Unusual tankmates for GSP?

[lucf20]

Hi everyone.

Im new to puffers.But like everyone else that falls in love with the little buggers,i bought one and then did research after.
This forum has been very helpfull.
Anyways heres my question:

I have a standard 65g tank with one aquaclear 70 and one aquaclear 50 for filters.I have added the amount of salt to be a low end to a bit lower end of brackish.
The reason for that its because my tank already had 2 cyrtocara moorii (5 inches and 4 inches) one yellow lab (4 inches) one labeotropheus marmelade cat (5 inches ) one eretmodus ( tang goby ) one bushy nose pleco and 4 yellow tail acei (all around 2-3 inches) <---i will be selling thoses yellow tail as soon as grow up just a lil bit or should i sell sooner???
Anyways Ph is at a stable 8 temps is 80'. 4 weeks ago i fell in love with GSP's.So i bought the biggest one they had so he wouldnt get bullied too much.Things were great.And then 3 weeks ago i bought a baby Gsp and things are still amazing.(the big one is 2.5/3 inches inches and the lil is a lil over an inch)
Anyways I feed them snails once a week now , shrimp from the store,bloodworms and erverybodys is happy.The big one even eats NLS cichlid pellets.

Now I dont want to go high end brackish unless my cichlids are safe.They are doing very well now. The aggression as settle way down with the salt(im using instant ocean)Will it be carnage in the long run ? Since ive had my cichlids for over a year theyre pretty much fully grown theyre all females except one male cyrtocara moorii.Anyways please post your opinions and what I should best with all theses fishes.
I could sell a few if thats what it takes.But i still want to try this for a bit.

By the way im planning to do 30% water changes weekly

[PolishPuff]

I've never tried adding Freshwater fish in to Brackish. ( I dont think is right )

In my opinion, GSP will kill your other fish B4 you know it.

I would sell them ASAP while I can

and a great job on your research about GSP.

[Pufferpunk]

Your tank is just about the perfect size for 2 adult GSPs, who will prefer much higher SG as they grow larger. The bigger one may be looking for more salt now. So I'd find other homes for all those other fish or keep 2 tanks. Cichlids don't belong in marine salt & plecos for sure don't appreciate ANY salt at all!

[lucf20]

well im very close to above low end brackish and everything is good. No disease , fish not breathing heavy , no death exept 1 bushy nose pleco that got eaten by the bigger puffer but everything else is smooth sailing .Its been a few weeks now. The Puffers are not getting getting picked on ....the tank is not overstock like most mbunas tanks....so is it worth a try? I will sell some fishes as the salt level goes higher and the puffers get bigger. But for now i guess time will tell ?

[Flaring Afro]

[quote="lucf20"The Puffers are not getting getting picked on ....[/quote]

That's not what people are worried about. It's the opposite. GSPs are either very docile with no problems or more commonly very, very aggressive. If it's already shown aggression and killed a fish it's a matter of time until another is killed.

[SammyDee]

I've never tried adding Freshwater fish in to Brackish. ( I dont think is right )

In my opinion, GSP will kill your other fish B4 you know it.

I would sell them ASAP while I can

and a great job on your research about GSP.

+1

[SammyDee]

[quote="lucf20"The Puffers are not getting getting picked on ....

That's not what people are worried about. It's the opposite. GSPs are either very docile with no problems or more commonly very, very aggressive. If it's already shown aggression and killed a fish it's a matter of time until another is killed.[/quote]


+1

I would definitely decide.." do I want chiclids in feshwater or puffers in high end BW or marine?" Either get rid of the other fish or setup a new tank for the puffers. Chiclids will take some salt but not much. I say none bc they're all bought/sold FW. I haven't met anyone who even uses chiclid salt in a chiclid tank. Puffers kill/stress the hell outta fish, trust me I attempted keeping mine with other FW fish. It was fine for few weeks then all a sudden he got dominate like a switch went off and he was ridding piggy back on my plecos and other fish. Not good to try that IMO

[SammyDee]

well im very close to above low end brackish and everything is good. No disease , fish not breathing heavy , no death exept 1 bushy nose pleco that got eaten by the bigger puffer but everything else is smooth sailing .Its been a few weeks now. The Puffers are not getting getting picked on ....the tank is not overstock like most mbunas tanks....so is it worth a try? I will sell some fishes as the salt level goes higher and the puffers get bigger. But for now i guess time will tell ?

I always say-Just bc they're surviving, doesn't mean they're thriving...

[Brandon8521]

Definitaly seperate them plz. You cant keep those fish happy in the same tank. Definitaly get rid of the pleco if your useing ANY salt at all he may be alive but he definitaly wont live his full life span.

Your GSP's will require much higher sg levels then your cichlids will tolerate. Like everyone is saying the GSP's will in time come like those waveing little fins from your cichlids and more then likely not stop once the fins are gone.

I do use marine salt in my cichlid tank and IMO (cichlid salt is a waist of money) but you shouldnt raise it more then about 1.003-4tops. Its a wide spread practice to use 1/3 epsom salt, 1/3 bakeing soda, and 1/3 marine salt for the perfect rift lake salt mix. But depending on your own tap water you can adjust those fractions.

[nmonks]

There are many cichlids that thrive in brackish water, as well as some that do well in seawater. Indeed, several species are found in the sea in the wild. Admittedly not in deep water, but in lagoons and such, but in fully marine conditions nonetheless. Their salt tolerance is in fact one of the most notable things about cichlids generally. Here's a list of some of the brackish and marine cichlids, including some, like Hemichromis letourneuxi, that are aggressive enough that they might be kept with GSPs just as easily as damselfish.

http://homepage.mac.com/nmonks/Projects/FAQ/3f.html

With that said, mbuna and other Rift Valley cichlids should not be kept in brackish water. The mistaken use of sodium chloride to "harden" the water in Malawian and Tanganyikan systems has been connected by vets and aquarium experts with a syndrome called Malawi Bloat. There is a cheap Rift Valley salt mix widely used that includes a bit of salt, but as you'll see from the recipe, it's only a small proportion of the total:

Per 5 gallons/20 litres
* 1 teaspoon baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
* 1 tablespoon Epsom salt (magnesium sulphate)
* 1 teaspoon marine salt mix (sodium chloride + trace elements)

Cheers, Neale