Green Spotted Puffer

[Alix]

i was at Petco the other day pickin up some betta food an i looked at the fish(i always do) and i saw a green spotted puffer an fell inlove looked like a fat little puppy...with fins an i couldnt help it!! he was like 5$ an i had a 15gal at home already filted an was going to put my betta in it but i got the puffer...im unclear on how much salt to use. i am useing one TBL spoon like the guy at the store said...an i am feeding him krill an live ghost shrimp he seems pretty happy an cute but i was just wondering if i was doing anything wrong or is there anything i could do to make him happier.

he is lil of an inch long (my guess) white belly, BRIGHT GREEN forehead, greyback an black spots

 

[smooth_bourbon]

Hi what kind of salt, filtration, and substrate are you using? You need a specific gravity of about 1.005 so you will need a Hydromoter. Green Spotted puffers need a ph around 8, and like lots of caves and decor in the tank. They can get to be around 6 inches long and will need a much larger aquarium then you have it in. You also need to feed it hard foods to keep its beek/teeth from over growing, like snails and ghost shrimp.

 

[crackmonkey]

Hi what kind of salt, filtration, and substrate are you using? You need a specific gravity of about 1.005 so you will need a Hydromoter. Green Spotted puffers need a ph around 8, and like lots of caves and decor in the tank. They can get to be around 6 inches long and will need a much larger aquarium then you have it in. You also need to feed it hard foods to keep its beek/teeth from over growing, like snails and ghost shrimp.

They only need 1.005? I heard it was more salt, that they border on marine conditions. But if it's true its 1.005 or even 1.008 I'll be getting Green Spotted Puffers instead of Figure Eights since they look better

 

[Puffer_freak]

I believe Smooth is talking about what they need at the size the puffer is now. When theyget older, a lot of peoplekeep them in marine conditions.

 

[Pufferpunk]

What do you mean by "already filtered"? running a filter does not cycle a tank.

Read: Green Spotted Puffers

 

[Little Fish]

They only need 1.005? I heard it was more salt, that they border on marine conditions. But if it's true its 1.005 or even 1.008 I'll be getting Green Spotted Puffers instead of Figure Eights since they look better

Still concerned about salt usage, huh? I think GSPs grow to twice the size of F8s. Bigger fish, more waste. More waste, more frequent water changes. More water changes, more salt consumption. Also, GSP owners said they need more salt as they grow.

I suggest you think about the maximum size of the puffer you would like to keep instead of just salt usage. I bought a 40lb salt mix bucket because I thought I would consume a lot of salt. 4 months into the brackish hobby and I hardly used up 10% of it. If I keep the SG of the tank and water changing schedule constant, the bucket would last for 3 years. So far the filter media cost more than the salt I used.

 

[Pufferpunk]

Be sure to keep that bucket sealed tight! 1 forgetful hour of leaving my bucket open to the elements--1 giant piece of rock salt!

 

[Zombies]

Be sure to keep that bucket sealed tight! 1 forgetful hour of leaving my bucket open to the elements--1 giant piece of rock salt!

This drives me insane! The last bag I bought I'd clip the bag closed then keep it in a rubber container, and it still happened!. The problem is it's so hard to dissolve when it's like that. I can put it in a bucket of warm water with a filter running in it all day, and it still won't dissolve as good as soft salt. Do you have any suggestions for dissolving the salt when it get's like this?

 

[Little Fish]

Be sure to keep that bucket sealed tight! 1 forgetful hour of leaving my bucket open to the elements--1 giant piece of rock salt!

I got your warning too late. Luckily the bucket has 3 individual bags in it. Only one bag is opened and solidified. Now I have to scrape when I use it.

 

[Little Fish]

This drives me insane! The last bag I bought I'd clip the bag closed then keep it in a rubber container, and it still happened!. The problem is it's so hard to dissolve when it's like that. I can put it in a bucket of warm water with a filter running in it all day, and it still won't dissolve as good as soft salt. Do you have any suggestions for dissolving the salt when it get's like this?

It's lucky that I have F8s that do not require a high SG. I can still dissolve what I scaped from the salt block quite well with a heater and water pump running in a bucket. I think it might be ok to boiled a cup or 2 of prepared water and use it to dissolve the salt. Then add the salt water to a bucket of prepared water and adjust the temperature. Never have to try it myself though

 

[Zombies]

I always think about useing boiled water, or boiling the salt on the stove, then adding it to a bucket of cold water, but I'm worried it will create some sort of reaction or change the properties of the salt, I really have no idea, would it be safe to do that?

 

[Little Fish]

I always think about useing boiled water, or boiling the salt on the stove, then adding it to a bucket of cold water, but I'm worried it will create some sort of reaction or change the properties of the salt, I really have no idea, would it be safe to do that?

I did some research on the Net but could not find any reference of whether hot water can be used. A web site: www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk does have a calculator to measure how much boiling water should be added to cold water to maintain tank temperature during a partial water change. However, it does not state whether the salt is added to the boiling or cold water. The only other thing I found remotely related is bicarbonates turn into carbonates at around 60C. I guess it would be unwise to use boiling water to dissolve marine salt afterall. However, warm water around 50C should provide a lot of melting power without overheating the salt mix. Just remember to drop the temperature back to around 25C before pumping the water bank to the tank.

Ok, I started to sound like I've done it before which I have not. Will someone with more experience tell me if this is viable?

 

[smooth_bourbon]

I had an issue with my instant ocean and I found just hot tap water. I used 8 gallon rubbermaid containers for the water changes. I would add the crystalized salt, then run hot water from the tub spout into the bucket, about a fourth full. I would then stir it with my hand till it disolved very time comsuming then add my cholorine remover, and cold water to get it to the right temp.

then test the temp, test the ph, and test the salinity and adjust accordingly, usually adding a pinch of baking soda to get my ph to 8. so much fun lol.

I ended up switching to oceanic sea salt mix which has a screw on lid and is a very powdery mix. I had great success it disolves almost instantly and is just so much easier to work with, not to mention it would bring my tap water up to 8 so no more baking soda needed.

 

[Little Fish]

I ended up switching to oceanic sea salt mix which has a screw on lid and is a very powdery mix. I had great success it disolves almost instantly and is just so much easier to work with, not to mention it would bring my tap water up to 8 so no more baking soda needed.

The Crystal Sea brand salt I used was easy to dissolve and very powdery too before it took in moisture. Now I use a big plastic food container with a rubber lid to store the open bag so it won't take in more moisture. I would give Oceanic a try next time. However, according to my salt consumption, it might take a couple of years for me to use up my current bucket.

 

[pica_nuttalli]

have you tried the old fashioned motar & pedstle approach? ground up bits always dissolve faster than the equivalent whole.