How to deal with vacations

[IFbettas]

How do you keep your rotifer cultures going when you leave for a week or two?

 

[billsreef]

The best is to have someone to look after them for you. Failing that, I have had some luck with setting up a small subculture with a low number of rots, lots of phyto, and place in the 'fridge to slow things down. They can stay like that for a couple of weeks. After returning, warm them up overnight and start ramping your cultures back up.

 

[rkelman]

I would put a small amount of your culture in a big container of water feed it and lower the temperature.

 

[john68camaro]

Plus one to rkelman. I went on a week long vacation and did just as he described. Worked like a charm. I also put in a bit of amquel to keep the ammonia in check.
Did a 50% water change when i got back and you never would have known the I left.


For my growout, I got cheap auto feeders and put ground up flake in it and it fed them twice a day. Luckily, I had no larve during this time. I overfilled my sumps in my tanks and saranwrapped the tops of the sumps to help with evap. I prayed i didnt have a power fail during this time. I tried to have someone stop over, but thye flaked out on me...