For my Amonia/Nitrite/etc. test strips -- do I need the Marine version or will the Freshwater version work? I think I have some time.
Saw a Fig 8 that I couldn't resist the other day. Went back and he/she was still there so I bought it. I have him in a Bio-spira cycled 12 gallon wich was being kept alive/cycled by a VERY lucky Betta. Mr. Betta (aka Elvis Saphire) seems to be just fine in the new 5 gallon though.
Anyway, at the petstore they said there was just 1 teaspoon of aquarium salt per 10 gallons of water in the Fig 8 tank but that they should be slowly graduated up to "real" brackish. Kudos that they even knew that much!
I put in 3 tablespoons of Instant Oceanas I figure I don't want to shock him/her/it into full Brackish. That should be a little less than 1 teaspoon per gallon. (Am I doing the math right??)
So, anyway, asside from a hydrometer so I can accurately measure what I'm doing, and my stand-by packets of Fresh & Marine Bio-Spira, can I use my freshwater test kit (once it's more brackish than it is now) or do I need a marine kit? And if I raise the salinity by .001 per week, what's ideal? 1.008 or 1.010?
Oh, another thing -- and maybe this should be a Hospital post -- since Fig 8 has been in basically fresh water, will 1 teaspoon/gallon Instant Ocean have the same effect on ich as table salt? Another fish in its tank was ich-y and I was hoping by raising his water to brackish I could kill the ich (in case there is any.) Can F8's handle warmer water? He's at about 81 right now. Dare I go any warmer?
Times like this I miss the old forum! I know I read all of this once. . .
Thanks -- sorry it was so long. But you know how impulse shopping can be. Any good articles on Fig 8s would be helpful!
Test Kits for Brackish?
-
- Mentor
- Posts: 6155
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 4:39 pm
- Gender: Male
- Location (country): East Coast, USA
The density used for F-8s is largely in the range for the FW bacteria. Only at the top of the range is there any liklihood of the SW nitrification bacteria establishing (at ~1.010). If you follow normal procedures of boosting the specific gravity no more than 0.002 per week or longer, the bacteria will be self-adjusting without problems.
Where's the fish? - Neptune
- Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32764
- 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: