new to saltwater

[pewterpirate]

hello everyone, as you can tell im very new here on the site.i've read some of the most interesting forum topics here and i feel after reading many many posts this seems to be the more knowledgeable crew to get advice from.my whole fish craze started when last year my son turned 7 and wanted fish as pets..i bought him a cheap acrylic 5 gallon complete setup.my sister who had cichlids breedeing at the time gave him a few convict fry, and he loved them..i saw a yellow lab at tlfs and bought it just for the heck of it..let me say i'm color blind and had never seen such a bright color on a fresh water fish before..after seeing him in the tank in front of a red background i watched in amazement and ecided i had to start my own tank.i have had a 30 gallon freshwater for a little over a year now..i love my cichlids..lol
i have 4 yellow labs-2 electric blue johanni's-1 orange with black areas(yet to be idetified) and am currently being over run by breeding convicts..thank goodness we have the kids tank...but i am going to have to feed the young to the bigger fish due to i have no more room..(especially for ugly fish(just my opinion).
well now that i'm hooked i figure if i like the bright colors of cichlids..i'll love a couple tangs and a few clown fish..the lfs has a 75-80 gallon not sure the exact size..but bigger than a 55 for sure..lol anyway its tank only but for less than 90 dollars it's probably worth it since i live in the middle of nowhere and cost for things to be shipped here are outrageous...so heres where my multiple questions come in to play...
with tank only what else do i need other than the obvious hood and lighting?..and whats the most inexpensive yet dependable setup to start a fowlr aquarium.. can i use a freshwater filter like in my other tank or do i need something different...would it just be more cost effective to convert my 30 gallon?..and if so..will i be able to have at least 1 tang and 2-3 clownfish in it comfortably..will they even get along with eachother? i want the best bang for my buck but if i cant fit the fish im dead set on in my 30...then for sure the bigger tank is necesary...so i need hoods, lighting, a protein skimmer, 2-4 powerheads..hydrometer.. live rock..should i go with live sand or live cc.. and what else will i need...also where has the best prices for what i need?..last but certainly not least...if i have to ask so many questions then am i really ready for all this...its not the money maintaining it that bothers me at all...its the cost of getting started that makes me quiver...lol

[jd@ga]

Hey! welcome to the forum! If I were you I would sell convict babies to help the $ burden. I wish I could find a breeder every now and then when I`m looking for fish. You can get some great $ for tank bred fish. I use to sell f/w angels and turtles. After you do this I would SHOP like mad this is the only way your gonna find your best deals. As far as tank and equipment , I would at least get a 55gal. I would shoot for something larger though. The bigger the tank the easier the up keep. As far as the equipment you need to really shop.

[WhoDey]

Welcome pewterpirate,

To give you an idea of good prices... (MarineDepot.com, Dr. Fosters and Smith, thatpetplace all have good prices)

powerhead(Maxijet 1200) $20 each.(two should be good enough for 75 gal)

-hydrometer(i have the Instant Ocean one) $8

-Lighting/hoods(there isn't on that comes with the tank?) If not and you aren't going the coral way then you should be able to find something cheap. Maybe $50-80. I would suggest the all glass tops just incase you plan to go into corals.

-Salt-(160 gal container) $30 you will go though your first bucket quickly

-heater - $20-30

-sand - I would recomend getting it from Lowes or Home Depot. 100lbs for $8. Otherwise you will spend a fortune. This may increase your cycle time to 3 months.

These last two are going to kick you in your nuts

-Skimmer- For a 75 gal. I wouldn't spend any less than $200. You want a quality skimmer for sure. This along with the Live Rock/sand is all you need to filter your tank.

-Live Rock - I would suggest 100 lbs for your tank size. You might need more, but this will get you started nicely. LR can be anywhere from $4 lb to $8 lb. If you want to cut some costs, get a 45 lb box online of LR from some where and toss that in with 55lbs of Base rock. Base rock you can get for around 1.50 a lb. but you gotta look hard to find it at that price.

Then you can wait about 3 months while all of this cycles....

Then you will need to add a clean up crew. (research this online, you have some time)

-Lots of people say you need a sump for a tank that size, but you should be ok without one. You can always add this later when you save up some more.

-Then fish!!

Hope this gives you a little picture. LR is not the creapest way to go, but you will love it when you get it. I'm going to post my pictures online soon of my LR to give you an idea. Keep an eye out for the post "buying live rock online"

-Nate

[pewterpirate]

thanks alot whodey..thats exactly the info i needed.i just came across the deal of the century..lol.i ordered a 75 gallon tank complete with stand , emperor 400 filter, digital therm., 300 watt sub. heatert, aqua reminder alert, hood lights and bulb and everything (not saltwater setup though.) with all of it it's only 259.95
seems the more i think about it the more i seem to get away from saltwater..of course my wife is always in my ears saying it's just too much money. so with this deal..i think i'll hold off for a while on the saltwater setup and use this new 75 gallon for freshwater at the moment. i've seen some people with a 30 gallon saltwater setup...is this any good at that size? maybe i could convert my 30..but would i be able to have at least 1 tang and 2 clownfish?..i have read that tangs need at least 75 gallons..but maybe i could raise babies..and are they like sw fish..do they only grow to the size of the tank..or will sw fish outgrow a tank?