Do Brine Shrimp need to be lit 24/7?

[TheSwissAquarist]

Do Brine Shrimp need to be lit 24/7?

[Dancing Matt]

In my experience no. I don't have a light nor heater and they hatch fine. It does take longer for them to hatch (especially in winter when it is colder). Play around with what works for you and brings about successful brine hatches.

Edited August 5, 2022 by Dancing Matt

[TheSwissAquarist]

Got it, thanks 😊 

 

[asondhi]

No but I've left it on by mistake before with no noticeable change in hatch rate. 

[Guppysnail]

Only notable difference in hatch rate with or without a light for me is sunlight. In front of a sunlit window they hatch much faster for me than with a light or without. 

[Flumpweesel]

I think the references that talk about lighting the hatchery are using an incandescent bulb to mainly provide a little heat boost. In my experience room temp is fine (faster in summer slower in winter but only about 12hrs in it).

Interested by what @Guppysnailsays about windowsills might have a switch around.

[Guppysnail]

On 8/7/2022 at 11:22 AM, Flumpweesel said:

I think the references that talk about lighting the hatchery are using an incandescent bulb to mainly provide a little heat boost. In my experience room temp is fine (faster in summer slower in winter but only about 12hrs in it).

Interested by what @Guppysnailsays about windowsills might have a switch around.

I only heat mine in the winter. Hubs keeps the house at a sweltering 68 degree 🥶 🤣

In the summer in front of a morning sun window enough hatch in 18 hours for a small morning snack. 24 and they are at full hatch. Just using an overhead light or on a bottom shelf  it takes 30-36 hours at my house. 

[TeeJay]

I'm seriously considering hatching my own. I only have 2 tanks that would eat them though. I guess it's a 50/50 tradeoff. The upfront cost would be more to start. But after that I could just freeze the rest for later and make my own cubes. But for as often as I would go through them not sure it would be worth it. I feel like I would have a massive frozen brine shrimp supply that I would never get used up.

[Flumpweesel]

I picked up a small hatchery on eBay but there are loads of options for DIY hatcheries I got a ton of recommendations on it in this thread

 

[Guppysnail]

On 8/7/2022 at 3:35 PM, TeeJay said:

I'm seriously considering hatching my own. I only have 2 tanks that would eat them though. I guess it's a 50/50 tradeoff. The upfront cost would be more to start. But after that I could just freeze the rest for later and make my own cubes. But for as often as I would go through them not sure it would be worth it. I feel like I would have a massive frozen brine shrimp supply that I would never get used up.

You can make small batches. It’s the same water salt ratio just add 1/4 tsp brine shrimp instead of a tablespoon. I do it all the time when I have enough frozen but want a few live for new fry. 

[TeeJay]

On 8/7/2022 at 5:11 PM, Guppysnail said:

You can make small batches. It’s the same water salt ratio just add 1/4 tsp brine shrimp instead of a tablespoon. I do it all the time when I have enough frozen but want a few live for new fry. 

Do you rinse yours after they hatch then feed and freeze them?

[Guppysnail]

On 8/7/2022 at 5:18 PM, TeeJay said:

Do you rinse yours after they hatch then feed and freeze them?

Yes. I strain and rinse using hobby strainers. Super easy. Also when I strain I can use a pippette to suck up pure bbs and deposit in silicone trays vs freezing the water so each cube is solid bbs like what you buy in the store. I can also use the larger hole size of these to rinse frozen bloodworms for my pandas and plecos. 

[Friller]

Here's an article my Father made on brine shrimp in his fishroom.

DIY Brine Shrimp Hatchers
A pipette full of freshly hatched brine shrimp is a key weapon in the fish breeder’s arsenal. While
its size (around 450 microns) makes it unsuitable as a first food for most of our Aussie natives
(most will require foods less than 100 microns for 7-10 days), this liquid gold is extremely useful in
raising robust and healthy fry once they are big enough to take it.
In this article, I’m going to share my experience using a few different low-cost brine shrimp
hatchers, all of which I have found to be at least as effective or even better than the much more
expensive commercial models I’ve used in my fishroom.

2 Litre Brine Shrimp Hatcher
The first model of brine shrimp hatcher was shown to me by ANGFA NSW life member, the late
Ian Baddock. I added one thing to his design – a cover to reduce evaporation and salt spray
settling on everything in the vicinity. I love this design because it’s simple, incredibly cheap to
make and easy to harvest as well. This is the model I keep coming back to and am currently using.

The addition of a peg helps me remember which hatchery to harvest next. This is the is the insulated model I currently use.

Making The Hatcher
First, find yourself a 2lt soft drink bottle.
Look for the wider cylindrical bottles as they give you a larger surface area and are usually just the
right diameter (about 10cm) to make a quick cover from a round takeaway container lid (12cm).
Make sure the cap on the bottle is tight fitting and does not leak.

Start by cutting the bottom off the bottle. The goal is a neat straight cut that conserves the
maximum volume in the bottle.

An easy way to mark a straight(ish) line is to
wrap a tape measure around the bottle as in
the photo, then mark a line with a black
permanent marker.

Making the cut with a good sharp pair of
scissors will probably get the best result as
blades tend to wander and you will end up with
a wonky edge. This won’t matter all that much,
but a straight edge does give a better result
when you fit a cover.

Attach a length of airline to a piece of
rigid tubing. I like to use the Pope
200mm irrigation riser as the tubing
attaches straight onto the end without
any need for modification.
Drill a hole in the centre of your
takeaway container lid and shove the
riser in – you want a tight fit. Hook this
up to your air system and it’s ready to
go. (Don’t forget to place a piece of
sacrificial timber under the lid when
you drill the hole to avoid cracking).
Once you’ve made your hatcher, you’ll need to make a simple frame to hold your hatchery. I won’t
show you how I made this, as it’s just a few offcuts quickly screwed together, painted, and secured
to the bench.
Invert your bottle and it’s ready to go.

The basic 2lt hatchery and frame

Using the Two Litre Brine Shrimp Hatcher
Fill your bottle with warm water. Tap water is fine. You want the water level about 2cm from the top
– this prevents the water from spilling out with the bubbling action.
Add a rounded tablespoon of salt – I use pool salt with good results (20kg Sunray Pool Salt is
$8.50 at Bunnings).
Add a 1/4 to 1/3 teaspoon bicarb soda to buffer.
Add your brine shrimp cysts (follow directions on packaging, but usually about 5 grams to 2lt
water).
Insert your rigid airline to the bottom of the bottle and set the airflow to a steady stream of bubbles.
For best results, you’ll need a light source like a desk lamp with a florescent globe as well. I ended
up securing a cheap ($15) floodlight fitting to my stand to keep my bench clear, but I used a desk
lamp for years.
Depending on temperature, it will take somewhere between 18-36 hours for your cysts to hatch.
You can find a reference guide online or consult the instructions that came with your particular
brand of brine shrimp.

Harvesting your Baby Brine Shrimp
Remove the rigid tubing to stop aeration.
Allow the brine shrimp nauplii to settle at the bottom of the bottle (I find about 20-30 minutes works
well for me).
Using another length of airline tubing attached to a piece of rigid tubing, siphon the shrimp from the
bottom of the bottle into a brine shrimp sieve.
Rinse into a container and feed out to your fish with a pipette or a syringe.
2 Litre Brine Shrimp Hatcher with Heat Capture Insulation
After a couple of years, I noticed a pattern of poor hatch rates during winter months in my
fishroom. I put this down to the temperature being too low, so I decided to try and capture the heat
from the light source I was using to culture my brine shrimp. A couple of small modifications were
all I needed to secure consistently good hatch rates all year round.
I insulated the frame using some coreflute I had lying around (about $10 a sheet at Bunnings). I
attached it with a few button-head screws so that I can remove it if things are too hot in summer.

 

For further insulation, I glued some polystyrene to the coreflute where the gaps in the stand
allowed it.

 

 

 

I’ve never attempted to do it, but I’m sure you could enclose it if you wanted, though I’ m not sure
one light is enough for this situation.
Hatching brine shrimp is a bit of a personal thing – everyone has their own tried and tested method
they swear by. If you’ve got a proven frugal hatching method you would like to share, let us know!
The more ideas we can share the better for everyone.
Next time, I’ll share how I made a DIY brine-shrimp sieve. This is one of my favourite pieces of
equipment in the fishroom and I’m excited to be able to share it.

[Dancing Matt]

On 8/7/2022 at 1:35 PM, TeeJay said:

I'm seriously considering hatching my own. I only have 2 tanks that would eat them though. I guess it's a 50/50 tradeoff. The upfront cost would be more to start. But after that I could just freeze the rest for later and make my own cubes. But for as often as I would go through them not sure it would be worth it. I feel like I would have a massive frozen brine shrimp supply that I would never get used up.

It is fun to watch the fish go after brine shrimp.