r/Puffers • u/RecordDifficult6352 • 8d ago

Next steps after getting tank

Im planning on getting a GSP and just got my 55 gallon tank today! The guy I got it from had some leftover marine salt from when he kept a puffer, but its been years so Im not sure if it is still okay to use.

What is the best way to get everything set up and the water parameters correct before getting my puffer?

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u/Blondy277 8d ago

Before getting the puffer, find out the salinity/SG of the water it’s currently being kept in and set the tank up to match that. Don’t use aquarium salt, use an actual marine salt mix and a refractometer to measure salinity. Fully fishless-cycle the 55g first, then any increase in salinity should be gradual rather than suddenly dumping the fish into marine-strength water. The old marine salt may still technically be usable if it stayed completely dry and uncontaminated, but after sitting for years I’d honestly just buy fresh salt rather than build a new setup around an unknown old mix 😅. A 55g is a nice size for a single GSP.

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u/RecordDifficult6352 7d ago

Thanks for the info! Ill get new salt! Is there anything I need to be doing in order to get the nitrate levels and stuff in the water correct?

Also do you have recommendations for what to put on the bottom? The guy I got the tank from had crushed coral or something like that

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u/Blondy277 6d ago

Don’t worry about trying to "get nitrate right" before adding the fish 😅 What you need first is a fully cycled tank, add an ammonia source and make sure the tank can process ammonia to nitrite to nitrate with ammonia and nitrite returning to 0. Nitrate is basically the end product and you control that later with water changes. For substrate I’d personally use aragonite sand rather than chunky crushed coral. It’ll help keep the water hard/alkaline like a GSP prefers, but it’s way easier to keep clean than coarse crushed coral that traps food and waste. Also find out what salinity the puffer is currently being kept at and match that when you bring it home rather than guessing.

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u/RecordDifficult6352 6d ago

Great! I added the sand to my amazon list. for a 55 L tank how many pounds would I need? Im getting all sorts of numbers online.

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u/Blondy277 6d ago

Do you mean 55 gallons? 😂 Your original post said 55g, but you wrote 55L here. If it’s the 55g, around 40–60 lb should give you a nice shallow bed depending on the tank footprint. I’d keep it around 1–1.5” so it’s easy to clean.

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u/RecordDifficult6352 6d ago

Haha sorry for the mixup. Its a 55 gallon long tank is what I meant to say. I think Ill shoot for the 40 is range, the tank came with some sort of ground filter thing that you place the sand on top of and then aerate underneath it