A marine aquarium or salt water tank can be a rewarding experience and despite what you have heard they are not extremely hard to maintain. You just have to take care of a few basic needs and your tank will thrive. When setting up salt water fish tanks you can have a fish only tank, a reef only tank or a tank with fish, reef and live rock. The difficulty is a bit harder with reef and live rock tanks than with a fish only tank but it is still possible for the beginner.

When setting up a marine aquarium the first thing you will need is the tank. For a salt water aquarium you really should not use anything smaller than a 40 gallon tank. Most salt water fish grow larger than freshwater fish and you will need more tank space to allow free movement and growth among your fish. You will also need to find a good location for your tank. You will need to place your tank in a position where it will not be affected by direct sunlight, preferably away from windows and heating and air vents.

The next step is to add your water. For salt water fish tanks you will need to buy the aquarium salt and it is easiest if you pre-mix the salt and water before adding into your tank; doing the mixing in the tank can be messy. Follow the instructions on your salt for mixing and preparing your water. After you have prepared your water in your tank you need to let it circulate in the tank anywhere from a week to six weeks in a process called aquarium cycling when you get the readings are for ammonia: 0 ppm., for nitrite:0 ppm., and for nitrate: going up, before you add fish to the environment.

You need to make sure your marine aquarium is ready for fish before you start adding them , so you need to cycle your tank, you will do this by testing the levels in your aquarium. Aquarium testing will include: Salinity, PH, ammonia, nitrate, phosphate and alkalinity. It sounds like a lot but you can get a kit that will have all these aquarium test kits for you in one package. After your levels in your tank are secure you can begin to add fish. It is important to only add a couple fish at time to allow your tank to adjust to the changes that the new fish will put on its ecosystem.

Salt water fish tanks are beautiful tanks to have if you spend the time to take care of them. With regular maintenance and water changes your tank will thrive and your fish will be a delight for you as well as for your visitors.