The Puffer Forum

You could try seachem clarity. A very safe chemical additive that does seem to work at clearing up cloudy water. Otherwise extra mechanical filtration with a fine polyfilter could do the trick.

At 1.003 I think everything should be fine. In my previous brackish tank I initially had a healthy population of ramshorns that came in on java fern, that was before my puffer was introduced

Haha, just like kids they need to learn through experience and getting a wee bit hurt

I wouldn't keep a GSP and fig. 8 together long-term, as they require different salt levels. The GSP will also likely end up becoming aggressive to the fig. 8. Is this currently a temporary arrangement?

A clean-up crew as you are aware will not last in most puffer tanks. You really just need to do frequent manual clean-ups/algae removal to keep on top of it. You could also try feed less and/or phosphate removers in your filter (e.g. phosguard or something like that). Also, how long do you leave you...

Yeah it is not unusual for a bit of greying/darkening with anti-parasite treatment. I just gave mine a second treatment of Levamisole hydrochloride the other day, and went a bit dark from that.

I agree with going straight marine (assuming you can currently afford the initial investment), as it will pay off in the long-run. Also, it means you could have a sump refugium and try growing various marine macroalgae. I am currently in the process of installing one for my puffer tank.

How is your pufferfish coping with these tankmates (including the hermit)?
Any visible signs of fin nipping?

It is a beautiful-looking setup

From what I gather, success seems to rely strongly on individual personality, as well as tank-size. Important to have ample space for fish to get away from one another when necessary. That 280 L sounds excellent for when they reach adulthood.

Yeah, using a SW test kit on FW is going to give you inaccurate readings. If you are using API I know that most kits come with both a FW and SW chart. Just use whichever is most closest to your type of water.

That is a really nice looking tank you got going there btw. I especially like the wood panelling.

Depending on the size of the driftwood in relation to your tank, it may also impact your pH by lowering it. Would be worth checking out. Also, in my experience driftwood tends to become soft and crumbly even with low-end brackish due to the salt.

Sounds like your tank is not cycled. Puffers (and all fish for that matter) need a fully-cycled tank to be introduced into. This means a biofilter has been established and there is 0 detectable ammonia + nitrites, and low (I believe 10-20 ppm for puffs) nitrates. How is your fish doing? Also, just r...

As sgtmyers says, you can convert them to full marine quite early.
I acclimated mine straight to 1.023 within 12 hrs from a starting level of 1.008 sg (kept at lfs). My puff is only a little over 2 inches, so it is likely quite young.

Based on the description of a "green disc" I would say they are likely algae wafers. I have these at home, but I only feed them to my snails to gutload them. It would be unusual for a GSP to eat them lol.