Plumbing question

[AliciaP]

For clown larvae (if mine ever start spawning I would like to be prepared to just set stuff up and go for it), could I take a 10 or 20 gallon and plumb it into my main tank? Like a drip line into and out of the tank to keep the fry water always fresh and new? Does anybody do this or ever tried it?

 

[ernieq]

ClownfishSushi has been doing that for a while check his threads for his procedures. I am sure he will chime in.

 

[AliciaP]

I will go look and see if I can find the thread. Thanks!

 

[AliciaP]

No such luck If anyone finds it, link it to me?

 

[hvacman250]

Sure. You can even put the tank on its own sump. I have 4 10 gallon fry tanks connected to a 50 gallon sump filled with some live rock. The sole purpose is to aid in ammonia reduction form the rotifers, food, and fish waste. The more volume you can add, the better. Until meta, make sure you do a slower drip. I do a fast drip/almost a stream. After meta, a full stream from a 1/4" line.

 

[AliciaP]

I may have to clean out my husbands "office" since he doesn't work from home anymore, and convert it to a fish growing area. Would a second floor hold a 55g plus other various tanks?

 

[ernieq]

I can't seem to find it either, but here's someone's thread that used it.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2163085&page=2

Look about 1/2 through the page. Basically you drip water from your display tank and drip water out of your larvae tank into your sump on a continous basis. I believe they use a rigid tube and place it near the bubbles so the larvae don't get sucked into the tube.

 

[AliciaP]

Thanks, I'll read through it.

 

[saltyjo]

For clown larvae (if mine ever start spawning I would like to be prepared to just set stuff up and go for it), could I take a 10 or 20 gallon and plumb it into my main tank? Like a drip line into and out of the tank to keep the fry water always fresh and new? Does anybody do this or ever tried it?

Alicia, I raised my last batch like this. I had a drip line from my display tank that dripped into one end of my fry tank and a drip line from my fry tank to my sump. It was a continous loop with each line dripping one drip per second. However due to the rotifers dripping out as well I added strained rotifers twice a day. This method was borrowed from Clownfish Sushi. Jason really has breeding down, but I am just a home hobbiest. With this method you have to be super careful that you have both driplines at the same rate or you could potentially end up with a flood or a dry fry tank. Both things very bad. I have a picture on one of my old posts of my display tank with the fry tank "hooked in" next to it.
The benefits of this system is I didnt have to do daily water changes. However I went through a ton of rotifers. I also was constantly worried about those lines. I checked them several times throughout the day. Also the fry did not seem to like the motion of the dripping. If you have any other questions about this method I would be more than happy to try to help.
~Jo

 

[saltyjo]

I can't seem to find it either, but here's someone's thread that used it.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2163085&page=2

Look about 1/2 through the page. Basically you drip water from your display tank and drip water out of your larvae tank into your sump on a continous basis. I believe they use a rigid tube and place it near the bubbles so the larvae don't get sucked into the tube.

Thanks for the reference to my post Ernie. If I get a chance to raise another batch I am gonna do it the old fashion way with frequent water changes and hope I get sucess rates like yours!

 

[AliciaP]

Going to go read again. Thank you for the help!

 

[ernieq]

ClownfishSushi posted a link to his drip method on another thread, here it is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLVDyjDNtOQ

 

[ClownfishSushi]

For clown larvae (if mine ever start spawning I would like to be prepared to just set stuff up and go for it), could I take a 10 or 20 gallon and plumb it into my main tank? Like a drip line into and out of the tank to keep the fry water always fresh and new? Does anybody do this or ever tried it?

Sorry I missed the question but it looks like someone beat me to it! My Slow-Drip Fry Tank link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLVDyjDNtOQ

I have had tremendous success using this method. This doesn't replace the need for daily scaping and siphoning but it makes your water parameters much more stable. As long as your reef tank is healthy, the fry tank will be healthy.

Let me know if you have any additional questions and good luck!

 

[edandsandy]

Sorry I missed the question but it looks like someone beat me to it! My Slow-Drip Fry Tank link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLVDyjDNtOQ

I have had tremendous success using this method. This doesn't replace the need for daily scaping and siphoning but it makes your water parameters much more stable. As long as your reef tank is healthy, the fry tank will be healthy.

Let me know if you have any additional questions and good luck!

I enjoyed you sharing your video! What a great idea!

 

[hvacman250]

If you're going to do this, dont be foolish and rely on an equalized drip rate. Murphy's law will burn you every time. Drill for a bulkhead in the fry tank in the bottom. Use different length standpipes to allow different water levels. No risk of flood.

 

[saltyjo]

Hvacman, this method is pretty simple and inexpensive, especially if drilling is not an option for someone. However like when i used this method you just have to be aware of the risks. It may be too risky for some but the positives are stable water conditions. It really reduces having to do frequent water changes.
Another drawback I experienced is my rotifer density in the tank had to be replenished frequently. Placing the return line near the bubbles kept my fry out of the line but I lost rotifers into my sump and had to replenish them daily. For someone who is just starting their rotifer population this may be not so good either.
I wouldnt really call this process foolish. Some people think that keeping a saltwater tank is foolish and is a disaster waiting to happen. Just talk to any body that rents and their landlord wont allow a tank due to impeding doom and Murphy's law.

 

[ClownfishSushi]

If you're going to do this, dont be foolish and rely on an equalized drip rate. Murphy's law will burn you every time. Drill for a bulkhead in the fry tank in the bottom. Use different length standpipes to allow different water levels. No risk of flood.

I did some math when I first attempted the slow-drip because I had a day job that kept me out of the house for 12 hours at a time...

120 drops = 5 ml
3785 ml = 1 gallon

12 hour x 60 min/hr x 60 sec/min x 1 drip/sec x 5 ml/120 drip x 1 Gal/3785 ml = .48 Gal

1/2 Gallon of water will be produced over 12 hours at a rate of 1 drip/sec (or ~1 Gallon per Day at 1 drip/sec)

So even if my drip rate was off by say 4:1, it would only change the water level by 4 gallons over the course of 24 hours. Considering I'm only using 2 gallons of water in the fry tank, that means it would have to be unattended for 2 full days before it began to overflow.

Not a bad margin of error. : )

 

[edandsandy]

Oh, I like the math!
I have a question... What the green water, or keeping the water tinted...
are you concerned about this?
also how does your reef tank like the green water?
are you experiencing any nuisance algae in your reef tank from the extra bio load?

 

[ClownfishSushi]

Oh, I like the math!
I have a question... What the green water, or keeping the water tinted...
are you concerned about this?
also how does your reef tank like the green water?
are you experiencing any nuisance algae in your reef tank from the extra bio load?

The tank loves it. You should probably be feeding excess rotifers to your system anyway. My 100 gallon system can certainly absorb a few drops of phyto a couple of times a day.

 

[hvacman250]

Hvacman, this method is pretty simple and inexpensive, especially if drilling is not an option for someone. However like when i used this method you just have to be aware of the risks. It may be too risky for some but the positives are stable water conditions. It really reduces having to do frequent water changes.
Another drawback I experienced is my rotifer density in the tank had to be replenished frequently. Placing the return line near the bubbles kept my fry out of the line but I lost rotifers into my sump and had to replenish them daily. For someone who is just starting their rotifer population this may be not so good either.
I wouldnt really call this process foolish. Some people think that keeping a saltwater tank is foolish and is a disaster waiting to happen. Just talk to any body that rents and their landlord wont allow a tank due to impeding doom and Murphy's law.

Sure, I get what you're saying, but I'm just warning the folks of the inherent risks. The risks far outweigh the benefits in my opinion (in regard to the drilled tank vs. drip). My biggest concern is relying on suction cups to hold the drip in/drip out in place. Suction cups fail all the time. Drips rates change, especially in a 3/16 ID tube.

Drilling a 10 gallon tank takes a $15 drill bit, a cordless drill, and 10 minutes. My 1" standpipe will never stop up.

I'm not knocking your ways. Whatever works, roll with it. Heck, Ive raised 300+ fry to selling size off a hatch and I NEVER scrape the bottom (before I implimented the drip system). I would siphon the bottom about every 4-5 days until I moved them to growout at 1 month. After doing this for 1.5 years and about 2000+ clowns sold under my belt, there is no right or wrong way to do this breeding thing.

Happy breeding!