Stocking 55 gal with brackish and what else?

StrangeBreu · 05/17/2010, 12:08 PM

alright, so im in the process of converting my 55 gal brackish tank into a full marine, possibly reef setup. dont stress, the fish are in quarenteen and nothing gets added until the conditions are stable blah blah blah.

so heres the question, i currently have
2 green spotted puffers,
1 mono argentus,
1 mono sebae,
a violet goby.
all are marine tolerant and ive seen all of these guys in marine tanks doing really well. im slowly acclimating the Q tank to marine over the next couple of weeks. they were in higher end brackish anyway (sg 1.015) so this shouldnt be too rough on them.

so what should i add once the tank is ready and all these guys are back in there. i can give some of them away, though the puffers paired off and are obscenely cute together. and very peaceful to boot. so theyre probably the guys i want to keep without doubt.

my setup:
magnum 350 deluxe canister
red sea berlin x2 skimmer
60lbs or so of LR.
advanced lighting is getting worked out. tryin to decide on what kinda coral i would keep, if i decide to keep coral.

joeshmo · 05/17/2010, 12:48 PM

I would ditch the canister or just run it with carbon and phosban. The fibers just trap detritus and are a nitrate source.

Most puffers I know aren't very coral friendly so they might be a problem if you want to keep corals.

If you have had the same fish together for some time, I don't see a big benefit for more quaranteening of the same fish unless I am missing something...

mthomp · 05/17/2010, 01:26 PM

i think he is acclimating them to tolerate higher sg and while the tank they were in get setup and stable. and yeah drop the canister. your LR and skimmer will do a great job provided you have a good amount of flow. as far as additional inhabitants. you have plenty of time to work that out. its going to be a good month before you can add the ones you have, and then at least another month for your tank to adjust to the bioload.

keep in mind its a 55gal. 5-6 small to med size fish will most likely stock it.

StrangeBreu · 05/18/2010, 12:54 AM

man, its gonna be hard to part with the filter. just habit i guess. though i guess the skimmer will be enough. im gonna leave it running without carbon for a few weeks since the biowheel has all the bacteria in it. hopefully between that and the argonite/crushed coral substrate i had in there will speed up the cycle, not counting on it tho.

my 20gal still has the internal filter, but im running it with biochem and a polypad. the biobag w/ carbon that was in there did become a nitrate problem. hence why i dont use it.

mthomp is right, i dont want those guys in the tank while it re-cycles. plus its easier to control the salt levels slowly in a small tank.

i know ive got lots of time, but half the fun of starting a new tank is the research and planning. i spend hours on end making up gameplans for what to add, how itll look, how much work itll be, how much itll cost. thats why im posting, to get some other opinions. also hoping someone out there has some experience with these brackish fish in a reef setting. the puffers i can imagine being a potential problem. crustaceans could be an expensive dinner, but they dont bother crayfish or shrimp (theyre too fast) just crabs. snails could also be an issue. but the only way ill know is if i try.

drew1 · 05/18/2010, 09:06 AM

Don't ditch the canister filter. Use it for supplemental filtering. It really is good when carbon is needed or you just want to polish the water a bit. Just do weekly filter changes and you'll do fine with the canister.

Pufferpunk · 05/18/2010, 10:17 AM

You're going to need a MUCH bigger tank. The puffers alone, require 30g ea. Monos are schooling fish & you'd need a minimum of 300g for a school of them. Even just for those 2, they're going to need 50g ea. Forget about anything nice as far as corals, my GSPs even nipped at zoanthids. I'm really surprised they haven't gone after the goby.

05/17/2010, 12:08 PM	#1
StrangeBreu Registered Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Brick, nj Posts: 4	Stocking 55 gal with brackish and what else? alright, so im in the process of converting my 55 gal brackish tank into a full marine, possibly reef setup. dont stress, the fish are in quarenteen and nothing gets added until the conditions are stable blah blah blah. so heres the question, i currently have 2 green spotted puffers, 1 mono argentus, 1 mono sebae, a violet goby. all are marine tolerant and ive seen all of these guys in marine tanks doing really well. im slowly acclimating the Q tank to marine over the next couple of weeks. they were in higher end brackish anyway (sg 1.015) so this shouldnt be too rough on them. so what should i add once the tank is ready and all these guys are back in there. i can give some of them away, though the puffers paired off and are obscenely cute together. and very peaceful to boot. so theyre probably the guys i want to keep without doubt. my setup: magnum 350 deluxe canister red sea berlin x2 skimmer 60lbs or so of LR. advanced lighting is getting worked out. tryin to decide on what kinda coral i would keep, if i decide to keep coral.

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05/17/2010, 12:48 PM	#2
joeshmo Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Fargo, ND Posts: 75	I would ditch the canister or just run it with carbon and phosban. The fibers just trap detritus and are a nitrate source. Most puffers I know aren't very coral friendly so they might be a problem if you want to keep corals. If you have had the same fish together for some time, I don't see a big benefit for more quaranteening of the same fish unless I am missing something...

05/17/2010, 01:26 PM	#3
mthomp Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Posts: 766	i think he is acclimating them to tolerate higher sg and while the tank they were in get setup and stable. and yeah drop the canister. your LR and skimmer will do a great job provided you have a good amount of flow. as far as additional inhabitants. you have plenty of time to work that out. its going to be a good month before you can add the ones you have, and then at least another month for your tank to adjust to the bioload. keep in mind its a 55gal. 5-6 small to med size fish will most likely stock it.

05/18/2010, 12:54 AM	#4
StrangeBreu Registered Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Brick, nj Posts: 4	man, its gonna be hard to part with the filter. just habit i guess. though i guess the skimmer will be enough. im gonna leave it running without carbon for a few weeks since the biowheel has all the bacteria in it. hopefully between that and the argonite/crushed coral substrate i had in there will speed up the cycle, not counting on it tho. my 20gal still has the internal filter, but im running it with biochem and a polypad. the biobag w/ carbon that was in there did become a nitrate problem. hence why i dont use it. mthomp is right, i dont want those guys in the tank while it re-cycles. plus its easier to control the salt levels slowly in a small tank. i know ive got lots of time, but half the fun of starting a new tank is the research and planning. i spend hours on end making up gameplans for what to add, how itll look, how much work itll be, how much itll cost. thats why im posting, to get some other opinions. also hoping someone out there has some experience with these brackish fish in a reef setting. the puffers i can imagine being a potential problem. crustaceans could be an expensive dinner, but they dont bother crayfish or shrimp (theyre too fast) just crabs. snails could also be an issue. but the only way ill know is if i try.

05/18/2010, 09:06 AM	#5
drew1 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 189	Don't ditch the canister filter. Use it for supplemental filtering. It really is good when carbon is needed or you just want to polish the water a bit. Just do weekly filter changes and you'll do fine with the canister.

05/18/2010, 10:17 AM	#6
Pufferpunk Moved On Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Franklin Park, IL Posts: 21,027	You're going to need a MUCH bigger tank. The puffers alone, require 30g ea. Monos are schooling fish & you'd need a minimum of 300g for a school of them. Even just for those 2, they're going to need 50g ea. Forget about anything nice as far as corals, my GSPs even nipped at zoanthids. I'm really surprised they haven't gone after the goby.