Salt...

Question
Sorry to bother you again! Thanks for your last response.
I haven't begun set up yet...but I have picked up a few supplies. Such as:
A bucket
Soft Net
Nori/Seaweed Clip
Seaweed for herbivors (Yellow Tang when the time comes)
I'm planning to mix white sands and coral sand together to start.  I also do have a submersible Marineland heater and a Whisper 40 gallon filter.


I just have a few more questions for you:
1. When doing a water change how can you be sure the fish will adjust well to returning to the tank?
2. The store I go to has premade salt water is that safe to use for water changes or would it mess up my existing tank water?
3. Should water changes be done just like a fresh water aquarium? No more than 50%?
4. Is it possible to cycle the tank with out a protein skimmer?
5. What wattage light should be used for a 33 gallon Fish-Only set up? I have a 15 watt right now...will that be ok for the fish or do I need to get another type of light?

and one more...

6. Is it safe to use an air pump with the bubble bar in a salt water tank?

Answer
Hi Again Krysta. So many questions where do I start? Okay first of all when you do your partial water changes you do not remove the fish from the tank. Going through a partial is stressful enough without the unneeded stress of being netted and put into an unfamiliar environment. You are only going to want to take out about 25% of the water at each partial.(your right it is like fresh water where you don't want to do any more than a 50% water change at one time) There will be plenty of room for the fish to swim around while your working to clean their home. The partial is meant to improve water quality for your fish. That kind of change won't be stressful on them.

The premade salt is perfectly fine for doing your partial water changes. It can be a lot more costly however then using the mix. If you do not know of or can't find a source of make up water such as distilled or reverse osmosis and the only other alternative would be using tap water(I do not ever recommend using city supplied tap water)then using the already mixed saltwater would be a good idea.

You can cycle a tank without a protein skimmer. The only problem is that sometimes it takes a few days to a week before the protein skimmer starts to work efficiently. You will have to adjust it many times before you get just the right mixture of air and water to collect your dissolved wastes in. You would want to add a protein skimmer before you start stocking your tank.

If you are doing a fish only aquarium then any lighting will do. Just try to use bulbs that are designed for a saltwater tank. The spectrum of some bulbs that are not made for saltwater may promote the growth of unwanted algae not to mention drown out the beautiful colors of the fish!

You can use a bubble wand in a saltwater tank however with a filter and a protein skimmer on your tank it will be unnecessary. Saltwater will also react to a bubble wand differently than freshwater and you may find that it is putting out too many bubbles which will not only be harmful if they adhere to the skin of the fish, but will cause the water to always look cloudy.

I'm glad to see that you decided to go for saltwater and not African cichlids!!!

Feel free to ask as many questions as you need to!