Shrimp Hatchers

[jake levi]

I am looking at my ten gallon array and considering dropping the ones used for BS culture and going with the hatchers on the market. I've looked at the ones of Brine Shrimp Direct, Jehmco, and others. At the moment they leave me under awed.

Anyone here have personal favorites ? If so why ?

 

[Kathy55g]

soda bottles work for me!

 

[ediaz]

If you run a hatchery and getting the most hatch and reducing costs it essential get FAF hatchers.

If you are doing it at home nothing beats the soda bottle.

ED

 

[jake levi]

I looked at Franks website, that is a better looking hatcher, I will probably order one when I order the rotis.

 

[Evansbr]

I have three of the round hatchers from Brineshrimpdirect. I like them as they are easy to clean, and seperates the shell from the naupali (sp)? doesn't have a great hatch rate but that could be the cysts I'm using. uses a little plastic screen in the center, takes about 20 sec to harvest and feed to the larvae. drop screen back in and wait for the next bunch to be collected.

 

[jake levi]

Re the brineshrimpdirect hatchers, you just raise the screen to harvest ? Whats the volume on them ?

I looked at them a year ago and they looked small but I am used to doing batches in inverted 5 gallon water jugs.

Hoo boy, just looked out the window and its snowing ! It wont stick, its about 40 out. Sayonara summer.

 

[Evansbr]

well compared to a 5 gal jug they wont come close..
the screened area is about the size of about a shot glass but not as tall. when you pull the screen out the water runs out trapping the naupali on the screen then I just swish it around in the larvae tank to get them off, I'm small scale, one hatch at a time, and convert them to Otohime. takes three to meet my needs but very simple. not for someone who needs 5 gal at a whack.

 

[Luis A M]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8327077#post8327077 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jake levi
Re the brineshrimpdirect hatchers, you just raise the screen to harvest ? Whats the volume on them ?

I looked at them a year ago and they looked small but I am used to doing batches in inverted 5 gallon water jugs.

Hoo boy, just looked out the window and its snowing ! It wont stick, its about 40 out. Sayonara summer.

Plastic gallon jars are cheap and perfect,tilted and with a rigid air line.
Swallows came back here,and every day is nicer and warmer
Well,so it´s life!

 

[David M]

What's "snow" ?

 

[GreshamH]

I'm with David, I'm baffled as to the "snow" thing as well :lol:

 

[Brock Fluharty]

I love snow...

 

[mano]

I've heard of snow....my parents used to have to walk to school in it and it was uphill both ways

 

[Dman]

We got snow up here today as well. Some days I'm sure I wouldn't miss it.

This whole BBS thing seems messy and alot of work. Are they (them) really worth the hassle? Would I see improved survivability? And will I need them for my H. reidi's? 'Cause I'll invert something if I have to.

 

[Kathy55g]

Dman, I'll never understand your issues with BBS. You put them in a bottle of saltwater with air bubbling up the center, and wait a day; they hatch all by themselves. It's not hard!

 

[jake levi]

I think the BBS are an asset, in clowns theres a bridging time from rotis on, some other species also,

I am going to keep one ten gallon for some larger BS, but will be using a hatcher for batch nauplii, undecided as to which though,

most of the tens will be for phyto and rotis and later calanoid pods.

 

[Brock Fluharty]

Dman,

H. reidi are too small to eat bbs. I believe they need rotifers, and they are pelagic. They will not hitch at birth usually, so they need to be in a good flowed system, which keeps them from snicking air, and dying,

 

[David M]

Actually most of the people I know who have had success with reidi did it with nhbbs. I have had 1000's of baby reidi and have rarely seen one (or any sh fry for that matter) take a rotifer. IMHO rotifers just don't move enough to elicit a feeding response in seahorses. It certainly doesn't hurt to have them in there but nhbbs is a perfectly acceptable first food for reidi and kuda which are very similar at birth. You do want the SF Bay strain though, a tad smaller than GSL.

 

[Dman]

Kathy,
Maybe I'm just not that bright, ok?
I mean, I breed clownfish for a freakin HOBBY, somehow I think the light don't come on when the fridge door gets opened.

David
Thanks

 

[jake levi]

This is the 3rd morn in a row with snow ground cover, but the ground underneath isnt frozen yet so this wont last, actually next three days rain is forcast, tis the season.

Over the years I have fed probably a couple billion artemia nauplii, for food and sport fish, and later for ornamentals, they are a good starter food. For me not to use them when they can do the job just doesnt work. Different strokes for different folks. I will be using both rots and otohime, I do believe in nutritional density. And I'll probably bite the bullet for the SF strain.

 

[David M]

FWIW I feed artemia nauplii to everything from 4-5 day old oc's to my 6" breeding GSM's. I feed it to all larvae and grow out fish right up until the day they are sold. It's easy, they are easily fortified and I just have to believe that live foods stimulate the fish and instil a bit more "vigor" than I would otherwise see. When the fish are stuffed with other foods, have stopped eating and look like they couldn't possibly fit another morsel into their bellies, they will gorge themselves on the live shrimp.