10 Gallon Puffer Tank

[Rhykiru]

Hi, i have a 10 gallon tank just lying around and it thought i would try some oddballs *especially puffers*

i will probably have a biowheel filter that has about 150-200 gph if that matters.
I was thinking, is there any other kind of puffer than i can keep in there other than dwarf puffers? i like dwarfs but i wanted to see if i can try something bigger xD

And if there isnt, would 3 dwarf puffers be ok in the tank? I will probably have a 5.5 gallon tank that i will keep snails in and maybe guppies. (Do dwarf puffers eat baby guppies?)

and to break their line of sight, i will have driftwood in there along with some broadish leaved plants.

thanks^^

 

[DarkEntity]

Double Post for some reason, ignore this one

 

[DarkEntity]

Nope 10 galls is too small for anything other than Dwarf Puffers. No they don't eat fish, they will eat snails, bloodworm, tubifex, meaty foods. The Puffers should be housed alone, you may get away with Oto's as algae eaters but that's also not guaranteed.

Puffers as a general rule are solitary with few species tolerating anything else in the tank, and fewer again that will even tolerate another Puffer. Dwarfs are one of the few that will share its tank with other Dwarfs given the tank is densely planted with plenty of exploration and hiding areas.

 

[iSnail]

They might not eat guppy fry but will certainly attack them. Any small fry will be attacked or get eaten. Guppies are definitely not suitable tank mates anyway. Their nice floaty tails will get torn to bits in no time.

 

[NutMutt]

That filter is plenty. More than enough. You can NEVER have too much filtration.

Question... Which bio-wheel filter are you going with? It sounds like a Marineland to me based on your numbers, but I could be wrong...

 

[Rhykiru]

yeah, i was just wondering about the guppies because my cuz has a lot in his tank and he wanted to get rid of a few so... FOOD xD but nah

i might just stick with only two dps and 3 otos so that each dp can have one half of the tank lol.

and the filter is marineland's emporer
now i just have to get enough moolah D:

 

[DarkEntity]

yeah, i was just wondering about the guppies because my cuz has a lot in his tank and he wanted to get rid of a few so... FOOD xD but nah

i might just stick with only two dps and 3 otos so that each dp can have one half of the tank lol.

and the filter is marineland's emporer
now i just have to get enough moolah D:

No....now you need to cycle the tank fully before even considering the Puffers, as they are very very sensitive to poor water,

 

[Rhykiru]

oh, of course im gonna cycle the tank, i dont even have it set up yet as a matter of fact xD

i plan to do this in the future after i finish my 20 gallon planted.

 

[poopsydrew]

Just thought I would add I keep mine in a 10 gallon with microrasboras and ottos and dont have any problems. I have often read that ottos are the only suitable tankmate and this just isnt true. The trick is finding something that the puffers cant harm but wont outcompete the puffers for food. I also plan on adding some pygmy cories and seeing how it goes.

Just remeber to plant the heck out of the tank, and throw a bunch of ramshorn/pond snails in there a week or to befor you get them so there are plenty of bite size shells for them.

Best of luck with your puffers,

Drew

 

[iSnail]

Drew, I'm interested to know what kind of microrasboras you keep with your DPs. It would be nice to be able to keep something more colourful in a DP tank

I've tried Habrosus Corys with my DPs when I first got them but one of the corys got a big bite from one of the DPs on it's dorsal fin and never grew back so no corys as tank mates.

I only keep Amano shrimps with my DPs now and it's a fab combo. Both are very interesting to watch. The shrimps will clean up any uneaten food as well as stealing food from the DPs

 

[poopsydrew]

Drew, I'm interested to know what kind of microrasboras you keep with your DPs. It would be nice to be able to keep something more colourful in a DP tank

I've tried Habrosus Corys with my DPs when I first got them but one of the corys got a big bite from one of the DPs on it's dorsal fin and never grew back so no corys as tank mates.

I only keep Amano shrimps with my DPs now and it's a fab combo. Both are very interesting to watch. The shrimps will clean up any uneaten food as well as stealing food from the DPs

Hi Isnail,
I keep boraras maculatus (sp?). They arent big enough to even eat bloodworms even full grown So the puffers get the bloodworms, microraboras flake and otos get algae wafers.
I forgot to mention I keep 4 amano shrimo in mine too and havent had any casualties...yet! lol.
Thanks for the forewarning on the dwarf corys, I might still give it a try, maybe not.
I have found the dwarf rasboras to be spectacular tankmates for the puffers, you should give it a try
i will post some pics of the tank later if you want in the pics section.

Drew

 

[iSnail]

Hi Isnail,
I keep boraras maculatus (sp?). They arent big enough to even eat bloodworms even full grown So the puffers get the bloodworms, microraboras flake and otos get algae wafers.
I forgot to mention I keep 4 amano shrimo in mine too and havent had any casualties...yet! lol.
Thanks for the forewarning on the dwarf corys, I might still give it a try, maybe not.
I have found the dwarf rasboras to be spectacular tankmates for the puffers, you should give it a try
i will post some pics of the tank later if you want in the pics section.

Drew

Thanks Drew. I've had a google on those and they look very pretty. They look very similar to Boraras brigittae to me. The only trouble is getting hold of them in the first place They are not readily available where I live It would be a big risk adding anything to my adult puffer tank since my adult DPs are pretty big now. If I ever find any of those boraras in LFS, I'll definitely give them a try with my puff fry

Would still love to see pics of your maculatus in the picture section though

 

[eschaton]

The folks at the Dwarf Puffer forums seem to find Kuhli Loaches and Bumble Bee Gobies work well in puffer tanks too. I had a BBG live for several months in my DP tank, though he's since been moved into a dedicated tank with conspecifics.

 

[DarkEntity]

Ive had great success with Bumblebee Gobies in my brackish tank with Fig8 Puffers

 

[iSnail]

The folks at the Dwarf Puffer forums seem to find Kuhli Loaches and Bumble Bee Gobies work well in puffer tanks too. I had a BBG live for several months in my DP tank, though he's since been moved into a dedicated tank with conspecifics.

Would love to keep BBGs but would preferrably give them a brackish tank rather. Really not an option for me at the moment Tbh, I am quite happy with the DP+Amano only set up. Might try cherry shrimps with my 3-month old puff balls

P.S. Sorry to have hijacked your thread Rhykiru