Pea Puffer community tank

[Hypothanos]

I have an idea for a 29 gallon tall community tank involving Pea Puffers modelled after someone else's tank who managed to successfully breed them in that same water volume.

-15 Pea Puffers (4 males, 11 females)
-5 Kuhli Loaches
-6 Amano Shrimp
-Tons of Neocaridina (apparently the Peas go crazy for baby shrimp).

Kuhlis and Amanos will be the cleanup crew, picking up whatever the Peas leave behind. According to the guy I was talking to, the Peas get really curious about the Amanos but don't attack them. The tank will be heavily planted with stem plants, floaters, and aquaponics with Pothos. Most plants will be heavy nitrate absorbers along with moss/moss balls for shrimp refuges.

I'm going overboard on filtration, opting to have a Hygger double sponge filter (rated for 40 gallons) and a Fluval U3 filter to add flow to the tank since the Peas' natural habitats are rivers. I’m also planning to put a fine mesh bag of Eheim Substrat Pro underneath my substrate for more biological filtration.

I’ve set up a small 2L tank for Daphnia breeding and a 5 gallon tank for snail breeding. Both to be used for food.

Thoughts?

 

[Sgooosh3]

I have an idea for a 29 gallon tall community tank involving Pea Puffers modelled after someone else's tank who managed to successfully breed them in that same water volume.

-15 Pea Puffers (4 males, 11 females)
-5 Kuhli Loaches
-6 Amano Shrimp
-Tons of Neocaridina (apparently the Peas go crazy for baby shrimp).

Kuhlis and Amanos will be the cleanup crew, picking up whatever the Peas leave behind. According to the guy I was talking to, the Peas get really curious about the Amanos but don't attack them. The tank will be heavily planted with stem plants, floaters, and aquaponics with Pothos. Most plants will be heavy nitrate absorbers along with moss/moss balls for shrimp refuges.

I'm going overboard on filtration, opting to have a Hygger double sponge filter (rated for 40 gallons) and a Fluval U3 filter to add flow to the tank since the Peas' natural habitats are rivers. I’m also planning to put a fine mesh bag of Eheim Substrat Pro underneath my substrate for more biological filtration.

I’ve set up a small 2L tank for Daphnia breeding and a 5 gallon tank for snail breeding. Both to be used for food.

Thoughts?

I've never kept pea puffers, but I do know that they will eat all the small shrimp in your tank just like snails, and could be terretorial. You could totally breed shrimp and snails in another tank to feed them however.
I think they do best in species-only setups

 

[ABCAquarium]

I have an idea for a 29 gallon tall community tank involving Pea Puffers modelled after someone else's tank who managed to successfully breed them in that same water volume.

-15 Pea Puffers (4 males, 11 females)
-5 Kuhli Loaches
-6 Amano Shrimp
-Tons of Neocaridina (apparently the Peas go crazy for baby shrimp).

Kuhlis and Amanos will be the cleanup crew, picking up whatever the Peas leave behind. According to the guy I was talking to, the Peas get really curious about the Amanos but don't attack them. The tank will be heavily planted with stem plants, floaters, and aquaponics with Pothos. Most plants will be heavy nitrate absorbers along with moss/moss balls for shrimp refuges.

I'm going overboard on filtration, opting to have a Hygger double sponge filter (rated for 40 gallons) and a Fluval U3 filter to add flow to the tank since the Peas' natural habitats are rivers. I’m also planning to put a fine mesh bag of Eheim Substrat Pro underneath my substrate for more biological filtration.

I’ve set up a small 2L tank for Daphnia breeding and a 5 gallon tank for snail breeding. Both to be used for food.

Thoughts?

not sure if others survive puffers as neighbours

 

[Boundava10]

Any updates?

 

[Boundava10]

I have an idea for a 29 gallon tall community tank involving Pea Puffers modelled after someone else's tank who managed to successfully breed them in that same water volume.

-15 Pea Puffers (4 males, 11 females)
-5 Kuhli Loaches
-6 Amano Shrimp
-Tons of Neocaridina (apparently the Peas go crazy for baby shrimp).

Kuhlis and Amanos will be the cleanup crew, picking up whatever the Peas leave behind. According to the guy I was talking to, the Peas get really curious about the Amanos but don't attack them. The tank will be heavily planted with stem plants, floaters, and aquaponics with Pothos. Most plants will be heavy nitrate absorbers along with moss/moss balls for shrimp refuges.

I'm going overboard on filtration, opting to have a Hygger double sponge filter (rated for 40 gallons) and a Fluval U3 filter to add flow to the tank since the Peas' natural habitats are rivers. I’m also planning to put a fine mesh bag of Eheim Substrat Pro underneath my substrate for more biological filtration.

I’ve set up a small 2L tank for Daphnia breeding and a 5 gallon tank for snail breeding. Both to be used for food.

Thoughts?

So I have kept puffers but not in a community tank. I think the males may fight as the 29 isn't big enough. May be ok with a male and few females, but I had a male and female in separate tanks and the female was more aggressive towards shrimp and snails than the male.
Also puffers will kill to kill, not just to eat so you may have a bunch of dead shrimp in the tank, or when I had the female she took pleasure in eating shrimp eyes, and nothing else. I stopped putting shrimp in her tank.

Also puffers are found in slower moving rivers-yes, so an HOB would work and I would choose that over an internal filter.
The extra bag of substrate isn't necessary as between the sponge and internal or HOB you will have enough space for bacteria to grow. You have to remember that bacteria will grow to fill the needs of the tank irregardless of how much media is available.
Regards your grow tanks, I haven't ever had luck growing daphnia. Also snails can be successful but depending on the variety it can be hard to control.
Bloodworms are an alternative with snails to keep beaks in shape.

 

[MuddyWaters3]

I was literally just reading up on pea puffers and the article stated that if you're going to keep other species, kuhli loaches, otocinclus, and amano shrimp are the best ones to keep with them, so at least one article on the internet supports your choices! I've been vacillating between turning a 15 gallon Fluval Flex I have into a small reef tank or a pea puffer tank, so I'll be interested to see how you do with these. All the best to your journey with them!