Put your live food cultures outside!

[ichthyogeek]

It’s summertime, and that means sun, cicadas (a 17 year superswarm), and sweltering heat. All of which (ok, maybe not the cicadas) are a perfect recipe for getting increased growth of most live food cultures. If you have access to the outdoors (a patio, balcony, giant backyard, etc), and a spare 5 gallon bucket, you’re prepared to do this! I’ve been culturing out the following, which have had amazing growth results outside:

• Brine shrimp (NHBBS to juvenile in 1.5 weeks)
• Phytoplankton (lots of blooming)
• Ulva macroalgae
• saltwater acclimated mollies

Water temperatures have exceeded 86 F, but my cultures don’t really mind. The mollies are relishing the heat, but you can see them siesta-ing during the hottest parts of the day under Ulva. The Ulva photosynthesizes so much that I have to keep “burping” it to make it stop floating to the surface and drying out. And the brine shrimp! They zip from one side of the bucket to the other. If you’ve never tried to culture brine shrimp, now’s a great time to try your hand at it. No air, just a bit of phytoplankton, and watch them grow super fast.

 

[BighohoReef]

Not a bad idea! How do you prevent other pests from making a home in your cultures? Keeping an eye on this thread I'm curious to see the outcomes

 

[ichthyogeek]

Not a bad idea! How do you prevent other pests from making a home in your cultures? Keeping an eye on this thread I'm curious to see the outcomes

Well, I live in an area where the closest saltwater source (aside from my fish tank, and LFS’s) is at least a couple of hours away, no less than 6, I’d say. And most of the freshwater pests like mosquitoes and dragonflies really aren’t that fond of saltwater, so they don’t really bother. If I was in a place like, say, Hawaii, where the ocean was really close by, I’d be more worried about cross contamination.

The brine shrimp get their own bucket cultures (2.5 gallons, fed with phytofeast every day, and water changes from the molly tank every week), and the mollies/ulva/phytoplankton are all in one happy 30 gallon tank. Since mollies are grazers by nature, I’m relying on them plus the heat to run off any phytoplankton grazers. And they don’t pick at the Ukva enough to really say they’re consuming it.

 

[TriggerFinger]

I had a bucket with water change water and a rock full of bubble algae I intended to scrape off. I took it outside and forgot about it for a week or so. The rock turned so purple with coraline from the sun I guess, I was shocked. Thought about curing a new batch of liverock outside but I don’t think the high temps would work in my favor.
there is someone on here who has tanks outside, one submerged in the ground to help keep the temp down. I believe he’s had them quite a few years without issue.

 

[Futuretotm]

Still outdoors? hows it working out for you?

 

[ichthyogeek]

Culture crashed a while back due to lack of maintenance. I’d still do it again though! Right now the only thing that’s outside is a single female black molly, which I’m trying to get to spawn one last time since all of my males died on me....