Live Plankton???

[MichelleB]

Anyone know where I can get live plankton. I would like to build up a nice colony for my tank.

[seamonkey2]

hmmm...... Michelle hmmmmm... are planning to set up a seperate system for the plankton???

Jose

[Texreefer]

are you looking for copepods maybe?,, you will need your own seperate rearing system for plankton... Aquarium design has starter bottles or you can just come by here and i will give you some cheato with plenty on there

[Willow]

I have plenty of live phyto if anyone needs it...

[MichelleB]

Ok so as I'm sure you can tell, I'm a newbie to the saltwater trade. What I want is to populate small live food copepods, amphipods, whatever, for my fish and coral (which I have very little of and plan to keep it that way). I believe I need a refugium for this right? Anyway whatever help is welcomed.

[Texreefer]

you do not necessarily need a refugium,, a lower flow area in your tank where you can pile live rock rubble is a good breeding ground, however, if there is any way you can add a refugium ...do so,, it can be a seperate tank plumbed in or inside your sump,, if you have no sump a simple 10 gal low flow tank plumbed into your tank will work,, fill it with some sand, live rock rubble and some macro algae and there you go... i'm sure anyone on here would help you with that.. and many would be happy to have yoiu look at there systems fo advice and inspiration,,, i can tell you anyone is welcome to come by and see my tank anytime,, just give me a call

[brewercm]

Welcome to MAAST.
Where are you located, you are more than welcome to take a look at my system also. Although still only a few months young now it's coming along. Slowly but coming along.

[MichelleB]

Thanks. Ok so I only have a 29 gal. and limited space. I have read about in-tank refugiums. Is that still as beneficial. I know the bigger the fuge the bigger the payoff but I really don't need too big of a payoff ya know. I really liked the idea of the in-tank fuge.

[Ping]

What are your intentions for the tank? What types of fish and corals? An in the tank fuge can be beneficial.

How old is your rock and how long has your tank been set up?

[MichelleB]

My tank has been set up for only two weeks. The rock I don't know about. It came out of several of the tanks at my lfs. It has to be at least, at least a month old. I'm sure that it is older than that though. I have been in that store regularly for several months and their tanks seldom change. I intend to keep a pair of seahorses in it several months from now. I know that that is a pretty brave endeavor but I study seahorses day and night. It is what I really want. I only have one coral and it came attached to my LR. I believe it is a Kenyan Tree Coral here it is

[Ping]

Here's what I would do...

Make a softball sized pile of rubble and shells in 2 corners of the tank.

I am assuming the rock is cured/cooked. Add nothing but a snails and wait. You will go through a few cycles. Diatoms, algae. Let the tank age. The longer you can wait the better. Do regular water changes during the wait.

In about 2 weeks get some Macro algea from a fuge and place it in your tank for about a week. After the week, shake it out into the tank and remove it all.

Hair algae in a Seahorse tank may not be a bad thing. It can be manually cropped by you. This is not a reef tank, so the same rules do not apply, the rock does not have to be immaculate. Water quality still needs to be excellent, however.

The longer you wait, the more pods you will have in the tank. Not enough to keep the seahorses completely fed long term, but enough to supplement their diet.

A seperate fuge would be a huge asset also.