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FAQs on Brackish Aquarium Keeping

Related FAQs: FAQs on Brackish Salty Water,

Rolf Bandsma's brackish tank. Pic by him.

Starting a new brackish tank 6/22/08
Hello!
First off, I love your site, so much information on brackish tanks, looking forward to more!
<Glad you're enjoying yourself!>
I am returning to fish keeping after a ten year break due to other activities taking priority (marriage, children, etc.). Doing some research before I jump back into the hobby. I feel so over whelmed by the changes in the available information (some good, some not so good) via the internet, as well as all the new strides in aquarium set ups. Wow.
<Would have to agree with you on both counts. Yes, the hobby has changed a lot, particularly in regard to the diversity of species kept. And yes, the Internet is both great for getting information and bad because it helps perpetuate myths. That's why most of us here at WWM would recommend getting at least one book germane to your specific interests; that way, you know you have at least one edited, fact-checked source of information.>
Before I got married, I kept several tanks; my pride and joy being a 65 gallon mirror backed show tank with Central American cichlids convicts, Jack Dempseys, etc). I had a natural gravel substrate, lots of large scoria pieces, about a dozen plastic red Ludwigia, and some driftwood. I used a magnum canister and a power head. I had a four bulb hood with a timing system to allow the lighting to change throughout the day.
<Sounds lovely! I kept Central Americans for a long time as a student, and really enjoyed their feisty personalities and lovely colours. Because the tank was in a lobby area, the fish would interact with people who stopped by. It was fun to see the fish acting as part of the community of people in the building. Central Americans strike me as being the most intelligent of all the cichlids.>
I know many people call Convicts beginner cichlids, but I fell in love with their little personalities. I had my ornamental goldfish tanks and my planted tanks too, but the cichlids were my clowns, fun to come home from work and watch.
<Absolutely! A much underrated group of fish these days, perhaps because so many species are big and often very aggressive.>
The materials used for decorating the tank, along with my choice of fish, was based on where I live. The water in my area is just unbelievably hard and alkaline along with having a high particulate count. We live just a couple of miles from a scoria gravel pit, so the decorations were free other than the cleaning and boiling.
<Useful.>
I only tested nitrates and Ph regularly, keeping it on the basic side of neutral.
As my fish bred frequently, I had a slightly overpopulated tank at any given time, however, it ran for 8 years with no major issues.
<Sounds good.>
When I got married and moved into my husband's house, I had to make choices about what would and would not come with. No room for most of my tanks, and the brackish tank was given to my sister and her husband where it continued to flourish.
<Ah, converts to the hobby!>
Now my children want fish, and I inherited a 45g corner tank with all the trimmings from a moving neighbour. Despite the votes for "Nemo" and "Dory" fish, I would like another brackish tank (cheaper fish and I have more experience, besides 45g is rather small I believe for a beginner SW setup). So I have a few questions.
<There are swings and roundabouts (as we say in England) but broadly yes, brackish water tanks are much cheaper to set-up and run, and tend to be relatively problem-free. On the other hand, it is perfectly possible to set up a basic marine aquarium in a 45 gallon tank, and keep a surprising variety of fish alongside living rock. Provided you avoid light-hungry invertebrates such as corals, such a system can be *relatively* easily built and maintained.>
First, I was intrigued by the idea of a planted brackish tank. I have done planted and brackish, but never the same tank (first off I didn't know I could, second, convicts dig, a lot.) So who can I have live in my tank that will not dig up my plants and rip them to pieces?
<Many, many options. There are various brackish water killifish for example such as Florida Flagfish and Asian Panchax. The Flagfish would actually do double duty as algae eaters. Most livebearers would fit the bill, and Guppies, Endler's, Mollies and Wrestling Halfbeaks would all work great in a planted tank. Gobies are another key group, and while some (e.g., Bumblebees) are a pain to feed, others, such as Rhinogobius and Chlamydogobius are very easily satisfied. Sleeper Gobies such as Butis butis and Dormitator lebretonis are predatory but easily satiated with frozen bloodworms and other such foods. Dwarf Cichlids such as Pelvicachromis are sometimes kept in brackish tanks, though I'd personally recommend the Orange Chromide (Etroplus maculatus) as a much better choice. Glassfish would be great, as would the brackish water blenny Omobranchus zebra. Do take a peek at my Brackish Water Aquarium FAQ at the link below, particularly the section on small fish:
http://homepage.mac.com/nmonks/Projects/brackishfaq.html
>
I am not opposed to the denizens nibbling the plants. I also worry that a 45g corner tank is not roomy enough for any kind of cichlid. I was thinking gobies and eels may be nice, along with some fun invertebrates and possibly some smaller mollies schooling.
<Mollies don't school; they fight! Every male Molly wants to monopolise his coterie of females, so unless you have just one male, you tend to get squabbling.>
Second, I am unsure how to balance the filtration needs of my stock with the comfort of the plants. In my planted tanks of the past, I only kept some cleaners in the tank, and therefore only had a sand filter for some movement. Your site says a canister filter will work, but I am worried about the water movement upsetting the plants. The inherited tank came with a nice emperor filter, however, this type of filter isn't good for planted tanks, right?
<Contrary to belief, plants don't object to fast-flowing water. What they don't like water flowing through the substrate, which is why undergravel filters aren't recommended. If you're using CO2 fertilisation, then vigourous circulation can drive off that CO2, reducing the rate of photosynthesis, slowing down plant growth. But if you're merely stocking plants "to look pretty", then the CO2 in the water already will be ample. Besides, the plants that do best in brackish get their carbon at least in part from carbonate and bicarbonate salts in the water, so CO2 is less important.>
Third, this tank has a fitted cover with a light, a single light. My gut reaction is this is not enough for a tank period, let alone a planted tank. But I am not sure.
<Depends on the plants. But Anubias, Java fern, Java moss, and hardy Cryptocoryne species like C. wendtii could do well in as little as 1 watt per gallon.>
So currently this tank is totally empty, save I filled it with water to check water tightness and then cleaned it well (lime scale, yuk!) so it ready to start. My kids are getting impatient, though I have explained that it is highly unlikely we will have any fish in the tank for a couple months at the least, no matter what type of tank we (I) pick.
<Indeed, though Mollies actually do quite well for maturing filters in fairly salty water. Alternatively, grab some media from another aquarium and put in the new filter. You can remove up to 50% the media in a mature filter without doing any harm to water quality. Freshwater bacteria will adapt to SG 1.003 right away, and that will be ample for low-end species.>
I am planning a coarse sand substrate with a planting additive, along with peat pellets mixed in to deal with the hardness and alkaline of our water. I believe I will use scoria again for rock decoration and some driftwood (we live near a huge reservoir as well).
<The peat won't have much (any) affect on the water chemistry if buried in the substrate. So I'd skip that, and go with a nutrient-rich alternative (peat contains nothing of any use to plants, contrary to myth). I get good results from mixing fine gravel with pond soil, and then topping off with gravel or silica sand as required. Cheap and effective.>
The tank came with some hideous pastel epoxy coated gravel, a sunken ship and several, not found in nature, hues of plastic plant. All of this is going on a garage sale as I can never see myself using any of it.
<Quite.>
I am planning to do a rotting fish cycle then salt my water to a low salinity, perhaps sp 1.006, then start planting with java ferns, pygmy chain sword, and Sagittaria as these guys are pretty bullet proof in my experience and are recommended by your site for brackish systems.
<I'd start at a lower salinity. Plants can sometimes adapt to high salinities once established, but few react well immediately. I'd aim for SG 1.003 for now, and then see how you go. Echinodorus and Sagittaria spp. tend to be "light hungry" and won't really thrive, if they take at all, in low light tanks.>
I would appreciate any comments or suggestions you may have. The closest LFS is over an hour drive away, and I am unimpressed with their advice (The owner actually told me I was being too cautious, I can easily cycle a tank with fish in it, and then my children will not have to wait so long. I was also told SW was easier then brackish) I hope I wasn't too long winded.
<Hope this helps! You might also track down a copy of my 'Brackish-Water Fishes' book published by TFH. Your library may have a copy, even if you don't feel the need to buy it. Lots of information there on this niche of fishkeeping.>
Thank you so much for your time,
Sarah
<Good luck, Neale.>

Australian natives - Attention Neale, and his BW book 5/1/08
Hi Neale,
Not a question, more of a conversation. You can tell me to stop bothering you if you want. I don't often get the chance to talk Australian freshwater natives (I use the term freshwater loosely), which are a bit of a favourite of mine. I have read some of Bruce's work, although I can't say I've read any of his stuff on Pseudomugil. Will have to try to get hold of a copy of your book. Just to make sure, its title is "Brackish-Water Fishes: An Aquarist's Guide to Identification, Care & Husbandry" right?
<Indeed so; should be available at all good bookstores, or else via your library system. I have to admit to enjoying Bruce's chapter enormously, as well as Richard Mleczko's chapter on Mudskippers, another group of fish Aussies may well be able to enjoy better than anyone else.>
I've done a fair bit of research on many Australian natives. Both personal and professional. I did my masters thesis on Melanotaenia splendida splendida. An often overlooked yet stunning rainbowfish if I do say so myself. Some of the regional colour morphs I've collected far outshine many of the more common rainbowfish sold in the trade. My personal favourite has to be the ones from a little stream on the way to Greenvale. Absolutely stunning. I still have some of those from my research (they'd be pushing 8 years now).
<I would tend to agree with you on this species. It used to be quite commonly traded here in the UK (along with M. maccullochi) as the "Australian rainbow" but you hardly ever see these fish now. They always seemed incredibly variable, and also very hardy and reliable. Seemed to put with anything, even quite salty brackish water.>
I do agree that the P. signifer colour up fantastically in brackish water, they also tend to live longer and grow bigger as well, but I've personally found they breed much better in fresh (more eggs, with a significantly increased fertilisation, hatching and survival rate). For several years I changed their water type seasonally. Three months full
brackish, three months changing from brackish to fresh, three months full fresh, and three months changing from fresh to brackish. I do have to admit I've gotten rather lazy with that one of late and have had them in full fresh for at least a year now. I do tend to try to breed any that I wild collect so in some ways it's probably more practical to keep them in freshwater from the breeding point of view. I've had quite good luck breeding all the different specie of blue eye and found that even most of the euryhaline specie breed best in freshwater. That's one of the reasons I want to speak to more people about the P. cyanodorsalis. My prior experience tells me they should do well in fresh, but my gut tells me they may be more brackish then any of the others I've kept.
<Bruce says P. cyanodorsalis is "more consistently found in brackish water".>
I've had a few of the gudgeons as well and have had limited success with them. The Empire Gudgeon (Hypseleotris compressa) and Northern Purple Spotted Gudgeon (Mogurnda mogurnda) are my newest projects. I've had luck with the empire from the Rolling Stone area, and am working on my success with the purple spotted. I am hoping to go out west and get
some from the interior in a year or so when I have their reproduction a bit more stable. I've heard the ones from some of the inland areas are beauties.
<Oddly enough, Morgunda spp. and also Peacock Gobies are quite common here, and some stores have Chlamydogobius eremius as well, another superb little goby. Gudgeons (or Sleeper Gobies as we call them) are fairly popular, thanks to their good colours and generally hardy nature. Regular gobies always seem that bit more fussy about their food.>
Unfortunately a lot of the regional colour morphs are being threatened. One of the reasons why I collect and breed according to location. Up here the Gambusia is doing a real number on the blue eyes and tilapia are threatening just about everything else. It's always disappointing to me when I go to an area to collect fish and discover an introduced species when I am there. I always try to remove any introduced that I can catch, some are harder then others. Unfortunately it seems every time I go out there are more introduced fish and more different types then the year before. The number of Oscar I've been finding of late has me a bit concerned. I also caught a disturbing amount of other cichlid species which I hadn't encountered before. I always take a deep breath
and enjoy any place I go that I don't encounter any introduced fish although those seem to be getting fewer and farther between. The flooding we get during the wet season is the real problem. It allows the introduced fish to get to new water that they wouldn't be able to access otherwise.
<This is a problem everywhere. The UK govt. has recently gotten serious about limiting the trade in species that could become established in UK waters. Aquarists do have to deal with the fact that they, or at least their trade, has been responsible for some terrible exotic species introductions. So while I'm not wild about the idea of "white lists" of species my government says we can keep, there's an argument for making the hobby a lot more aware of their potential to do harm. I can't think of any other hobby where for small amounts of cash a person can buy wild fish from location X and feel free to release them at location Y.>
Anyway, I'll stop before this turns into a novel.
Cheers!
Amanda
<Cheers, Neale.>

My new tank and me, BW set-up 7/16/07
Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.
<No problems, and thanks for writing.>
I'm a new again enthusiast who has started up my first tank since I was 9 (I've done three outdoor ponds in the meantime, though).
The tank is an old (thoroughly cleaned) 20 gallon tank with a new Top fin power filter 30 and an air pump (rated for a 30 gallon tank) hooked up to a bubble stone and a crushed coral substrate to maintain the PH.
<OK.>
Its been cycling for 4 days now (ammonia, nitrates and nitrites all look fine), while I've been studying and I'm very sad to find that my LFS lied to me, claiming that the fish I had fallen in love with and started this tank over would live peaceably in a 20 gallon tank with a few smaller top feeding residents, content to live on the bottom.
<Takes more than 4 days to cycle a tank. Try 40 days. Unless you're using something like Bio Spira or Tetra Safestart to "jump start" the process, or better yet, you've added filter medium from a mature aquarium. Bad advice for retailers is very common, sadly.>
The fish I'm referring to is the Violet Goby (or Dragon Goby) which according to my research on your site and others, needs at least a 30 gallon tank and brackish water.
<Yes, it's brackish water. A lovely fish. 30 gallons is a bit small though, and crushed coral wouldn't be my choice as a substrate. It lives in mud, and fine sand, or perhaps coral sand, would be the ideal substrate so it can dig and feed normally. As for size, it's a fish that routinely tops 40 cm in aquaria, and gets even bigger in the wild.>
So really, the question is If I were to get some marine salt and upgrade my filter to a heavier duty model like say, a Skilter 250/400, would I be able to take care of a Violet Goby for a year until I move out to college and have room to set up a larger tank.
<Possibly. Depends how big the goby in the store is. They don't grow quickly, but they do grow, so you need Plan B to be a viable option and not a pipe-dream. A sub-10 cm specimen would probably be fine in a 30 gallon tank for 12 months.>
Or if not, any opinions on who should I get to live in this tank? Other types of gobies or similarly shaped fish? I'm also very fond of cichlids, koi and loaches.
<My approach is always to establish the water chemistry in my location first, and then choose fish that like it. Makes life a hundred times easier when it comes to care because you can freely use big water changes to manage water quality and chemistry issues. So if your local water is hard and alkaline, think about gobies and livebearers, as these thrive in such conditions. If soft and acid, then dwarf cichlids and barbs are a better bet. Koi don't really do well in indoor aquaria, though goldfish do, and a 30 gallon tank is fine for goldfish. Goldfish enjoy hard, alkaline water conditions. One oft-overlooked option is to "collect your own" fish. Juvenile cyprinids (minnows for example) and Centrarchids (such as sunfish) can make excellent pets and the fun aspect of keeping native fish is considerable. If you live by the sea, collecting rock pool organisms is another option. Of course, when collecting your own you need to respect local fish & wildlife laws but these aren't normally a problem. If you have some ideas of behaviours you'd like to observe, that's another approach to take. Dwarf cichlids are the way to go if you fancy breeding cichlids. The shell-dwelling Tanganyikans are especially nice for this. On the other hand, if you want a funky "pet fish", then a puffer can be fun. One of the medium sized freshwater or brackish species would work well in a 30 gallon tank. Lots of options really. Nothing beats sitting down with a book like Baensch's Aquarium Atlas and just flipping through the pages and seeing what grabs you.>
Thanks again in advance and I'm sorry if my question was just plain dumb.
<The only dumb questions are the ones that aren't asked. Cheers, Neale>

Re: Water problem is overwhelming...(converting to brackish) 7/15/07
Hi Tom -
<<Hi, Kim.>>
One more question. Now that Betta is gone and so is one of the molly's I'm going to turn that ten gallon into the brackish system you were talking about before. It will hold 2 marble mollies and 1 of the regular black mollies.
<>
This should be about 9 inches of fish - what should I put in there to eat the debris on the bottom? Are shrimps, crabs, something else better than some kind of Cory like fish that likes salt?
<<Think in “adult” sizes, Kim. The Black Molly will stay put at about 3 inches but the Marble (Sailfin) Mollies will grow to between 5-6 inches depending on gender. Overcrowded? Yes, but this is somewhat subjective, frankly. (I’m admittedly “hedging” because I think this is a smart move!) I believe that converting even a small system to brackish conditions for the Mollies outweighs, in this case, the “benefits” of leaving them in a larger, pure FW environment. Besides, you might see your way clear to upgrade down the line to a larger tank that will afford the addition of other brackish species. An interesting prospect in my view. As to potential new additions for clean-up purposes, there are none that I would advise based on your stocking levels, if nothing else. Everyone loves the look of a “pristine” tank but, all too often, we overlook the quality of the water in favor of the “appearance” of the aquarium. Every “critter” you add will also add to the bio-load on the tank and filter. Don’t want to push our luck too far here.>>
OK - I lied - 2 questions...
When the tank is ready for mollies, do I just stick them in there? Will going from FW to brackish be too much of a shock all at one time?
<<Slowly acclimating the Mollies to brackish conditions is the way you want to approach this, Kim. You’re quite right that going from FW straight to brackish will, indeed, shock your fish. As I, hopefully, suggested previously, you’ll need a hydrometer and marine salt – same as for SW tanks – to accomplish the transition. Better to undershoot the specific gravity levels in the beginning than to overshoot. Once the Mollies have been transferred over to the 10-gallon tank, condition a couple of gallons of water (~20% of the tank capacity) and add 1-1.5 tablespoons of marine salt. Let it stand overnight and test the SG (specific gravity). This should read about 1.005-1.008 but this will depend on the manufacturer of the salt. (Remember that there are “buffers” in marine salt that need to go “into solution” along with the salt itself.) You can add some warm tap water to adjust for temperature before actually making the water change. Once you’ve changed your water, test the tank for its new SG. It will, of course, test lower for SG in the beginning than the new, conditioned water did. (Make some notes to yourself here. Might seem unnecessary but, on the other hand…) Now you have a baseline, of sorts, to work from. Obviously, in order to continue to increase the SG in the tank, your newly prepared water must be higher in SG than it currently is in the tank. I would aim at trying to increase the SG by no more than .002-.003 with each successive (weekly?) change. No need to rush this. Once the tank has reached an SG of about 1.011-1.015 (not quite as critical as it would be in a SW tank), simply prepare all new water to the same levels and you’re “golden”. The fortunate thing here is that your Mollies can be acclimated to full marine conditions – with care – so going a little high, should it happen, won’t be a big problem. The main thing is to take your time with the process. Probably could be done in as little as two-three weeks but figure on a month or so.>>
Thanks Tom!
Kim
<<You’re welcome, Kim. Best of luck with your venture. I know your Mollies will appreciate your efforts! Tom>>

Brackish Articles, Neale Monk 12/26/06
Hello Robert,
Good, good. Please do run up a list and I'll see what I can do. I'm kind of a brackish and oddballs person generally, with a side-order of livebearers from time to time.
Brackish is an odd field in some ways. It's one of the easiest specialties to get into. Practically every store sells a few brackish species. Soles, violet gobies, puffers. And yet it doesn't have the profile that things like cichlids and catfish have. I'm also surprised the marine fishkeepers don't take advantage of some of the oddball brackish species for fish-only or reef tanks. Brackish water halfbeaks (Zenarchopterus spp.) and soles (Brachirus spp.) would make great additions to marine aquaria. Imagine a reef tank with a school of halfbeaks... very cool! Also totally safe and very prototypical.
Anyway, take care,
Neale
<We do indeed need many articles... of your caliber, scope... There are huge... multiple-lifetime gaps... Would you like a list of topics/subjects? I do appreciate this input, opportunity... A great potential for making the brackish field more "real". BobF>

Bracsystems.htm art. 1/14/07
Robert,
Please find attached something that I think would fit in nicely as the "top level" brackish page, here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/bracsystems.htm
It's in RTF format, which I hope is easy enough to open and export into whatever web design package you use. If not, let me know. Anyway, I think this covers all of the basic issues.
Cheers,
Neale
<Outstanding Neale... Will place and send you a check for... And am asking Scott and Adam if they'd like to place in CA as well. Do you have any pix to accompany? Cheers, BobF>

Brackish beginner - 12/11/05
Hi, I'm an slightly experienced freshwater owner.
<Hello... John here this evening>
After quitting the hobby for four and a half years, I'm ready for more! I was planning on making a freshwater aquarium with tetras, platies, and all the skittish fish. But I read a really neat article about Archer Fish. It appealed to me, and now I am seriously considering turning a 36x12x21" (40 gal) tank into a brackish aquarium. Is keeping a brackish fish difficult for a person like me?

Some other fish I'd like are monos, bumblebees, scats, and puffers.
<These can't go in together... a 40g is too small for monos or scats. Most puffers are best kept alone.>
If they grow too large, then I won't get them, but I'd really like Archer fish.

And one thing: I'm an 8th grader with a $10 allowance weekly, so tell me if I could afford it, too.

Thanks ahead of time for your valuable response!
<You're welcome! Best regards, John.>

Re: Dalmatian Molly - Dorsal Fin is green along the top? Brackish systems 08/08/2005
I meant Archer Fish, not Arrow fish,

I had just been reading about target fish and archer fish, subconsciously I must have picked an associated middle ground, lol. Anyway, thanks for your help.
<Welcome>
My ultimate goal is to grow each of these species large enough to start a species tank for each and then build the tank around each fish/species.
<Have seen such systems... mainly in Public Aquariums... spectacular>
I want to simulate each species natural habitat as closely as possible with native plants, other animals, etc... Do expect to hear from me again soon!
Erik

Going From Brackish To Freshwater 12/10/05
WWM crew, I have a brackish tank which my fish recently died and I want to turn it into a freshwater tank. I was just wondering if I could skip recycling the tank by simply emptying the brackish water and replacing it with freshwater. Hope this question isn't too stupid... thanks.
< Brackish is a very loose term that means it is between pure freshwater and pure saltwater. Depending on the exact salinity you were keeping your fish at, after replacing the water, I would still add Bio-Spira from Marineland to cover all the bases.-Chuck>

Going from Fresh to Brackish? 4/22/05
Hi there,
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
Within a few months I have a 30 gallon hex tank I wish to switch over to brackish. I have a lot of experience with SW tanks and a little with FW (just doesn't have that same kick that SW has). I live in GA on an estuary so all of the water here is pretty brackish except in extreme tides and was thinking of doing pretty much a local tank.
<Does this mean you will be capturing your own stock?>
Right now the tank containing a few angels and Bettas just has a power filter. Being used to SW, what would I need to get for it to turn it brackish? Are undergravels worth using in BW, since they are about pointless in SW I was wondering? What about reverse flowing UGFs? My LFS says not to bother with one but does it need a skimmer or does a skimmer even work in that low of salinity? Trying to do this pretty low cost so any help would be nice.
<Although I really don't like UGFs, a friend of mine really has a lot of luck with RFUGFs. Personally, on a tank that size, I just go with an AquaClear 300 (or whatever they're calling them now) or something comparable. A skimmer isn't necessary, especially in low SG. I use crushed coral or aragonite for substrate, to keep the pH around a steady 8.>
As for livestock the plan is a couple small Burrfish, an interesting waspfish thing I saw at my LFS with no name, maybe some smaller scats or Monos.
<Sorry, but none of those fish will be proper inhabitants for a 30g hex, except for maybe the "waspfish", but you'd need to find out more about that fish before purchasing it. Generally, they will eat any fish they can fit into their very large mouths. Burrfish may be found occasionally "visiting" BW, but certainly should not live there long term.
Scats grow as large as your outstretched hand & Monos are schooling fish that grow to 1' & require a huge, long tank. Please don't be fooled by the size of juvenile fish! Even the Burrfish will grow to 1'. Many BW fish (including the scat & mono) prefer marine conditions as adults. I think your tank would make a nice home for a few (no more than 3) figure 8 puffers (Article from Aquasource), bumblebee gobies & a couple of knight gobies. I suggest checking with the shop you will be purchasing these fish from, to see what SG they keep them at. Most keep BW fish in FW, so your tank will be fine. Then you can raise the SG .002/weekly water change, until you have reached your desired SG. If they are kept in BW, they you will have to re-cycle your tank as that SG.>
Thanks, Mike
<Good luck with your new tank! ~PP>

Brackish To Marine.. The Switch Is On!
Hi,
<Hey there! Scott F. with you today!>
I have been searching for this info and cannot find answers. Brackish tank 16 months old, all stock are fat and sassy!
<Cool! Brackish tanks are neat!>
Tank ½ round cylinder, 70 gallon Eheim, power head, need skimmer.. and better lights
Stock, 3 Monos, 3 Scats, 2 Mollies, 1 Puffer (Figure 8), 3 Rams, 1 Krib, 2 Knight Gobies and 5 Weather Loaches.
<Nice.>
I have been moving the salinity up gradually, the fish such as the Rams, Weather Loaches and Krib will not go full marine so I will trade them.
<Sounds logical!>
Here is the question.
As I move this to a full marine system I would like to have a reef/marine setup.. At what salinity will live rock grow?
<Well, the rock will not "grow", but the fauna on the rock will. You'd need to get the specific gravity in the range of 1.019-1.026>
Can these fish share space within a reef?
<The Scats and Monos do get pretty large; you may have to trim down the population as they grow.>
If so what do I need to watch out for/ avoid?
<In a tank of this size, you need to monitor water chemistry parameters carefully, especially with messy, aggressive feeders like Scats and Monos. Also, do observe the behaviors of the fish carefully to make sure that everyone gets along okay.>
I would like to add, inverts, corals and a few more marine fish later and really can not find much written on this subject.
<Well, I have not seen all that much written about converting brackish systems to marine/reef tanks. However, once your tank is "marine", all of the standard husbandry and stocking rules apply...nothing new there. The WWM site is, of course, chock full of information on maintaining a marine system.>
Can you folks help or direct me to a reference? Thank you in advance. Ellen O'Meara
<You'd do well to start right here, Ellen! Also, refer to good basic primers on the marine hobby, like Mike Paletta's "The New Marine Aquarium", and Bob's "Conscientious Marine Aquarist". These texts will serve as a basic introduction to the marine aquarium. Enjoy the journey! Regards, Scott F.>

Starting a Brackish Aquarium 2/18/04
Dear Bob,
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
I have recently been interested in getting a brackish water aquarium. I have been searching google for any websites that could help me in deciding whether this would be a feasible task for me.
I am 18 and a freshman in college (I still live at home) and have wanted to be a marine biologist since at least the second grade. I have never had a salt water or brackish aquarium. Saltwater, I feel would be too expensive since I am in college (hopefully on my way to getting a bachelor's and higher for marine biology, but I live in Wisconsin so it may be a difficult task, haha)
The point of all this rambling, I have just read your articles on brackish aquarium maintenance, set-up, and components of brackish aquariums and found all three articles VERY helpful in helping me learn more about the increasingly attractive seeming hobby.
Thanks for all of the useful information you have provided! I hope to go price out some stuff at a somewhat local fish store!
<Here is another good article on starting a BW aquarium: http://badmanstropicalfish.com/brackish/brackish.html The expense of a BW aquarium may turn out to be more than you are prepared for. Although you don't need a protein skimmer, the cost of salt for weekly water changes, can get expensive. Many BW fish grow quite large. You didn't mention how large a tank you have to work with, or what species of fish you are interested in. There is also the problem that most BW fish are sold in FW at aquarium stores, so you have to acclimate them with a drip system to your BW tank, when purchased. If your LFS does keep their BW fish in FW, you could cycle a FW tank (or buy Bio-Spira) & fully stock the tank & then slowly turn the FW tank BW (by raising the SG .002/weekly water change). You also need to consider the fact that you probably will not be going to graduate school in WI. Who will be taking care of your fish while you're gone (water changes, testing SG, feeding, etc)? It is your responsibility, when you take on any pet, to care for it (or make sure it is well cared for) it's entire life.
Thankfully yours,
Mandy
<Good luck. ~PP>

Brackish Questions 1/22/04
Bob:
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
I recently got a 36 gallon brackish bow tank. I started with 4 puffers, and 4 silver tipped catsharks and a flounder.

The catsharks have flourished but the puffers went down one by one over the course of like four weeks. Terrible.
<Get your water tested for ammonia, nitrItes, nitrAtes & pH. I'll bet anything they are at toxic levels.>
I was wondering if you had any say on puffer care cause they were probably my favorite, especially one guy named Bilbo, he just had one of those "Something about Bilbo" personalities. I think it was his smile.
<Puffers are definitely endearing fish with very cut expressive faces! You didn't mention what kind of puffers you had. It would help me to know that. There is as lot of great info here in the BW section of this forum.>
Anyways, I am going to put off on puffers for a while but did get an African cichlid, one of those nice blue/purple with the long bottom fins and sharp dorsal. Gorgeous, I think there the kind that get fairly large and grow bumps on there heads?
<Sounds like a frontosa cichlid. Is not a BW fish.>
As for the flounder he's grown very dark, as he was initially the same color as the crushed coral on the bottom, and he spends a lot of time floating on the top before darting down again seemingly happy. ??
<Sounds perfectly normal. Watch out for the flounder, they are aggressive nippers!>
Finally can you recommend how often and HOW to change the brackish water? I've had the tank five weeks and have changed the water once, almost completely drained it with a siphon and several buckets. I mixed 1/4 a cup of sea salt for every two gallons.

The fish seem ecstatic, and all look healthy. I got a few more little typical yellow African cichlids.
<Again, not BW fish.>
I'd appreciate any help or advise. Best, Ralph Merletto
<Stick with only BW species for your tank or better yet, keep the cichlids & return the catfish, unless you are planning on upgrading to a huge SW tank for them, purchasing many buckets of salt & premixing them in another container, for weekly water changes. ~PP.>

Companions for a Brackish Tank. 1/22/05
<Hi, Pufferpunk again>
There is marine salt in my tank. He is eating ok. I think I may have found the problem. I took out a fake plant in my tank. It appeared that it had algae on it and I wanted to clean it off. Come to find out it had metal to keep the plant stiff. The metal was rusting and may have been contaminating the water. I read in a book I have that it is not good to have any metal in a tank. So I removed it and did a water change.

It seems as if they are all acting and interacting a lot better.
<Good to hear.>
As far as the round black spot, I think you were right because the spot is disappearing.
<Yup>
I am not sure on how to use a hydrometer. The LFS said it wasn't that important, but apparently it is.
<I can't imagine you could measure salt content in your tank without a hydrometer. I'd stop listening to that shop or any other, for that matter. www.thepufferforum.com is very good for info on puffers, salt & BW fish. There is a good BW section at WWM also.>
I will be getting one. Any tips on using one or what type?
<The fill-up type is best. Instant Ocean makes a good one. SeaTest is another. Make sure it starts at 1.000. That is the one to use for BW.>
Also, what is a good bottom feeder that could clean up any leftover food? Catfish, Pleco?
<Neither of those fish will live in BW. Sorry, but there are no BW scavengers--you'll have to do your own maid service. Buy a Python, it will make your water changes & gravel cleaning a lot easier.>
And are Scat's a suitable companion for my tank?
<In a tank the size of yours, there are a lot of BW fish you could keep. Look over the BW species list at WWM. Archerfish, scats, Targetfish, stonefish, Datnoides, etc, would fit in your tank (maybe not all at once). Was your tank cycled before adding the puffers? If not, I'd wait a month or so, before adding any more fish. Most larger BW fish are high waste producers & prefer marine conditions as adults. To keep your puffers happy, lots of decor to investigate is necessary.>
Thank you for all the help!!!
<Good luck with your tank. It should be a great enjoyment to you, if done right! ~PP>

Switching marines in brackish
Glad it was interesting. Yes, some of this stuff is in the book, not to mention already being in the FAQ. There are yet other fish I didn't include because I don't know enough about them, but there are stories in older marine fishkeeping books that are very surprising.
<Yes>
One that stands out is a report about a school of Sweetlips living in an outdoor (artificial) pool at some marine lab, where the water was sufficiently fresh that freshwater plants were growing there!
<Interesting>
Again, have a look at this:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/bracsetupfaqs.htm
Towards the end there an entry entitled "fresh to brackish/salt changeover" where someone reports having an aquarium including bunch of brackish stuff in an aquarium SG 1.016, alongside some marines (e.g. a blue trigger) and even one African cichlid (presumably meaning a Rift Lake species but it isn't stated). I wouldn't recommend keeping the set-up this person has, I just don't know enough about the species she names to know if they will do well over the long term.
Cheers,
Neale
<Thank you for your input. Bob Fenner>

Converting a FW tank to BW 4/26/04
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
I have a planted freshwater setup in what I think is a 75g long. I recently researched and then bought 2 GSP's.
<Planted FW huh? Not the right kind of research I'm guessing? Did you read my article on GSPs? http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/gspsart.htm Everything you'll ever need to know about them is in there!>
I love them already (after only 2 weeks).
<How could you help but to love them?!>
The puffies are doing great and eating anything that will fit in there mouth now. They stopped eating my other fishes fins (poor Betta) and now look fat after they eat.
<No surprise to me that they would chomp on a poor Betta's fins.>
I would like to convert the tank to brackish water like ya'll suggest to so many others.
<Good!>
I just have a few things questions. How long should it take to convert from .002 to 1.009?
<Your answer is in that article.>
From what I understand, my fish should convert well, but will they survive just as long in brackish? I have a red and 2 white mollies, 2 red flame honey gouramis, a Plecostomus, 2 red velvet sword tails and the 2 puffies.
<The only fish in that group that will appreciate the salt are the mollies. (The other livebearers won't mind a little salt, but not the amount the GSPs are going to need). The rest of your fish will not appreciate any salt at all.>
From the info I've been reading, I figure at least 3 of my 5 plants will survive. There are 2 I am skeptical about, Ludwigia repens and Dracaena sanderiana.
<Sorry, but there are no FW plants that will survive BW. They will melt, rot & foul your water. You need to decide if you want a FW planted tank w/FW fish, or a BW tank. There is no way to combine the 2. Eventually your puffers will need high-end BW-SW.>
Any info on these topics will be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for this site I have learned so much. My puffies thank you for giving me the info to give them the best home possible.
Sabrina
<Just read the article & make a decision. I'd choose the puffers (of course)! ~PP>

Brackish to saltwater? (03/08/04)
Thanks for the fast reply, I did have one more question I meant to ask, I find with the planning of a marine setup I am always having more questions with every answer I get.
<Me, too. Ananda here to help out with the brackish questions...>
I presently have a 20 gallon Brackish tank with some Mono's and 1 Scat, I have read these fish prefer Marine over Brackish,
<As adults, yes.>
if this is true then I have a mix of 1 Tbls per salt Per Gallon, how can I convert this tank to marine and the fish with it.
<Depending on the size/age of the fish, probably fairly slowly. When you do water changes, add water with a higher specific gravity to the tank.>
Will the 20 Gallon work well for a refugium which I can drain Back to my sump.
<Possibly. Do read up on refugiums here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/refugium.htm >
Thanks Again
Drew Forbister
<You're quite welcome. --Ananda>

What temperature do Brackish water fish have to be in?
<it totally depends on the type of fish and the area which they are collected from. Brackish environments are found all around the world. Brackish environments happen, where ever saltwater mixes with freshwater. It can be a brackish environment in the tropics, or way up in the coldwater areas. Do a search online of the fish you have in mind and see what it's requirements are, then adjust your tank accordingly. -Magnus>

Batfishes, more importantly, Brackish organisms and their husbandry
Ananda Stevens told me about you and Wet Web Media; it's quite a project -- I'm very impressed. I'm guessing she told you about the book we're working on.
<Not specifically, though Amanda has hinted, and I have encouraged her to work on such a title>
That's kind of a mission for me, to get a decent brackish book out there. It's going pretty well but obviously writing
styles vary a lot, not to mention expertise. It'll be like herding
cats.
<Perhaps... but do agree on the timeliness of the title. Make it known if I or WWM can be of assistance. Perhaps image work, editing/looking over, maybe even help in publishing, sales, distribution>
The marine fish that can be kept in brackish are a secret in this
hobby, but they do take a bit more care than the average brackish fish.
<Actually... IMO/E most brackish systems are more difficult (or at least historically fraught with danger/failure) than marine. Bob Fenner>
Cheers,
Neale

Brackish books, matters, continued
> <Actually... IMO/E most brackish systems are more difficult (or at
> least historically fraught with danger/failure) than marine. Bob
> Fenner>
Yes, as systems perhaps, but I think that's more because people come to
brackish water aquaria without the understanding that they are much
more sensitive to low O2 concentrations and elevated nitrogenous waste
concentrations that generic freshwater fish tend to be.
<Agreed>
Marine people
expect lower stocking levels. Most brackish water fish can't breathe
air like many freshwater fish, or aren't tolerant of low O2
concentrations as the rest are. That's where the failures come from, I
think (assuming they get the salt / pH / hardness right).
Cheers,
NM
<Very useful insights. Bob Fenner>

New Brackish water tank
I will be setting up a new tank up in about 2 weeks.
<Are you fishless cycling your tank? Here's some great info on setting up a new tank: http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquasource/newtanksyndrome.shtml Please read all the recommended links in there too. (I apologize if you are already experienced in this matter.)>
My plan was to set up a freshwater tank (not brackish). I wanted to get figure eight puffers, spotted puffers, and Bala sharks.
I have been on my computer for hours every night doing all my research to make sure I know all I need to know about my puffers but I am going in circles.
Every site tells me the opposite of the other.
<It is a great thing to do research, but info on the net can be very confusing & misleading & just plain wrong>
I want my tank to be freshwater but can they be without the salt??? and can the sharks handle salt if I need to have it in there??
<Bala sharks are freshwater fish. They also are schooling fish that grow quite large.>
I just don't want to get the puffers and then them die on me....I would feel horrible....The pet store in my home town said to put them in freshwater and not brackish.
<Figure 8 puffers (Tetraodon biocellatus) & Green Spotted Puffers (t. nigroviridis) are both brackish water fish. F8s prefer light BW (a specific gravity of 1.005-10) & GSPs prefer high-end BW-SW (1.015-22). All the difference between FW & BW is some marine salt & a hydrometer. As your LFS is obviously keeping them in FW, you can add the salt slowly, raising the SG .002/weekly water change, until the desired SG is reached.>
(I am oh so confused.........I will take any suggestions I can get.
<Here's a whole lot of info to keep you busy for a while:
http://www.aaquaria.com/aquasource/intropuffer.shtml
http://www.aaquaria.com/aquasource/8puffer.shtml
http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/4742/puffer.html
F8 puffers grow to 2 1/2-3" & will need at least 10g/puffer as an adult. They are best kept singly, or 3 or more. GSPs grow to 6" & need at least 20g/puffer as an adult. Because puffers are aggressive fish, I do not recommend putting these 2 species together.>
Thanks a bunch......Angela
<You're very welcome. I'm happy to answer all your puffer questions! Pufferpunk>

High dKH & dKH: effectively brackish?
Hello there from Chicagoland,
<And hello back from Chicagoland! Ananda here tonight, out in the burbs...>
I have a 30l freshwater tank containing a knight goby, an emerald Cory, and a Kuhli loach. My water is as follows.
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: very near 0
pH: 8.2
dGH: 26 deg.
dKH: 12 deg.
<Just for comparison, in the western burbs, I'm at pH 7.8, dGH 8, dKH 12. You're going to want to check your phosphates, too. Mine are 0.8 out of the tap according to the SeaTest kit.>
I know it depends on what kind of fish you keep, but isn't this pH level generally a bit high?
<Your goby will be fine in that. I have two knight gobies right now, both female, and I've had a pair that bred in these conditions. If you got the other fish locally, they should be fine, too.>
What about the hardness, it seems like I'm keeping a brackish tank.
<Close to it! That's why your knight goby is doing well. In acidic, soft water, these fish die. In hard, alkaline water, they do okay, even without salt.>
My fish seem healthy, but I'm looking to get the tank as comfy as possible for them. Also, is it possible to keep figure 8, or spotted puffers in freshwater? My LFS who sells them says it's fine, but they are a brackish fish.. right?
<Yup. Figure 8 puffers prefer lowish brackish levels, while spotted puffs prefer somewhat higher brackish levels. I'm concerned that Kuhli loach would look too much like lunch to a worm-loving puffer!>
I really don't want to go brackish because of the limited selection of fish compatible.
<That's actually the main reason I went brackish... I was so totally confused by the selection of fish! The "limited palette" of brackish fish isn't as small as you might think. It includes most rainbowfish and livebearers, for example.>
I really love puffers, and I know they wouldn't get along with my current community, but I'm looking down the road a bit. Any help would be excellent.
<Check out the WetWebMedia chat forums: http://wetwebfotos.com/talk. We've got more Chicago-area fish keepers and a thread or two about local fish stores on the boards.>
Thanks for a great site. You make no money from us, yet you give us the absolute best advice. Our LFS makes tons of cash from its' customers, but will tell you anything to make the sale... Thank God for you guys. Dave A.
<Thanks so much for the kind words! They are very much appreciated. --Ananda>

A Brackish Book?
Bob,
<Ana>
The information on brackish systems I browsed is great and more complete than I could find in many other places. I am interested in setting up a system and wonder if all of the different pages and articles in the site are somehow connected into a readable "book". That would save me from printing each section and piecing it together.
<Mmm, no, as in not yet. A few of us have "chatted over" the possibility of such a "title" on brackish systems, husbandry, and I'm bcc'ing our Ananda (similar spelling!) who I think is involved quite deeply in such a work. In any case she is our designated expert in the field here... and she'll likely encourage you to join in with our BB (WetWebForum) for more as well>
I have both freshwater and marine systems now. The freshwater is fish only system and the marine is a full reef system. The brackish type I would pursue is something that looks more swampy. Suggestions?
<Perhaps to accumulate materials (text, graphics)... and "write a book"! Bob Fenner>
Thanks,
Ana

Pictures/Brackish
Hi,
I’ve got some pictures of my two (ex) tanks one is a mangrove aquarium and
the other one is a freshwater system with a Suvatii.
Maybe you can use them,
<Thank you for sharing Rolf. May we have your last name to post with your images for credit? And do you know the scientific name of the smaller puffer? Thank you again, will be posting on our Brackish Water subweb. Bob Fenner>
Bye,
Rolf
Amsterdam, Holland

Re: Pictures
Hi,
My name is Rolf Bandsma.
The smaller puffer (green with orange) is the Takifugu ocellatus, it was 16
cm long. I had two of them.
<Ahh, thank you>
The tank was 180x60x60 cm. I started it with brackish water (the puffers
were then 4 cm).
When the fishes grew larger I slowly added more saltwater until it was
seawater. This took about two years.
The tankmates were 4 Scatophagus argus and 2 Monodactylus Sebae.
The Tetraodon suvatii lived alone in a small freshwater tank, 80x35x35 cm.
Well in the beginning he had some company but he ate them all....
<Ha! I understand>
I'm now starting a new aquarium 200x80x70 cm to keep a porcupine puffer (my
favourite!)
I will send you a picture of the tank, it's still empty, the "reef ceramic"
(from Germany) is now in place.
And I've got a reef tank 100x60x60, see picture.
Rolf Bandsma
<Very nice. Bob Fenner>

Question on setup of Brackish tank (04/30/03)
<Hi! Ananda the brackish nut here tonight...>
I am in the process of setup a 38 gal brackish tank and was wondering what is the right amount of sea salt to add to the tank.
<That depends on the type of fish you want to keep. Do check out the various brackish articles and FAQs, starting here: http://wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/BrackishSubWebIndex.htm ...Once you get a better idea of which species you want, email or post on the WetWebMedia chat forums at http://wetwebfotos.com/talk -- we have an active brackish board! --Ananda>

Brackish water system
You guys have been such great help in the past i figured i would take advantage and grab a little more much needed info if you don't mind.
<Only if you promise that you have already read the following article.
http://wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/bracsyscomps.htm >
My roommate and I are both Marine Biology majors at a college in Boston and are now starting a new venture in our aquarium history. My roommate and I recently had a 3 day power failure in our 10 year old reef tank, bringing temperatures below 40 degrees for almost 24 hours, which resulted in the death of all corals/fish.
<Youch, sorry to hear that.>
(except for our cucumber haha who knows how he survived it).
We are now in the process of resetting up the tank into a brackish water system of mangroves and the works. We have the tank set up currently with about 40 gallons of water and used our 100 pounds of now "Dead" rock to make a shore-line appearance in the tank, using our cleaned "dead" sand plus a combined aragonite/silica mix as substrate. Is this appropriate to root mangrove plants or do adjustments need to be made?
<Silica sand is not usually recommended, crushed coral, aragonite materials, natural gravels, would be better for their alkalinity. As for the mangroves, you will want a minimum of a 6in sand bed.>
We are using the same lighting from our reef, two suspended 175 metal halides and fixtures. The tank top remains open. Specific gravity is at 1.010. Believe it or not we are using our Berlin turbo hang-on skimmer pumping water almost 10 inches from the waterline of the tank and to our surprise is functioning perfectly. A few questions we had:
Are there any species of macro-algae that can be suitable for the salinity we will be keeping the tank at?

Do any soft corals put up with the low salinity?
<nope>
More often than not pet stores place fish from the Scatophagus, Toxotes, and Monodactylus genus in freshwater, over how long of a time period and how gradually should we convert them back to the conditions of a brackish system?
<slow and steady, see here
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/bracsysmaint.htm >
As i said before we are new to brackish and i am sure we are not entirely doing everything correctly, any help would be greatly appreciated,
Matt
<Best of luck, lets hope for no more power failures. -Gage>

Brackish Tank
I have recently started a brackish tank (I had one a few years ago). At present, I have one archer, two small green puffers, one scat, one knight goby...in a 29 gallon tank. I would like more info. on feeding preferences, correct amount of salt for a tank this size, which fish are more comfortable in pairs, and how many more can I add.
<Well, the answers to these and almost every other question on brackish water systems that you can imagine can be found right on the wetwebmedia.com site! Start with this link:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/bracsystems.htm >
I also plan to add water sprite when available. I keep hearing about other types of puffers other than the usual ( green, figure 8, ) available in local pet stores...Where could I find others who might be compatible with what I have?
<There are a lot of sites on the internet which specialize in brackish fish and aquariums. Do a search on one of the larger search engines for sites. Enjoy! Regards, Scott F>

Brackish Stocking
Dear Bob,
Thank you for such a quick response. We would like happy, healthy fish (just like our freshwater tank) so we appreciate the general guidelines you gave us. Irene
<You're welcome... have you looked through the "Brackish Subweb" of our site: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BrackishSubWebIndex/BrackishSubWebIndex.htm
We have a few pertinent articles, FAQs that you might read through. Bob Fenner>

Very curious about gaining truthful knowledge on brackish water tanks
Dear Bob:
<Hi there>
I am only about two and a half months into the 20 gallon aquarium I have
sitting on my dresser. It is my first and I have become very enthusiastic
about learning more information about aquariums themselves.
<Good, a useful approach>
In my current
situation I have 1 green spotted puffer, 1 blue ram, 1 yellow cichlid, and 1
archer fish. Their all comparable in size, the cichlid and ram are about 1
inch and the puffer and archer about 2. I know that is kind of a funky mix
but I added them in a weird order without knowing what I was doing. The
current conditions are as follows, temp 78, pH 7.5, the specific gravity is
1.006 and there is low ammonia and nitrate to my knowledge. From what I can
tell, everyone seems to be getting along, but my puffer has slightly faded on
the black spots on his back. His white belly has some gray stuff and same
thing on the sides of his mouth. What's up with that?
<"Stress" coloring. Do take a search, read-through "gray/grey puffer" coloration discussions posted on our chatforum: http://wetwebfotos.com/talk/>
I imagine he's not
real happy about something?

There are plenty of caves and hiding places too.
I have been feeding it frozen bloodworms and have only had it for a couple
of weeks or so. What is the deal?
<May be the solitary diet is not to its liking. Perhaps just having been there for only two weeks... Do read through our website: www.WetWebMedia.com re "freshwater to brackish puffers", particularly the archived FAQs files... there is a search tool on the homepage and indices...>
This is my roommates internet account so
I would really appreciate it if you could respond to me at
. Anything you could tell me would be greatly
appreciated, I could definitely use it. Thanks for your time.
<Be chatting, Bob Fenner>

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