Choosing Between a Saltwater or Freshwater Tank

One of the hardest things that you will find when you start the aquarium keeping hobby, is figuring out whether you want a saltwater or a freshwater aquarium. Saltwater tanks are very complex, you have to constantly maintain chemical balances to ensure a healthy environment for your specimens. Pictured to the right is a neat saltwater aquarium. Because of the complexity of a marine tank, you'll find that the type of people to use them are more dedicated aquarists, and in some cases, more advanced in their aquatic knowledge.

For most people, they choose freshwater because of its simplicity and ease of use. Pictured below is a sweet looking freshwater aquarium. You'll find that with the right lighting and decorations or life, you can make both freshwater and saltwater tanks look pretty darn cool.

And then you have to ask yourself if you want to have a planted tank or just fish. Plants or corals can be a very cool looking addition to your tank. Freshwater plants can look neat, but if you really want to have a showcase aquarium, you have to go with saltwater. I personally think that nothing looks quite as good as a coral tank with some clown-fish. Not to mention that live rock in a saltwater tank acts as a natural water filter. I am biased because I prefer marine tanks over freshwater.

So the question comes down to you, how hard do you want to work on your aquarium? Saltwater tanks require heavy maintenance, but in my opinion they are gorgeous and worth all the effort. Like I mentioned above, I am biased so you really have to ask yourself what you think will work best for you. So whatever tank you choose, good luck!