Saltwater or FW

[Gills]

Hi, I am new here. I have had SW tanks in the past with out a lot of success and finally just gave up on them. I had a 55ga then sold it and got a 180ga. I thought it would be a lot eiser to control water qual. with that big of a tank. I still had a naso tang and 2 clownfish go on me. Now 3 years later I have decided to start up a 55ga again but cannot decide on salt or go with a ciclid tank. what do you think?

 

[1979camaro]

its really just a matter of what you like...with proper setup/maintenance a SW is manageable, though FW is certainly easier (in my opinoion at least)...either way you decide to go, do a lot of research and you should be fine

 

[valdok]

saltwater also tends to be way more expensive.

 

[wayne at home]

What cichlids? Frankly do salt, fresh is easier, but unless you find something you're really interested in , can be comparatively boring.
Also I find cichlid tanks quite high maintenance as water changes are done more frequently

 

[Gills]

Yes I do agree that the saltwater captures my attention every time I walk into a fish shop, but the African ciclids do also. I also agree about the SW being more expensive. I did not even consider the cost of water changes, let alone the time every day doing maintance on a tank as big as I set up.

 

[fishboy]

All depends. How much money do you have to spend? Cichlids are interesting, but can be a pain. Not that keepin salt fish arent either All depends but the choice is yours.

 

[Gills]

Well I have the tank, filters and the stand and hood are almost complete. All I really need is the lights and substrate. So I would say after the rest of the items are bought I will probly look to spend no more than $200.00 on fish and rock. Can you give me details on the ciclids being a "pain" to keep. I already have kept SW so I do understand those problems.

 

[beaver8888]

fw only if you got major money to blow on a sw tank

 

[Cichlid-Man]

I think what they mean by Cichlids being a "pain" is that a lot of them grow large and are can get very aggressive meaning only a few if not by themselves in a tank.

 

[1979camaro]

that would be about it...africans require slightly higher pH, in the high 7s to low 8s...but as an old SW pro that should be of little consequence to you...just use some buffer...i think you could do a beautiful african cichlid tank in a 55, have lots of color and activity, and find it to be neither difficult or expensive (at least compared to SW)

 

[Gills]

Thanks for all the info and help.