Are coral tanks hard to keep?
The reality is, a basic saltwater aquarium is really no more difficult than a freshwater aquarium. The only difference is your adding some synthetic sea salt into the water to make it saltwater. Even most of the equipment you are going to use is exactly the same as you would use on a freshwater tank!
How much does it cost to start a coral tank?
Most people will probably spend $500 to $1000 for a brand new saltwater tank and all of the necessary supplies within the first year. Over the next 12 months, you can double that start-up cost to budget for fish, corals and new equipment.
How much does it cost to maintain a reef tank?
A rough monthly budget to run a saltwater aquarium is a 15 gallon tank = $15/month, 25 gallon tank = $25/month, 50 gallon tank = $35/month, 100 gallon tank = $65/month. This is based on consumables used and coral, invertebrates, and fish are extra.
What do you need for a coral tank?
Some basic items you will need for a successful marine aquarium include an aquarium, stand, light, cover, heater, filter, protein skimmer, marine aquarium salt, refractometer, thermometer, water conditioner, substrate and live rock.
How often should I feed my reef tank?
Feeding your fish a little bit of food several times per day is closer to the way they eat in the wild than feeding them a bunch of food every 2 or 3 days. Most fish (even sharks) will only eat what they need to survive.
How soon can you put coral in a tank?
Corals can be added to a new reef tank when your tank has completed its nitrogen cycle that roughly takes 2-8 weeks. Nitrogen cycling and getting rid of algae blooms will clear the way for you to add corals as early as possible.
What are the best corals to keep in a reef tank?
Bear in mind also that many corals (for sake of argument we’ll say the bulk of LPS), such as Acans, Favias, Lobophyllians etc… are best kept in the lower reaches of a tank which is fitted with high intensity lighting.
What makes a coral a good starter coral?
They form colonies of densely crowded polyps attached in a common tissue at the base. While these corals prefer bright light, they are tolerant of lower light and prefer moderate to strong current, making them a good starter coral. These aggressive corals have a high reproductive rate and can spread rapidly in an aquarium.
How much calcium should I add to my coral tank?
Maintaining calcium is not difficult, but it should not be varied by more than 20ppm a day and as the amount of coral in a tank increases the amount of calcium added will need to be increased. Advertisement Clams are capable of utilising a lot of calcium from the water.
What do hard corals need to survive?
Hard corals need Metal Halides, T5, LEDs fixtures in order to survive. This is because a lot of hard corals can be compared to plants and thus they require TONS of light to survive. You might want to research LED lights as they might cost a lot more initially you will save a lot on electricity costs down the road.