Brackish???

[alia258]

Hat does brackish mean? I haven't ever really heard that term before, no ones ever used it around me, I feel so left out!

 

[George9]

Hat does brackish mean? I haven't ever really heard that term before, no ones ever used it around me, I feel so left out!

Brackish is like half freshwater and half saltwater. Just a Tank with a low salinity.

 

[alia258]

Oh, wow that had a simple anwser! Thanks for clarifying! ^^

 

[jetajockey]

Here's a good writeup on brackish water. There are varying degrees of brackish which should be considered when planning stock.

Brackish Systems

 

[alia258]

Thanks for the info, now I'm thinking about making my tank slightly salty, because I was told guppies and neon tetras and corys all tolerate slight salinity (correct me if I'm wrong though!)

 

[Alyxx]

Cories do not handle even tiny amounts of salt well! At least most kinds don't. Some are a little more tolerant than others, but in general they shouldn't be in water with even a half dose of plain old aquarium salt. I don't think the neons like salty water either, but guppies and other livebearers can live in low end brackish water.

 

[alia258]

Well, I'll be setting up a 40g soon, and I might make that brackish with the guppies and some others. How would BN plecos work? Loaches? RCS? Other shrimp? Are there any saltwater fish that tolerate low salinity?

 

[Alyxx]

Only do brackish if you are doing only species that naturally live in brackish waters. Yes, some can be acclimated into it but true freshwater or saltwater fish won't be as happy and healthy in brackish water. Plecos do not like salt. There are lots of cool brackish water fish, but you would have to cater to their needs and avoid all true freshwater fish. Also, you need marine salt to do a brackish tank, and it can get expensive mixing the water up for weekly pwc's with the marine salt. I know, my 30 gallon is a brackish tank for puffers. My tank is higher brackish than you would need to go if you were keeping guppies, but I still use a few cups of salt every week for a 30.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Freshwater aquarium salt and salt used for brackish is different. Marine salt is used to create brackish conditions. I suggest you do some research into brackish fish.

 

[alia258]

Oh I get what you mean, I think I'll just stick with the freshwater for now then, since I have most of my sights set on freshwater fish ^^