what would be compatable with a sharpenosed puffer fish?

[starmom]

I got this guy with the confusion that he might be the only puffer that would be ok in my reef tank..........

i hear now he might be a bad dude to have in my reef tank but i like him and am considering maybe a fish only saltwater tank..........a small one........

any ideas about who else could live with it and how small could i reasonably go.........l0gal? 20?

sue

 

[cpn_aaron]

I've never had a sharpnose puffer before, but they grow to 5 inches so I would guess they would need at least 30 gal for themselves like other small species of puffers. Puffers can be nippy so no long finned fish, conspecifics, and filefishes. A psuedochromis of sorts might do well with the puffer in a smaller tank. A damsel might also be a good choice. Puffers are rough tank mates but these two fish can be rough as well. Just try to match aggression levels.

 

[MonoSebaelover]

I agree, no smaller than a 30 gallon. ALL Puffers and most Triggers ARE NOT reef safe. No ands, ifs, or buts about it. Snarpnose are actually the worst of all the puffer species as far as reef compatibility. Another good tankmate are the larger Clownfish (Tomato, Maroon, Clarkii, etc), smaller Wrasse, small Angel, etc. Like cpn aaron said, fish with equal aggressivness and no long finned, or bottom perchers (ones that like to perch a lot and not move. Anyway, hope this helps and good luck.

 

[EXVISOR]

puffer

You can prety much put anything in with a puffer other then another puffer or box fish
Also they are not reef safe, I tried it and mine distroyed my corals so I just do an all fish tank with lots of live rock
Also forget a small tank, I started out with a 30 gal and with in a few weeks realized there just is not any room ,try going with at least a 45 or 55
I ent with a 55c gal tank only because they are so cheap, new 75.00

 

[starmom]

i dont know what to do now.....

I have l0 reptiles a gunia pig, hamster, a 75 gal reef tank a 20 gal freshwater tank and a 20 gal hospital tank..........

I just dont have the room for a 55 gal tank............

how about a 30 gal hex?

my husbands gonna kill me....our electric bill is already pretty high will all these critters........

what would i need for a fish only tank...............no protien skimmer right?

how about power heads?

what makes the fish only tank different from the reef in terms of equiptment?

thanks........
sue

 

[benjen]

I hate to say this, but I think you may need a skimmer MORE on a fish only tanks, because the puffer is likely to eat any snails and hermits that might otherwise clean up the debris of its meals. This would be a Fish Only with Live Rock, so the only difference is that you can skimp on lights. You can probably get by without a skimmer if you do frequent water changes, but you still have the problem that the puffer will eat most of your cleaners in time.

You might want to give the bio-wheel method a try and use 1-2 Emperor 400s biowheels or Hagen Aquaclears. Clean them weekly and do water changes to keep nitrates down.