diy brine shrimp hatchery

[jello]

wife has decided she wants to start hatching and growing her own brine shrimp for our saltwater tanks. we have a 5gal that they will be going into but need to know how we should go about hatching the eggs. the 5gal will be saltwater so should the water in the hatchery be salty as well? i have air pump, air stones, and tubing, what else should i need? thanks in advance for all your help.

[Haiven]

Jello, you'll need a container (pickle jar, mason jar, etc) and a light.

The hatch formula is 1 liter of water, 1 Tbsp rock salt and 1 tsp brine shrimp eggs.

Put the water, salt and brine shrimp eggs in the container with the airstone. Put the light right up against the container so that it warms the water to about 85 degrees. (You can use a small heater instead, but I prefer the light). Bubble gently. They should hatch in 24-36 hours. (You can tell because the water gets darker).

Stop the bubbling and aim the light at the very bottom of the jar. The empty shells will drift to the top and the live babies will swim to the light. Siphon the babies out.

[AllKindsOfFishIn&Out]

OK, this probably sounds like a silly question but, do you buy the brine shrimp eggs at Pets Mart or what?

[WRabbit]

OK, this probably sounds like a silly question but, do you buy the brine shrimp eggs at Pets Mart or what?

San Francisco Bay brine eggs sold by LFS have very low hatch rates. Your best bet is to buy from a place like Brine Shrimp Direct (http://www.brineshrimpdirect.com/) or Foster and Smith Aquatics (http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/). Both have better quality eggs than SFB brand.

[yim11]

I use a 2 liter bottle upside down with air line adapter in the cap. 1 teaspoon bs eggs to 2 tablespoons of salt (I use sea salt mix for pH stability any salt will work), ready in 24 hrs. Turn off air, put a light at bottom of container, wait about 15 min, then use a turkey baster to pull em out or siphon w/hose, drain from bottom, etc. Some people rinse them (use a coffee filter or BS net), some don't.

Get the eggs at a place like brineshrimpdirect.com or other reputable seller.

I have an extra 2L bottle setup if you need it.

HTHs and GL,
-jim

[WRabbit]

I made my hatchery out of an Ocean Spray Bottle. I make 1.5 quarts each batch (3/4 teaspoon eggs). I use a Hydrometer to maintain a salinity of 25-26ppt (SG of 1.019). Air is used to keep the mixture in constant motion. Eggs hatch in 24-30 hours. After turning off the air for 5-10 minutes I strain via the air hose into a brine shrimp net lined with a coffee filter. I use 2 of these setups if need arises.

I started with the common San Francisco Bay Brand found in LFS, but changed to BrineShrimpDirect (http://www.brineshrimpdirect.com/) and will never go back. Much more bang for your buck.

http://www.dfwfishbox.com/forums/production/picture.php?albumid=718&pictureid=7397

[AllKindsOfFishIn&Out]

Thanks everybody for the info on where to buy the brine shrimp eggs and how to make the hatchery!

[jello]

here is what i did, it worked pretty well for the first batch, had a great hatch rate. but they keep getting stuck under a crease in the bottle. also not sure if i have enough or too much air.
http://i744.photobucket.com/albums/xx81/jello_pic/diy%20stuff/100_0986.jpg
this is the tank they will be grown out in.
http://i744.photobucket.com/albums/xx81/jello_pic/diy%20stuff/100_0985.jpg

[greeneyed]

Are you having luck with them surviving for growout?
What are you feeding them?
I like this idea!

[jello]

not sure on the growouts, first batch were put in the 5gal yesterday. feeding phytoplankton, thats what i was told to feed.

[hungdang]

San Francisco Bay brine eggs sold by LFS have very low hatch rates. Your best bet is to buy from a place like Brine Shrimp Direct (http://www.brineshrimpdirect.com/) or Foster and Smith Aquatics (http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/). Both have better quality eggs than SFB brand.
so we need to order online ! any where around here that we can buy it ?

[jello]

ok update. i changed the bottle over to a smooth 2 liter because they kept getting caught in the ridges and lips of the gatorade bottle.

i am using the san francisco bay brine shrimp eggs and am actually getting AMAZING hatch rates, very pleased with these eggs. using a air pump that is probably good for up to 5gal tanks and no air stone. i use straight saltwater from my saltwater tanks.

gave up on trying to grow them out though. will just be hatching and target feeding.

[greeneyed]

Dang, I was hoping you would have success growing out. This is something I would love to do as well.

[jello]

ya, the bigger ones i had were just dieing off. and it looked like the babies were too. so now we just hatch and feed, more nutritious that way anyways.