Copepods! Need help

[TheReefDiary]

Can't find anything on the amount of copepods needed to seed a tank. Is there an ideal # per gallon? My tank is blowing up with diatoms and after getting some recommendations from people ok here and the brstv series I want to add some pods to increase my tanks biodiversity.

Anyone have any idea how many bottles of algaebarn eco pods I should buy for a 13.5g tank? Ideally I'd like to keep them thriving but understand that may be difficult as I don't have a refugium.

 

[Mikey-D]

Are you planing on dosing phyto to feed the pods? if so you can essitianlly keep the cycle going. Do you have a fuge? Drop them in at night so they have time to find places before getting consumed.

 

[TheReefDiary]

Are you planing on dosing phyto to feed the pods? if so you can essitianlly keep the cycle going. Do you have a fuge? Drop them in at night so they have time to find places before getting consumed.

No i don't have fuge, thus why I'm wondering if it's even possible to keep them sustained or if it's best to just introduce them to help with the diatoms and let them die off. But how many would I need for 13.5g tank?

 

[Slocke]

Can't find anything on the amount of copepods needed to seed a tank. Is there an ideal # per gallon? My tank is blowing up with diatoms and after getting some recommendations from people ok here and the brstv series I want to add some pods to increase my tanks biodiversity.

Anyone have any idea how many bottles of algaebarn eco pods I should buy for a 13.5g tank? Ideally I'd like to keep them thriving but understand that may be difficult as I don't have a refugium.

I'd say 1 jar is enough

 

[Mikey-D]

+1 Also, check this out.

5280 Pods & OceanMagik Phytoplankton

Create and Sustain a Healthy Copepod Population! Copepods require food that will fit into their small mouths and the staple of their diet will be phytoplankton. AlgaeBarn's OceanMagik Phyto Blend is a mixture of live Phytoplankton that will give copepods and amphipods everything they require for...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[TheReefDiary]

+1 Also, check this out.

5280 Pods & OceanMagik Phytoplankton

Create and Sustain a Healthy Copepod Population! Copepods require food that will fit into their small mouths and the staple of their diet will be phytoplankton. AlgaeBarn's OceanMagik Phyto Blend is a mixture of live Phytoplankton that will give copepods and amphipods everything they require for...

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Yeah I saw that bundle. You think the 5280 pods are good for a small tank? I know the difference between them are just the types of pods in each.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

Yes you can create your own pod culture, there's loads of culture kits you can buy to breed copepods. I have indoor culture which works but needs alot of attention, also outdoor culture which seems to be thriving on its own beside random feeding.
What inhabitants do you have.
I'll find you some links

 

[killer2001]

I dumped two 16oz jars in my 45 gallon and dose phyto every other day, now they are all over every pane of glass and in the sump. Right now its an ongoing war between the copepods + CUC and the algae in my 2 month old tank.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

Outdoor pod breeding station by atoll

 

[Rick's Reviews]

Thread 'Outdoor pod breeding station' https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/outdoor-pod-breeding-station.920005/

 

[TheReefDiary]

Outdoor pod breeding station by atoll

Not for feeding. No mandarins or anything of that nature. Just to increase biodiversity. Thus why I don't even know if culturing them is worth it. Or just introducing them and trying to keep them around through dosing phytoplankton.

 

[TheReefDiary]

I dumped two 16oz jars in my 45 gallon and dose phyto every other day, now they are all over every pane of glass and in the sump. Right now its an ongoing war between the copepods + CUC and the algae in my 2 month old tank.

Yeah I have a 13.5g. Diatoms are blowing up currently. Like super fast. Nothing else at the moment. I have 4 snails in there and they seem to do a bit but obviously not enough to keep up with a bloom.

Good to know that your tank did well off 2, meaning 1 is plenty for my tank. Just not sure which pods to get between eco pods and 5280 pods on algae barns website.

 

[Mikey-D]

Yeah I saw that bundle. You think the 5280 pods are good for a small tank? I know the difference between them are just the types of pods in each.

This one seems to have a good diversity of pods, not just one zoopankton. Like Rick said, you can culture in home and keep the cycle going or just dose straight to the tank if your just looking to dose for a month or 2.

My plan is to automate pods and rotifers and keep the cycle continuing without havong to split the culture over and over. But thats just me and i will have a fuge with pods in there once its all set up.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

If you added live rocks and live sand this would of introduced copepods, if no inhabitants are eating copepods then they will build up on Thier own, you can add copepods at any time if you wish to increase numbers

 

[Lavey29]

Diatoms go away on their own in a few weeks.

 

[TheReefDiary]

This one seems to have a good diversity of pods, not just one zoopankton. Like Rick said, you can culture in home and keep the cycle going or just dose straight to the tank if your just looking to dose for a month or 2.

My plan is to automate pods and rotifers and keep the cycle continuing without havong to split the culture over and over. But thats just me and i will have a fuge with pods in there once its all set up.

Unfortunately don't have the space for a fuge otherwise would add 1. And without a fish who need them not sure it's worth it to keep a culture going.

It's not bad for the tank regardless, just not sure if culturing will take up too much space/time for something I using as a way to hopefully limit the ugly stage.

 

[TheReefDiary]

Diatoms go away on their own in a few weeks.

Yeah, but I assume it will lead to the next phase and so on. Was hoping the introduction of pods will at least help to limit how gross the tank gets.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

They are basically just water bugs, they will find their way into your tank one way or another, just the same as bugs find their way into our homes, its not possible to keep them out. They will come in on corals and inverts and basically that you add to your tank that comes from another tank.

There is a lot of buz lately about pods, mainly due to advertising and corporate propaganda, but wether you add one pack or 10 packs of pods, the population will correct itself according to the conditions in your tank, such as available food vs available predators.

I would just get one pack to start with, and then do more research and observe your tank.

 

[TheReefDiary]

They are basically just water bugs, they will find their way into your tank one way or another, just the same as bugs find their way into our homes, its not possible to keep them out. They will come in on corals and inverts and basically that you add to your tank that comes from another tank.

There is a lot of buz lately about pods, mainly due to advertising and corporate propaganda, but wether you add one pack or 10 packs of pods, the population will correct itself according to the conditions in your tank, such as available food vs available predators.

I would just get one pack to start with, and then do more research and observe your tank.

Thanks for the insightful response. I definitely agree I'm not trying to drop $100+ on some pods when I don't necessarily need them. I'm moreso interested to see if it helps increase the biodiversity to a level where my tank reaches a healthy equilibrium at a faster pace.

I'm waiting until my tank has been estaished for about 6 months before adding corals. Want to get all this ugly stage out of the way first and hoping it doesn't last an eternity.

Diatoms are forming 2 weeks after the cycle completed.

 

[Mikey-D]

Unfortunately don't have the space for a fuge otherwise would add 1. And without a fish who need them not sure it's worth it to keep a culture going.

It's not bad for the tank regardless, just not sure if culturing will take up too much space/time for something I using as a way to hopefully limit the ugly stage.

You dont hae to have a fuge to keep the culture running. With a lil diy skill you can do something like this

How to automate a phytoplankton culture

Giving that we love tech and use any excuse to reduce labour in our tanks I will give you below the diagram to automate a phytoplankton culture. There’s no need to split cultures weekly, just set it up and forget it. It’s really simple and it worked for me for two consecutive years without...

www.reef2reef.com