GSP setup

Tain't fresh, and tain't marine! Talk about brackish setups.
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Blinkey
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GSP setup

Post by Blinkey »

Hi all,
Bad news... my orange chromide turned nasty a few weeks ago and my Fig 8 was a little beaten up (nipped fins, but nothing seriously apparent). I returned the OC, but unfortunately, the stress of the attack must have been too great and my puff died the following night. This was quite saddening and was certainly a learning experience that I won't be forgetting. Was thinking of moving onto something a bit different, and converting my tank (35 gal) to a full marine setup for a single GSP. I Currently have about 5 kg (11 lbs) of coral rock in my tank (still currently brackish) and I will aim to get approx. 10 kg (22 lbs) more. Will also get a high-quality HOB protein skimmer.

But I am uncertain as to what is the best (fastest and most economical) way to convert brackish to marine?

From my understanding, the marine BB are completely different from freshwater-brackish types. So, would it be best to just remove the canister filter, raise salinity to full marine (1.025 sg) and introduce base rock and seed with some liverock? This would essentially be re-cycling the tank, which by the end the GSP could be introduced. Or would it be better to introduce the GSP at brackish and then slowly raise the salinity each week?

Cheers,
"Life, uh, finds a way"
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Pufferpunk »

Yep--cichlids are mean! Sorry your puff had to find out the hard way...

You can convert by getting live rock (1 1/2-2lbs/gal) from an established SW tank & adding a HOB protein skimmer. That's all you need to do! Drip-acclimate the puffer with the SW.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

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Blinkey
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Blinkey »

Thanks for the reply, PP.
Yeah that sounds like a good plan. So, from what I have read it seems that raising .002 per hour when drip acclimating is the safe method. At the store they keep the puffs at 1.008, which means it would take approx. 8.5 hours to fully acclimate to SW (1.025). Does that sound about right?
Might be a bit difficult getting live rock from where I am, stores only seem to sell dead (dry) base rock. I think because of liability issues or something they refuse to sell established rock in their marine display tanks...

Also, the guy at my LFS suggested that I keep my canister filter running but as just a mechanical filter (sponges and filter floss with biological media removed). Would that be a good idea? I get the feeling it would simply act as a detritus trap that the skimmer would otherwise remove and be a PITA to frequently clean.

Cheers,
"Life, uh, finds a way"
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Pufferpunk
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Pufferpunk »

Check out local reef clubs in your area. That would be your best bet for LR. If need be, you could start out with dry rock & add Bio-Spira to cycle the tank. That should work. IMO, the puffer can handle a faster acclimation, since they often swim back & forth between SW, BW, FW in a day.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...

"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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Blinkey
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Blinkey »

Cool, yeah I have no doubt they can adjust quickly. Will inquire around for liverock.
Final question, I was just curious roughly what periodicity of WCs I'll likely be doing with this proposed setup? I understand that all tanks differ, but in a best case scenario would it be like 30% every 3 to 4 weeks or something?
"Life, uh, finds a way"
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Re: GSP setup

Post by bertie 83 »

That really depends on your tank care and feeding etc. I keep double what I really need mixed up just in case. Regular water changes are better in my opinion. You can never really change too much
It's amazing how easy maintenance is. If done regularly and thoroughly
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Ianb262 »

So sorry for your loss. It's always hard for me to see my animals die :(
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Blinkey
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Blinkey »

Thanks, Ian.
We'll good news is that my originally dry rock has now been fully cooked and cycled for the last 4 months and my tank is ready skimmer and all for my new gsp. Will be buying it today from my lfs.
Will update on how the brackish to marine acclimation goes.
"Life, uh, finds a way"
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Blinkey
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Re: GSP setup

Post by Blinkey »

I got a GSP yesterday and it's about 2 inches in length. Over 12 hours I was successful in acclimating it from 1.008 - 1.023 sg. Very active guy, only a bit of sulking during the acclimation but that was most likely due to the small container he/she was kept in. Today it took two snails quite happily and is exploring the aquascape. Will probably start a new thread in the marine tank section later when I can take some quality pics.
"Life, uh, finds a way"
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