a filter with i skimmer on it i beleave. i wont be getting the tank for a while and will keep it in the 45 for a while ill need to buy more live rock and clean the 90. ill be reading up i know the jist but know i need to know more i helped him move the tank last year so have a teeny tiny bit of expeirence lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 Keeping SW isn't THAT much different than FW, if you understand WHY you do what you do to keep your FW tank clean, you should do fine w. SW. the big difference between lakes/rivers and the ocean is that the ocean environment doesn't change - there usually aren't regular changes to pH, hardness, salinity, etc. so SW fish are not very adaptable. Keep the environment stable (going to a larger tank is always better) is the key. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrick719 Posted October 16, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 that what i read so far the bigger the better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckmullin Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 (edited) i disagree about larger the better for sw tanks also the general statement that they are easier. All tanks fw/sw have their needs and quirks however an important point about sw tanks unlike fw...sw can crash easily at time without you even knowing the true cause, size does not matter. I have a 6 gal nano and know of quite a few other people with nano and pico tanks...all stable. The thing about sw is not the size of the tank but how you use it...and this is where knowledge comes into play. I could throw in a bit of a joke but I'll pass. I will come back again to my previous post...read...learn. No offence to anyone here but go to a dedicated reef site such as canreef. You don't need to post a single word on that site but what is key is reading the entire site. Edited October 16, 2013 by ckmullin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cainechow Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 The advantage of big is stability, but that stability is killer when you have things going south. Nitrates spiking? have fun doing PWCs on the 90G to bring that down. On a nano you could could do two 6G changes and you'd be home free... but with that you also get way bigger salinity swings due to evaporation and it can crash pretty dang fast. I'll be honest that I learned a lot from canreef by reading all the "My tank crashed and I don't know why" threads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrick719 Posted October 16, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 ok thanks for the tips. canreed is one of the best to look thought i take it. the thing i need to sort out some of the lingo lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cainechow Posted October 16, 2013 Report Share Posted October 16, 2013 Definitely post back here or on there for new terms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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