phyto setup

K

Kat

I am determined to get some DARK phytoplankton like Marc is able to grow! My 2 whimpy airpumps just weren't doing a good enough job, so I dug out my Sweetwater linear air pump & supplies. Made a manifold & now have each airline easily adjusted & more than enough air pressure. Keeping my fingers crossed that I can get back to having some dark green phyto.
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We feel your pain, Kat! Ours isn't close in color to Marc's.

Hopefully Marc and others will chime in and others (like TJay and I) can learn since we are new to this whole culturing thing.

donna
 
It really comes down the recipe, and the length of time you wait. I brought a few bottles (Donna got one) to the meeting, and it really is dark.

Perhaps you are harvesting too soon. The one thing about Recipe #2 that I use is that it simply won't crash. Heck, I wish it would just once, so I could get a picture of it to add to my page. I get a lot of emails asking what crashed phyto looks like.

You look like you're ready to open up a business. :lol: How much was that air pump? I've heard Sweetwater pumps are high.
 
I'll look up your recipes again & see what I need to change. Donna showed me the bottle you gave her & I've been able to culture it that dark a few times before but not consistently. I've been having a lot of crashes lately, so that is why I've got so many bottles set up hoping that I'll at least get a few that are good :roll: I think the bad Kent salt was part of the problem. I've also stopped using the baking soda to see if it makes a difference. Part of the bottles are tap water instead of RO/DI, & they are turning a nice green. Experimenting with what will work for me :D

I had bought the Sweetwater pump a few years back with the parts to make the manifold. I was going to run airstones in my ponds instead of having water pumps in them. Got lazy & ended up just keeping the water pumps running. Packed away the Sweetwater. If I recall right I paid around $400 for the pump & supplies :shock: :shock: Glad I can finally get some use out of it :wink:
 
Cool setup! One thing though - Are there check-valves on all those airlines? It's hard to tell in the picture...

I'd hate for the power to go out, and all your phyto get siphoned out into your manifold!
 
Brian--I've turned the power off to see if a siphon starts & haven't had that issue yet. As soon as I get it the way I want it, I'll probably be moving the pump & manifold up to run across the top front of the stand so it is elevated above.

Marc--do you declorinate the tap water before adding salt?

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Thanks,
I'm gonna place an order for some parts.

The corals loved the bottle you made so I'm gonna need to start making my own.

I hope you don't mind if I ask a few questions along the way. :)
 
Hey where can I buy the rigid tubing that you place in the two liter bottle? I have been feeding my tank the 'Kents Phytoplex' and would like to start making my own cultures.

Couple of dumb questions:

1) Since I have about 4 ounces left, could I culture the Kent's Phytoplex?
2) has anyone ever tried culturing and exisitng product such as this?

Todd
 
I do not believe that Kents is live. You would need to call them and find out. I recently had luck starting a culture with DT but it was tough going. Your best bet it to use a culture from one of the members.
 
Great setup. Good luck.

Based on all I have read, I would really recommend mounting the air manifold above the bottles. Even though no siphon started when you tested a power-failure, it doesn't guarantee that a siphon won't happen when an unplanned one happens. [/b]
 
I just received some phyto culture form West Mariculture and the directions call for adding a very small amount of unscented bleach to sterilize the water and bottle and using a dechlorinator to get rid of the bleach. Has anyone heard of this? They are very good to deal with and have the best live sand on Ebay and I have purchased several other things from them that were excellent. Just curious.
 
I can't find the FAQ on phyto so.

What eats phyto ?

What happens to the uneaten phyto ?

How longs does it keep ?
 
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