Brine Shrimp/Artemia Hatching and Raising to Adulthood
- Thread starter mrwes008
- Start date
mrwes008
New Member
Newly uploaded Day 2 of my raising and hatching brine shrimp experiment.
http://youtu.be/gkD80YQD1Yg
http://youtu.be/gkD80YQD1Yg
mrwes008
New Member
Newly uploaded day 3 of my raising brine shrimp experiment.
http://youtu.be/trS5yehcRjQ
http://youtu.be/trS5yehcRjQ
F
fishman59
Guest
Using An Aquaclear 110 As An HOB Brine Shrimp Tank
I think most people just purchase adult brine shrimp, because it is tricky and time consuming to grow them out.
I set up a dedicated 5.5 gallon brine shrimp tank about a year ago, only to have every colony of freshly hatched brine shrimp crash a day after hatching them.
I started searching online to see if there was a product available, even a grow out kit of some type. Aquamedic makes two of them, however, I have never been able to find a review in regard to how well they work.
And while there are myriad articles on hatching brine shrimp, which is quite easy to do, there are very few useful ones on growing them on after you hatch them. And most of these articles describe a complicated process which involves large aquariums or buckets to grow your brine shrimp in, which seems to discourage fishkeepers from growing their own bbs.
Who wants buckets of salt water laying around your bedroom, den or living room, which might accidentally knock over?
Clearly an elegant solution to this problem needs to be implemented, which can be integrated into the aquariums we already have setup.
Sometime ago this author purchased a Shrimpery brine shrimp hatchery which works quite well for relatively small hatches. This is perfect for hatching the baby brine shrimp that my fancy guppies give birth to on a regular basis.
To ensure a good hatch out, I drilled a small hole in the top of the Shrimpery which I insert a small rubber tube into, which is then run to an air pump. This ensures that the water in the Shrimpery is never stagnant, and does result in most of the brine shrimp eggs being hatched. This works much better than using the Shrimpery on its own.
I also fill the Shrimpery with filtered tap water and only add about 1/4 to a 1/2 teaspoon of brine shrimp eggs at a time. I used to use the entire packet of San Francisco brine shrimp eggs as instructed, and at least half of them never hatched out.
As for growing these brine shrimp fry, I decided to turn an Aquaclear 110 into an HOB (hang on back of tank) brine shrimp tank.
I installed a small Marineland 25 watt heater which is on about a 60 degree angle, and a sponge filter which is attached to another external air pump.
I also have a small hand held thermometer leaning against the side of the Aquaclear where the motor is located, so that I can keep a constant check on the temperature of the water.
I have filled the Aquaclear 110 with filtered tap water, and added enough marine salt to have attained a specific gravity rating of .1024. The temperature in the tank is set at a constant 78 degrees.
I am into my forth day of growing these brine shrimp and thus far, not only is the colony alive, they are growing quickly.
I can see the difference in size between the brine shrimp which were added the first day and the ones which were added yesterday, when the last of the bbs eggs that I have added to the Shrimpery hatched.
I also use tank water in the collection container that sits atop the Shrimpery which is loaded with nutrients. This way, when I transfer the newly hatched bbs to the grow on tank, the water added is full of nutrients that the brine shrimp can live on after they have used up their embryo sacks.
From the first hatch I waited 24 hours before adding food, because it takes that long for the digestive system of the bbs to develop.
After 24 hours you can begin feeding them twice a day. I use just a pinch of Hikari fry food, once in the morning and once at night. This prevents the tank's water from being polluted.
Every few days I will also rinse the sponge filter in tank water from one of my aquariums, before I place it back into the Aquaclear 110.
Rather than attempting to siphon off much of the water from your brine shrimp tank, which will result in a shock to your colony of brine shrimp - possibly leading to its crash when you add new water - allow for natural evaporation of the tank, and only add water from your other aquariums to a small container , swishing around a bit of marine salt in the container with this water, prior to adding it to your brine shrimp tank.
If you don't have a hydrometer, you can purchase an inexpensive one for about $10, which will do a decent job of measuring the amount of salt in your brine shrimp tank's water (specific gravity).
This way, you adjust the amount of salt in your brine shrimp tank. I like to keep it at about .1024. If the sg in your brine shrimp tank falls below this level you can add a bit of tank water mixed with some marine salt to raise it. However, if the sg goes below 1024, you can return the SG to .1024 by adding tank water alone.
As for cleaning up detritus, that is what the sponge filter is used for, and they work very well. You can also siphon the bottom of the tank to remove any of the remnants of the bbs as they morph from one stage to the next.
If you want to get an idea of how your brine shrimp are growing out, wait until it's dark out, turn the lights out in the room you have your brine shrimp tank in, and aim a flashlight at a side of the brine shrimp tank. Provided that the tank's chassis is clear, you should be able to see the brine shrimp swimming towards the flashlight beam.
As you wave the beam around the brine shrimp tank, you should be able to see large numbers of brine shrimp swimming around. This is how you will know that they are doing fine.
If you don't see them, the colony has crashed and ended up at the bottom of the tank (why so many fishkeepers who try to grow brine shrimp to adulthood understandably give up, as it can be a frustrating endeavor).
This author believes, based on my observations, that the Aquaclear 110 used as an HOB brine shrimp tank, offers the ideal solution for raising brine shrimp as a source of food for a moderately sized community tank of fish, served as a treat once or twice a week.
The AC 110 is large enough to grow a few thousand brine shrimp at a time to near adulthood, which is more than enough to feed the community of fish in a few modestly sized aquariums once or twice a week.
Once your brine shrimp have reached adulthood, the females will either lay eggs every few days, or give birth to free swimming fry, depending on the condition of the water.
This will ensure that your colony of brine shrimp continues to propagate. And you can always hatch more brine shrimp eggs using the Shrimpery or other hatching devices, then add them to the grow out tank.
Having an HOB brine shrimp tank is nice because it doesn't take up much room and is easy to access from the back your aquarium.
I am surprised that Aquaclear or some other company has not offered a brine shrimp grow out tank using a refugium type case based on something similar to the Aquaclear 110. However, if more fishkeepers have success in growing bbs out using this setup, Aquaclear (or another company) may offer a kit which makes it simpler to raise adult brine shrimp in - something the aquarist market is certainly in need of.
An Aquaclear 110-like case, with a sponge filter, air pump, mini heater, box of marine salt, pack of brine shrimp eggs and a thermometer, and you have a simple brine shrimp tank that you can use to grow brine shrimp to adulthood in, that hangs right on the back of your aquarium.
Bring it to market for under $100 and you would probably have a ready made customer base
Of course, if you need a greater supply of brine shrimp, then only a larger size aquarium will suffice.
However, for the aquarist with modest needs, this setup should work just fine.
I think most people just purchase adult brine shrimp, because it is tricky and time consuming to grow them out.
I set up a dedicated 5.5 gallon brine shrimp tank about a year ago, only to have every colony of freshly hatched brine shrimp crash a day after hatching them.
I started searching online to see if there was a product available, even a grow out kit of some type. Aquamedic makes two of them, however, I have never been able to find a review in regard to how well they work.
And while there are myriad articles on hatching brine shrimp, which is quite easy to do, there are very few useful ones on growing them on after you hatch them. And most of these articles describe a complicated process which involves large aquariums or buckets to grow your brine shrimp in, which seems to discourage fishkeepers from growing their own bbs.
Who wants buckets of salt water laying around your bedroom, den or living room, which might accidentally knock over?
Clearly an elegant solution to this problem needs to be implemented, which can be integrated into the aquariums we already have setup.
Sometime ago this author purchased a Shrimpery brine shrimp hatchery which works quite well for relatively small hatches. This is perfect for hatching the baby brine shrimp that my fancy guppies give birth to on a regular basis.
To ensure a good hatch out, I drilled a small hole in the top of the Shrimpery which I insert a small rubber tube into, which is then run to an air pump. This ensures that the water in the Shrimpery is never stagnant, and does result in most of the brine shrimp eggs being hatched. This works much better than using the Shrimpery on its own.
I also fill the Shrimpery with filtered tap water and only add about 1/4 to a 1/2 teaspoon of brine shrimp eggs at a time. I used to use the entire packet of San Francisco brine shrimp eggs as instructed, and at least half of them never hatched out.
As for growing these brine shrimp fry, I decided to turn an Aquaclear 110 into an HOB (hang on back of tank) brine shrimp tank.
I installed a small Marineland 25 watt heater which is on about a 60 degree angle, and a sponge filter which is attached to another external air pump.
I also have a small hand held thermometer leaning against the side of the Aquaclear where the motor is located, so that I can keep a constant check on the temperature of the water.
I have filled the Aquaclear 110 with filtered tap water, and added enough marine salt to have attained a specific gravity rating of .1024. The temperature in the tank is set at a constant 78 degrees.
I am into my forth day of growing these brine shrimp and thus far, not only is the colony alive, they are growing quickly.
I can see the difference in size between the brine shrimp which were added the first day and the ones which were added yesterday, when the last of the bbs eggs that I have added to the Shrimpery hatched.
I also use tank water in the collection container that sits atop the Shrimpery which is loaded with nutrients. This way, when I transfer the newly hatched bbs to the grow on tank, the water added is full of nutrients that the brine shrimp can live on after they have used up their embryo sacks.
From the first hatch I waited 24 hours before adding food, because it takes that long for the digestive system of the bbs to develop.
After 24 hours you can begin feeding them twice a day. I use just a pinch of Hikari fry food, once in the morning and once at night. This prevents the tank's water from being polluted.
Every few days I will also rinse the sponge filter in tank water from one of my aquariums, before I place it back into the Aquaclear 110.
Rather than attempting to siphon off much of the water from your brine shrimp tank, which will result in a shock to your colony of brine shrimp - possibly leading to its crash when you add new water - allow for natural evaporation of the tank, and only add water from your other aquariums to a small container , swishing around a bit of marine salt in the container with this water, prior to adding it to your brine shrimp tank.
If you don't have a hydrometer, you can purchase an inexpensive one for about $10, which will do a decent job of measuring the amount of salt in your brine shrimp tank's water (specific gravity).
This way, you adjust the amount of salt in your brine shrimp tank. I like to keep it at about .1024. If the sg in your brine shrimp tank falls below this level you can add a bit of tank water mixed with some marine salt to raise it. However, if the sg goes below 1024, you can return the SG to .1024 by adding tank water alone.
As for cleaning up detritus, that is what the sponge filter is used for, and they work very well. You can also siphon the bottom of the tank to remove any of the remnants of the bbs as they morph from one stage to the next.
If you want to get an idea of how your brine shrimp are growing out, wait until it's dark out, turn the lights out in the room you have your brine shrimp tank in, and aim a flashlight at a side of the brine shrimp tank. Provided that the tank's chassis is clear, you should be able to see the brine shrimp swimming towards the flashlight beam.
As you wave the beam around the brine shrimp tank, you should be able to see large numbers of brine shrimp swimming around. This is how you will know that they are doing fine.
If you don't see them, the colony has crashed and ended up at the bottom of the tank (why so many fishkeepers who try to grow brine shrimp to adulthood understandably give up, as it can be a frustrating endeavor).
This author believes, based on my observations, that the Aquaclear 110 used as an HOB brine shrimp tank, offers the ideal solution for raising brine shrimp as a source of food for a moderately sized community tank of fish, served as a treat once or twice a week.
The AC 110 is large enough to grow a few thousand brine shrimp at a time to near adulthood, which is more than enough to feed the community of fish in a few modestly sized aquariums once or twice a week.
Once your brine shrimp have reached adulthood, the females will either lay eggs every few days, or give birth to free swimming fry, depending on the condition of the water.
This will ensure that your colony of brine shrimp continues to propagate. And you can always hatch more brine shrimp eggs using the Shrimpery or other hatching devices, then add them to the grow out tank.
Having an HOB brine shrimp tank is nice because it doesn't take up much room and is easy to access from the back your aquarium.
I am surprised that Aquaclear or some other company has not offered a brine shrimp grow out tank using a refugium type case based on something similar to the Aquaclear 110. However, if more fishkeepers have success in growing bbs out using this setup, Aquaclear (or another company) may offer a kit which makes it simpler to raise adult brine shrimp in - something the aquarist market is certainly in need of.
An Aquaclear 110-like case, with a sponge filter, air pump, mini heater, box of marine salt, pack of brine shrimp eggs and a thermometer, and you have a simple brine shrimp tank that you can use to grow brine shrimp to adulthood in, that hangs right on the back of your aquarium.
Bring it to market for under $100 and you would probably have a ready made customer base
Of course, if you need a greater supply of brine shrimp, then only a larger size aquarium will suffice.
However, for the aquarist with modest needs, this setup should work just fine.
travelerjp98
Active Member
That's a great article you wrote! I think that you'll get a lotta positive attention if you start a new thread and copy/paste that article!