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needs to be cheap.
list stuff that can be bought from petsmart if possible.

anay info would be appreciated.

"I am who I am, and who I am is who I want to be."
-Kasey Carter

A good marine tank isn't cheap. Live rock is expensive, as are pumps and protein skimmers. Other equipment such as refractometers, heaters, and filters suck money away too. Setting up a saltwater aquarium will drain a lot of money away if done right. Obviously cost varies with tank size and exactly what stuff you buy, but it is almost always more than a similar freshwater tank would cost. It's the painful truth.

For a typical ten gallon, I'd recommend:
Heater
Thermometer
Refractometer or hydrometer
Salt mix
Live rock
Background
Pump or powerheads for water movement
Substrate, if any
And possibly a protein skimmer

The light you will need depends on what kind of invertebrates you want to keep. Photosynthetic inverts need at least a decent power compact fixture, though some really only do well in intense light provided by the likes of metal halides. High intensity lights add a lot to expenses, so if you are looking to keep costs down just go with a standard fluorescent strip light. This will mean that you cannot keep anemones, clams, and most corals.

I don't think the Petsmart chain deals with saltwater goods at all, so you will need to shop elsewhere to complete your list.

---

And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Petsmarts near me do not sell saltwater. Petco sells a small amount of salt equipment and fish. Local fish stores are better and often have more variety for the same or lower price.

I would do a fowlr(no corals) with 10lbs(~1) of sand, 10lbs of liverock, 25w heater, a filter and/or powerhead running around 200-300gph(not real easy to fit powerheads in a 10g and heats it up quickly), and optionally a protein skimmer. Skimmer isn't a necessity and it can be hard to find a good nano skimmer but it does help with water quality and can decrease the need for some water changes while increasing the number or size of fish you can keep. A small cannister like an eheim ecco would be good for filtration but somewhat expensive. A large aquaclear or penguin filter would work well enough if you clean the media frequently and aquaclears can be turned into refugiums for macroalgae. Macro will help with water quality but requires some diy work to setup a lighted aquaclear for it. If you use a 10g hood and get 1 large filter instead of using a powerhead with it then make sure it fits in the cut out spot or the hood will have to sit at an angle.

Don't go cheap on the heater. Get one that can read the temperature and therefore has numbers on the dial. Visitherm heaters especially their stealth heaters are my first choice.

Light is not a big deal if you aren't keeping corals or photosynthetic inverts but if you get a 10g with a hood definitely replace the screw in incandescents with fluorescents. The tank will heat up too fast otherwise. Other option would be to get a glass top with light strip instead of the usual 10g hood.

Stock lightly! Only a few inches worth of fish and only small fish around 3" or less. Small gobies like neon and clown gobies work well. Possibly 1 percula or ocellaris clown but none of the larger clowns like tomato or cinnamon. Despite them often being sold for beginner fish avoid damsels and also dragonets including scooter "blennies". Scooters are actually dragonets and while small have special feeding requirements but petstores near me are always selling them to unsuspecting aquarists. They won't live long in a tank that size unless you put in alot effort and money. What you really want for a cleanup crew is your opinion but at least a few snails or hermits is helpful. Cerith or nassarius snails are especially good at keeping the sand stirred and clean.

Even with light stocking you will probably have to do weekly water changes. You will have to purchase RO or distilled water or setup your own RO system. Tapwater is rarely used in saltwater tanks with any success. You'll also need salt and to measure it with a refractometer($50-$200 depending on size and quality) or hydrometer(cheap but not as accurate). Salt often comes in large buckets costing around $40. Unless your careful this will all stick together with moisture and not dissolve as well by the time you use it all up in a nano. If you can your better off getting the smaller bags instead of the buckets despite not being quite as cost effective. You can also buy NSW which is water from the ocean that has been heavily filtered and cleaned. It requires no mixing or preparation but costs $10 for a 5g container from Petco.

In the end your still probably going to spend over $100 for just a 10g setup. Saltwater isn't cheap and the smaller the tank the more it costs per gallon. Liverock is your biggest expense unless you live near the ocean but it's also the best filtration and very important in keeping a nano tank stable. It will be alot more difficult to maintain a tank that size if you skimp on the rock. You could do a few lbs of it in dry base rock to save some money but it will take longer to establish the tank before you can start adding fish. Here in the middle of the country as far from an ocean as you can get liverock averages $3/lb.

Thanks for all the great info.
The petsmart in my area caries stuff for saltwater tanks, but no fish.
I can get the fish from the LFS, so its ok.



"I am who I am, and who I am is who I want to be."
-Kasey Carter

I am also considering a FOWLR nanotank of either 6 or 10g.
(depends on if I get the 10g, which a friend is considering not wanting anymore)

I was planning to get a Stealth heater and a Powersweep 212 ps-10
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/F64AX/Class/Aquarium+Power+Heads/T1/F64AX+0495+0185/EDP/20738/Itemdy00.aspx

But then I saw this EKIP 200 Thermopump UL 50W 90 GPH (Hydor)
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/F64AX/Class/Aquarium+Power+Heads/T1/F64AX+0418+0003/EDP/41200/Itemdy00.aspx
and now I would like to know what anyone knows/thinks about it.

But that Thermopump, it pumps 90GPH, and says it's for 5-15 gallons. Is 90 GPH really enough water movement?

Because if it is, the protien skimmer I was thinking of
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/F49AX+F49B@/Class/Aquarium%20Protein%20Skimmers/T1/F49BA%200434%200148/EDP/50691/Itemdy00.aspx#
moves 84GPH, so would I NEED more water movement?

OR-
Would it be feasible to use a submersible power filter for water movement? I could remove the sponge, or not. It takes up a lot of space, but really probably not much more than a powerhead.

FWIW, I've heard from everyone that fission skimmers are terrible. May want to stay away from those. Also, when I started my nano, I was told that on a 10 gallon it is usually easier to do more frequent water changes than it is to get a skimmer.

Dunno about the powerhead/heater. I've got a powersweep and an aquaclear for movement and a heater off to the side of one of their intakes. Seems to work great for me

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