They all love the feeder

Now you got it. That's why one section is black. I could have kept both sections clear and put a sign there that says "Swim through the hole" But some of them can't read.
 
thanks paul! i understand your current method doesn't leave any rotting brine :) I was saying that I'm afraid of using decapsulated brine directly into your feeder would possibly result in decaying brine since the hatch rate isn't 100%. Just trying to find an alternative to white worms or having to hatch bbs everyday :P
 
The alternative to hatching brine and white worms is not to have a mandarin. They really need live food. I realize they can be "taught" to eat other things, but I don't think that is an alternative as they need to eat all day long so no matter what you feed them, they also need a tank where they have a lot of pods to hunt all day for the times you are not feeding them directly
 
Paul I have read this entire post. I must thank you for all your time in helping others to keep these beautiful fish happy and in breeding condition. You wrote that on a different post! :) I will be experimenting until I get it correct. Then I will be making a day trip to the nearest place I know I can purchase a healthy mandarin.

I had a mandarin who lived almost 3 years in my tank. This will keep my next one with me when it is impossible to buy copepods. And I will enjoy them at their little "carnival" as it will be up and running all the time. :)

I also have a young Golden Angelfish which should benefit from your design. :)

Shelley
 
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Paul no need, just let me know what you need and I will give you the shortened version. But seriously, I am compulsively obsessive with my tanks. They are the first and last things I look at each day. And now I have a new tool in my arsenal towards healthy, happy fish. And my darling hubby told me he can bring home several of these containers. They throw them away at his work regularly. :) I might try using a circular drill bit, type for drilling bird house entrances, for the top. And yes, I noted your disclaimer and will keep all body parts out of danger.

Shelley
 
I love this post.... great info Paul.... props for doing things for yourself- and well-
too many want to buy a nice reef and everything for it even including live food.

cool DIY tips... I would think 45 yrs of reef exp would lead to that ;)
Bet you had to be a DIY wiz in 71 to really keep a well ran tank

and I Totally agree about the mandarin- as well as all finicky eaters like it- they def need live food-
Tanks fer sharing the baby brine feeder esp as that could really save some lives in here
 
Reeferaddict, the heart of my house is my work shop and I spend many hours in there every day. Not just for fish stuff but my life revolves around DIY. I just like to build things and I could build a space shuttle with what I have in my shop, a small space shuttle but a space shuttle none the less. I use wood, metal or acrylic. Another hobby is building copper fountains with all sorts of movement and no one has ever touched my house, car or boat. I wouldn't even know how to go about paying someone for that.









I recently re modeled the shop with a sink and a lot more storage.

 
I would love to know if you have a site about your copper hobby. We are also DIY types. And we love to make our outside living area as interesting as possible. :bounce3: The sink was a great addition to your workspace. :hammer:

Shelley
 
Shelly, I love working with copper but I don't have a site about it. I have some pictures but I can't locate them right now as I think they may be on my other computer. The one in my yard now is just 4 scoop looking things, one above each other and a little off center, They each tip over and dump on a copper plate looking thing and that falls into the next, slightly larger scoop which does the same thing, then there is a wheel near the bottom that spins with another copper tube pouring water. I try to make them as interesting as possible while having a lot of movement. It's just a free style kind of thing. I have designed a silly looking copper Hippo that I want to put in my pacasandra and have it's head lift up out of the "grass" and chew while water pours out of it's mouth and it's tail twirls. Then it will put it's head down again all powered by water. I have not begun that yet as I have to many projects going on but I designed that a few years ago and am still waiting for time to make it. There are just not enough hours in the day and I wish I didn't have to sleep as I am very bad at that anyway getting up at 4 or 5 every day :bum:
Today I am working on this denitrification coil. I had it running but hurricane Sandy killed my power for 4 days and that coil wasn't high on my priorities to get running so I removed it. I just re designed it and am flushing it with fresh water now.
 
Paul sadly I still work. That really cuts into my creativity. I love the hippo idea. If you ever run across any pictures just send them my way. I dabble in concrete and flowers also.

Ordered my Brine shrimp eggs today. Ordered through BrineShrimpDirect. No special reason, they had premium grade eggs. Also bought some rigid tubing and a Brine Shrimp Net. The net can be used in my pod tank also. I will update later on my trial and tribulations. Along with photos hopefully. Ordered the rigid tubing since I could not find it where I live. :wave:

Shelley
 
The larger feeder is quite interesting. I am thinking if one added small pieces of living rock into one it could be called a copepods apartment. Creating a safe haven for them to multiply. Keep in mind I have no refugium. Did you add the brine shrimp in a similar manner as the smaller feeder? Thank you for the link. :beer:

Shelley
 
I've just made my own version of this for my scooter Blenny. It's just a length of 1 1/4" PVC with a net on one end and the other end sealed with airline tubing running out of the tank. I use a small syringe to draw up the baby brine and inject the through the tubing. It's just my first attempt but it's working pretty well. I'll post a picture when I get home.
 
The net should be at the top as the shrimp are attracted to the light. If you listen closely you can hear them yelling "Go toward the light". I would not put live rock into it as it needs to be removed to clean occasionally as algae will grow on the mesh closing the holes. I have two models, the larger one is also a hatchery where the eggs are added each day with an auto feeder, the smaller one, I hatch the eggs first them condense them wit a net and pour them in. I use the smaller one every day and have for years that is how I keep my mandarins spawning and my pipefish smiling.
 
drukkosz said:
Paul,

Thank you for all the info, thanks to you My mandarin is big fat and happy. Now I am thinking about getting him a girlfriend.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0ovcXYLOp4&feature=youtu.be
Click to expand...

:celeb3: He looks great! Really happy for you both. :)

Paul I once built a copepods hotel using gutter screen. I found the instructions online. I did use small pieces of living rock in it. Wish I had kept it. :( I really think it did give them a safe haven of sorts. But I had an apstatia in it. So I tossed it in the trash. :headwally:

Code4
 
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