It has begun,,,,,cautiously optimistic.

[smaug]

I got it going this weekend.Ive got a 20 gal tall with marine substrate [1"] a penguin 350 with bio wheel seeded with existing bio gunk.I have my water at 1.01 sg,the temp is about 80 deg.I have 2 figure 8 puffers which look great and have a fine appetite.I realize Im taking a chance with stocking so soon but the distance to the shop I get brack fish from is considerable .I will post pics sometime soon.If things go well:sconfused:

[Gayle]

I have my eyes crossed for ya Smaug!!!!! It sounds like it should work out just fine though.

[HorrorShowRot]

Good luck smaug hope all works out:)

[Dave66]

smaug,
Very gradually over at least two weeks raise that SG to 1.10. Your puffers will need the true brackish as they grow.

Dave

[Ashley]

You want some snails for those puffers. I have lots, lol.

[smaug]

You want some snails for those puffers. I have lots, lol.
I dropped about a dozen mts from my fw tank in there yesterday.The puffers are just little but they still gave it a try.Right now I feed them freeze dried mysis and frozen foods such as bloodworms and shrimp.They are still bright eyed and busjy tailed,,,,,,so to speak.No ammonia yet or any thing else bad.With only these 2 little ones in there I dont expect much trouble.They sure are fun to watch ,such a shame they cant be kept in big groups,or with anything else [at least not in a 20 gal]
Thanks for the info Dave.

[splitadams]

mts can break puffers teeth if he is too small, you can still feed him
them but you have to crush them first, then it defeats the purpose
of the crunchy diet, its best to go with pond snail or ramshorn snails
they also like crickets, earthworms and other insects but in my
experience theyre favorite is live crayfish, crab or shrimp,
if theyre big enough you might need to snip claws.
also only ever feed him untill he has put on a third of his size,
because puffers will eat till they literally pop

you'll soon find the puffer fish are the life of the tank,
theyre extremely smart for fish, seemingly greet you when
you walk past the tank, and even look like theyre smiling sometimes

and keep an eye out for ip's in puffers as theyre fairly prone to them

oh and also puffers are extremely sensitive to amm, no2 and no3
and can quite easily die at the slightest levels, keep the water changes
up if the tank isnt cycled yet, i had to do a water change everyday for over a week

[smaug]

They are doing pretty well at the moment although I dont think they are able to get through the mts shells.I have been feeding them frozen foods such as bloodworms ,mysis,brine and some beefheart.The bigger one is a nasty bully and barely gives the smaller a moments rest except at feeding time,amazingly they can feed side by side.I cant imagine Ill be able to keep anything else with them,the tank is too small for anything big enough to fend for itself against them.Oh well,a puffer tank isnt so bad,they are lively little buggers.

[Northernguy]

I didn't know they had teeth!
I thought it was more of a beak!

[smaug]

they are more of a beak but it is inside there mouth.

[Red]

GL smaug, keep us updated..

[splitadams]

even tho it looks like a beak its 4 teeth
the word Tetraodontidae actually means 4 teeth
a figure 8 being a Tetraodon biocellatus
trigger fish, file fish aswell as others also come under this name aswell

i wouldnt feed a puffer beef heart either it will cause
premature death

sorry bout the load of info you probably are already aware of

how bout some pics?

[smaug]

even tho it looks like a beak its 4 teeth
the word Tetraodontidae actually means 4 teeth
a figure 8 being a Tetraodon biocellatus
trigger fish, file fish aswell as others also come under this name aswell

i wouldnt feed a puffer beef heart either it will cause
premature death

sorry bout the load of info you probably are already aware of

how bout some pics?
Reasons for premature death from beefheart?

[splitadams]

beef heart is missing alot of vitamins that most fish need, and its not a natural food source for most fish, also fish dont have certain organs required to digest warmblooded fats and oils, ive also read it has a heaps higher chance of introducing tape worm and other parasites, and puffers are already prone to ip's

[smaug]

I can believe that it would be a problem if fed that everyday but my feeding regimen for all my fish include a cycle of different foods spread out over about 5 days.Thanks for the advice as I will not feed it to him anymore for a few reasons.What the little bugger really likes is worms and frozen krill.Oh yes,btw,I am down to just 1 now due to the fact that his tank mate was a smaller one and a bit more frail.The bigger took the oppurtunity to do him in.Now there is one:sconfused: The water quality is staying healthy do to every other day 20% Wc.I am actually surprised my biofilter that I seeded 100% from an existing tank is not eliminating all ammo but I suppose fw bact may not be totally compatible with BW or SW.

[splitadams]

fw bacteria dies off completely at 1.005
and bacteria required in marine starts to thrive just below that

so when it gets to around 1.004 i give it a few weeks break
before i add more salt, to give time for beneficial bacteria to thrive

and just incase, you should only be raising the salinity by 0.002 per week
maximum, a larger amount will kill all beneficial bacteria in the tank

[smaug]

fw bacteria dies off completely at 1.005
and bacteria required in marine starts to thrive just below that

so when it gets to around 1.004 i give it a few weeks break
before i add more salt, to give time for beneficial bacteria to thrive

and just incase, you should only be raising the salinity by 0.002 per week
maximum, a larger amount will kill all beneficial bacteria in the tank
I started the salt level in the tank at 2 tbsp per gal right off the bat.They were being kept in 1.005 so I figured I should start them at that as well.I was able to check it correctly at first because of it being cooler at the time.To be honest I dont know what the actual reading is right now because the type meter I bought starts at that level and is of course dependent on temp of 77 deg.My house is rather warm so the tank water is about 84 deg.I am a bit unsure how to understand there conversion chart that came with it.

[splitadams]

haha i dont understand those conversion charts either, i just put a thermometer in the water change bucket with a heater till it the right temp for my hydrometer to be acurate comes up

[splitadams]

oh and you should probably buy a new hydrometer that starts at 1.000
because "2 tbl spoons per g" can be inacurate

[Dave66]

I started the salt level in the tank at 2 tbsp per gal right off the bat.They were being kept in 1.005 so I figured I should start them at that as well.I was able to check it correctly at first because of it being cooler at the time.To be honest I dont know what the actual reading is right now because the type meter I bought starts at that level and is of course dependent on temp of 77 deg.My house is rather warm so the tank water is about 84 deg.I am a bit unsure how to understand there conversion chart that came with it.

Smaug,

Get yourself a temperature-compensated refractometer since it won't matter the room temp, you'll get an accurate reading. Also, refractometers stay accurate basically forever, hydrometers do not.

Dave

[smaug]

Not to second guess any info I'm getting but all the research I did before getting into this told me that perfect salinity was not very critical.The bw keepers I have talked to in the past have told me the same thing as well.In your opinions [as in all of you who have posted thus far] is it or is it not important to be within 10ths when measuring the salt content.?

[splitadams]

yeah brackish fish do prefer a fluctuating salinity by minor amounts, your right about that, tho it is easier for your self to do it by accurate readings with a hydrometer if your raising the salinity or you want to keep it level, alot of packaged marine salt vary in streangth, you dont want to accidentally add too much salt at one time or it can burn your fish, or you dont want to be putting in too little being unaware that your fish is lacking what it needs. keep a look out for a dark belly on the puffer, this would mean he isn't in salty enough water

keep in mind that this sign doesnt always show

[smaug]

Thanks for the info.Ill check into a better gauge.Im using oceanic salt ,is that good stuff?

[splitadams]

as long as its sea salt its good, aquarium salts for fresh water tanks arent the right type

most people have told me to stick with a brand of salt aswell
different brands of salt are all slightly different

[smaug]

Yahoo!I did it.The tank has reached the correct numbers to now be cycled.thumbs2: I did lose a goby yesterday though,he was stuck to the filter when I got home.The other 2 gobys and the fig 8 are livin large and mts and live skeeter larve.I think I may get some more bumblebee gobys tommarow.I have lots of hiding spots in there ,a total of 5 shouldnt stress anything out.What I will have after that is a fig 8,5 goby,this is a 20 gal tall tank.Is there any other fish that could do well in there?

[splitadams]

mollies and bbg's, and he could still decide to turn on them at anypoint of time

keep in mind if you decide to add big fish etc. scats mono's or bream which can be successful, but if they pick on your puffer he WILL nuke the tank

many puffers Tetrodotoxin is more lethal than cyanide, most do lose theyre toxicity in captivity but that cant be relied on, and anything that eats your puffer will die and when he exhales from being puffed he'll release the toxin from his mouth (no need to worry about the toxin and your health unless you decide to eat him or have open wounds on your hands and theyre in the tank at the time)

[smaug]

monos get way big for a 20,scats too.I guess Ill stick with bbg.Maybe a flounder or 2 would work?

[splitadams]

the flounders we get here in australia would need a 55g atleast