Thinking about getting a GSP...

[bbstar1122]

I am considering getting a GSP. But i would like to have some more info on them before i actually get one. If i get a 30 gallon tank, could i get 2 or should i stay with 1? What are their diet? Are they brackish or marine? I hear some people say they are marine and some brackish so im not really sure.

[Myaj]

In a 30 gallon tank, you could only have one. They grow to the size of a small football and put out a lot of waste.

As far as brackish vs marine, what we've found is they do better in higher levels of brackish water than they do in lower brackish or especially freshwater. They seem to do equally as well in "high brackish" (1.015-1.019ish) as they do in full marine.. so many people choose to take them to full marine to enjoy the benefits of things like live rock and protein skimmers, just to make life easier. So the answer, as far as our experience has shown us, they can go either high brackish or full marine, with good growth and health, but you'll start to see health problems if you try to keep them in lower end brackish or freshwater, especially as they get over the 3" size.

Make sense? You can read more about them in our library and in the Pufferpedia, both found under the "Learn" tab in the header.

[bbstar1122]

Also, what exactly does a protein skimmer do? Would i need it if i am going for high brackish (not full marine)? How hard is maintaining a high brackish and marine fish tank? I have always kept freshwater fish and have no experience with brackish or marine fish.

[Myaj]

Keeping a high brackish or full marine tank isn't actually that hard to do, if its just fish only (FO) or fish only with live rock (FOWLR).

Keeping corals is very hard, that's usually referred to as a reef tank. Corals are live animals that are extremely sensitive to all kinds of things.

So, if you wanted to do a fish only tank for a high brackish or marine puffer, basically there's some more expense as far as buying salt. There can be more expense if you choose to use a protein skimmer and live rock, but those are one time purchases, not an ongoing expense like salt is.

Nick just got done explaining how a protein skimmer works in another thread . My basic understanding of them is they pull proteins (wastes) out of the water before they have a chance to really go through the biological cycle of ammonia>nitrites>nitrates.. so by pulling them out before they get a chance to rot you are improving water quality quickly and easily. They are not cheap pieces of equipment and need to be emptied out on a regular basis though.

Physically, its a little harder work than doing water changes on a freshwater tank, especially if you are used to using a python auto filler. You have to premix the salt and water, you can't add freshwater to the tank and then dump in your salt. If you're already used to just using buckets, all it adds is measuring and stirring in the salt

As far as how hard it is intellectually.. the hardest part is getting used to mixing up your water change water at a certain salinity.. but once you have a salinity and know how many cups of salt it takes to bring a bucket of water to that level, you're pretty much set there. Its just when you're trying to raise salinity in an established tank that you really need to think about the math, etc.

[bbstar1122]

So about substrate, could i use play sand instead of argonite sand? And lighting...if you could choose, would you choose a natural sunshine light (5000k) or a light that gives off a purpleish hue (i think 2700k)?

[riggers]

Have a read of this: http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2006- ... ndex.php#2

[Myaj]

I used play sand once in a fishtank, and never will use it again. Its very.. dirty.

I personally would say go with argonite sand, but if you wanted, you could even do a bare bottomed (no sand/gravel) tank. Those have their benefits, and drawbacks.

I've had bad luck with crushed coral substrate.. I don't know why, but it grew tons of hair algae when I tried to use it. Switched to agronite and no algae issues anymore. Its more expensive, but you don't have to do a really thick layer if you don't want to.

As far as lighting, if you aren't going to have corals, you can pick whatever lighting you want, the color won't matter to the fish, its all your personal preference. Some people prefer very white, clean lights (I think that's in the 9000's), others prefer a more yellow/warm look, others like their tanks very blue/cool..

[bbstar1122]

Would a 20 gallon long tank be good enough for a GSP?

[Myaj]

Truthfully no, they really do need at least 30 gallons. They are messy fish and need the extra water volume. And keep in mind, a 29 gallon tank really only holds 25 gallons so those aren't a good idea for this species either.

[Pufferpunk]

OMG, someone posting here who his considering buying a GSP & asking questions 1st??? Can I please come over & kiss your feet?

No really, all your Qs can be anwsered by reading the GSP article in our Library.