Figure Eights Fresh Or Brackish

[crackmonkey]

I thought they were brackish but this link would suggest otherwise.

"Controversy exists over whether or not any puffers are actually true freshwater fish. I believe the figure eight to be one of the few that falls in that category. They originate in the freshwaters of the Southeast Asia region, and although they tolerate brackish or even full saltwater, mine have always done best in freshwater"

Figure Eights

 

[Pufferpunk]

LOL! He also states their lifespan to be only 5 years, which is pretty much what you can expect from these BW puffers, if kept in FW. In BW, they have been known to live 18+ years!

See: F8s

 

[crackmonkey]

How hard is it to keep brackish figure eights, do you just mix in some special salt in one of your buckets when your filling up after a clean?

 

[andywg]

Check the FAQs and pinned topics in the Brackish section. should help you out a lot.

 

[crackmonkey]

Is it expensive to run a brackish figure eight tank since you need to do a 50% water change every week, do you have to add salt every week?

 

[plainlazy]

LOL! He also states their lifespan to be only 5 years, which is pretty much what you can expect from these BW puffers, if kept in FW. In BW, they have been known to live 18+ years!

That's funny, you should e-mail the lady who wrote that profile about it

 

[Pufferpunk]

If you only keep 1 F8 in a 10g tank, at a SG of 1.005, doing 50% water changes will use up around 1/2 cup of salt/week. Can you afford that?

 

[crackmonkey]

If you only keep 1 F8 in a 10g tank, at a SG of 1.005, doing 50% water changes will use up around 1/2 cup of salt/week. Can you afford that?

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Its a 180 Litre tank, thats 40 Gallons I think so could I keep four? Thats like 6 1/2 cups full every week? Cup as in drinking cup?

 

[Pufferpunk]

Sorry, cups as in 8 US ounces.

 

[andywg]

50% water changes seems a little high. Once you are around the 1.005 SG level then protein Skimmers become effective to remove Dissolved Organic Compounds, and it is possible (I will experiment later this year to try and find out) that live rock may complete the nitrogen cycle still at the lower SG.

With additions such as this and maybe some phosphate removal then I doubt as much as 50% per week would be fully necessary.

But I may be completely wrong.

 

[Pufferpunk]

I have been doing 50% weekly water changes on all my FW/BW tanks for 26 years. I doubt a skimmer will do much at 1.005. LR will "die" at that low SG & pollute the tank.

 

[andywg]

The organisms on cured live rock would die at that SG, but if it was put in as non-cured and without livestock (to prevent any crash) then new bacteria would colonise it. The main thing that allows live rock to complete the nitrogen cycle (nitrate to nitrogen gas) is the fact it is porous and as such has anaerobic areas. You wouldn't get the hitchhikers of reef live rock, but I reckon you will get the ammonia-nitrite-nitrate-nitrogen cycle.

1.005 is the level at which skimmers are considered to become effective (except the new super expensive freshwater skimmers).

I'm not saying 50% is bad, just that I would have thought you could get away with less, like 20-30%.