New to puffers

[The Fisherman]

I am using Doc wellfishes aquarium salt, wich is evaporated sea salt.

[YBeNormal]

Sorry, Doc Wellfish aquarium salt is useful for dipping sick FW fish, treating FW Ich (some folks would disagree with that) and in tanks with some FW livebearers. It is not the right type of salt for use in brackish or saltwater tanks though.

You should be using a marine mix such as Instant Ocean and measurement of SG levels should be made using a hydrometer.

[RTR]

Evaporated sea salt undergoes irreversible chemical changes during the concentration of the brine with evapotation. Those chemical changes are such that the resulting material will not support marine life and should not be used other than in a treatment protocol short-term, if then.

But to me it is more tasty than purifed table salt for human food use...

[The Fisherman]

The people at my LFS told me that the salt i was using was fine, but i guess ill have to buy sea salt now, how long can the F8 go without marine salt?
I am only 16, and i dont have a job, so it will take me a little while to save up for it. The F8 seems to be doing great so far, hes already eaten 4 ghost shrimp! im a little worried he will overeat.

The F8 was rapidly swimming to the surface and taking a gulp of air last night, he seems to be doing fine, but i was a little worried. is this normal behavior for a F8?

thanks,

-John

[YBeNormal]

I have good news for you, and a little bit of not bad but so good news.

Good news: The F8 was most likely kept in FW at the LFS and it's usually best to initially acclimate them to their new home at around the same SG, so no harm done. You should begin s-l-o-w-l-y acclimating the F8 to light BW conditions over the next few weeks by slowing increasing the SG level with each water change though and keep increasing the SG level until around 1.008 as the F8 reaches maturity. Since you have him in a 10-gallon tank, you will only need a very small amount of marine salt (teaspoon or two) in the beginning and maybe a cup per gallon as you approach SG of 1.005 to 1.008 later on. You can buy a small bag of Instant Ocean Marine Salt for ~$10.00 that should last you for many months.

Not bad but not so good news: Although I mentioned teaspoons and cups full of salt above, you really need to get a hydrometer to properly measure the SG level of the tank and replacement water. Hydrometers cost under $10.00 at PetSmart and most other big chain stores, slightly more at smaller LFS'.

[Jayhawk]

ybenormal is right on, but I think there's even slightly better news - 1 to 2 tablespoons per gallon will get you about 1.005 SG (definitely not a cup per gallon!). A bag of Instant Ocean (the smallest size) was only $6 at my LFS, and it'll last you a very long time. I think you'll get out of the LFS for about $15.

My figure 8 dashes to the top from time to time, but he doesn't take a gulp of air - it's most likely that he thought he saw food up there and was trying to bite it.

Eric

[YBeNormal]

Ouch! Major typo on my part! I meant to type cup per 5 gallons.

Thanks for the catch Jayhawk!

[rainmaker69]

Very interesting. I just picked up a bag of Nitra-Zorb as an emergency preventinve in case of an ammonia/nitrite spike as I have just moved all of my tanks around to make room for my new 72 gallon. Do you think that it would be good a preventitive measure for that case or should I just take it back?

[RTR]

Why would you want to use it? The main thing it will do is mess up your nitrification bacteria. I would return it.

Water changes are cheap, use those if needed.

Even better, fishless cycle you tank before you add fish and have much less to worry about.

[PetPirate]

About the hydrometer (as an aside), how di dyou guys find yours? I never really felt comfortable reading the salinity off mine - a lot of margin for error and sometimes fluctuations. I just didn't trust it.

So I got a refractometer. Only USD 40 (probably cheaper for USians). What did I find? After calibrating the refractometer, I found that, at the mid-ranges, my hydrometer was reading a specific gravity 0.004 too low! So what I thought was 1.016 was really 1.020

Plus, the refractometer is quicker and easier - easier to clean.

Maybe for brackish a hydrometer is fine, when you care more about the stability than the actual specific gravity... but if you're planning on marine or maintaining very low salinities, do consider a refractometer.

[Pufferpunk]

1.005 is fine for the life of a F8.

[PetPirate]

Well, from my experience, an SG of 1.005 measured on a hydrometer could be anything from 1.001 -> 1.009!

[Jayhawk]

I'm sure a hydrometer isn't as exact as a refractometer, but for a brackish fish who experiences wide SG swings in nature, is that a big deal?

Besides, the SG I'm reading on my hydrometer is what I expect for the number of tablespoons of salt I use based upon web research, etc., so it can't be too far off.

One thing for sure, the hydrometer is consistent in its readings.

Eric

[YBeNormal]

The problem with measuring marine salt by volume is that different brands or even different batches of the same brand will often yeild differing SG levels even though the same volume of salt mix has been used. This may be due to furmalations of the mix itself, settling and packing of contents, etc.

For BW, the most important factor to be consistancy and a hydromter works fine for this purpose. I prefer to use a refractometer myself but not everyone can afford or is willing to invest the money to buy them when a much cheaper hydrometer will suit their needs.

[Pufferpunk]

If you can find someone w/a refractometer (LFS?) then you can compare your hydrometer with that & just subtract/add the points.