what was your first saltwater tank?

[njp14333]

mine was a 40h with 2 whisper filters and a cpr backpak:lol:. so, what was your first tank?

[tankfly]

Mine was set up circa 1983-84. A 20 gal with an Ehiem canister filter and UV sterilizer. I don't remember protein skimmers being available back then but they could have been.

I remember stopping at a pet store in Myrtle Beach SC and they sold live rock. I thought that was cool so I bought a small one that had some mushrooms on it. I believe it lived for a while although my light wasn't much.

[aiko670]

An All-Glass 45 with a home made 10gal wet dry and a magnum.

A 45 is a really bad tank for stacking rock! I think I also blew my hole wad on a crappy amirical venturi skimmer.

[RobChuck]

My first SW tank was a 20XH in the late 80's. The tank was set up for FW, but my dad came home with a bag of IO and 3 damsels one evening. All the FW fish were moved into a 10g and we added the IO and fish a few hours later. Surprisingly, they all thrived in that tank for several years with FW decorations and a Penn Plax UGF as the sole means of filtration.

A few years later though, I was a youngin' with a lot of caddy money burning holes in my pockets. I eventually overstocked the heck out of that tank (I remember having a Picasso Trigger, Racoon Butterfly, and Juvenile Blue Angel all at the same time) which caused all sorts of chaos and dead fish. After that, LR started becoming popular, and I like to say that I've been successful ever since.

[omni2226]

1982 40 gallon long with crushed coral and oyster shells.
Undergravel filter with airpump.
Small Lionfish.

Never saw any live rocks or coral. Wet/dry trickle filters were new and a "passing fad" according to the local experts.
If anyone mentioned protein it had to do with bbqing steaks and nothing to do with skimmers.

[jdenton]

Ah, it was 1974 - a 20L with a UGF. I was 13 at the time, but did fairly well with that tank. We had an awesome LFS that had about 250 SW tanks, and they were very knowledgable (for the time).

I had that tank until I went to college, my parents managed to kill everything by Christmas break!:(

BTW, I did have a small in-tank protein skimmer then, so they were available - if not big enough to do any good.

[CB1]

Mine was in about 1989. I had a 20 gal high freshwater at the time. I would see all those saltwater fish and corals at the LFS and had to have them. So I bought a 45 gal tank with flouresent lighting and a 20 gal home made trickle filter. As a mater of fact I still use the homemade trickle with a lot of mod's to it now, on the same 45 gal tank.

[Blown 346]

Mine was a 55 gallon tank that had a buch of dead coral skeletons, and only fish. Needless to say It was overstocked, I had a Lionfish, yellow Tang, Snowflake Eel, Porcupine puffer, and a Naso tang. No skimmer, a Emperor 400 HOB filter, with Crushed coral.

[hydro52]

I started my first salt water tank way back in 1975; it was a 30 Gallon long. The tank was set up as fish only and I was able to keep a couple of Tangs, some clown fish, and some damsels. I tore it down and sold everything off when I left the Army and went back to grad school. Things have changed considerably since then and I'm hoping to have a 55 reef tank up and running in the next couple of months.

[mg426]

A 55 with an undergravel filter. Man how things have changed.

[ste6168]

mine was way back in 2005, i had a 75g with a 29g DIY sump... Somehow i still am running that tank today, 8 months later...

Mike

[reefinmike]

feburary of 05 i started the madness with

29 gallon, 35lbs live rock
10g sump
diy pvc overflow(which failed many times resulting in floods)
4x65w power compacts
lps and softies

then a 10g, then a 180g, then a 125g, then a 90g, then a 1/2g all of which i currently have up and running all money pits(reefs)

[VSpeck]

44gal pentagon with a emporer 280 no skimmer and way overstocked.

[sixxer]

55 Gallon Tank that we bought for my son after "Finding Nemo" came out. Running Emporor 400's for filtration, silica sand for substrate, and a little live rock. Funny thing is that 2 to 3 years later he has no interest in the tank and I am setting up a 600 gallon!!! How did that happen:lol:

[dominic]

AGA 125, ETSS 800, Emperor 40W UV, Little Giant return pump and a genx to run my skimmer

[sixxer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7406982#post7406982 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dominic
AGA 125, ETSS 800, Emperor 40W UV, Little Giant return pump and a genx to run my skimmer

That's quite a nice set-up for your first tank Dominic!!!!!

[Saltz Creep]

http://kouros.kapsi.fi/museo/smf/kuvat/ad_from_comics-01.jpg

[gvibes]

I'm putting it together right now.

5' 100g.

[yeame]

29g Eclipse (11/20/03) 75g (06/08/04) 20g long (12/20/05) 125g in progress
(does any body see an addiction starting)

[Kahuna Tuna]

It was the late 70's and it was a 55 gallon with an air driven underground filter, crushed coral substrate, lava rock, plastic plants, and dead coral skeletons for decor, and an eheim cannister filter. Lighting was provided by two 40 watt florescents. It was pretty state of the art for the time.

[Bebo77]

60 FOWLR

[patharm]

Mine was a 180 wood tank with glass front that I built in my backyard in 1983. It had an undergravel filter and a canister filter. I had it while living in S Florida and would collect all the fish and sea life stocked in the tank. It had sand from a Florida beach and a mix of live rock from an inlet with coral rock from a garden and construction store. I was in college then and took pride in having collected all the specimens in my tank.

Patrick

[Paul Burgess]

Early 90s, did the UGF, CC, coral skeltons and bunch of water changes. It was an awesome 75 gallon tank for the time. Traded an estate planning engagement for part of the set up with a fellow who maintained tanks for a living.

I took the tank down and stored it for several years when the kids were real young. Many years latter, I set it back up. I think that CC still had bacteria living in it b/c when I set it back up, the tank never went through a cycle process. No amonia spikes and no lost fish.

I use that same CC today on my 125 FOWLR.

[Sk8r]

My first saltwater? A 2 gallon tank with no substrate, a piece of coral, a bubbler and 2 seahorses I'd rescued from a lfs who was going to let the male die, pinned under a rock. [They weren't good at rock stacking: I got a piranha the same way, and the rescues all lived beyond the incident. Their going price for moribund fish was .50.] That was back in 1965. My horses lived quite nicely for months, until a neighbor's smoky cocktail party filled our apartment with smoke (row house: there were 2 inch gaps under most of the doors, and it was even coming through gaps in the floor) and did them in. I was furious. [My piranha survived the trip home to Oklahoma.]

[puffer21]

25 gallon eclipse with a heater, sand and live rock. I was so happy my LFS said i could have..... an anemone, 2 clowns, blue linka star fish, porcupine puffer, corals, snails, hermits, feather dusters, crabs, and a clam. all in 25 gallon with about no lighting or filterization. Luckly i found RC before i bought all that

[s3aL]

about 5 years ago.....

29 gallon petco starter kit.

filtration was hang on filter
10lbs LR 25lbs Lace rock
blue pebbles for substrate(used in fresh water tanks)
NO lighting
hang-on heater
1 powersweep 228

:lol:

[Danster]

I started with a aga 125 gallon and ran it great for 6 years.

[11fishes]

a 10 gallon for my little sis she wanted a starfish so i bought one then found out a starfish wouldn't make it in there with it being so new. i had to get some damsels and "cycle" the water for a few months then i could get a starfish for her, by that time she didnt care but i developed a loving relationship with my fish and all the effort i put into caring for them and the tank

[rickh]

I had several 30 gallons and a 55 in 1970 something. They all were high tech with air driven UG filters, dolomite gravel, and a huge salt encrusted power filter that probably flowed 100 gallons per hour. I almost forgot, the converted fluorescent desk lights on top--also covered with salt. Things have changed. R