just brought my Copper Banded 'fly home

[degibson84]

so i am currently acclimating my CBB and i noticed that the water from the LFS had a SG of 1.028. i am wondering how the fish and corals in this shop could even survive with a SG that high.

also i am taking my time acclimating him since the SG has so high.

what is the best food preparations to feed him

[Dentoid]

Fish can tolerate a wide range of salinity as they have the physiology to maintain the homeostasis of water within their cells (Osmoregulation). Since this is an active system, they can regulate in a short amount of time changes in salinity.

CBB can be finicky eaters, especially in the beginning. You may want to try a number of different foods like squid, clams, scallops and mysis. Some have had great success using homemade mixtures of fresh seafoods.

[degibson84]

well i made sure he was eating before i purchased and he ate some brine pretty fast.

im just afraid that i will bring the SG down too fast and shock him. so im just adding a shot glass full of my water every 5 min. the SG hasn't come down mush at all and it has been about an hour of acclimating already

[yungreefer2410]

you're supposed to drip acclimate sw fish. it works better. that tactic is mainly used for fw fish. and brine isn't a good food at all. little nutritional value

[degibson84]

well i just wanted to make sure that he was eating and thats what they were using.

i dont have any way to drip acclimate and i have never had a problem acclimating this way before

[Dentoid]

If you want to bring down the salinity slowly, adding saltwater in small amounts will take forever and an awful lot of saltwater to drop the salinity 0.003, from 1.028-1-025. Try adding a 1/2 shot glass of fresh RO/DI water every 30mins until the salinity is where you want it. Or, slowly drip freshwater into the bag. Then proceed with the normal acclimation of tank water to the bag.

The determining factor of when the acclimation process is over is when the salinity, pH and temperature of the bagged fish water is equal to that of the DT. If these parameters are equal before any water is added to the bag, you can put the fish directly into the tank. FYI.

[degibson84]

i never thought to add freshwater. i will have to try that.

i thought if i added freshwater it would take it down too fast for comfort

[Dentoid]

Do it slowly!

[degibson84]

would doing it more than every half hour be over doing it??

[Dentoid]

Yes.

[rmlevasseur]

What made you decide on such a difficult fish? They can also be destructive to some corals.

Whenever I see unexpected salinity changes I always test my refractometer against the pinpoint solution to make sure.

[degibson84]

i had seen this fish in the LFS for the last week maybe a little longer. saw that he was doing well and eating well.

after talking to michael i thought i would give it a try.

i also got this guy for a pretty decent price IMO he was only 29.99 and thats the cheapest i have ener seen a CBB

[rmlevasseur]

That is a very good price, but I think the vendors know they need to sell these guys quickly as many die in captivity. Eating is probably the best sign of health though. Good luck!

[degibson84]

i wasn't going to get this fish but after i saw that he had been at the LFS for over a week and looked to be the healthiest of all the fish in the store. i just couldn't pass up the deal.

[new reefer 03]

what size tank again?