Freshwater to brackish.

31 posts • Page 1 of 4

Discuss all topics related to freshwater and planted tanks.


dream2reef
 
Posts: 521
Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:19 am

Freshwater to brackish.

by dream2reef

I know there are 8 million ways to do this. I want to move into monos! And a few other as well another step towards reef!


dream2reef
 
Posts: 521
Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:19 am

by dream2reef

lol I never got to my question. What experience anyone has with this basically that's it.


stingraysrule
 
Posts: 271
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 8:37 pm

by stingraysrule

Experience with monos? Or with a brackish tank?
I have both. Add some salt in your water and raise the ph with crushed coral. Or not since you say your ph
Is 7.8 out of the tap.


dream2reef
 
Posts: 521
Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:19 am

by dream2reef

Brackish in general. If that were all there were to it I'd have 3 brackish tanks right now lol.


stingraysrule
 
Posts: 271
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 8:37 pm

by stingraysrule

That is all there is to it.
There is no need for more than 1 brackish tank because there are not a lot of fish
that you can keep.
I have a 55G brackish because I love my puffers.
I have 2 puffers. One green spotted puffer, one figure 8, and 2 knight gobies.
The ph needs to be at 7.8 to 8. The salinity of the water can vary depending on the fish that you keep. I keep mine at 1.010.
Thats it.
Buy marine salt and make sure the salt dissolves before you put it into the tank.
Seriously, there is nothing else to it.
You can use crushed coral to keep the PH up, and I also have some live rock in the tank for the ph.
I will warn you tho, there is limited fish that you can keep in there.....
the list is not very big.
I only keep a brackish tank because I love the puffers.
To me, all other brackish fish get way too big, and way too mean.
I have a 55G.
I also have a 30G with 3 mudskippers and 3 bumblebee gobies.


stingraysrule
 
Posts: 271
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 8:37 pm

by stingraysrule

here is a pic of my 2 brackish tanks.
6bb39-IMG_5933.jpg


mzhantsche
 
Posts: 115
Joined: Sun Aug 15, 2010 10:27 am

by mzhantsche

So i have a 10 gal that i practiced putting a rock wall and water fall in. Im planning on putting a bunch of fiddler crabs in. Gona fill the thing about 60% water cuz i have lots of ledges and area above the water line for the crabs. Any suggestion on brackish fish that stay small but could fend against little fiddler crabs. Im not too concerned if the crabs get ahold of the fish and eat it. But just in case the fish is able to hold its own and live for a while....what fish would be good?

Love the look of the sand tank. Im going to do sand for the first time in this crab tank.


stingraysrule
 
Posts: 271
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 8:37 pm

by stingraysrule

Mollys are brackish fish.
Never fails to have a molly.
They eat algae also.


mzhantsche
 
Posts: 115
Joined: Sun Aug 15, 2010 10:27 am

by mzhantsche

How much aquarium salt do you put in based off of tank size to get brackish?


yasherkoach
 
Posts: 1306
Joined: Sat Jul 26, 2008 1:24 pm

by yasherkoach

I am not the smartest when it comes to brackish aquariums, so I copied this out of a fish book I have, to answer your question mzhantsche...though I am sure stingray can answer firsthand as soon as he reads your question

Buy all of your inhabitants young and start this tank with around 2 tablespoons of marine salt (example of salt, you can try Instant Ocean brand though there are others) per gallon of water. Every 6 months, add an additional tablespoon of salt per gallon of water during water changes. Stop when you are adding about 7 tablespoons of salt per gallon of water or when your hydrometer measures a reading of 1.020-1.025. This should take about 3-4 years and they should not be rushed into full marine water. Keep in mind not to add the salt directly to the tank.

Brackish water areas always are covered in a sandy, silty, or muddy material and sand is the best option for a brackish water aquarium. You could use marine aragonite, "Minerial Mud", or play sand.

You will need the thermometer to keep the temperature and a hydrometer to measure the salinity of the water.

Make sure you get a heater marked for fresh AND saltwater use.

The best filters for a brackish tank are hang on the back mechanical and bio-wheel filters or canister filters. For aquariums larger than 20 gallons, you should use 2 filters on opposite sides of the tank. You will want to have your water turned around 10 times per hour.

Fish as examples: monos, scats, sebae monos, colombian shark catfish...note: all these fish require a very large tank, say around 75-110 gallon; so I guess it's best to stick with stingray's suggestion of mollies...though I'd add: bumble bee goby...as the only other fish that do not get too large. The 8 figure puffer is small but it is considered aggressive.

Anyway, enough of my second hand experience with this sort of aquarium set up. Again, I am absolutely certain that stingray can help you with any questions from firsthand experience. Just thought I'd attempt to add my 2 cents.

Freshwater to brackish.

31 posts • Page 1 of 4

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