My Breeding attempt - Perculas:

[dazed]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12658836#post12658836 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rkelman
I use 1.020 for all my larvae / growout / cultures. Makes it easier.

but can i keep the (S) strain at that lower sg? they were sent to me at 35ppt?

 

[dazed]

Re: Welcome!

Re: Welcome!

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12660056#post12660056 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lifes A Beach
Welcome to the fun, fantastic, and frustrating world of raising clownfish fry! And thanks for the mention of reading some of my posts about this subject, hope it can help in any way.

Looks like you're on your way! From my experiences, the primary tool that I've found to a successful hatch is to have PLENTY of rotifers ready. And, yes, this was the hardest thing to accomplish for me in the beginning (and is hard for alot of others by reading these posts ). I started my rotifers from live cultures from SeaHorseSource.com and they're still going strong. But I keep my cultures at 1.019 sg and feed Instant Algae Nanno. That way I don't need to culture live phyto (less work). No extra lighting for them either (lower heat and cost). Right now I have four 1-gal jugs going (glass pickle jars) and these have been keeping my hatches going. I am considering trying a few 5-gal buckets for higher rotifer production since my hatch rates have been really good. I use sterilized water from the parent tank for rotifer water changes (I microwave 1 gal. for 7 minutes). Use a 53-micron filter to sieve the rots and then add them to your fry tank. Make sure not to add any of the rot water to the fry tank.

Looks like you're getting plenty of great advice. One thing I haven't seen mentioned is to keep an eye on your ammonia levels once the fry hatch. I use Amquel for ammonia treatment.

Good luck and keep us all posted with your progress!!!

--Barbara

Thank you for all the suggestions; YES!!!!! the rotifer part is driving me crazy at this point. I don't think i was this stressed when i set up my first reef a couple of years ago, lol...
For all i know at this point i could have 2 5g buckets of stuff that is not even worthy as a science fair project entry

I do have ammonia badges that i plan to use in the larvae tank, i do have amquel on hand as well
the 53 micron filter sleeve from FAF.

 

[dazed]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12660102#post12660102 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lifes A Beach
I also use the s-strain rotifers. You should only add enough phyto or nanno to tint the water a light green. Once you get your cultures going, you'll be able to see the difference in the water color as the rots consume the greenwater. It becomes less green (clearer). Then you can adjust how much you'll need to add. I usually add a little twice a day rather than one big addition. As previously mentioned, you do not want the water to ever be clear - your rots will die.

For aeration on the rots, I use a plain rigid airline (no airstone) and just a small amount of bubbles. Someone else described it as "being able to count the bubbles slowly" so you don't want turbulent water! I guess it would be maybe 2 bubbles per second? Not very much (in Joyce Wilkerson's book, she explained that too much bubbling would actually injure the rots). Just enough to slowly turn the rotifers in the water.

If you have fairly good eyesight, you shouldn't need a magnifying glass to see the rots. Shine a small flashlight from below the water line and aim it slightly up toward the top and you'll be able to see the rots in the water.

Hope this helps!

--Barbara

Everything at this point helps as i am out of my normal comfort zone, lol

What sg do you keep the s strain at?

the ones i received from seahorsesource were sent to me at 35ppt.

 

[dazed]

Re: Re: Welcome!

Re: Re: Welcome!

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12661145#post12661145 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by billsreef
Greenwater techniques with live phyto in the fry tank work very well for ammonia, as well as keeping the rots fed

Hi Bill just a quick side note when i split my phyto culture into 3 new ones on Friday i took your suggestion and only used the f2.

no miracle grow.

 

[dazed]

WOW!! I would just to like thank everyone for all of the comments, suggestions and help so far. I have to say that it is very encouraging to keep me moving forward. Okay update time on Sunday i got my larvae tank setup, i still need to add the cover for the sides but here is what i plan to use. 10g tank currently holding 5g of water, 75w heater, airstone, i filled this for now with tap water from the hose to see if i could bring the temp up to 80 deg. well after cranking the heater to 83-84 the thermometer finally read 80 after a couple of hours and remained steady for the rest of the day.

But last night i noticed a setback out in my garage i checked the tank at 10:00pm and the temp had fallen down to 72 and the heater was not on. I hope that this does not bring all to a screeching halt but it is a hurdle that i will have to figure out if i stand a chance at doing any of this.

Here is the larvae tank:

[/IMG]

also yesterday i moved the rotifer cultures into 5g buckets. I did not do anything to the one on the right it is still green and may contain my (L) strain.

i dripped in 1g of fresh saltwater to the (s) strain culture at 1.026. the picture is not all that great but hopefully you can get an idea of what they look like:

[/IMG]

 

[agsansoo]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12662396#post12662396 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed
I understand that the rotifer should eat/clear up the phyto that is dosed but i have not added any phyto to the one culture pictured on the right for a few days now and it is not getting lighter at all for a bit it actually seemed to be getting darker green. Does that mean the culture is dead?

As for temps; in my garage this is going to a hard one to pin down. I live very close to the coast so this time of year it is around the upper 50's in the am to upper 70's midday. I purchased a cheap thermometer and placed it in the garage and have seen a low of 48 and a high of 105, but i assume that is the ambient temp. as for the temp of my phyto and rot's i don't know. How could i measure those without the risk of contamination?

The culture on the right should lighten up. With live phyto it takes longer. Also lighting the rotifer culture helps keep the water greener longer. What I do to check rot density is, fill a test kit test tube with water from your rot culture. Then place it against a strong light source, and see if anything is swimming around. I use a magnifying glass (I'm getting older .. LOL).
As for checking the temp of the rotifer culture. Place a digital thermometer probe in it, if you have one. Clean it with fresh RO water first.

 

[dazed]

Thanks i will try the test tube test tonight and see if i can see anything at all. I am not going to admit to getting old although i have a b-day coming up real soon. I will be using a magnifying glass for sure. lol

 

[kar93]

Maybe you could add an extra heater to use as a backup.

 

[dazed]

kar93; yeah i thought of that as well but i don't think i want allot of stuff in the larvae tank for them to run into? The current heater in the larvae tank is a 75w (the lfs did not have any 50w at the time). I have some spare 100w heaters laying around that i use for water changes i had thought about throwing one of those in there. just seems kind of crazy because it's only 5g of water. I wonder if it has to do with the fact that the only circulation for the tank is coming from a single airstone?

 

[kar93]

There is probably alot of factors that come into play here, the biggest one may be that it's in the garage which might be easily solved with some insulation round the tank or just put a 150w halide on there.

 

[rkelman]

Getting a glass top will help your heat loss big time. Also if your covering the sides of the larvae tank anyways maybe get something with insulating properties. Just a thought.

 

[dazed]

Glass top duhh... Why didn't i think of that oh i know why because i am still thinking like a reefkeeper and instantly cut out eggcrate to nicely fit on top.
excellent idea, sure glad you guys are around to help.

 

[rkelman]

It worked for me. My basement is really cold but the glass tops made a big difference.

 

[Lifes A Beach]

Since it's a small tank, why not just place your fry tank in the main part of your house (maybe a bathroom?) that would be warmer than your garage (I'm assuming!). Then when you feel that your fry are strong enough and you've figured out how to remedy your temperature fluctuations in the garage, you can resume growout in the garage. Just a thought.

--Barbara

 

[dazed]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12664739#post12664739 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by rkelman
It worked for me. My basement is really cold but the glass tops made a big difference.

Well i think it worked for me as well i did not have any glass but i did find some acrylic scraps and placed 2 pieces over the top of the tank. I also added the black trash bags to the back and 2 sides, i then took some insulation from my faf order and taped it to the back as well. tank temp this morning was between 78-80 deg.

 

[dazed]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12665743#post12665743 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lifes A Beach
Since it's a small tank, why not just place your fry tank in the main part of your house (maybe a bathroom?) that would be warmer than your garage (I'm assuming!). Then when you feel that your fry are strong enough and you've figured out how to remedy your temperature fluctuations in the garage, you can resume growout in the garage. Just a thought.

--Barbara

If i could i would but right now it's just not possible.

 

[dazed]

Ok well tonight will be the 9th day and the eggs should hatch tonight. I thought they might go last night because they are all silver tipped and looked ready to burst out but they were still there this morning.

I checked on my rotifer cultures last night taking small water samples and shining a light onto them and i did find different #'s in the samples i took; but at least i saw something in each of the 2 cultures that i have so i am going to guess that i at least have some food for the larvae.

So here is my plan of attack for tonight. My reef lights finish their cycle @ 9:30pm so i need to have the tile removed before then correct?
I plan to try and wait as long as possible before taking the nest out.

I plan to place the tile in the larvae tank with 4 or 5g of my reef water and try and get the air adjusted to gently move the eggs.
I also plan to add phyto to the larvae tank prior to the eggs hatching.

My big concern is how do i add the rotifers. My 2 cultures are around 2-3g of water. (and probably not as dense as they need to be)

I have the plankton collector from FAF can i just dip that in my cultures let it drain and use a turkey baster on the mesh to add the rotifers to the tank?

This is my first attempt does it sound like i am on the right track?

 

[FB]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670029#post12670029 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed
Ok well tonight will be the 9th day and the eggs should hatch tonight. I thought they might go last night because they are all silver tipped and looked ready to burst out but they were still there this morning.

GOOD

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670029#post12670029 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed


I checked on my rotifer cultures last night taking small water samples and shining a light onto them and i did find different #'s in the samples i took; but at least i saw something in each of the 2 cultures that i have so i am going to guess that i at least have some food for the larvae.

So here is my plan of attack for tonight. My reef lights finish their cycle @ 9:30pm so i need to have the tile removed before then correct?

CORRECT

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670029#post12670029 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed

I plan to try and wait as long as possible before taking the nest out.

I plan to place the tile in the larvae tank with 4 or 5g of my reef water and try and get the air adjusted to gently move the eggs.
I also plan to add phyto to the larvae tank prior to the eggs hatching.

GOOD The more air the better, this is the hard part, judging how much is enough. They should ALL be moving in the current, but not beaten to death.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670029#post12670029 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed


My big concern is how do i add the rotifers. My 2 cultures are around 2-3g of water. (and probably not as dense as they need to be)

I have the plankton collector from FAF can i just dip that in my cultures let it drain and use a turkey baster on the mesh to add the rotifers to the tank?

This is my first attempt does it sound like i am on the right track?

If you really want to try with the amount of rotifers you have....

I would pour 1/3 of each of your rotifer cultures through your plankton collector and then put them into your larvae tank. (Seperatly of course) The phyto in the tank plus the increased temp should kickstart your rots into overdrive. They may get the chance to double by the time your lights come back on but that is very optimistic.

Also try not to get the urge to look at the eggs with a flashlight this has been known to delay hatching.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!!

 

[dazed]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670209#post12670209 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FB
GOOD
[/b]
CORRECT
[/b]GOOD The more air the better, this is the hard part, judging how much is enough. They should ALL be moving in the current, but not beaten to death.



If you really want to try with the amount of rotifers you have....

I would pour 1/3 of each of your rotifer cultures through your plankton collector and then put them into your larvae tank. (Seperatly of course) The phyto in the tank plus the increased temp should kickstart your rots into overdrive. They may get the chance to double by the time your lights come back on but that is very optimistic.

Also try not to get the urge to look at the eggs with a flashlight this has been known to delay hatching.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!! [/B]

FB; thanks for the information.

How much phyto is added to the tank should i make it real green?

Do the bubbles actually touch the eggs?

Do i throw out the water after it is strained for the rot's & replace with new saltwater for the rotifer culture?

 

[FB]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670436#post12670436 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed
FB; thanks for the information.

Your Welcome

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670436#post12670436 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed

How much phyto is added to the tank should i make it real green?

I make it green enough to hardly see the eggs.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670436#post12670436 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed

Do the bubbles actually touch the eggs?

I've tried both ways and have had much more success with the bubbles NOT touching the eggs.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12670436#post12670436 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dazed

Do i throw out the water after it is strained for the rot's & replace with new saltwater for the rotifer culture?

I don't but I'm having problems with my rots. The best way to do it would be to put new water in but that costs more money.