Saltwater suprises

[sharkayak]

Ok I've questioned a few people about saltwater tanks & they've all told me that they're expensive to set up & maintain. The fish are more expensive & water conditions are harder to control. Is this true or alot of hype?

[2manyfish]

Basically they're telling you the truth.

The fish are in general alot more expensive. They are more delicate in that their water requirements are stricter, some are difficult to feed, etc...
And yes, saltwater tanks will run you more money to start up and maintain. Even the most basic fish only (FO) tank will need marine salt - more money than just using plain tap water - and a skimmer. Go to a fish only with live rock (FOWLR) set up and now you've got the cost of the LR too. Want a reef tank? Now you're talking some serious money.

[cocoa_pleco]

SW is really expensive, and like 2manyfish said, a reef is more. i had my 55g planted before, and the total cost was around $600-$900. i flipped it to a reef, and i have 600w lighting, 75lbs LR, a yellow tang, clown goby, pink skunk clownfish, 3 stripe damsel, and some corals, and the total cost right now is about $2500, and my goal is to get 100 corals, and 2-3 more fish and im at like 5 corals as of now. lol