Just an introduction
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Pufferchic
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Thu Jul 28, 2005 5:44 pm
- Location: devon, england
Just an introduction
Just to introduce myself in the hope to meet a fellow MBU puffer owner. I have had mine ('Boo') for nearly 2 years and he is the best fish i have ever owned.
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32773
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Filbert, the 12" T lineatus
Punkster, the 4" red T miurus
Mongo, the 4" A modestus
2 T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
Also kept:
lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Chicago
- Contact:
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Pufferchic
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Thu Jul 28, 2005 5:44 pm
- Location: devon, england
pics
well, he is about 1 foot and 1/4 at a rough guess, cant keep him still to find out!!
i have pictures but i can't figure out how to post them. the pics are from about a year ago. must take some new ones!
i have pictures but i can't figure out how to post them. the pics are from about a year ago. must take some new ones!
Hi,
We are getting our mbu as soon as the tank is cycled to perfection !
He is about 3ins at the moment, we've driven the 200 mile round trip to see him twice now. Bit sad I know.
We've called him Boomer
Any helpful hints would be great, i.e clearing up the water parameter issues, all the advice we find is conflicting. We are starting it on a 50/50 tap/RO ratio, moving to a full RO setup. Still unsure about hardness though, LFS said softer the better, is this right ?
We are getting our mbu as soon as the tank is cycled to perfection !
He is about 3ins at the moment, we've driven the 200 mile round trip to see him twice now. Bit sad I know.
We've called him Boomer
Any helpful hints would be great, i.e clearing up the water parameter issues, all the advice we find is conflicting. We are starting it on a 50/50 tap/RO ratio, moving to a full RO setup. Still unsure about hardness though, LFS said softer the better, is this right ?
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RTR
- Mentor
- Posts: 6155
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 4:39 pm
- Gender: Male
- Location (country): East Coast, USA
Why would you think that softer is better? Pure RO water is inadequate for keeping fish alive. Your LFS, in common with many other stores, is suffering a severe information deficit
T. mbu is both riverine and large lake inhabiting, and has been caught in brackish water near the outlets of the Congo. Lake Tanganyika is very hard. This is not a soft water fish, but is able to withstand the large/massive seasonal changes in the main Congo, as well as living and breeding in very hard Rift Lake conditions.
I would not take the fish below moderate hardness levels for both GH and KH.
HTH
T. mbu is both riverine and large lake inhabiting, and has been caught in brackish water near the outlets of the Congo. Lake Tanganyika is very hard. This is not a soft water fish, but is able to withstand the large/massive seasonal changes in the main Congo, as well as living and breeding in very hard Rift Lake conditions.
I would not take the fish below moderate hardness levels for both GH and KH.
HTH
Where's the fish? - Neptune
I'm new to the whole puffer thing and I'm trying to gather as much info as possible before we get him.
We found an LFS that actually had MBU's in their display tanks which is why we were following their advice.
They said to me, that MBU's usually come out of the congo and so their natural enviroment is river water, which I beleived to be water which has run off the land after rainfall. Working on the theory that rainwater is basically distilled water, thus being soft due to the vapour not being able to contain minerals, I went and bought an RO unit, a heater, an extra airpump, a bottle of electroright and a 100l water butt, so I could have my own little water factory.
The LFS have said they keep theirs in a 50/50 mix of RO/tap, but they prefer 100% RO (with minerals added) which we should build too so not to shock the fish, apparently this is closest to their natural habitat.
If all this is wrong please point me in the right direction
Thanks
We found an LFS that actually had MBU's in their display tanks which is why we were following their advice.
They said to me, that MBU's usually come out of the congo and so their natural enviroment is river water, which I beleived to be water which has run off the land after rainfall. Working on the theory that rainwater is basically distilled water, thus being soft due to the vapour not being able to contain minerals, I went and bought an RO unit, a heater, an extra airpump, a bottle of electroright and a 100l water butt, so I could have my own little water factory.
The LFS have said they keep theirs in a 50/50 mix of RO/tap, but they prefer 100% RO (with minerals added) which we should build too so not to shock the fish, apparently this is closest to their natural habitat.
If all this is wrong please point me in the right direction
Thanks
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Myaj
- Tech Team
- Posts: 4587
- Joined: Sat Jun 04, 2005 12:27 pm
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Bubba, turgidus
Paris, lined burrfish - Location: SE Wisconsin
- Contact:
I think RTR just did 
.
I suppose you bought all that equipment from the fish store eh? Think about how much it all cost and then you'll have your answer as to why they wanted you to buy it.
Some people do have to use RO water if their tap water is off, say very high in nitrates or ammonia, but even then they usually do a 50/50 split. To spend all that time and expense for a fish that doesn't need "soft" water is just a waste really.
.I suppose you bought all that equipment from the fish store eh? Think about how much it all cost and then you'll have your answer as to why they wanted you to buy it.
Some people do have to use RO water if their tap water is off, say very high in nitrates or ammonia, but even then they usually do a 50/50 split. To spend all that time and expense for a fish that doesn't need "soft" water is just a waste really.
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RTR
- Mentor
- Posts: 6155
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 4:39 pm
- Gender: Male
- Location (country): East Coast, USA
In flood, the Congo is relatively soft. The feeder streams are very soft. The mbus do not inhabit the feeder streams, they are main channel and large lake fish. Outside of the flood, the water is not particularly soft, and Lake Tangyika is very hard. To repeat, these are not soft water fish. IMHO RO is a huge and unnecessary waste of money and water for a fish that will need thousands of gallons per year in partials. Pure RO is absurd and potentially harmful.
But it is your tank, your fish, your choice.
But it is your tank, your fish, your choice.
Where's the fish? - Neptune
OK, thanks for your guidance.
I will have to accept that I have possibly been ripped off, I just found a lack of info over most of the net (before I found this forum) and so, put complete faith in the LFS.
I spent in excess of £1300 on this set-up ($2400 roughly)
Maidenhead Aquatics, just for the record !
Thanks for your help
I will have to accept that I have possibly been ripped off, I just found a lack of info over most of the net (before I found this forum) and so, put complete faith in the LFS.
I spent in excess of £1300 on this set-up ($2400 roughly)
Maidenhead Aquatics, just for the record !
Thanks for your help
Some call it a product of a mis-spent youth, I call it Rock n Roll ! 
Guildford.
I bought everything they said we needed
450 litre tank, with base, lights, heaters and XP3 filter
50kgs of substrate (sand and dorset gravel)
An extra Rena XP3 external filter
A U.V steriliser, capable of 570 litres per hour
The mother of all bogwood at £110 (discounted to £90)
They also said I needed the RO unit, but they wanted £125, so I found another off the net at £65. To go with all this I also got an extra heater, a pump and a water butt, so everything could go straight into the tank (after cycle and electro right had been added).
What do you think then ? I suppose I need nearly all of it really
I bought everything they said we needed
450 litre tank, with base, lights, heaters and XP3 filter
50kgs of substrate (sand and dorset gravel)
An extra Rena XP3 external filter
A U.V steriliser, capable of 570 litres per hour
The mother of all bogwood at £110 (discounted to £90)
They also said I needed the RO unit, but they wanted £125, so I found another off the net at £65. To go with all this I also got an extra heater, a pump and a water butt, so everything could go straight into the tank (after cycle and electro right had been added).
What do you think then ? I suppose I need nearly all of it really
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ali_uk_1
Hi,
I live in Brighton UK, and the 3 Maidenhead Aquatics shops nearest to me all have many small Mbu's for sale - one shop has about 15!! The details given on the info sheet in the shops say that an Mbu can grow to 60cm, and that they are good community fish!!!
This chain of shops are usually very good and give good advice, but in this instance I think they are wrong.
I'd love an Mbu, but it seems to me that to keep a fish that can grow to 75cm, you need a tank at least 3m x 1m - thats far to big for my flat!!
I live in Brighton UK, and the 3 Maidenhead Aquatics shops nearest to me all have many small Mbu's for sale - one shop has about 15!! The details given on the info sheet in the shops say that an Mbu can grow to 60cm, and that they are good community fish!!!
This chain of shops are usually very good and give good advice, but in this instance I think they are wrong.
I'd love an Mbu, but it seems to me that to keep a fish that can grow to 75cm, you need a tank at least 3m x 1m - thats far to big for my flat!!