25 Step SW Aquarium Setup Guide (rough draft)

ahill3780

Disclaimer = This work is a rough draft and as such is incomplete. The content may change by the time it is released in the Articles section. It is complete enough to guide you through all of the basics of a new setup though. Hope it helps!


So I've heard a lot of discussion recently about there not being a good step-by-step guide available to newcomers on how to set up a saltwater aquarium from scratch. Actually, there are several but most of them are buried within a post which is in turn buried within a thread which is buried somewhere in the graveyard of old posts on the forum.

I figured it was time to write out a simple, easy to follow list of steps on how to set up a saltwater aquarium from scratch. I came up with 25 steps which are listed below. The steps in the list cover all everything from the initial setup to the stocking of the first fish. What it does not cover are the few things that you should do before even considering the setup portion of a new system. I will cover those in a bullet-point list just below. Follow the steps listed in bullets before proceeding with the main setup.

I hope that you find this list useful and informative. Please feel free to comment about anything in this list but if you want help with special details on your specific setup then I ask that you start a new thread in the setup forum so that we do not lose track of this thread. Thank you.

• Decide what size tank you want, what you would like to keep in the tank, and where you want it placed.
  
• Make a list of all the parts you need and gather them all before setting anything up. (I will post a list of basic supplies needed along with other helpful advice on applications to this thread as soon as I can get one drawn up.)
  
• Leak test your tank to make sure there are no breaks in the silicone seals anywhere.
  
• Research, research, research!! Learn as much as you can about any species you plan to keep in the tank. If you choose not to read anything else please at least read through my article on the Nitrogen Cycle so that you will have at least a basic knowledge of what it is going forward. You will hear a lot about this on the forums, talking with other aquarists, and even in the steps below so it is important that you learn as much as you can about it, it can save you a lot of grief and will prepare you for a lot of the horrors you will see in the coming months.

Now on to the guide. Once you have completed the steps above then its time to get started. Follow the steps below in order. If you have any questions then post a reply to this thread and I, or someone else will respond with an answer.

1. Set up the tank. (Place the stand where you want it, place the tank on the stand, and if you have a sump with your setup go ahead and place it inside the stand or wherever you have decided to place it. If you have a sump but have no idea what to do with it then please start a new thread, or better yet use the search feature on the website to locate one of the many threads already out there on this subject. The subject of sumps and their use is too large of a topic to include in this thread.)
   
   
2. Fill the tank with fresh water. (Use RO or RO/DI filtered water if at all possible, or another type of filtered water if at all possible. Tap water will work if you have no other choice but it is not a good choice long-term.)
   
3. Install pumps, powerheads, heaters, filters, skimmers, and other equipment. Leave the lights and any canopies off the tank for now as they will only get in your way at this point while you work.
   
   
4. Turn on each piece of equipment to verify that everything is working properly. Test your lights too to make sure the lamps come on. Adjust your heater to around 78 ~ 80 degrees.
   
5. Once you verify everything works go ahead and turn the filters and skimmers off but leave the heater and powerheads on for the next step.
   
   
6. Mix your salt solution into the water following the directions on the package for mixing ratios. (Usually this equates to around half a cup of salt per gallon.)
   
7. Wait until the salt has dissolved completely and the water is clear again before testing your salinity level. Salt will usually settle on the bottom of the tank so it's a good idea to either point a powerhead at the bottom to stir it up, or use some other utensil to agitate the water to stir it up. This will help the salt mix a little faster.
   
   
8. Once the water is clear (usually within 24 hours) then test the salinity using your refractometer or hydrometer. If level is below 1.020 then add a half cup of salt for each thousandth of a part that it is low. For example: If your level is at 1.015 and you want it at 1.023 then you would add 4 cups of salt. Each half cup will generally raise the reading by one "notch" (ie. adding half a cup at 1.015 will bring the level to 1.016, etc.) If you overshoot your target mark then take out a gallon of water from the tank and add a gallon of fresh water back in. Repeat this until you get the level down to where you want it. It should be noted that for each of the 'small' adjustments that you do in this step you only need to wait 30 minutes to an hour between each adjustment before testing the salinity again, you don't have to wait 12 hours between each adjustment again, that's only for the first large mix.
   
9. By now you should have your tank set up, the equipment installed, the salinity at a proper level (around 1.023ppm), and your temperature should be around 78 ~ 80 degrees. If the temp is off then adjust it and check again periodically for further adjustments until you get it where you want.
   
   
10. If you have any live rock to add go ahead and place a few of the larger pieces in the tank now so that they rest on the bottom glass of the tank. These will make the base foundation for the rest of the rock to sit on. You might want to throw all of the rock in the tank now and try out a few different configurations until you have the rockwork the way you want it then just take all of the rock out leaving only the pieces that directly rest on the bottom of the tank.
    
11. After that, or if you do not have any live rock to add, then its time to add in your sand or other substrate. Just add it all in.
    
    
12. Wait 24 hours or until the dust storm subsides and smooth out any areas of the bed that you are unhappy with. If you have excess sand covering any of the exposed surfaces of the live rock you can use a turkey baster to gently blow off the rocks.
    
13. Once the sand bed is down its time to add in the rest of your live rock and/or decorations. Go ahead and decorate the tank the way you want.
    
    
14. Once the water is completely clear of the sand storm its time to start up your skimmers, pumps and filters and let them run.
    
15. Now the long wait sets in as the Nitrogen Cycle begins its course. Use this time to familiarize yourself with your test kits and how to use them. Go ahead and take an initial reading of your tanks parameters. Measure and record the following parameters with your test kits: Date, Temperature, Salinity, pH, Ammonia, Nitrites, and Nitrates. If you planned ahead and acquired the additional test kits then test and record the following as well: Phosphates, Alkalinity, Carbonate Hardness (KH), Calcium, and Magnesium.

ahill3780

continued...

1. Keep all of your test results recorded in a notebook or a legal pad so that you can refer to them down the road or if you come to the forums for help. Test your tank levels every 3 days and record them. Recording your tests in this manner is invaluable to you and others when diagnosing problems with your tank or when trying to calculate how far along you are with your cycle.
   
   
2. You will have a strong urge to start stocking fish or cleanup crews at this point and many people may tell you that it's ok to do so. DO NOT ADD ANY LIVESTOCK AT THIS POINT, INCLUDING CLEAN-UP CREWS!! Doing so is only going to hinder and prolong the cycle process.
   
3. Once the Nitrogen Cycle completes (could take anywhere from 6 weeks to 3 months) then the algae cycle will begin. The Nitrogen Cycle is complete when you no longer have any Ammonia or Nitrite readings in your tank ? you will still have Nitrate levels though. At this point I would suggest doing a 30% water change on the tank to help remove some of the waste left over from the cycle. Start doing your weekly to bi-weekly 10% water changes from this point on.
   
   
4. Ugly red and green algae will begin to spread throughout your tank and may even cover everything, including the glass walls of the tank. This is normal, don't panic and start dosing chemicals to try and 'fix the problem', there isn't one. Just be patient and scrape the walls clean when you do your water changes and suck out as much of the algae as you can while replacing the water you remove with pre-mixed saltwater. It is also ok to go ahead and add in that cleanup crew you have been dying to get for so long. They will help with ongoing algae removal.
   
5. Eventually the algae in the tank will begin to die back as it exhausts its supply of nitrates and other foods, and as the cleanup crew feeds off of it.
   
   
6. Once the algae dies back to a level that is not overwhelming the tank and new growth has slowed to a crawl then your tank is just about ready for its first livestock. Go ahead and install the lights and turn them on if you have not already done so.
   
7. Before adding any fish do another 30% water change (you should have been keeping up with your routine changes up to this point) and wait an hour and test your tanks parameters again and log them in your notebook. Mark this entry as "Cycle Complete" so that you can easily identify where your tanks parameters were at before adding livestock.
   
   
8. If any levels need to be adjusted then now is the time to do so. Make sure your pH is stable at 8.3, your salinity is between 1.020 ~ 1.025, your temp is stable between 78 ~ 80 degrees F, your Ammonia and Nitrite levels are 0, your Nitrates are <30ppm, and your Alkalinity is stable between 2.9 ~ 4.0 meq\L. If any levels are off then consult the forums or another experienced hobbyist on how to correct it.
   
9. Once your levels are sound then you are ready to start stocking your tank! (cheering and applause commences) But DON?T RUSH IT! You have taken a long time to set up your tank and ensure that it has established itself to the point that it can maintain a healthy environment. Adding too many fish at once can destroy all of that careful painstaking effort. Follow the stocking guidelines in the next step to ensure that your tank safely adjusts to each new arrival.
   
   
10. The safest and best approach to adding any new fish is to quarantine them so that you don't inadvertently infect your display tank with parasites or diseases that sometimes come with ill-handled livestock. Sadly most people do not take the time to do this and they eventually end up regretting it. However, in the past decade the saltwater aquarium hobby has exploded and many advancement's in handling and caring for marine fish have been made. There are now a good many shops and stores that take a very conscientious approach to how they run their business. Through good business practices, acquisition practices, and stocking and treatment practices there are a lot of great places available to hobbyists that provide healthy, disease-free fish. Many stores will run UV equipment on their stock tanks and even quarantine sickly arrivals before selling them to their customers. If you happen to buy from a reputable dealer who is conscientious about the hobby then you should have no worries with introducing new arrivals directly into your tank. That said, here is my general rule of thumb for adding new livestock: Add no more than 1 large fish (Tangs, Angels, Triggers, Lionfish, etc.) at a time for tanks 120 gallons or below and no more than 2 at a time for tanks 200 ~ 500 gallons in size, and wait a minimum of two weeks before any further additions. For small fish, (Damsels, Clowns, Gobies, Firefish, etc.) add no more than 2 at a time for tanks less than 55 gallons, 4 or less at a time for tanks between 75 ~ 100 gallons, 6 or less for tanks between 100 ~ 200 gallons, and no more than 10 at a time for tanks 200 gallons or larger (unless you are lucky enough to have a tank over 1,000 gallons.). Again, wait a minimum of two weeks between each new addition.

Congratulations on your new saltwater aquarium!! Keep up with your routine maintenance and water changes and continue testing your tank parameters periodically to know how your system is doing.

Remember to research the needs of any and all new livestock you plan to buy before you purchase them to make sure that your tanks environment is suitable for them. Each species has their own optimum parameter ranges that you will need to match as closely as possible if you hope to keep them successfully.

And as always, visit the forums frequently with questions, comments, and updates to maintain a current knowledge of the skills and practices needed to keep your aquarium as healthy as possible.

I hope this has helped you in your endeavor to set up your own saltwater aquarium, and I hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.

Aaron Hill
FishTankForums Moderation Team

BMueller777

Wow, nice explaination, I know nothing about SW tanks and I understood that pretty well...

Nice job

Can you do one for a FW planted tank now? j.k.

Genxtrem

This is a great referance for salt water lover new and old

amdroca

I have a saltwater tank and would like to change to a fresh water - - can I use the same tank and filter?

slinkyf

Nicely done....

jadetilan

Good information by the way. ahill3780 when is the best time to add some coral? Can I add the coral during cycle stage or do I have to wait until the cycle is finish? Which one should I add preferably first, the fish or the coral?

chadf

Coral needs to wait until the tank has been established. They need to have very stabile water conditions. I've read to let your tank mature for a year before adding any, but if you've got some saltwater experience IMO that isn't necessary. I'd start with with some fish and wait until yu've got the hang of everything before thinking about them.

Chitown1

From my experience, you can start adding some corals like zoanthids, mushrooms, brains, kenya trees, sun corals and polyps in about 6 months after the cycle is complete, then start with some of the more sensitive corals in 10 months to 1 year

michele711

omg tyvvm this is exactly what i have been looking for a step by step guide for the beginner i mean i have a 29 gallon fw tank but i am planning on getting a 55 gallon and making it sw i am so glad i stumbled upon your forum anyway ty again for taking the time to put this information in here