Power Head For Figure-8 Puffers

[Sarn1]

I've never had puffers or a brackish tank but I'm getting ready to set up a 29 gallon BioCube, that's equipped with a Maxi Jet 1200 (295 gph) power head. I'd like to hopefully have 2 figure-8s & some bumble bee gobies, maybe around 5 or so. I know some brackish fish live in faster flowing estuaries but I was wondering if the Maxi Jet 1200 would be too strong.

I'm not sure if it makes a difference but I'm also planning on it being a planted tank, I'm looking at some brackish plants maybe Java Moss, Java Fern, Hairgrass, Anubias, Anacharis, Water Sprite, etc... Perhaps some other fish or inverts, maybe a larger shrimp that could hold its own like a few Atyopsis or Macrobrachium?

Your advice is appreciated.

 

[jennybugs]

Hi Sam.

May I ask what filtration you are having? That's more important than a powerhead tbh. They eat messy foods and poop well so need a good size external filter to accompany the big weekly water changes to keep the params tip top. I use the powerhead you mention as a mixing pump for my marine water mixing and it will not be so good I'd you get fish sucked into the pump as it is pretty powerful. If you have a spray bar on an external filter instead, I'm no so convinced that you'd need a powerhead tbh.

Having a low end brackish tank is really no different to a freshwater tank barring you add a bit of marine salt to the water.

I have to say I'd avoishan't inverts in with puffers. They'll thank you for the tasty snack

I have 2 fig 8 puffs in with 9 bumblebee gobies in a 140l tank with a large internal and external set of filters and I do weekly 50% water changes and maintenance. All fish are happy and well fed (the gobies are big and eating well and I've only lost 1 in 2 years to a filter accident).

 

[Sarn1]

Thanks Jennybugs,

Well the BioCube 29 Gal, which I'm getting from a friend today, has the stock 316 gallon per hour filter. But I've also got an old Eheim 2217, I wasn't really considering hooking it up as well, I thought perhaps its overkill. I'm not sure how easy it is to attach an Eheim canister filer to the BioCube, but I've got it so...

Keep in mind the power head is just for water flow, oxygen exchange & to simulate the estuary natural habitat, not filtration.

 

[jennybugs]

I understand why you would have a powerhead, but how will you protect the intake?

Overfiltration in any puffer tank is better than underfiltering. They poop alot and eat meaty foods thus it's necessary rather than a choice along with big weekly water changes

I have a metre long 140l tank with a big internal and a 1000lph external filter with a spray bar aimed at the surface for good gaseous exchange. It's up to you of course, but I lost a bbg in the internal filter as they can get into all sorts of small gaps. Just thought I'd share a bit of my personal experience/knowledge

 

[Sarn1]

Ok so I got the tank yesterday, I was mistaken, the Maxi Jet 1200 replaced the stock pump for the biocube filter. I thought it was an additional pump for a powerhead, so no additional worries on protecting the intake. It seems to be working fine, we'll see once I get the tank cycled & fish in. Hopefully the intakes slots on the bottom & top right are narrow enough to prevent any livestock getting sucked up, let me know what you think, here is a diagram:

 

[jennybugs]

Phew, well that's ok then I think the filter will be fine, but just keep an eye on the parameters once the fish are in to monitor the levels. If the filter seems to be struggling then add an external for even more filtration. With regard to puffer tanks, there's no such thing as too much filtration

How wide are the intake slots? I found my bbgs when they were small could swim inside my box filter in my tank which is how I lost one. I got some black netting like fish nets are made of and stuck it over the intake slots to make sure they couldn't get in. Once they got too big then I just removed it. Just meant I had to keep an eye on the netting to make sure it didn't get dirty and block up.
If you can get bbgs that are a reasonable size to start with then taht would help