I need some advice for setting up figure 8 puffer tank
I recently saw an F8 puffer at my LFS and I just instantly fell in love with it so now I have to have one. Luckily I still have a 70L tank (just shy of 20G) which will be perfect for only a F8 puffer.
I am hearing very mixed opnions on salinity levels that are best for F8. Some say between 1.005-1.008, but very often I hear 1.002-1.006 is also good. Is the salinity really the biggest factor that affects their lifespan? I feel like with all other fish, consistent water parameters and a varied diet are way more important than getting dead set on a specific salinity. I knew someone who kept his at 1.003 and he lived 16 years. My goal is around 1.003-1.004 since I want to have plants. Below is the plan I made for acclimating the plants and cyling the tank.
My plan is to cycle the tank on freshwater first, with all the plants and hardscape, so the plants can fully settle in and the tank builds up enough beneficial bacteria. I always cylce my tank by adding 3% ammonia solution to get an ammonia value of around 2ppm once I get a 0.5 ppm reading for nitrite I redose the ammonia back up to 1ppm. For me the tank is done cycling if nitrite and ammonia are 0ppm within 24 hours. After the 4 to 6 weeks that will probably take, I'll add my puffer and raise the salinity by 0.001 SG every 1 to 2 weeks until I reach 1.003. I'll hold it there for a few weeks to see whether the plants stay healthy. After about 4 weeks, I'll bring the salinity up to 1.004 SG over 4 weeks, and that's where I'll ultimately keep it. I might slowly go up to 1.005 SG, but only if the plants are really well acclimated.
I also have a small 10L (≈2.5G) in which I want to start up a colony of bladder snails as live food. Maybe I will do ramshorns as well once he will be a bit bigger.
Let me know if this is a solid plan for cycling and general setup or if you have anything to add or point out.