How much money should I have set aside?

In terms of starting a saltwater tank from nothing other than a 30-gallon tank, how much money should I have prepared to spend on supplies and fish?

I would like to do a lionfish tank but if not, I will do a clownfish tank. Anyone have any ideas of the starting costs?

Quote from Avery

I think it really depends on if you want to go with all new equipment or try to get second-hand used equipment - and also how you want to set up your tank in terms of equipment style/types (ex; protein skimmer or not). I'd say a good safe bet is anywhere between $300-800, which is super vague but can cover everything you need for a 30-gallon tank.

Is this your first tank, or have you done others that are saltwater? Ideally lion fish need far bigger than a 30-gallon tank unless you plan to re-home it once it gets bigger from a smaller size.

Thanks, that makes sense. I guess you can go on a smaller scale but you are very limited with options. Would you say clown fish would do fine in a 30-gallon tank? Assuming I only keep 5 or 6 of them?