# Other Aquarium Forums > Marine Tanks >  Venture into marine

## Noobz

Hi All, decided to venture into setting up a 2ft marine tank. Any advise for a noob? What is required for a basic setup? Thanks in advance.


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## mUAr_cHEe

Maybe you want to start with a bigger volume for more forgiveness. It depends on what kind of set up you can afford and would like to have.

A good easy set up would be a tank with an overflow to a sump. You will need some mechanical filtration and protein skimmer. If you are going for a reef tank, you will need to invest in a chiller.

What kind of set up do you have in mind?

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## cdckjn

Please do read up sufficiently before trying marine - there is no basic setup. There are some so simple that you can have just a 2ft tank, but what livestock can you put inside. So at the start, how much budget do you have? what are some of the livestock that you want. If a simple one is the FOWLR (Fish-Only-With-Live-Rock) this is the simplest with a protein skimmer. That is the most basic.

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## Noobz

Actually I've got a chiller and canister now as I'm keeping shrimps. Maybe something simple as a start for a newbie like me. Any proportion to mix sea salt and water as a guide? Will read more before starting

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## cdckjn

buy a packet of Red Sea salt mixture and then get a salinity meter and mix the salt with water and then you are good to go for a basic start-up

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## Noobz

Is it a must that for marine keeping needs a sump tank? Been reading and saw most marine tank keeper are using sump tank


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## mUAr_cHEe

It is not a must but it is easier to hide all the unsightly equipment in there.

Skimmer, Calcium Reactor, Chiller, Refugium, etc, etc.

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## BFG

Be prepared to hold lots of spare stuff like spare pump,spare salts, spare pure water, spare cash, etc, etc, etc.

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## saturnz17

Started 1ft den 2ft and now 3ft 7 mths ago...
Things that I needed for setup:-

1) Canister Filter
2) Coral Sand
3) Hydrometer/Refractometer
4) Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, PH testkits
5) Live rock
6) saltwater (SG between 1.021-1.026) I always maintain about 1.023
7) Wavemaker
 :Cool:  RO/Distilled water

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## Noobz

What's the average cycling time for a new setup?


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## BFG

1 month. Average length of newbie staying in this hobby is less than a year. Be prepared for the hard work ahead. And please, do not rush.

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## saturnz17

My cycling time was abt 2-2.5 weeks..tested for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate almost everyday until I achieve all 0...den I know the tank is ready..

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