Marine fish-only with live rock: step-by-step setup
8 steps from choosing the spot to adding the first fish.
Spot and tank
Marine needs stability: 100 L or more is far easier than a nano. Best is a drilled (overflow) tank with a sump below. Check the floor: 300 L with sump and rock can reach 400 kg.
Water and salt
RO/DI water only (TDS 0): tap water carries phosphate, nitrate and silica. Reef salt at about 36–38 g per litre to 1.025 SG (35 ppt), measured with a refractometer. Mix in a bucket with a pump and heater for 24 h before use.
Equipment
A sump or strong filter, a protein skimmer rated 1.5× the tank, wave pumps for 20–40× turnover (more for reef), heater (and a chiller or fans for Egyptian summers), ATO with RO water, refractometer and test kits.
Rock and sand
Live or dry rock about 0.5–1 kg per 4 L, stacked stable with epoxy and open for flow. Aragonite sand 2–5 cm or bare bottom. Never take rock or coral from the Red Sea: it is illegal in Egypt.
Cycle (4–8 weeks)
Ammonia 2 ppm plus marine bacteria, lights off or low. Test every two days. A brown diatom then green algae phase is normal. Ready when ammonia and nitrite read zero; then add a clean-up crew (snails, hermit crabs).
Fish: quarantine first
Quarantine every new marine fish 4–6 weeks (copper or chloroquine plus praziquantel) before the display: marine ich and velvet wipe out tanks. One or two fish every two weeks, peaceful first, aggressive last. Never copper in a tank with corals or invertebrates.
Marine feeding
Small meals 2–3 times a day: mysis, enriched brine shrimp, marine pellets, and nori for tangs and rabbitfish.
Marine routine
Top off daily with RO water (not salt water), change 10–15% weekly or fortnightly, empty the skimmer cup weekly, check salinity and temperature daily, nitrate and phosphate weekly. Stability beats numbers.