I have a 30 gallon that has cichlids in it now and i had been given a parrot fish that started picking on my other african's ,now all of them pick on eachother , soo im thinking about switching this tank over to brackish or put my 10 gallon saltwater in it , then have the brackish in the 10 , which should i do , i still no matter what want a brackish tank , what are some brackish fish and what do i have to do to start one ??!!!
Brackish
- Thread starter cichlidman1888
- Start date
Hello!
Brackish tanks are very easy to start, there are also some really cool fish for it!
Mine is a 90 gallon, and has Scats, Chromides, Monos, and Knight Gobies.
(check out my gallery)
If you are doing a 30 gallon, you are limited to the types you can have. Chromides, Orange/Red are really colorful, and only grow to about 3 inches. They are a chiclid, and do quarrel with each other, but not like their SA & African cousins. Knight Gobies are also another good sized fish to put in there. They only get up to about 4 inches. You can use both types together in your 30 gallon. The others do get big, and will eventually need to be put in to a tank bigger than a 30.
To start your brackish tank, you will need to go and get SALTWATER salt....I use Oceanic Salt, but there are a few others out there...Like Coralife, RedSea, and Instant Ocean salts. You will also need a HYDROMETER to read the level of salinity in the water.
You need to add about 5 tablespoons per gallon of water. I fluctuate the salt levels in my tank between 1.012 & 1.016, but for your tank I would start with a level of about 1.012 you can gradually go up if you like after its been running awhile.
You do not need any special decorations, or special rocks, I converted my freshwater to full brackish, and left all of the decroations in it. I also used my same filters.
For cleaning your tank, just add back in the salt content you took out. DO NOT JUST POUR IT STRAIGHT INTO YOUR TANK. Mix it in a bucket with your tank water first, the salt will mix with the water more effectivly this way.
If I have left anything out, I am sure someone else will post what they do too. I hope this helps!
GOOD LUCK!
Jen
Brackish tanks are very easy to start, there are also some really cool fish for it!
Mine is a 90 gallon, and has Scats, Chromides, Monos, and Knight Gobies.
(check out my gallery)
If you are doing a 30 gallon, you are limited to the types you can have. Chromides, Orange/Red are really colorful, and only grow to about 3 inches. They are a chiclid, and do quarrel with each other, but not like their SA & African cousins. Knight Gobies are also another good sized fish to put in there. They only get up to about 4 inches. You can use both types together in your 30 gallon. The others do get big, and will eventually need to be put in to a tank bigger than a 30.
To start your brackish tank, you will need to go and get SALTWATER salt....I use Oceanic Salt, but there are a few others out there...Like Coralife, RedSea, and Instant Ocean salts. You will also need a HYDROMETER to read the level of salinity in the water.
You need to add about 5 tablespoons per gallon of water. I fluctuate the salt levels in my tank between 1.012 & 1.016, but for your tank I would start with a level of about 1.012 you can gradually go up if you like after its been running awhile.
You do not need any special decorations, or special rocks, I converted my freshwater to full brackish, and left all of the decroations in it. I also used my same filters.
For cleaning your tank, just add back in the salt content you took out. DO NOT JUST POUR IT STRAIGHT INTO YOUR TANK. Mix it in a bucket with your tank water first, the salt will mix with the water more effectivly this way.
If I have left anything out, I am sure someone else will post what they do too. I hope this helps!
GOOD LUCK!
Jen