Brine shrimp hatchery question.

[Lefty469]

I like the design of the Ziss hatchery, but it just seems huge for my application.  I have currently 2 pair of GBR that I am hoping to breed.  I searched the forum and faq.  I'd really like more information on how much to BBS to feed, and how often.  I'm thinking maybe I should get the San Francisco hatchery kit (or two) and put 20 ounce bottle(s), sort of a micro brewery setup, but I'd like to see what others have to say.

So, how many brine shrimp are you making for a small breeding application, or are to pair of GBR large enough to make use of the Ziss hatchery?

[Frank]

I'm using one for 13 ember tetras, 11 green neon rasboras, and 2 scarlet badis.

250ml water, 2.25tsp aquarium salt, a pinch of baking soda, and 0.25tsp brine shrimp eggs. It lasts through three feedings in one day.

Yeah it's much bigger than I need, but it's simple and convenient.

[KBOzzie59]

You can do any size batch in the ziss.

I would feed/let them see BBS every day, a small amount twice a day.

[anewbie]

If you are hatching bbs for frys  I would recommend this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079C6BN2B

 

It has serveral advantages - you don't have to sep the bbs from the eggs; it produce plenty of bbs for a set of frys from one or two parents; it is easy to use. The thing is that the ziss unit looks much larger and designed for raising adult brine shrimp (which are too large for the frys) also you have to sep the shrimp from the eggs which mean you have to strain them.

[Daniel]

I vote for the Ziss.

[anewbie]

36 minutes ago, Daniel said:

I vote for the Ziss.

It isn't really a vote - if you have used both then you should share your experience... as to why one works better than the other.

[Frank]

9 hours ago, anewbie said:

If you are hatching bbs for frys  I would recommend this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079C6BN2B

 

It has serveral advantages - you don't have to sep the bbs from the eggs; it produce plenty of bbs for a set of frys from one or two parents; it is easy to use. The thing is that the ziss unit looks much larger and designed for raising adult brine shrimp (which are too large for the frys) also you have to sep the shrimp from the eggs which mean you have to strain them.

That looks pretty cool! If they get more in, I might have to try one.

Edited April 12, 2021 by Frank

[Bru]

I have enjoyed the Ziss hatchery so far, I definitely make more brine shrimp than I need even though I have a bunch of tanks. I use a pipette to feed each tank some live baby brine then I take the rest and freeze them in mini ice cube trays with lids. I'll have several days worth of frozen to continue conditioning fish to breed or feeding fry. If you can feed the pair live/frozen at least once or twice a day you'll get them conditioned in no time. The fry on the other hand should be eating several times a day after they're free swimming, I start out feeding microworms and powdered foods. I haven't bred GBRs so I'm not sure if they can take the baby brine right away.

That being said, you could probably get away with doing a smaller setup. I do like the quality build of the Ziss hatchery though and everything is designed to make hatching/harvesting easy for the most part. I think Cory commented on how the stand is not all that useful when it comes to harvesting, so I think most people use the handle to hang the hatchery off a fishtank or something else. My only other small inconvenience is that my heaters don't fit through the top, so I have to pull the cord through the hole in the lid so the heater is in the hatchery. I'd like to be able to more easily separate the heater from the hatchery. (I probably don't even need a heater at my room temperature)

[Hobbit]

( @anewbie — @Daniel was just using a turn of phrase. He knows it’s not actually a vote. 👍)

I use the hatchery kit that the coop sells: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/products/brine-shrimp-hatchery-kit?vec=eyJ2clRwIjoiRk9SVU1fUkVDT01NRU5EQVRJT05TIn0=

I use a 1 l bottle instead of the recommended 2 l and it works great for small batches. I’m sure the ziss hatchery is sturdier—I’ve been using the hatchery kit for going on six months, and I’ve had to re-glue the air hose nub on the bottom as well as wrap it in electrical tape to make it thick enough to seal tightly with the air hose. But I don’t mind the DIY stuff. I don’t use a heater or anything, just an LED light bulb. My house stays around 70-72.

You can pretty much hatch any amount of shrimp in any size container by just adding fewer eggs. So it’s largely a question of what system you prefer.

[Daniel]

5 hours ago, anewbie said:

It isn't really a vote - if you have used both then you should share your experience... as to why one works better than the other.

Yes, I should say more. Many years ago I tried a no aeration method of hatching baby brine shrimp. At best I was able to achieve an 80% hatch rate and most of the time even less. Having each batch be 20 - 40% unhatched eggs was both time consuming and I didn't want my baby fish to consume unhatched brine shrimp eggs of which some always remained.

Then I graduated to a suspended 2L Coke bottle with an airstone and got much better results.

Eventually I found the system I currently use which consists of 3 cones in which I start a small batch of brine shrimp eggs every 12 hours.

Below is the very first video (speaking of anniversaries🙂) I ever posted to the forum back in July of last year:

It takes me about 2 1/2 minutes in the morning and about minutes 2 1/2 minutes in the evening to setup a fresh cone. What I get are easy to harvest (see video) just hatched baby brine shrimp at the peak of the their nutritional value when they are still mostly egg yolk. I can make batches off any size large or small and I never, ever get any unhatched eggs in what I feed my baby fish.

That is why I voted for the Ziss. I didn't care for the no aeration method but the Ziss is the most similar to what I currently do and is what I recommend.

[Kirsten]

5 minutes ago, Daniel said:

Yes, I should say more. Many years ago I tried a no aeration method of hatching baby brine shrimp. At best I was able to achieve an 80% hatch rate and most of the time even less. Having each batch be 20 - 40% unhatched eggs was both time consuming and I didn't want my baby fish to consume unhatched brine shrimp eggs of which some always remained.

Then I graduated to a suspended 2L Coke bottle with an airstone and got much better results.

Eventually I found the system I currently use which consists of 3 cones in which I start a small batch of brine shrimp eggs every 12 hours.

Below is the very first video (speaking of anniversaries🙂) I ever posted to the forum back in July of last year:

It takes me about 2 1/2 minutes in the morning and about minutes 2 1/2 minutes in the evening to setup a fresh cone. What I get are easy to harvest (see video) just hatched baby brine shrimp at the peak of the their nutritional value when they are still mostly egg yolk. I can make batches off any size large or small and I never, ever get any unhatched eggs in what I feed my baby fish.

That is why I voted for the Ziss. I didn't care for the no aeration method but the Ziss is the most similar to what I currently do and is what I recommend.

This isn't the first time I've seen the 3-cone rack and I gotta say it looks so good. Like I could hang it on a wall near the fish tanks and people would just think it's an unusual art piece. Did you buy it like that or make it?

[Daniel]

5 minutes ago, Kirsten said:

This isn't the first time I've seen the 3-cone rack and I gotta say it looks so good. Like I could hang it on a wall near the fish tanks and people would just think it's an unusual art piece. Did you buy it like that or make it?

I bought the cones 20 years ago from a science supply house. The cones are the biggest drawback with my system as they can be pricey. But the rest of it I made. The wood is a piece of teak with big holes drilled in it and then securely mounted to the wall. It has been there 17 years with no evidence of coming loose yet.🙂

[anewbie]

1 hour ago, Daniel said:

Yes, I should say more. Many years ago I tried a no aeration method of hatching baby brine shrimp. At best I was able to achieve an 80% hatch rate and most of the time even less. Having each batch be 20 - 40% unhatched eggs was both time consuming and I didn't want my baby fish to consume unhatched brine shrimp eggs of which some always remained.

Then I graduated to a suspended 2L Coke bottle with an airstone and got much better results.

Eventually I found the system I currently use which consists of 3 cones in which I start a small batch of brine shrimp eggs every 12 hours.

Below is the very first video (speaking of anniversaries🙂) I ever posted to the forum back in July of last year:

It takes me about 2 1/2 minutes in the morning and about minutes 2 1/2 minutes in the evening to setup a fresh cone. What I get are easy to harvest (see video) just hatched baby brine shrimp at the peak of the their nutritional value when they are still mostly egg yolk. I can make batches off any size large or small and I never, ever get any unhatched eggs in what I feed my baby fish.

That is why I voted for the Ziss. I didn't care for the no aeration method but the Ziss is the most similar to what I currently do and is what I recommend.

Thank you for your comments. I can't give a hatch rate of the dish i linked but i can say that egg shell are not an issue because the bbs swim into the strainer - also a tiny pinch of eggs (about 1/6 of the scoup they provide) will produce more than enough bbs for 50 angel frys for the useful life (approx 2 1/2 days) of the bbs. Naturally if you put the bbs in the cooler it will last longer. The eggs include with the dish would likely last a year but of course it depends what you are feeding and how often - i was just using it to raise angel frys. The only advantage I see with the ziss is if you want to mass hatch bbs - not sure how long the bbs last in the cooler but i prefer to use fresh ones myself. 

[Paul]

I only do 1/2 batches in the Ziss. 1 tablespn salt, a pinch of Baking Soda and 1 teaspoon of BBS eggs. It feeds 8 tanks. 

[Lefty469]

Thank you for all of the replies.  I like the cone setup too, and I hadn't even thought of a science or medical store until I read that.  I currently have a thing I bought from Amazon, but the bottom, although tapered, is black, so it's tough to get the concentration of BBS to the bottom.  I'm using about 3 cups of water, 3 teaspoons of salt and 1/4 tsp of eggs.

I did buy a really nice light that arrived today, and it helped a lot to get them at least nearer the bottom.  The clamp and light seem very sturdy.

Clamp light

Edited April 15, 2021 by Lefty469