Saltwater Tank and not being home

Nov 19, 2004
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#1
Hello there, I have done saltwater in the past i did it for about two years and then had to break it down because i moved. I havent kept saltwater in about 3-4 years but i would know what i was doing if i started it again. I keep trying to stick with the freshwater but its so hard because nothing quite matches in color. If i went back, and this i went with a much smaller tank whats the longest i could be away from home before the evaporation became a problem, thats the only problem i can actually forsee with a smaller tank. When i had a 55 gallon i could be away for weeks at a time and come back and find everything as i left it, save a little algae problem.
Anyone have experience with small saltwater tanks. I have heard of 1 gallon tanks but im not prepared to do that , i would have to be home everyday to top it off, by the way i live in fl but my air conditoner runs almost constant so i do lose water in my tanks. Im looking for anyone who has done 5 gallon to 30 gallon saltwater tank. Im not prepared to go any higher....personally i prefer smaller tanks. Is there any around the evaporation? The ammonia wont be a problem because i never stock high anyway.
 

1979camaro

Ultimate Fish
Oct 22, 2002
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#2
ive done a twenty...depending on how much light and what kind of pumps/skimmers/etc you have running on the tank your evap. will vary...i was losing about a gallon a week on that 20

its an easy problem to solve though, you just need to set up an auto top-off and have a big bucket full of FW
 

wayne

Elite Fish
Oct 22, 2002
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#7
They are devices you buy. You have a float valve which operates a small pump when it goes below a certain level which pumps fresh water in. You can also make them yourselves. Tunze make a nice one, or Aqua Medic, no idea what US brands
 

wayne

Elite Fish
Oct 22, 2002
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#10
I think the tradiitonal float valves are a bit crappy, and prone to jamming with salt build up. I think they could be a nerve wracking d.i.y. project as the result of failure is flooding.
 

Sep 30, 2004
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#11
Don't get me wrong here but don't smaller tanks need more maintence than larger ones??? Wouldn't he be better off going with a larger tank? I currently have a 20 gallon though, and I've been away quite a bit but guessing right off the top of my head I would say you could leave it for at least a month with out tinkering with it.
 

S.Reef

Superstar Fish
Dec 1, 2003
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#12
Yes they do...smaller tanks foul up faster, temperature flucuates, water evaporates faster. I have a 20 gallon with an open top and I replace evaporated water every 3 days.