Copepod Questions - Need Answers

[Dark_Knightt]

You may have seen my last thread where I asked what the best pods to dose for a dragonet were. I have a few more questions.

- Can you dose a tank with 2 different types of pods? Apex & Tigger

- If I dose 12oz. of pods, how many pods will I have about 1 month later? Enough to add a dragonet weaned onto prepared foods?

- Fuge Question: Im going to be using a bucket as a fuge, do I need a light and heater to cultivate pods and phyto? Can I do them both in one bucket?

Thanks for the help, #reefsquad

 

[lavoisier]

You can dose multiple types of pods.

Depends on the density of pods per oz. Your supplier should be able to tell you. It usually takes longer that a month to establish a stable pod population. Tank conditions and food supply are key factors.

Heat for both, light for phyto. I would not recommend both in a single container.

 

[ichthyogeek]

You can indeed dose a tank with 2 different types of pods. There may be some interspecific competition between the two, but if they're cultured in different containers, it shouldn't be a problem.

Dosing 12 ounces of pods is....iffy. Mostly because you're really trying to figure out how many pods you're actually adding, if any podivores are in the tank, the ratio of male to female pods, and what species of pod you have (Tisbe have a shorter reproduction time than Apocyclops which has a shorter reproduction time than Tigriopus, etc.).

In order to culture effectively, a light is needed to culture phyto, while a heater is important for pods. You could try to culture them in one bucket, but it would be hard, since you'd have to manage the entire food chain (how much nutrients to add to replace the eaten phytoplankton, how many pods to remove in order to prevent them from all eating the phytoplankton and crashing).

 

[Dark_Knightt]

You can dose multiple types of pods.

Depends on the density of pods per oz. Your supplier should be able to tell you. It usually takes longer that a month to establish a stable pod population. Tank conditions and food supply are key factors.

Heat for both, light for phyto. I would not recommend both in a single container.

Would I be able to dose the entire phyto into the tank and then leave like 2oz of pods to culture? Because I also have algae in the tank the pods can eat.

 

[ichthyogeek]

Would I be able to dose the entire phyto into the tank and then leave like 2oz of pods to culture? Because I also have algae in the tank the pods can eat.

For....? I'm not following why you would want to dose all the phyto into the tank. And how that factors into somehow getting from 12 oz to 2 oz of pods.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

For....? I'm not following why you would want to dose all the phyto into the tank. And how that factors into somehow getting from 12 oz to 2 oz of pods.

Ok now im confused. Do people not dose phyto into tank? How much should I dose into the tank and into my makeshift fuge?

 

[Dark_Knightt]

You can indeed dose a tank with 2 different types of pods. There may be some interspecific competition between the two, but if they're cultured in different containers, it shouldn't be a problem.

Dosing 12 ounces of pods is....iffy. Mostly because you're really trying to figure out how many pods you're actually adding, if any podivores are in the tank, the ratio of male to female pods, and what species of pod you have (Tisbe have a shorter reproduction time than Apocyclops which has a shorter reproduction time than Tigriopus, etc.).

In order to culture effectively, a light is needed to culture phyto, while a heater is important for pods. You could try to culture them in one bucket, but it would be hard, since you'd have to manage the entire food chain (how much nutrients to add to replace the eaten phytoplankton, how many pods to remove in order to prevent them from all eating the phytoplankton and crashing).

Maybe ill just stick to dosing only apex then. I dont have any podivores in the tank(clownfish...?)

 

[ichthyogeek]

I don't dose phyto into my tank. I could if I wanted to. But I don't have any fish that would benefit from pods (Halichoeres, Macropharyngodons, Dragonets, etc.) at the moment, so why bother?

For the makeshift fuge, dose as much phyto as it takes to get a slight tint or a weak green tea color. That typically works for most people.

For the tank, you can dose whatever. It might be more cost efficient to dose a little bit of spirulina powder instead though.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

I don't dose phyto into my tank. I could if I wanted to. But I don't have any fish that would benefit from pods (Halichoeres, Macropharyngodons, Dragonets, etc.) at the moment, so why bother?

For the makeshift fuge, dose as much phyto as it takes to get a slight tint or a weak green tea color. That typically works for most people.

For the tank, you can dose whatever. It might be more cost efficient to dose a little bit of spirulina powder instead though.

Ill look into the spirulina powder. Also I thought it was necessary to dose phyto if youre adding pods.

 

[eric.tech]

to answer your question, it is impossible to know how many pods your fish and other critters in your tank will consume in a month. The adults tend to hide in the rocks once they’re added and depending on the species, the juveniles usually can’t be seen with the naked eye. If you check out some of the stores out there, algae barn is a popular one, they sell jars with up to four different species in it.

I actually ran into a similar thought not that long ago. My mandarin still is fat and healthy, but I want to be sure he stays that way. I started doing a bit of research on starting a pod culture to keep up with the demands of my little guy. It’s not too hard to start up a culture so you don’t go broke buying pods. Along side the pod culture, I started up a phyto culture to be able to feed the pods. I would not do phyto and pods in one bucket or your fuge. Phyto requires a sterilized bucket as do the pods, but the pods are a bit more tolerant of contamination/bacteria. You will need a light to do the cultures, a lot of folks use a cfl. I’m using an old T5 I had laying around, seems to be working pretty well.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

to answer your question, it is impossible to know how many pods your fish and other critters in your tank will consume in a month. The adults tend to hide in the rocks once they’re added and depending on the species, the juveniles usually can’t be seen with the naked eye. If you check out some of the stores out there, algae barn is a popular one, they sell jars with up to four different species in it.

I actually ran into a similar thought not that long ago. My mandarin still is fat and healthy, but I want to be sure he stays that way. I started doing a bit of research on starting a pod culture to keep up with the demands of my little guy. It’s not too hard to start up a culture so you don’t go broke buying pods. Along side the pod culture, I started up a phyto culture to be able to feed the pods. I would not do phyto and pods in one bucket or your fuge. Phyto requires a sterilized bucket as do the pods, but the pods are a bit more tolerant of contamination/bacteria. You will need a light to do the cultures, a lot of folks use a cfl. I’m using an old T5 I had laying around, seems to be working pretty well.

I have a bucket that i used to use for mixing saltwater, that should work right?

 

[living_tribunal]

You may have seen my last thread where I asked what the best pods to dose for a dragonet were. I have a few more questions.

- Can you dose a tank with 2 different types of pods? Apex & Tigger

- If I dose 12oz. of pods, how many pods will I have about 1 month later? Enough to add a dragonet weaned onto prepared foods?

- Fuge Question: Im going to be using a bucket as a fuge, do I need a light and heater to cultivate pods and phyto? Can I do them both in one bucket?

Thanks for the help, #reefsquad

You can absolutely add both Tigre and Apex. Apex will primarily live on surfaces/rocks while Tigre will stay in the column. The tigers won’t consume the apex either.

The question isn’t how many oz but how many are in the oz. Your tigers won’t last long depending on your fish stock and how often you feed phyto. For apex, it depends on how much detritus you have and once again fish stock. Apex do pretty well in tanks.

You do need lights as it promotes the breeding cycle and algae.

 

[living_tribunal]

to answer your question, it is impossible to know how many pods your fish and other critters in your tank will consume in a month. The adults tend to hide in the rocks once they’re added and depending on the species, the juveniles usually can’t be seen with the naked eye. If you check out some of the stores out there, algae barn is a popular one, they sell jars with up to four different species in it.

I actually ran into a similar thought not that long ago. My mandarin still is fat and healthy, but I want to be sure he stays that way. I started doing a bit of research on starting a pod culture to keep up with the demands of my little guy. It’s not too hard to start up a culture so you don’t go broke buying pods. Along side the pod culture, I started up a phyto culture to be able to feed the pods. I would not do phyto and pods in one bucket or your fuge. Phyto requires a sterilized bucket as do the pods, but the pods are a bit more tolerant of contamination/bacteria. You will need a light to do the cultures, a lot of folks use a cfl. I’m using an old T5 I had laying around, seems to be working pretty well.

The pods will also consume all of the phyto

 

[living_tribunal]

Ok now im confused. Do people not dose phyto into tank? How much should I dose into the tank and into my makeshift fuge?

Apex primarily consume detritus but will also eat phyto. If you feed reef roids or any rotifer based food then that’ll lead to the best pop growth. Phyto from time to time will also help but isn’t necessarily required.

 

[terraincognita]

A. Algae Barn customer service said okay to dump a 16OZ jar full of pods into a 2 G Pico Jar.

So I imagine you can't "over add" lol.

B. You can add all pod types at the same time. Diversity in reefing is king next to stability. IME.

C. you can't grow phyto and pods together, you can use a bucket for a fuge with lights and proper media sure

you must SEPERATELY cultivate Phyto and Pods from your tank, or from each other (I think other people said that by now)

D. Re: Mandarin, realize 1000 pods is probably enough to support a mandarin, important thing is for you to research out how to keep and maintain a healthy pod population.

Pod life cycle on "steroids" can be from hatching to adult male reproducing in 1 week under perfect conditions. I imagine in a healthy reef tank you'd probably see it around 2-3 weeks.

If you can get them to start reproducing regularly you will have no problems.

I had a natural POD explosion in my tank 3 weeks ago, every day I go check on my fish tank first thing in the morning and do a full "check up round" I can always find 50-100 near the glass edges generally closer to the sand bed, So i take that as a good sign. This is on a 45G

The day when I start seeing 10-0 I will feel bad like I'm not upkeeping them properly obviously my fish eat them but I imagine I should be able to keep it in the 50-100 pods range on the glass I'm doing good.

 

[eric.tech]

I have a bucket that i used to use for mixing saltwater, that should work right?

Get some additional buckets just for the pods. You want to keep them as clean as possible when starting a culture. You don’t want to risk contamination wiping out your culture. I’m using run of the mill Home Depot buckets for the pods and a 1gallon glass jug for the phyto. Hope this helps!

 

[Dark_Knightt]

You can absolutely add both Tigre and Apex. Apex will primarily live on surfaces/rocks while Tigre will stay in the column. The tigers won’t consume the apex either.

The question isn’t how many oz but how many are in the oz. Your tigers won’t last long depending on your fish stock and how often you feed phyto. For apex, it depends on how much detritus you have and once again fish stock. Apex do pretty well in tanks.

You do need lights as it promotes the breeding cycle and algae.

I have some detritus, and will they eat algae?

 

[living_tribunal]

I have some detritus, and will they eat algae?

Not really but they will live inside of it.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Not really but they will live inside of it.

Quick question: If i dose a full bottle of phyto to a 20g tank with an in-tank UV sterilizer, will it 1. Survive, 2. Make the water green and cloudy?

 

[living_tribunal]

Quick question: If i dose a full bottle of phyto to a 20g tank with an in-tank UV sterilizer, will it 1. Survive, 2. Make the water green and cloudy?

Not really and yes. Phyto doesn't really survive in a tank.