Help!

[Ayalas]

Hello.

I posted a few times in the new comer section, but they haven't shown up so hopefully this post goes through.

We bought a new puffer one week ago, unsure of the actual type but he was sold to us as a green spotted puffer. Based on my first post, two people on this forum advised me he is definitely not a green spotted. He's currently living in a 10 gallon tank which we thought was cycled from previous fair-won goldfish (based on test strip test from pet shop), however, after testing the water myself with a liquid kit I discovered the ammonia level was at 2ppm. That was two days ago, I've been doing 80% water changes twice a day and now it's down to 1ppm (as of this morning).

We purchased a 37 gallon tank with stand, heater, aragonite sand, a Fluval Aqua Clear 70. The sand was washed for a while until the water was relatively clear, but now we're 24 hours out from the time of set up and the water is still cloudy. We were previously running the top fish 40 filter which came with the new tank, but upgraded to a better filter today after I discovered the initial filter had a short in the power cord.

SO.

I haven't set up the new filter yet in the tank as I don't want to ruin it with sand as I've read stories of. I did add some API Accuclear that I picked up today and dosed with the directed amount.

What can I do to clear up the water? I realize that this tank won't be ready for a while because it needs to cycle before Petey the puffer goes in. He's doing well in the 10 gallon for now but it seems like it's hard for us to keep up with his waste production.

Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. I included some pictures for reference.

[Pufferpunk]

That puffer doesn't need aragonite sand for hard water. Pool filter sand or gravel is fine.

[Ayalas]

I'd like to just continue with this sand if possible. Should I take it out and start over with different sand? I was going based on advice that puffers like the aragonite (from the pet store, where I will no longer be soliciting any advice, lol).

[Pufferpunk]

Yeah--good idea not to listen to them. Most LFS think all puffers are BW or SW. Personally, with the huge mess sand makes, you'd be better off with gravel for this guy. They do not burrow. Get a bottle of Tetra's Safestart (ONLY that product, NONE else), add it to your filter & add the fish.

[Ayalas]

Thank you for the advice!! Much appreciated. I think I'll give it time and see if it settles because we do like the way the sand looks. Hopefully this Accuclear helps...if not we're thinking we may just drain the water, take the tank outside with the sand in it, and give it a proper hosing until it's super clear.

[Welch4]

If you are keeping the argonite I highly recommend a fluval chi sponge pre-filter. I burned out 4 ac motors with argonite before I found these.

[Ayalas]

Great I'll look that up. We did run the filter tonight after I realized you need it in conjunction with the Accu clear. Tomorrow I'll rinse the entire filter housing to try and get most of the sand out. What part of the filter does the sand specifically affect? Should I try just cutting a piece of sponge and putting it on now? Thank you!

[Welch4]

Its the inside of the impeller and the impeller shaft. You will know before it fails because it makes the horrible screeching sound. I tried cutting an ac sponge and fitting it over the intake on filter #4 it was too porous and it burned out. Since you do not have fish in the new tank I would recommend not running untill you have the prefilter. They are cheap and available at most chain stores that have any of the fluval edge lines. I usually keep a few onhand so I can put a clean one on when I am taking one off to clean. I run these on all of my aqua clears.

[hadla]

Welcome looks like a turgidus to me...

Oh nvm just read your other topic

[Ayalas]

Welch thanks so much for the advice! Our tank is clear this morning and we're progressing with the next steps of adding plants, etc.

[Ayalas]

Here is an updated picture of our tank now that it has cleared. We added 3 grams of goldfish flakes and placed the filter from out 10 gallon into the new larger tank to kick the cycle into starting. So glad its finally cleared up. Now to figure out what we should feed Opie (we re-named him) for dinner.

[DMD123]

He is looking good! I always keep earthworms on hand for my puffer. These you can buy as 'bait' worms for fishing and they keep for a long time in the fridge. Look at the article here too for feeding guidelines.

[Ayalas]

Earthworms are a great idea, I’ll have to pick some up. I ended up going to Petco and bought him some freeze-dried nutrient fed jumbo shrimp. He ate them right out of my hand and now he’s resting with a full belly

I also picked up a floating moss ball for the new tank which looks AWESOME. Added a few ghost shrimp as well (to the new tank) they’re busy running around eating the gold fish flakes we added earlier. I think one of the shrimp is pregnant? I’ll have to do some research on that one... I also grabbed the Tetra brand start up solution but haven’t added it yet.

[Pufferpunk]

You mean, Safestart? Add that right into your filter at the same time as your fish.
Did you read our feeding articles?

[Ayalas]

Yes I’ve read through them, there’s a lot of good information on there. Yes I added a full bottle of Tetra safe start plus last night and then put Opie in. He seems to be doing well.