help

[emz151]

Hi all, i have two parrot fish in my tropical tank which i want to
convert into a marine setup, im just wondering whether i would
be able to climitise my parrot fish to a marine setup, i would
apperciate any view and tips, thanku

 

[steamer51]

Welcome to R2R!

Some fish (such as mollies) come from water that has high alkalinity and is often brackish (such as Florida where sometimes fresh water mixes with saltwater) so they can be slowly acclimated to the higher salt content of our ocean fish. The Parrot fish that you have are a man made hybrid (cross breed between two different species) of South American Cichlids. The Amazon River is very acidic with no salt content so their natural water is too different from saltwater for them to make the change. Freshwater has less than .05 percent salt, brackish is .05-3 percent and saltwater is over 3 percent (most oceans 3.5 percent or 35 parts per thousand). The PH of the Amazon River is 5.0 to 6.0 (Acidic), neutral freshwater is 7.0, brackish water 7.5 to 8.0 (alkaline) and saltwater is even higher (average around 8.3). Think of it like keeping your temperature a couple of degrees warmer or cooler will probably be OK but 10 or 20 degrees over or under is not going to work. I suggest you keep your freshwater tank and set up another to dive into the wonderful world of marine life.

 

[emz151]

Ok thanku 4 the advice its much appericated, i will be setting up a marine tank
in the few weeks, i cant wait.