Pods added to fuge 3 weeks ago, still can't tell?

[Saltine]

Hey Guys,

Added a nice $20 bag of pods to my cheato in the sump, I couldn't see life in the package but was told they were really small. 3 weeks in I still see nothing. How long until I can see if I have established a population? Thoughts?

Thanks!
Salt

 

[Saltine]

Is it possible I got a dead pack of pods?

 

[Deftones2015]

Is there somewhere for them to hide? Also some pods can be very small and hard to see. If there is no where for them to hide they make have went into the return pump and went to the display tank. I'm not really sure though. I bought pods a while back and they were all over the place for a while then disappeared into the Rock and sand. Try looking at your tank at night, especially with a red light.

 

[Saltine]

Is there somewhere for them to hide? Also some pods can be very small and hard to see. If there is no where for them to hide they make have went into the return pump and went to the display tank. I'm not really sure though. I bought pods a while back and they were all over the place for a while then disappeared into the Rock and sand. Try looking at your tank at night, especially with a red light.

Ok thanks! I poured them right onto my large ball of Cheato, under that I have rubble rock on the bottom of my Fuge. I left my return off for about 10 minutes so they could take hold. I guess I'm just not sure what to look for , but when I shut the return pump down and stare into my fuge I cant see anything moving, but it is covered in algae.

Thanks!
Salt

 

[shred5]

Some copepods are hard to see..
Fact of the matter is pods live on micro algae and detritus. The population will increase and decrease with he amount of nutrients and detritus. Fact you dont see could mean you have a clean tank. High pod population are a sign of a dirty tank.

 

[laga77]

If you got them from Aquarium Depot, which used to be Reefs2go, the pods are probably dead.

 

[Saltine]

If you got them from Aquarium Depot, which used to be Reefs2go, the pods are probably dead.

Got it from my LFS, they said on the package they expire in about 4 months after packaging and they had been packaged about 3 months prior.

Salt

 

[Ron Reefman]

I bought pods several times while I've been in the hobby and every time I could see the pods in the bag or in the bottle, alive and swimming around.

 

[Dkuhlmann]

I hate to say it but as old as those pods were, you were lucky to have 5-10% alive if any and that is if they were refrigerated. I'd have a talk with that LFS owner. :hammer:

 

[Saltine]

I hate to say it but as old as those pods were, you were lucky to have 5-10% alive if any and that is if they were refrigerated. I'd have a talk with that LFS owner. :hammer:

Ok thank you! Shitty

Salt

 

[tangified]

You would be far better off just getting some macro, scoop of sand, or even a few small rocks from a fellow reefer. Most reefers end up tossing macro and would be more then willing to give it away. A little from a few different reefers will give you a nice variety that is known to survive and thrive in our systems

That all said what's your location?

 

[Reef Frog]

Many copopods are very small and almost translucent, so seeing them with the naked eye is hard. I can see them when mounting a magnetic acrylic frag rack to my glass. It is black acrylic and I can see pods congregate between the very thin space between the rack & the glass at night with a flashlight. Remove the rack & I can't see them.

 

[davocean]

Agree, so many are too small to really even see.
4mo sounds like a long time, did they package it w/ any macro for food?

 

[Saltine]

You would be far better off just getting some macro, scoop of sand, or even a few small rocks from a fellow reefer. Most reefers end up tossing macro and would be more then willing to give it away. A little from a few different reefers will give you a nice variety that is known to survive and thrive in our systems

That all said what's your location?

I'm in North Orlando. Good news, I saw them this weekend while staring at my fuge!!! They were everywhere, and my new Wrasse pair likes to sit staring at the return waiting for one of them to get sucked up and pit out!

Thanks all.
Salt

 

[azcrazy]

mine took about 2 months and if look close to your glass and rocks there should be some