anybody here have a fresh water or salt water fish tank?

[Voiceontapex]

if any of you do, what exactly do you do to cycle a tank?

I think salt water fish are amazing, but it looks so hard haha, how hard is it to really take care of them?

[Mr Eagle]

Ive kept fish for over 30 years Voice.
Kio ,Freshwater Tropicals and Marine. At the moment I have a large Koi Pond out the back(my pride and joy) and a Community South American Freshwater in a wall in the Lounge.
You are write in saying the Marine tanks look Very Impressive,like all things you have to go about it the correct way.The cost of setting up is more than a Freshwater tank but with the write equipment maintenance is part of the hobby more than a chore.
Have a look at www.thetipsbank.com/marine
Let us no how you get on

[Mr Eagle]

Just one thing I forgot to mention .You will not be a Fishkeeper but a Water Quality Watcher

[Henry]

My little brother has a large tank of fresh water fish. They look absolutely amazing but it does look difficult. He spends about 10 minutes a day fiddling about with chemicals to keep the water and the correct pH and so on. As well because we have lots of different kinds of fish with different food requirements we have over 10 diferent packets of fish food including bloodworms which are alive however its all worth it because you can sit and stare at them for hours

[Voiceontapex]

well eagle, when they say for you to cycle your water what is the process to do this, and why do you have to do it?

[Mr Eagle]

There is no quck reply Voice,you realy need to get a good book and educate yourself before setting up a tank
In a Freshwater tank you cycle the water mechanically,ie by a pump through various filteration processes.(I have an under gravel filter at present).This is necessary to take the nitrates (fish crap) out of the water.A Well planted tank will help with this process.Weekly partial water changes are also desirable.

A Marine tank is a different proposition alltogether.It cycles in different ways predominantly through the use of living rock taken from the Ocean and live sand which processes waste products on a constant basis.2lb of live rock per gallon is a rough guide to what you would need depending on fish stocking levels
A Marine tank will go through many cycles.ammonia-nitrate-nitrate or diatoms-algae-hard algae.(coraline algae)
If water quality is less than perfect algae will be a big problem.

Living rock is rock taken from the Ocean and is full of microscopic creatures that take the nitrates out of the water,they truly are natures filters,they will produce large ammounts of ammonia when first introduced to the tank,so your marine tank will have to sit and mature for some time before you can introduce fish.

Hope this answers your question regarding cycles,but again you need to get lots of info and advice before starting up.It may all sound very complicated and confusing ,I know I was when I first started but it is worth it ,Keeping fish has given me many years of enjoyment and are always a topic of consversation when I have visitors.

Good luck

[EquipmentJunkie]

Voice, here is my (not mine as in only mine but I'm a member of the expert panel) website www.wetwebmedia.com . Start with some inquiries here, if you need some more detail or a point in the wrong direction feel free to email me. COnsider joining the forum there, tell them you were referred by Adam Jackson and they will treat you well.

[Voiceontapex]

yea, id love to get into all that stuff, want to make sure I do it right