The Best Guide for Starting a Reef Tank

Setting Up Your First Aquarium

如果你想开始你自己的珊瑚礁,你ve come to the right spot. Reef Builders will take you step by step on how to setup a reef tank from scratch. And, once you’re all set up, we have the information you need to keep your tank thriving.

我们是谁

Reef Builders was established in 2006, and is the oldest running website providing news and helpful information regarding the saltwater aquatics industry. We have thousands of articles waiting to be explored and you can search for just about every aquarium topic by using our search bar in the top right-hand corner of the screen.

我们还通过类别组织了过去的文章，使您可以轻松地发现水族馆产品，盐水鱼类，珊瑚，视频和秘诀，以保持成功的礁石水族馆。

BASICS

If you’re just getting started all of the information you find online can be overwhelming, so we want to make sure you have a place to refer back for all the basic. This Page features a step-by-step guide for setting up a saltwater aquarium, as well as useful links to past Reef Builders articles for when you are ready to move beyond set up.

We hate to break it to you, but there is no one size fits all answer for how to set up a reef tank. While there are components of the process such as equipment, husbandry, and maintenance which carry over, no two tanks, and no two aquarists are the same.

Some people may op to modify the order, frequency or speed of these steps, and aside from a few critical checks, this is absolutely fine. In fact, part of what we love so much about reef keeping is the diversity of aquarium displays and personal reef keeping methods.

我们将指南分为6个步骤。在每个步骤中，我们都分解了您可能遇到的关键主题和问题。如果您想了解有关某个主题的更多信息，则每个步骤也都有链接。我们希望您发现这种资源有助于建立您的第一个水族馆。

Steps to setting up an aquarium

Step 1. Planning

步骤2.设备和设置

Step 3. Saltwater and Water Testing

步骤4.光，流和过滤

Step 5. Adding Fish and Corals

Step 6. Aquarium Maintenance

Step 1. Planning

What to Keep

Before you get started it is best to have an idea in mind about what you want to keep in your aquarium. What first caught your eye and inspired you to start your own? Knowing what you want to keep will help you decided which equipment you need before you make any purchases.

大多数人只想建立一个漂亮的水族馆，融合了鱼类和珊瑚。这被称为社区礁坦克。其他人可能会想到他们希望保留的一定的鱼或珊瑚。您甚至可能想保留一个水族馆作为鱼并跳过珊瑚。

Whatever it may be you will want to do a bit of research before purchasing any equipment as different tanks have different care requirements.

单击此处以了解有关choosing what to keep in your aquarium.

If you’re not picky, and just want to set up a nice looking tank, this guide will cover all the basic information you need to succeed.

Tank Size

Selecting your tank sizeis the second most important decision, after choosing what to keep. Tank size is determined by your budget, your livestock choices, and how much space you have to keep your new aquarium.

One of the secrets of reef keeping,bigger is always better.

Saltwater aquariums aren’t cheap, but there is always an affordable way to start keeping your own. Buying the biggest aquarium you can afford will pay off in the end by giving you a higher rate of success and more real estate to store your growing coral collection.

Bigger aquariums are also easier to keep because of what chemistry. There are several challenges with keeping an aquarium that pertains to water chemistry. We will cover that in more detail later but it is important to understand that changes in water chemistry happen slower in larger tanks because of there is more water. Bigger tanks are more forgiving.

在哪里保留水族馆

选择一个保持水族馆的地方很重要。您想确保有足够的空间在坦克周围工作。您应该将水族馆远离带有冷水的门或窗户，并避免将水箱放置在接收阳光直射的地方。

When you know which size aquarium you will buy, search for the tank dimension online and measure out that space in your room. Make sure the tank, including a tank stand fits!

Read:Modern Aquarium Fish Room

步骤2.设备和设置

All-In-One or Build Your Own

All-in-one aquariums are a quick and easy way to get started in reef keeping. Build your own requires you purchase each piece of equipment separately and then learn to put it all together. Both get you where you’re going, and it just depends on how much you want to be involved in the process.

For beginners, the all-in-one is a straightforward way to go. All-in-one aquariums come in desktop sizes up to larger 140 G (525L) full-blown reef ready systems.

逐件建造水族馆更耗时，但是，此选项可能会节省几美元。如果您有耐心，可以开始使用最小设备来建造水族馆，以使盐水流动。首先购买坦克和动力头以创建流量并从那里建立设备。