Suggestions a small BTA farm???

[WDLV]

By no intentional means I have decided to start a small BTA farm. I'll be keeping them in a 40 breeder with a single pair of clowns to begin with and may expand either the tank size or number of tanks if it pans out.

I'm looking for feeding and substrate suggestions and PICTURES of existing or previous setups regardless of size.

 

[PJtree23]

Count me in for this info too.

I am thinking about doing this as well. Any examples would help.

PJ

 

[WDLV]

ATM I'm thinking I'll replicate what I saw in a much larger system where the BTAs were in a subtrateless tub. They're currently in a few flower pots having been removed from the rockwork last night.

I don't know how many I have total. Maybe 10-12?

 

[dalilgriffith]

Are you thinking about cutting them or natural splitting?

 

[zeeter]

as for feeding, strong lighting and some raw shrimp a couple of times a week.

If this isn't for appearance and you're going to have a sump you may want to consider a bare bottom tank. Easier to clean.

 

[wfournier]

I'd skip the clowns depending on what type of propagation you are thinking.

 

[jake levi]

BTA farm

BTA farm

A couple of very good threads on this on the propagation section, check it out.

Unless they are all one clone best to frag in different tanks, one tank per clone.

 

[zeeter]

I had an interesting thing happen a couple of months ago. I had two green bta's in my tank and for whatever reason they decided to move right next to each other for a day. Then they separated, and a couple of days later one of them had cloned itself. Not saying they mated for that one day; just found it an odd coincidence.

 

[WDLV]

Are you thinking about cutting them or natural splitting?

Probably cutting.

as for feeding, strong lighting and some raw shrimp a couple of times a week.

If this isn't for appearance and you're going to have a sump you may want to consider a bare bottom tank. Easier to clean.

I'm there as of yesterday. I had 11 BTAs (I think) of at least three different forms.

I'd skip the clowns depending on what type of propagation you are thinking.

It's the clowns' tank. They are the main focus. The BTAs are of secondary concern. I've had aptasia on my LR that was stinging my clowns and have been unsuccessful in erradicating them. So, the LR had to go. It's in the sump now.

A couple of very good threads on this on the propagation section, check it out.

Unless they are all one clone best to frag in different tanks, one tank per clone.

Thanks! I'm fairly familiar with the cutting part and feeding is fairly straight forward They seem to eat anything I put in there. I was hoping to see if anyone knew of foods that were particularly good over others and also wanted to look at pics of dedicated BTA prop systems. Separate tanks is not much of an option at present but I might be able to add a small basket for fresh cut nems.... Good thoughts.

I had an interesting thing happen a couple of months ago. I had two green bta's in my tank and for whatever reason they decided to move right next to each other for a day. Then they separated, and a couple of days later one of them had cloned itself. Not saying they mated for that one day; just found it an odd coincidence.

That's cool.


THANKS FOR AL THE REPLIES!

 

[DeathWish302]

Walt,

You ever try MASSIVE WCs' once a week? A LFS I frequented in CA did this with their R/G/O BTA tank and had multiple splits a week. After a year some 20 anemones turned into somewhere in the 100's! If it weren't for the different colors, you would have thought it was the same anemone.

What the owner did was place eggcrate structures all over and this allowed for easu removal. Just an idea since it sounds like you will be cutting.

 

[WDLV]

Yes I have. Just yesterday I got some Murotic acid and cleaned the 55 gallon drum I mix my SW in. It had horrible scaling. Now the SW in there looks clearer than the FW in the bin next to it. I think my FW (which I was drawing water from to mix the SW) was part of the problem. I used the hose to mix it. I think the FW I've been using has been sucking up all the nasties in the air and causing my makeup water to be contaminated and my NSW. This may make a huge difference.
Please no lectures on RODI. The best tank I ever ran was on tap water from this house... and Baltimore has some of the best water in the country.

 

[BonsaiNut]

For a quasi-commercial setup you will want:

(1) The ability to completely drain the tank bone dry for cleaning/maintenance.
(2) The ability to control water movement; increase, decrease, redirect, etc.
(3) No hazards to anemone with intakes or overflows.
(4) A light fixture that is easy to move out of the way.
(5) Minimal / no substrate. Better to have a sump with live rock than sand or rock in the frag tank.
(6) Artificial "rocks" for anemones to attach to that they can be easily removed from. Some mentioned the classic terracotta clay pot which typically works well in clown breeder setups.
(7) No other mechanical stuff in the tank - no heaters, skimmers, etc.

 

[WDLV]

For a quasi-commercial setup you will want:

(1) The ability to completely drain the tank bone dry for cleaning/maintenance.
(2) The ability to control water movement; increase, decrease, redirect, etc.
(3) No hazards to anemone with intakes or overflows.
(4) A light fixture that is easy to move out of the way.
(5) Minimal / no substrate. Better to have a sump with live rock than sand or rock in the frag tank.
(6) Artificial "rocks" for anemones to attach to that they can be easily removed from. Some mentioned the classic terracotta clay pot which typically works well in clown breeder setups.
(7) No other mechanical stuff in the tank - no heaters, skimmers, etc.

Thanks!

That's pretty much what I'm working with.
BB
Lumenarc reflectors.
LR, heater, chiller, skimmer in Sump
PHs have screens
Might have to use the pots. I have plenty small and large.

 

[WDLV]

This is where I am now.

 

[Enyo]

Looks good! Just some thoughts to maybe help you brainstorm:

High PAR bulbs
Chemical warfare
Irritation while healing
sterile cutting environment
GAC usage
Foot in crevice
Proper feeding

Following along!

 

[WDLV]

Looks good! Just some thoughts to maybe help you brainstorm:

High PAR bulbs
Chemical warfare
Irritation while healing
sterile cutting environment
GAC usage
Foot in crevice
Proper feeding

Following along!

All good thoughts and I will touch on each briefly to try and stick with my full disclosure philosophy.

Bulbs are 250W MH x 2 on a 40 breeder. They're low quality but certainly ought to be adequate.
Chemical warfare and GAC are related. I'm terrible about GAC replacement. I am removing as many corals as I can as fast as I can. I'm not concerned about them stinging each other but am aware about gastric juices post cutting.
Hadn't thought too hard about STERILE vs clean cutting environment.
A decent place to put their feet is on my mind and I am coming to realize that they won't let me get around it. I am thinking of some options....
Proper feeding is on my mind as well and is one of two primary reasons for starting this thread. Not sure what the best high nutrition foods are that they will also take....

 

[Enyo]

One thing I hate is a pompous reefer telling me what to do, I hope you aren't getting that vibe from me! Just trying to help you out.

For feeding, I was told from a knowledgeable source that If I insisted on spot feeding, small slivers/chunks of salmon the size of my pinky nail would be the way to go as it is highly nutritious.

I only started feeding mine recently so I will let you know how it goes. I've heard many horror stories of feeding BTAs larger pieces and things going awry - it's something I take into consideration even though I want them to grow and split!

 

[WDLV]

Tell me something I know... No biggie. Tell me something I don't know or forgot... That's why were here.

 

[NirvanaFan]

The smaller the food the better. Think brine shrimp size. Throw raw seafood in the blender. Shrimp, squid, fish, scallop, clam, it's all good. Don't be afraid to use selco/selcon either.

Get rid of the other coral in the system. You don't want ANY chemical warfare going on. And with softies in the system, you're going to get chemical warfare, especially if you cut the nems.

I tried this for a while. They were cut with a 6" fillet knife that was sterilized before use. I don't have any pictures of my setup, but it was a custom 60ish gallon homemade tank. 4'x2'x12" tall. It was plywood with a pond liner in it. I had a straight standpipe going to a remote 55g sump. This was loaded with live rock and an oversized skimmer. The return pump was a good size to provide lots of flow.

If you are really going to give this a go, think about replacing your powerheads with an airlift system. You don't want anemones getting sucked up onto the guards.

You said not to lecture you about RODI, but I'm going to anyways... You want to have sterile water with no chance of anything wrong in it. You can't guarantee that with tap water, even if it comes from a good quality source. With a 40 breeder, you're not going to go through too much water, I suggest an RODI. Lecture over!

You don't hear many success stories from people running BTA farms, but I wish you the best. Keep us updated on your progress though.

 

[WDLV]

Thanks for the post.