Tank salinity

[mgallagher1000]

Hi ive been a happy puffer owner for a while i had quite a few types too over the past couple of years, dwarfs, dwarf red eyes, gsp, and figure eights. But i dont understand the salinity numbers or what they mean because ive never actually had them explained to me. right now i have 2 figure 8s and a gsp. if anyone could help me understand that would be great.

[Black Widow]

RTR can help with this! Although Im sure I saw a SG (salinity number) article somewhere

[bertie 83]

Please tell me they are in different tanks as requirements for f8 and gsp are very different. sg in basic english means the amount of salt to water. You need a hydrometer to measure this. What size tank/s are you running?

[chuckfriedrice]

Well its not really to hard to undestand! FW water has 0 and a specific gravity of 1.00 . Most saltwater is recommended at 28 -32 and a specific gravity of 1.020-1.024 . PUFFS like the GSP need brackish water which is light on the salt but they eventually require marine conditions which is in the 28-32 range ! These are measured with a couple diffrent devices the cheapest is the basic hydrometer availible at any LFS!

[sevenyearnight]

Chuck, forgive me, but I'm just curious, why all the exclamation points? Every time I read your posts, my inner voice for you is yelling lol

[chuckfriedrice]

I like the points! Let me Be!!! LOL!!!!

[mgallagher1000]

hi guys thanks for the quick response currently all 3 of the puffers are in brackish water about 1 table spoon per 5 gallons. they're in a 29 tall. all of them are pretty small currently probably about 1 and 1/2 inches. Also what is RTR. i want my puffers to be as happy and healthy as possible which i why i asked. The salt i currently use is api aquarium salt and i was wondering i should continue to use this while they are small or begin using instand ocean or other marine salts instead. Also i forgot to mention i also current have other fish in my tank that are completely acclimated to the brackish, a rubber nose pleco which maxes out at about 5", and an emporer which is already full grown at a little bit less than 6". And i dont know if i mention this what is RTR? any response would be appreciated. Also im new to this web site so i dont understand acronyms sorry to be a both but until i get used to it would you guys mind using the whole word?

[sevenyearnight]

I like the points! Let me Be!!! LOL!!!!

^5 buddy!
You have the most energy, I bet!

[Pufferpunk]

WHO is RTR: library/author/rtr/

[sevenyearnight]

RTR are initials for one of the mentors here.
You are correct in wanting to change to marine salt though.
I think aquarium salt is just rock salt or something, either way, you will want to use salt that has been formulated correctly for that purpose. There is no guaranteed analysis for aquarium salt.

[Black Widow]

WHO is RTR: library/author/rtr/

RTR is Roger The Rabbit

[bertie 83]

2 f8's, a gsp a plec and an emperor in a 29g tall!?!? I would start thinking about some new tanks. The requirements and aggresion of these fish are very different. You need a 55gal approx to keep the gsp happy on his own.

[mgallagher1000]

actually i have never had an agressive puffer except for my dwarf red eye puffer. I am moving them to a 55g soon. The funny part is tho the pleco actually kinda beat up the puffers if the get to close. Plus the plecos are armored catfish and i have never even had trouble with them with cichlids. Thank you for you concern about my plecos though. the main reason i got them was because my puffers are such messy eaters as you probably already know

[bertie 83]

They have very different water requirements. The plecss armour is no match for a puffers beak, i speak from experience. I have never had a non agressive puffer and many others will agree. These puffers will live well into their teens if their needs are catered for properly. And lastly the 55g will suit just the gsp on his own, no tankmates. Should you chose to put in some tankmates you will need bigger than 55 gallon ideally!

[RTR]

I am RTR, which is just my initials, and I am not Roger the Rabbit unfortunately. He is much cooler than I am.

The response given in salinity and specific gravity above are pretty much on the nose. FW (initials for Fresh Water) means essentially tap water. This is potable water provided by your utility company, or by your well if you are not on a community system. "Potable" water means only FW suitable for human consumption, so it is not identical but fairly close to the water from our streams, rivers, ponds and lakes or from subterranean aquifers. Aquifers are geologic strata which contain and carry water and which are reachable by drilling BTW (by the way).

OK, that is FW. BW, brackish water, is water with a mixture of salts and minerals in it comparable to those found in the oceans, but diluted to some degree with FW. SW, salt wter, is water with those same minerals, but at the strengths found in the oceans. Oceans do vary in the quantity of minerals they hold, so there in no one figure for SW salinity or specific gravity, but a range.

FW with simple sodium chloride, NaCl in chem-speak, in it is not ever BW or SW. It is just salted FW. Sodium Chloride is the largest single component of BW and SW, but it is one mineral of literally thousands found in the oceans. In water all minerals dissolve tp some degree into their their component ions. For sodium chloride those ions are Na+ (sodium ion) and CL- (chloride ion). The commercial salt mixtures we use do not contain everything found in salt water, but do contain all the required materials to reconstitute when dissolved into suitable support fluid for marine (SW) and estuary or tidal dwelling creatures (BW).

We measure the level of those salt mixtures (called "marine mix" in the hobby) by "salinity", which is a measure of the dissolved materials in water by devices called refractometers (which measure light refraction in the solution) or by "specific gravity" or densitometers, which is measure of the density of the solution compared to pure (mineral-free) water. Those units are commonly called "hydrometers". Both are measuring the increased levels of dissolved material in BW or SW. Water with minerals dissolved in it is more dense than pure water. Pure water is given an arbitrary number of 1.000. "Pure water" in this sense is actually quite rare in the wild. Even rain has soluble materials in it, plus tiny insoluble materials suspended in the air by winds and/or convection. But most FW from streams and rivers and most lakes will measure at or quite close to 1.0, some will measure higher because their mineral content is increased by evaporation of water over geologic time. Those include some of the African Rift lakes, salt or other mineral ponds and lakes, etc. While those may measure as BW or even SW, but in hobby nomenclature they are not SW nor BW, because their dissolved mineral profile does not match that of the oceans. Even the most dense Rift lakes do not match the sea in composition, they have their own mineral profiles. BW and/or SW must match oceanic mineral profiles to carry the name. Your tank, with dissolved NaCl, is just "salted" water, not BW or SW. The complex mineral profile of the oceans is required , even if diluted well blow ocean density.

OK, there is quick course in hobby definitions. Do not be shocked if LFS (local fish stores) or chains (chain stores handling fish and other pets) and many hobbyists fail to use the terms properly. One of the most difficult things about this hobby is communication failure among ourselves. We think that we are speaking the same language, but we may not be. Plus, the web and the hobby literature are loaded with mythology and errors.

Please ask for any clarification needed.