what is the best way to grow out fry?

once my babies hatch. i was thinkni about moving them all to a 20 gallon long to grow out. a small layer of sand on the bottom plus caves.

what else should i put in this tank ? other then a sponge filter and heater.

Bog wood or the likes, and a small internal filter (extra to your sponge filter) as they will enjoy the curent it will produce especially if you stick it on its side half way down the glass at one end of the tank.



Jon

like a tetra whisper 10 ? this type of filter or a hang on back type ?

again covered in the book

Hi,you need to cycle it before you can use it,especialy for fry.

You need plenty of bog wood or a nice big piece as already been said.Maybe a couple of good easy live plants and a rock or two(make sure they are the correct sort though).This is to give some surfaces for algae to grow on and for the fish to have some cover and something to attach to etc.The extra internals i use for good current is the stingray 15's.They have a good powerful outlet to move the water around.Only get the 15 though not the smaller ones.I use them in conjuction with fluval internals and like them also.It is up to you really,shop around and see which ones you like.

As Britlenoses has said the tank will have to have cycled before fry can be added and good filtration. When adding the fry do it as you would a new fish and slowly add water from the new tank to the container they are in.

Good water quality and regular water changes mixed with a good variety of food will also help with development.

Down2Earth wrote:

like a tetra whisper 10 ? this type of filter or a hang on back type ?

No something like an Aqua-flow 100, its full submersable has a nozzel that is adjustable (rotates). this means that if you don't fit the spray bar and stick it to the glass on its side, you can direct the nozzel down at an angle that will cause a small current. The BN fry love it and as you can see from one of the pictures I put in the breeders log.

This picture show what I mean with the positioning.


[img][/img]



Jon

i finished my stand for my 20 gallon today. put in the fine rocks, heater and filter from the 10 gallon. the tank is ready for the baby BN now. this tank has about 8 guppies in it as we speak. so i know the tank is cycled and will be fine once the babies hatch out. i wont be moving the babies till 8 days after they were laid.

this gives them plenty of time to become wigglers and almost ready to get the boot from dad.

Have you done any water tests to confirm that the tank has cycled If you add your fry and there is a water quality problem then it could be fatal to them.

will be fatal. see the thread on fry spirals

i looked today for the pump. no dice. but i did find a power head that will fit perfect on my small sponge filter. so i think im going to buy this and add a little movement to the water that way.

before i got to read the 2 new posts. i already found this screen tank type thing. that will be put inside my tank. its ment for guppies i think. but its big enough that i can put the males cave in. and leave him in it till the fry come out. this will also allow him to stay in the main tank and not worry about killing them from an uncycled tank or something stupid.

i dont plan to use this every time. but i do plan to use it this time just cus i dont know if the 20L will be ok for them to live in.

based on my past with jump starting the tank with a cycled filter. is fine for full grown fish. but i dont want to risk it with babies or fry.

but the stand was built this weekend and i got a few blisters to show for it. it holds 2x 20 gallon long tanks. both of these will house guppies till i am ready to use them for plecos. then the guppies will be moved or can stay there depends on what kind of feed back i get from my other post.

im also attempting to breed guppies in these tanks. we will see how that goes.

A tank divider is a great idea!

this tank divider has suction cups for it. so i plan to put it right on the front of the tank. in direct flow of the water. so they get plenty of fresh water from the sump. this water has a slow current but its still a current so im not worried about it being too fast for them.

I agree, I like the tank divider idea - might just have to implement that myself in my grow out tank-plus I like the current for the fry idea-it mimics the natural water ways or currents they would have evolved to "fight against" in the wild and would mean good exercise for them and more eating- speeding up their metabolisms!

Hi,is it a divider or is it a square net like a fry saver?

when is a good time to remove the male from the fry?

its a square net type thing. its ment for guppie fry.

I thought you was describing a fry saver.I think the other posters think it is a tank divider.I wouldn't put a male and his cave in a fry saver if i was you.I think he will get very stressed out and it is too small.Some people put eggs in a fry saver with plenty of air flow onto them but only if they had no other choice usualy.Best thing is to leave the dad with the eggs and let him do his job but not in a fry saver.

well my problem is that the tank the male is in has a sump and over flow box. i dont know if the babies will be sucked into it. the fry i ordered a few months ago were just big enough not to worry about. since i modified the box so it has alot of 1/8 holes in it for the water to drain into the box. instead of the slots cut into the very top of it.

i cannot turn the sump off since this is the only filter for the tank at the moment.

i did a water check on the 20L tank i had set up for the breeding tank. but its only been running for about 5 days. the filter is cycled from my main tank. there is about 8 guppy adults in the tank now + 10 babies i found today in side the fry saver.


so should i put the male and the fry into the 20L or risk them gettin sucked into the sump ?

If you have put a cycled filter into the tank then it should be fine to use but test it and see what the results are first.Is there some bog wood in the tank for them?

Have the eggs hatched yet and is it a 20 litre or a 20 gallon tank?

its a 20 gallon long. the water is fine. been testing it for 2-3 days now. seems fine to me. so i am going to put the cave with the male still inside into this tank. since it was a tank ment for him in the first place. ill put the female in there later.

there is no bog wood though... i was thinkin about breaking the only piece i have into 2-3 smaller pieces. i cant afford a new piece right now.

i was able to break the bogwood into a smaller piece. put this small piece and cave with the pair into the 20g long. they should be better off then with the angel fish.

Have the eggs hatched yet ? Keep a very close check on the water.

the eggs have hatched and i think they will be booted out of the cave in the next 1-2 days. they look like small transparent plecos. but they have the egg yoke still. so they should stay in there for a few more days..


this is all based on what i have read from forums and blogs from people. i have no real experience till now.

Well they take about 4 days to hatch and then will stay in the cave with dad for another 7 to 10 days.