Should You Start Out With a Saltwater or Freshwater Fish Tank?

If you are new to keeping an aquarium, a freshwater tank may be the best choice. Keeping a saltwater tank will give you a lot of interesting options for fish, but the care and maintenance of saltwater aquariums is more difficult than freshwater tanks. It can take several months to gain the knowledge and skill necessary to keep a saltwater tank going, as you learn over this time all that is required for success. If you’re up for a challenge, you can of course choose to start with a saltwater tank.

One reason is the ease in set up and maintenance of a freshwater over a saltwater tank. The equipment is also a lot less expensive. In addition, marine fish that live in a saltwater tank will cost you more than freshwater fish. Live rock is generally used in saltwater tanks (which can be expensive) as a biological filter – while expensive, this is one of the easiest ways to set up a saltwater tank.

Live rock is a section of live coral reef including marine wildlife like worms, sponges, sea urchins and algae to help provide a natural ecosystem for your saltwater fish. This environment is helpful in reducing waste products. It is necessary that you create conditions in the home aquarium that will provide your fish with the oxygen and food that it needs to survive, as well as the continuous cleaning provided in its natural habitat. However, you’ll also need a protein skimmer for a saltwater tank; this will keep organic waste out of the water.

Lighting for a saltwater tank also costs more than lighting a freshwater tank. Getting the lighting right is extremely important; this will keep the growth and behavior of all of the tank’s inhabitants natural. Your lighting will also be essential in helping proper oxygenation through photosynthesis.

Unlike a freshwater tank, a saltwater tank requires a complete, functioning ecosystem in order for your fish to survive and thrive. All of the elements are important and depend on one another to stay in balance to ensure the survival of all of the organisms in the tank. If you want your fish to survive, you will need the right plants and animals so that the environment is healthy for your fish.

You might want to think long and hard about that saltwater tank - there are a lot of costs involved and the maintenance is much more complicated; by comparison, freshwater aquariums are great for beginners. You’ll learn a lot about keeping your freshwater tank as you go along and build the skills and knowledge base which will eventually ready you for a saltwater tank.