Green Spotted Puffer

[BubbleBaby]

I bought a green spotted puffer on last thursday and he is doin pretty good. Yesterday I did my first water change and now his gills are moving a little rapidly. The interesting thing with my tank is that the water in the area I live in has no kh,so the ph of the water drops from 7.6 to 6 over night. So the ph of my water is usually around 6.0 in my tank ,but when I do water changes I put water in that is 7.6 ph........is that what is freakin him out? Do you think I should put some water in a bucket before I do a water change? and I was also wondering if I could put a fast bottom feeder or some other fast fish to eat the extra food (he is a messy eater) or do you think just having him in there is best?

Thanks,
Bubblebaby

 

[Ripley]

Yeah I would definatly do something different with the water. That is a big span from 6.0 to 7.6. In terms of bottoms, it will depend if your tank is or going to be brackish at some point.

 

[nmonks]

Always remember that the pH scale is logarithmic: going from 6 to 5 for example is a TEN FOLD increase in acidity. So if the pH goes from 7.6 to 6.0, that's a huge and potentially lethal water chemistry change. While fish can usually adapt to a range of pH values, sudden changes cause problems because of how their blood reacts. Depending on the situation, it's called acidosis or alkalosis. Either way, it can kill them.

In any case, green spotted puffers are brackish water fish. You'll need to be adding at least 6 grammes of marine salt mix (not "tonic salt" or "aquarium salt") per litre while the fish is under a couple of inches in length to create a specific gravity of at least SG 1.003. As the fish matures, this should be raised, until eventually it's around 13-16 grammes per litre (SG 1.008-1.010). Some folks keep adults of this species in marine tanks; while that works well, it isn't strictly necessary.

It cannot be kept in a freshwater aquarium indefinitely.

Cheers, Neale

 

[BubbleBaby]

Always remember that the pH scale is logarithmic: going from 6 to 5 for example is a TEN FOLD increase in acidity. So if the pH goes from 7.6 to 6.0, that's a huge and potentially lethal water chemistry change. While fish can usually adapt to a range of pH values, sudden changes cause problems because of how their blood reacts. Depending on the situation, it's called acidosis or alkalosis. Either way, it can kill them.

In any case, green spotted puffers are brackish water fish. You'll need to be adding at least 6 grammes of marine salt mix (not "tonic salt" or "aquarium salt") per litre while the fish is under a couple of inches in length to create a specific gravity of at least SG 1.003. As the fish matures, this should be raised, until eventually it's around 13-16 grammes per litre (SG 1.008-1.010). Some folks keep adults of this species in marine tanks; while that works well, it isn't strictly necessary.

It cannot be kept in a freshwater aquarium indefinitely.

Cheers, Neale

I'm aware that the ph is very important and thats why I'm worried about the whole thing Do you think I should alter the water to be more alkaline( thats what a website said) gradually of corse. I'm glad that you brought up the marine salt, when I bought the puffer the guy I bought it from said that I could use Insant Ocean instead of "aquarium salt" But then I went back to buy a bag and asked someone else (to make sure) and they said I shouldn't use marine salt. Could you tell me how much salt to put in my tank in Tablespoons? and how gradually I should put it in?
I would appreciate any other advice on how to best raise a green spotted puffer.

Thank you all!
-Bubblebaby

 

[nmonks]

The use of marine salt mix should fix pH, carbonate hardness, and salinity all at the same time. That's why this is the stuff to use, not "aquarium salt". Whoever said you shouldn't use marine salt mix is talking out of their hat. Trust me on this.

Six grammes of marine salt mix is about one level teaspoon. This will vary though; salt mix "puffs up" as it absorbs water from the atmosphere, and consequently any given volume of salt will actually contain less salt than you think. This is one reason why it's very important to keep opened boxes of salt in air-tight containers (such as biscuit tins).

So anyway, while you can use teaspoons to estimate the amount of salt you're using, you should get a hydrometer to keep a check on things. A floating glass hydrometer costs about £5. For now then, by all means grab a bucket, look how many litres it contains, and then add one level teaspoon per litre. A standard 14-litre bucket would therefore contain 14 level teaspoons.

Use kitchen scales to check you're estimating level teaspoons right. So 14 level teaspoons should be 14 x 6 grammes, i.e., 84 grammes.

Don't add salt to the aquarium. Ever! Make each bucket of water as described above. Each time you do a water change, replace the old water with the brackish water. Over the weeks, the salinity in the aquarium will gradually rise, without stressing any plants or filter bacteria. There's no need to change all the water at once!

Cheers, Neale

 

[BubbleBaby]

The use of marine salt mix should fix pH, carbonate hardness, and salinity all at the same time. That's why this is the stuff to use, not "aquarium salt". Whoever said you shouldn't use marine salt mix is talking out of their hat. Trust me on this.

Six grammes of marine salt mix is about one level teaspoon. This will vary though; salt mix "puffs up" as it absorbs water from the atmosphere, and consequently any given volume of salt will actually contain less salt than you think. This is one reason why it's very important to keep opened boxes of salt in air-tight containers (such as biscuit tins).

So anyway, while you can use teaspoons to estimate the amount of salt you're using, you should get a hydrometer to keep a check on things. A floating glass hydrometer costs about £5. For now then, by all means grab a bucket, look how many litres it contains, and then add one level teaspoon per litre. A standard 14-litre bucket would therefore contain 14 level teaspoons.

Use kitchen scales to check you're estimating level teaspoons right. So 14 level teaspoons should be 14 x 6 grammes, i.e., 84 grammes.

Don't add salt to the aquarium. Ever! Make each bucket of water as described above. Each time you do a water change, replace the old water with the brackish water. Over the weeks, the salinity in the aquarium will gradually rise, without stressing any plants or filter bacteria. There's no need to change all the water at once!

Cheers, Neale

Ok, I will defanitely buy some marine salt mix. I have a hydrometer that I bought when I bought the puffer. My water is basicly fresh water right now..... because I've been using the aquarium salt mix. The last few days have been very frustrating because I can't seem to raise the salinity,but now I know why. What gravity should I start with?.. the puffers only about 2" right now. As for the marine salt raising the ph and alkalinity, my ph is 6.6 right now (in the tank) and do you think I should ajust the ph/kh before I do another water change(so that the 7.6 ph water coming in doesn't stresss him out more?

thanks
-Bubblebaby

 

[nmonks]

My water is basicly fresh water right now..... because I've been using the aquarium salt mix.

Precisely; tonic/aquarium salt is merely sodium chloride -- what we'd otherwise call cooking salt -- and it has no affect at all on water chemistry in terms of pH and hardness. All it does is increase salinity.

What gravity should I start with?

Doesn't really matter, but SG 1.003 would be about right. If that doesn't raise the pH to about 7.5 as well (which it might not, if you have really acidic and soft water in your area) then by all means go up to SG 1.005, about 9 grammes/litre. This won't harm the filter or the fish, though live plants might struggle.

do you think I should ajust the ph/kh before I do another water change

No. Just do a series of 20-25% water changes every other day for the next week. By the end, you should have raise the salinity and the pH nice and slowly. When you're done, go back to a regular 25% weekly water change. Trying to adjust the water chemistry as well as the salinity will just make things complicated.

Cheers, Neale

 

[BubbleBaby]

Sounds great! Thank you so much for helping me out. People like you are the reason I joined this forum. I will definitely take your advice. Is their anything else I should know? How often should I feed him snails? Can I keep friends with him (if they are fast and brackish?maybe a loach or something)......thats all I got right now ( trying to get as much info out of you as I can)

Thank you!
-Bubblebaby

 

[nmonks]

Is their anything else I should know?

Do look over my Brackish FAQ, and perhaps borrow or buy either my book or the Aqualog pufferfish book, both of which cover this species in depth.

How often should I feed him snails?

As often as he'll eat them!

Can I keep friends with him

Best kept either alone or with others of its own kind, allowing about 20-25 gallons per adult; juveniles are gregarious but adults can be a bit feisty so appreciate a bit of "personal space". That said, if raised together, adults seem to get along quite well. This species is a fin-biter and not worth mixing with other fish unless that tank is unusually large and the fish being kept extremely fast.

Cheers, Neale

 

[BubbleBaby]

You have a book? What is it called? Also is a 36 gallon ok for an adult? I'm desperately trying to convince my dad to let me get a 55+ ( as big as I can get).

Thank you for all of your helpful advice!
-Bubblebaby

 

[nmonks]

You have a book? What is it called?

Yes indeed! It's called Brackish-Water Fishes and published by TFH. Retail price is $45, but you can get it online for a lot less. Amazon sometimes sells it for about $25.

Also is a 36 gallon ok for an adult? I'm desperately trying to convince my dad to let me get a 55+ ( as big as I can get).

A 36-gallon tank would be fine for one specimen, but a 55-gallon would let you keep 2-3 specimens, particularly if you had a really powerful external canister filter to provide lots of water current. There are lots of threads in the Brackish section here about decorating brackish water aquaria. For my part, I like using lots of rocks rather than corals or plants, and to also use things like mussel shells and oyster shells to create something that looks like an oyster reef. Other folks like to keep the tank simple so they can upgrade it to a marine one eventually by adding a skimmer and live rock. These puffers do well in such tanks, and mix well with things like feisty damselfish.

Cheers, Neale