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Your experience w/bbs sources.

georgedv

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
335
Location
South Carolina
I read a number of threads on this site that bbs is served pretty regularly as a meal with good results. Until now I fed bbs once a week (except fry, which I serve daily). Most LFS have small packs and if I want to serve bbs 4-5 time week, it can get quite costly.

I am looking for a good source to buy large qty of bbs eggs. Can anyone suggest a good source?

Also, in what quantities should I buy? What qtys do you buy and why.

Finally, I use the 2 liter bottle way to get my bbs. I have three bottles, but only use two. I fhave a big waste because I am unable to collect but 70% of the bbs. Mike had a good post in a thread not too long ago on a harvesting technique for 2 liter bottle users ...I thought I had it marked...but I must have deleted it or improperly marked it. If anyone else has this...can you please direct me to it.

Thanks for your help

g
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
I had good success with Brine Shrimp Direct. I buy the coffee can size of 80% hatch. The trick is to keep this can in the freezer and only keep a month's supply of eggs out for hatching. I pour all of the eggs into a plastic fish bag and seal it off with a rubber band & then put the bag back in the can. Then I put the can in another plastic bag before freezing. This keeps eggs from dessicating. It is also a good idea to allow the can to rest at room temperature for a few hours before opening. This prevents condensation from entering the can of eggs. Moisture is the prime cause for lowered hatch rates.

I couldn't find my description of hatching bbs that you mentioned either. Here is how I hatch & collect my bbs (I'm sure that many others here do it somewhat similarly:

I use 2L bottles. I mostly use some of the very old (10+ years!) bottles that have a round bottom. But I also use some of the newer bottles, too. With the newer bottles, you need to invert the top and make sure that the bottom cap is tight. You also need a means of supporting the inverted bottles. I just cut the bottom third of another bottle and force it over the capped end of the brine shrimp bottle. The tops of the hatchers are cut off & have the bottom of another bottle as a cover. I drill a hole in the cover large enough to accept a piece of rigid airline tubing. I find that cutting the bottom end of the rigid tube at a 45º angle helps with siphoning, which comes later. I attach the rigid tubing to a piece of flexible air line, which is attached to an air valve to adjust the air flow. The hatcheries sit on a ledge about 2 feet/60 cm above a narrow tank stand that I use as a work station. The amount of air should be strong enough to keep all of the eggs rolling strongly in the water.

For hatching, I use dechlorinated tap water and enough synthetic sea salt to reach a specific gravity of 1.14 - 1.16 (~ 2 full tablespoons). I add ½ teaspoon of eggs. It takes about a day for the eggs to mostly hatch.

Once the eggs hatch, I pull the airline off of the air valve and let the eggs shells rise to the top. I then put a brine shrimp net over a pitcher on the work station, below the hatchery. I then siphon the brine shrimp through the rigid & flexible airline tubing into the net-covered pitcher. I find that adding an additional short piece of rigid tubing to the opposite side of the airline tubing at this time helps control the rate of flow with your thumb. The 45º angle cut on the bottom of the rigid tube inside of the hatchery prevents the restriction of water flow if the bottom of the tube touches the bottom of the hatchery. I watch the flow of water/bbs into the net. Once I see more shells than bbs in the tubing I shut it down by closing off the outside opening with my thumb, then raising the flexible tubing, & allowing the remainder of the water to flow back into the hatchery bottle. Once the brine shrimp net has stopped draining water, I rest the bottom part of the net - with the bbs - in a small container of fresh water. This removes additional salt from the bbs. If I think that more shrimp will hatch, I just return the water back to the bottle, plug the flexible tubing into the air valve, & run it again for about 8 - 12 hours.

I usually use my salt solutions for 3 hatchings. I keep 3 bottles running at all times. This allows a bottle to 'rest' 2 days before using it again. Otherwise I get bacterial blooms and lowered hat rates. This is probably due to the bacteria using oxygen that the bbs would otherwise use. After the third hatch, I scrub out the bottles with just tap water and start the process over.
 

georgedv

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
335
Location
South Carolina
Just ordered a can from shrimpdirect. Thanks for all the input....time (Mike) for answering my question.

Mike I hope you don't mind, I made a hard copy of your instructions...I don't want to lose them again.


thanks

g
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
Mike I hope you don't mind, I made a hard copy of your instructions...I don't want to lose them again.

No problem. I don't claim to have originated any of the process. Just remember to cover your hard copy (spray coating or plastic sheeting) or it will bleed the first time you get water on it.:biggrin:
 

georgedv

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
335
Location
South Carolina
I got my can of bbs eggs and prepared it as you suggested Mike.

I was also sent a sample of ARCTIC COPEPODS. It looks like orange powder. Can any one give me any info on this? The sticker says feed directly or mix with a DIY diet. Since this so fine of a powder...directly must mean for small fry only....yes...no?

Anyways any help and guidance on this is appreciated.
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
The "ARCTIC COPEPODS" are the same as Cyclops-eze. It is a freeze-dried copepod. Best use is for small fish. Put some in a vial of water, shake well, & then add to tank. If you have small surface feeding fish, just put some dry on the water surface.
 

langosh

New Member
5 Year Member
Messages
32
Location
czech rep./europe
My small "hatchery" - it´s just 1L bottle. I assume 2L bottle coul be more appropriate - due to its shape...
petka.jpg

Roman:)
 

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