new home for the fugu (finally)

[Pyratt]

I finally set up the new home for my T. ocellatus, a 55g (this is quite overdue, unfortunately). On a whim, I went with a new substrate "Reef Base," http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=19639 Each sphere is smaller than I expected, and these spheres do really seem like they'd feel cozy to the puffer. Also, as it is less dense than sand/etc, 44lbs of it fills up more space than I would have guessed (I thought I was going to have to buy more aragonite locally). I don't really 'buy' that it hosts anaerobic bacteria as well as it claims tho. Filtration is two large sponge filters (hooked up to a single large air pump), a large AquaClear HOB and a large Penguin bio-wheel HOB (insta cycle using his old tank's filters+stuff I've left in the old tank the past week). My fugu's been in brackish since the middle of summer when I bought him in freshwater, so now I'm finally going to start slowly increasing the salinity over the next while.

I'll post some pictures eventually...

I've got a few questions, and I'll try to post them in this thread as I think of them:
[EDIT: found the answer to #1, and it was as I thought]
1) What is the recommended rate of increasing salinity? I remember reading that the puffers could conceivably not be bothered by a 'drip' method over the course of a day, but I'd like to keep the tank cycled / bacteria happy (I think the rate was like 0.001 to 0.002 increase per week?)...

2) Do you guys have any suggestions for the tank when it is full salt...? Do I try to get a HOB skimmer, marine lighting, a bit of live rock and some macro algae (if I go this route, I'll probably try to bother the CMAS people for used stuff)? Obviously tankmates are sort of out of the question, but I may try a hermit crab or something with a bunch of empty shells...

3) hmm I forget what else I wanted to ask.

-Pete

[Pyratt]

this tank needs decor! (and man, he looks a lot bigger in real life)


here's a close-up on the fancy substrate

[edmlfc1]

1) What is the recommended rate of increasing salinity? I remember reading that the puffers could conceivably not be bothered by a 'drip' method over the course of a day, but I'd like to keep the tank cycled / bacteria happy (I think the rate was like 0.001 to 0.002 increase per week?)...

You can increase your sg by .002 points a week without killing off your bacteria.

2) Do you guys have any suggestions for the tank when it is full salt...? Do I try to get a HOB skimmer, marine lighting, a bit of live rock and some macro algae (if I go this route, I'll probably try to bother the CMAS people for used stuff)? Obviously tankmates are sort of out of the question, but I may try a hermit crab or something with a bunch of empty shells..

A sump is best if the tank is drilled. Lighting depends on if you plan to keep coral or not. Live rock is a must have. You will also need a protein skimmer.

[Pyratt]

Is live rock assumed to have comparable anaerobe-hosting ability w/ or w/o lighting? I guess that makes sense (the same places that lack exposure to oxygen also lack exposure to light)..?

I'm not sure why the idea of live rock w/o good lighting sounds so weird to me.

I'm probably going to have to Not do sump (and so no in-sump skimmer), as I've been in, and will continue to be for a while, a life where I stay in one apartment for at most a year. Are the BakPak skimmers considered the better of the HOB? I suppose, practically speaking, what I get would depend on what I can find used too tho.

Thanks edmlfc1.

-Pete

[edmlfc1]

I think I have the standard 1 watt per gallon on my tank. LR dosen't need high lighting. I hear the prizm hob skimmer is really good. You can check craigslist for used equipment, the local paper or try to find a local reef club. Also to save money you could get a load of base rock and a few pounds of lr or what ever you can afford. Eventually the lr will seed the base rock. I started with very little rock and brought a few pieces here and there until I had enough for my tank. Just remember even lr needs to be qt. I didn't qt my last batch and Elvis caught ich/crypt. Even if you put the rock in a 10 gallon with a power head make sure you qt it before you put it in your tank.

[Pufferpunk]

A Backpac should work--you could try the double-chambered one. What kind of substrate is that? Can he burrow in it? I'd get a lot more decor... or are you waiting until you can put LR in there?

[Pyratt]

On a whim, I went with a new substrate "Reef Base," http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=19639 Each sphere is smaller than I expected, and these spheres do really seem like they'd feel cozy to the puffer. Also, as it is less dense than sand/etc, 44lbs of it fills up more space than I would have guessed (I thought I was going to have to buy more aragonite locally). I don't really 'buy' that it hosts anaerobic bacteria as well as it claims tho.

The substrate seems pretty cool; he burrows in it easily.
Thanks for the skimmer advice- I started looking at different sites, and even Octopus makes HOB models! Crazy stuff, I'll bother the CMAS people about lighting and skimmers in the next week or so, hehe. And yeah, I could use some more plastic plants in the interim =\

[pufferfreak]

How would live rock fair in cold water?

[edmlfc1]

Better than you would think. I actually have some lr in a tub with no heater and just a powerhead. The temp is around 70 degrees. A few days ago I found a small brittle star when I took the lid off the tub to check my sg. And yes it was still alive. I decided to test the water just for the heck of it amm.0, nitrite 0, nitrate 5, ph 8.2. Not too bad for no light, no heater, no filter, only a power head and 70 degree water.

[Pyratt]

[Jase]

He looks happy and healthy