# Keeping Marine Fish Newbie



## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

Hi,

I want to venture into the beautiful world of keeping a select few Marine Fish and potentially some live Coral.

I have been researching, watching videos for some time and it's time to start buying things.

I am not going to rush anything.

So I think I have sourced a tank with stand with a Fluval Filter that is rated for a tank twice the size.

What testing methods/kits would you recommend for all the levels and salinity?

I have an idea of what I could use but of course recommendations also have weight if they're being used with success.

Any other info you want to give, fire away and if you have photos. Please post would love to see your set ups.

Thank You


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## ESS (Apr 27, 2013)

Ultimate Reef is all you need, plenty of info, tank set ups etc..
Been keeping reef tanks for 25yrs, its not easy mate, takes a lot of time, tweeking, testing, water changes etc, etc,
Just make sure if you buy 2nd hand the tank has never had copper meds if keep invert / corals
Good Luck.


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## WHIZZER (Oct 25, 2005)

I had a marine tank for around 5 years - hard work and lots of tinkering - water changes - salt levels etc - I changed to cichlids in the end and got some stunning fish and so much easier


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## MSwiss (Sep 25, 2017)

I kept Marine (fish and corals) for about 5-6 years. As already said Ultimate reef is a great forum and you can get great second hand items for a considerable saving over new.

As the others have said be prepared as this hobby does take quite a bit of time but its is well worth it. I only got rid of mine as I got divorced and couldn't face the shut down start up so sold the lot. Now I travel way too much to consider it but as soon as life allows I will have another.

Dont go for a filter if you can, a sump is easier in the long run, increases your volume so the swings you get can be more controllable. Get a decent skimmer, the goods ones really do pull out the rubbish. Auto top up is very handy, a RO unit is a must for your water, decent lights (especially for coral). This isn't a cheap hobby so really do take your time with your equipment choices. Buy the right thing first time, this is experience talking here with expensive lessons. 

Again join Ultimate as sometimes you get tank shutdowns with great equipment for a huge saving in the sales section.

Enjoy it and if you have any questions reply or pop me a PM.:thumb:


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## ajm83 (Mar 30, 2019)

Agree with the posts above but suggest you get yourself on ReefBase forum, Ultimate Reef censor negative opinions about their sponsors products.


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## Starbuck88 (Nov 12, 2013)

You're all going to hate me after the advice you've given, but picked this up..










130 Litre Tank with Stand and Fluval 406. (It's only set up in the pic to show you what I got for the money)

Now, I paid £100. I thought that was a good deal considering what those filters cost new and are selling for used on eBay.

I do want a Sump when I start wanting to get into Corals but that is a long way off, I just want to get going and upgrade piece by piece.

With the canister filter I am going to remove everything and put in some Biohome Media for that de-nitrification/ammonia removal and replace all the sponges with different coarseness to improve the mechanical filtration, people have had great success with a FOWLR tank with this set up so I am encouraged I didn't make a right **** up.

I will have to get a hang over skimmer if it comes to it but with what I'm reading and help from you guys etc, I'm probably going to want a bigger tank and all anyway so...we'll see where this goes lol.


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