freezing BBS

[arpanlib]

hi all,
i just wanted to know if anybody here has tried to store or freeze the BBS for the fry.
i have some capsulated eggs, that i have not used for 2 years now as i have switched to decap eggs. so i was wondering to hatch them all and freeze them and use them for the discus fry in emergency, if any. ???

now, if i hatch them all, how do i store them??? i mean in what do i store them??? do i mix the BBS in gelatin and freeze it, do i freeze them directly in fresh RO water, or what should i do???
i want to store them in such a way, that they dont lose their nutritional values and can feed them right away.
if you thinking of telling me to buy the frozen BBS from the market..........i am sorry firends, am in india and here we have to do everything ourselves!!!

any advise would be appreciated.

thanx a ton.

arpanlib

[arpanlib]

hi all,
was going through the site of SFBB and saw sodium alginate as a binding agent instead of gelatin.
anybody tried this and is sodium alginate easily available??

also please tell me how to use it.

thanx for the help.

arpanlib

[brewmaster15]

Hi Arpan,

I do it all the time. hatch them, and then freeze within the first few 6 hours or so to maintain nutrition. What I do is hatch them and then transfer them to a paper coffee filter and Rinse several times with Ro water., Then transfer them to a Zip lock bag,in very little RO water.

freezing them in salt water should work too, but there are bacterials that mulitply in during the hatching process that I like to remove. Onec in Zip lock bag I press flat so that its about .5 cm-1cm thick , and freeze. Then when I need it break of a piece and thaw.

Works great.I tried the commercial preps and they are mostly pieces and foul the water. these remain in tact and do not.

hth,
al

[arpanlib]

hi,
how can i make a layer of 1 cm with little RO water.
and what is the ration of BBS in that water. there should be many to feed the fry. isnt it???
and when i put the ice cube in the water, wont the fry get hurt with the cooler water at a given point as they will peck on it, as the tank temp and the cube temp will be different.
please advise.

arpanlib

[brewmaster15]

Hi Arpan,
If you take the BBS and pour them thru a paper strainer, commonly used to make coffee, you'll get a consistency that is paste/pudding like consistency. scoop this out and put into the zip lock bag. Then add as much water as you need to to get the BBS to the consistency you feel comfortable with for feedings. Then when its feeding time.. Just break of a small piece, and thaw in tank water and feed.

HTH,
al

[arpanlib]

hi,
thanx for the reply............ will try it out and let you know

[arpanlib]

hey al,
just wanted to know how to decapsulate the BS eggs. have done it a lot a times with chlorine bleach, but the hatch rate reduces.......
please explain how u do it and do you get good results???

arpanlib

[Dennis_Hardenburge]

Arpanlib
I am lazy, I only feed live baby brine shrimp to fry for a couple days, then I hatch a large batch and rinse them using a brine shrimp net and put in sandwich baggies and freeze. When I feed I break a small piece off and put in a small glass with aquarium water for a few minutes to thaw, then dump in the tank.
I agree with you, I don't feel fish should eat frozen food, be it fry or adults.
I have never decapsulated eggs so can't help there.
Dennis

[Rod]

I use Dennis's method exactly, i feel it's an excellent idea to allways have frozen bbs on hand just in case of a failure in the bbs hatchery and recommend it to every breeder.

Rod

[arpanlib]

thanx all for the reply..........

arpanlib

[brewmaster15]

Just to clarify this....
Just break of a small piece, and thaw in tank water and feed.


means break off a piece, and thaw in water, then add to the tank :) I'm not saying to put it frozen in the tank, though re-reading it , it might seem like that! I some tiems tipe toofast ;) ;D
-al

[arpanlib]

i understand that ............ al.

thanx for the help anyways........

any comments on decapsulating the eggs???

arpanlib

[Jason]

Arpan,

I use the bleach neutralized with vinegar method, I've found it increases the hatch rate, perhaps you are leaving the eggs in the chlorine bath too long??

try rinsing and neutralizing the eggs as soon as the mojority turned orangey in colour.

[arpanlib]

hi,
thanx for the reply.

will try it soon and will surely tell you the results........ yes may be i was doing something wrong.

arpanlib

[arpanlib]

hi all,
i tried as jason said. took out all the eggs as soon as the majority turned orange. it took about 2 minutes for them to turn orange. they did not turn white ???
washed them in fresh water for a long time. and left it for hatching. it has been almost 9 hours and there is no sign of the eggs hatching. as i turn off the aeration, the eggs settle on the bottom. please advise what to do.

hey jason,
let me know what are the visible physical effects, that i can know that the eggs have been left in the bleach bath for a long time??? do they change colour or something like that??? do let me know.

thanx for the help all.

arpanlib

[brewmaster15]

Hi arpanlib,
have you seen this article before? It may help...
http://www.brineshrimpdirect.com/brineshrimpfaq.html#hatching

HTH,
al

[arpanlib]

hi al,
thanx for the reply.
yes i went through the site, but it doesnot asnwers my questions!!!

let me know what are the visible physical effects, that i can know that the eggs have been left in the bleach bath for a long time??? do they change colour or something like that???

how does one know that the eggs have been spioled before hatching (do they float, or settle at the bottom or something else), as these eggs are 1 year or more old and was in a plastic container in the open, be it summers or winters.

thanx for the help.

arpanlib

[Jason]

ok,

not sure exactly what your asking,

when i de-capsulate I use good eggs that I just purchased and know they hatch.

after I've hydrated the eggs (they sink) I'll add some bleach maybe 4ml to a 1l container containing the eggs and water, gently stir until they are dark-light orange in colour(not brown or white)

rince, neutralize, then aadd to hatching water strong light, strong air, 30c, they should start hatching within 10 hours.

hth

[arpanlib]

hi jason,
thanx for the reply.

i just wanna know if the eggs that i have at the moment are bad or not ???

the eggs were bought 1.5 years ago and after opening, they were put in a plastic container and closed tightly and left under the aquarium table. (the summers here go upto 40 degree celcius, and winters as low as 4 degree celcius)

i had no problems of hatching and seperating till july 2002, but after many months i tried to decapsulate them. they turned orange but did not hatch.
the water paras are with aeration.
salinity : 1.023
ph 8.6
temp 25 degree celcius.

it has been 48 hours and the eggs have not hatched and the capsulated are also not hatching. i really dont know what has gone wrong and where.

the eggs appear o.k., and are free flowing and not sticking with one another. in water, the capsulated and decapsulated go and settle at the bottom, and with aeration they are suspended in water, but not hatching still.

i hope jason that you get the picture now???

please help.

thanx a ton.

arpanlib :-[

[Jason]

they are most likely not viable now, next time store them in a cool dry place-like the refridgerater.

[arpanlib]

isnt the refrigerator a moistured place???

or i pack them in zip lock bags and then store them ???

arpanlib

[Jason]

you got it ;)

fyi if your eggs have gone bad just de-cap and feed directly or add them too your food mixtures.