Figure 8 puffer questions

[Nave]

So I've got this itch to get a new small tank and the ol petsmart is having a huge 50% sale on the marineland set ups. I have been wanting to set up a small tank on my night stand. I can fit either a ten long or a 20 tall tank on my table.

So here's what I'm thinking I want to put a single figure 8 in it with maybe.... Maybe a single tank mate like a rubber nose pleco or some other hardy fish my problem is the puffer will do best in a brackish set up. What else if anything at all would be small enough and hardy enough to put with this guy. I'd like something to eat algae if possible.

Is a ten or twenty gallon large enough for this little fish with one small or zero tank mates? I also like the idea that I can take those pesky ramhorns from my community tank and watch them get what they deserve lol.

Let me know what you guys think I'd really like make this one happen if they are ok in a smaller tank.

 

[Aysvin]

Hi, I have an F8 too. His name is Bruce. I couldn't find any tankmates for him but they do better on their own or in a puffer only tank (as long as there's enough space). For tank size I've heard between 15-30 but personally I'm going to get 20 (I have a 10 right now because I went in totally blind and had no idea what I was doing). A 20 long would be best in my opinion. Make sure the ramshorn is small enough for the puffer to eat, but he'll love it if he can munch it up.

 

[Nave]

Sweet thanks for the reply. I'm fine with having only him in the tank. The ramshorn I have don't usually get more then a half inch before I see em and pitch em. That should be small enough right. What kind of substrate do you use in your tank. I'm thinking of some small I mean small gravel. I like the idea of sand but I read they are prone to and may eat which can be a bad thing for a little puffer, plus their dirty themselves and make a mess when the eat gravel is just easier to clean.

 

[Aysvin]

I have gravel....let's see...can I post a photo on here...
For a size reference, Bruce is about an inch to an inch and a half long.





The ramshorn may be too big, but if your fish can get past the shell you can just take it away from him once his tummy balloons up. I have pond snails which are a quarter of an inch long for Bruce and one is usually enough to fill his stomach at this point. The amount of scraps he makes out of his food and the amount he poops is crazy. I have a net close to the tank at all times so I can scoop out what he doesn't eat. I even feed him one blood worm or little shrimp at a time via tweezers so there isn't a lot of waste. Yet somehow there's still floating nasty bits each time I change his water (which is everyday since I'm cycling his tank and need to keep the ammonia down). I really need to find my gravel vacuum.

Just be ready for a high maintenance fish. I love Bruce, but if I had known how much time, effort, and money I was going to have to put into him I wouldn't have gotten him. Oh well. His personality is adorable. He tries to help me clean his tank and he begs for his breakfast and dinner. F8s are funny little dudes.

 

[Nave]

Bruce is an awesome looking little guy there. I can't wait I think I'm more excited about this little dude then getting my african tank going its much cheaper too lol. I picked up the 20 gal set up I'm going to hook the bio wheel up to the 55 tonight to get the cycle started on the new filter. I have a new bag of gravel so I can just steal some from the community tank to get this thing going a little faster. What do you keep Bruce's salinity at or is he straight fresh water?

 

[Aysvin]

F8s are brackish fish and will eventually get sick and die if in freshwater for a while. I keep Bruce between 1.004 and 1.008. Since I have to change 30-50 percent of his water everyday to keep the ammonia down it varies every day but I make sure it's in that range.