Swiching from freshwater to saltwater

Question
Hey I have a 60 gallon freshwater tank with a fluval 404 have had it running beautifully for years crystal clear water and all levels are great. So i was thinking of switching it to saltwater and was wondering how difficult that would be also how expensive it would be. Also if I could use my current filter or not the more info you could give me the better thanks.

Answer
Hi Tom:  The current filter would be good. you would need to add a protein skimmer and possibly a UV sterilizer.  The cross over is not that difficult but it can be expensive... you would have to upgrade lighting probably... and you would need a few additional supplies and definitely a master salter water test kit.  I would recommend a hydrometer ($8 on ebay), red sea salt and a new and clean 5 gallon bucket to mix your salt and water before you add it to your tank.  Rio makes small filter/skimmer combo's for tanks about 20 gallons so you might check with their homepage and see if they have a filter/skimmer for your tank.  Look carefully at tank dimensions for lighting requirements and then you have to decide if you want a reef tank, fish only tank, or a combo.  Most of the chemical values for salt are the same for fresh with a few additions... I hear all the time how difficult salt is but in reality its a little more work but not much more difficult.... hope this helps... dave