36 replies to this topic

[bigjohnnofish]

2 days later you had fry then that would mean they spawned without the dark bottom.

prob about 7-10 days before hand....

[krellious]

Refrase... fry was ment to be eggs. And they where not there when i had a white foam colored base.

[waxy]

Just concidence there with the spawning Id say. I reckon they spawn no matter what substrate/tank bottom you have. The point is trying to get maximum survival rates with your fry. I personally use glass bottoms with sponge filters which works well for me after a bit of trial and error. Have had gravel in the past and in display tanks which also works well for me. I also prefer cannister filters but only use them in the larger tanks.
Another tip is to put a pot/container of gravel with plants in your glass bottom tank. That way you get the benefit of bacteria in the gravel while still having the ease of syphoning the waste out of your tank during a water change.

[Riggers]

Like I've been told by a catfish master, BN will breed in a glass of water! I'm using natural gravel an UG filter and a breeding cave..............spawns to the max!!
I think they don't really care as long as there is a nice cave to boof in lol

Cheers
Nick

[krellious]

Also depends on what you like the look of. I breed them so the catfish tanks are bare bottom. I do also have some in a 5ft wit more diplay intention, that has white 'sydney' sand. a 6cm male did the deed wth a 12cm female. The general feel here is bare or substrate work fine so ultimetly it is all up to what you like and what you find easier to clean.

[Riggers]

That's it mate I think if your water quality is good they'll start some lovin no matter what setup you have.

Happy spawning
Nick

[bigjohnnofish]

Like I've been told by a catfish master, BN will breed in a glass of water! I'm using natural gravel an UG filter and a breeding cave..............spawns to the max!!
I think they don't really care as long as there is a nice cave to boof in lol

LMAO .... havent heard the boof term in a long while!!!!....

like you said they will breed anywhere... but raising large numbers of fry in a glass bottom tank - just dosent work..... i have tried many times before..... but the little tackers are vulnerable to any sort of ammonia buildup... and as we all know it accumulates in the lowest place in your tank first....

i have had spawns with around a 100 fry hatching and have had the same number of fry grow up to 3-4cm... without any losses... so consistantly now i will never use bare bottoms with b/n fry....

[Gareth]

After being to bigjohnno's house and seeing the master in action, he had one of his thousands of tanks with a thick layer of gravel and U/G filter and the BN's looked healthy and happy, then he showed me a tank with bare bottom and the BN's looked like crap, faded colours and not very lively, well compared to the ones in the gravel bottoms...

I think some ppl need to understand that yes u may have had success with different approaches (Bare bottom/Gravel), but after seeing Big Johnno's set up and the way he does his breeding, he knows what he is talking about....
He breed's plecos worth more than some set-ups ppl have alone...

BZ to u mate, I think the ppl that have seen what u have envy ur success....

Gareth

[Bickley]

Agreed I could only dream of having a setup half as good as big johnnos and that's not to mention the knowlege and experience lol if johnno gives you advice you could only gain from it.. me and Riggertron sure have cheers johnno

[bigjohnnofish]

thanks guys... always like to share success with fellow fish enthusiasts.....

im open to new ideas by all means - im still learning everyday... watch and observe fish and their behaviour - like an instruction manual just written in a different language you need to decypher!!!

[sandgroper]

Good advise here for everyone, your never too old to learn something new. cheers steve

[Cam85]

Where would the best place to get an UGF from? What brand do most people use if it makes a difference. As i have an empty 2 foot tank that i would like to try breeding BNs in.

Edited by Cam85, 05 November 2011 - 12:54 PM.

[Bowdy]

Most if not all sponsors carry them mate. Sign up and become a PCS member and also get 10% off. Well worth it.
Cheers.

[Cam85]

Cool thanks for that. yeah im looking at becoming a member.

[tommo]

i had bare bottom breeding tank too many babies to count and its really clear when a cleans needed
id prefer that


tom

[bigjohnnofish]

i had bare bottom breeding tank too many babies to count and its really clear when a cleans needed
id prefer that


tom

what people dont understand is that bare bottoms with large numbers of fish creating a lot of poop are a time bomb waiting to go off for little fry.... ammonia = fish poop and wee.... ammonia is the number one killer of fish world wide.... and fry are the most vulnerable... and b/n prob the most vulnerable of any fry as they feed most of the time on the bottom of the tank... and the bottom of the tank is where all the poop and wee ends up and breaks down into ammonia.... sounds like a broken record doesnt it..... not to mention some of the harmful algae and slime that can grow on glass bottom tanks.... yes bigger b/n may not be affected by this but fry can die very quickly and in large numbers too...

how many can say they had 100 eggs and raised all the fry without any deaths in a glass bottom tank ??? and then do it consistantly ???

last time i post in this thread theres plenty of info in it so go back and read it all through

[Riggers]

I've never had great success growing out BN fry in bare bottom tanks but the success rate greatly increased when I added substrate


As johnno said it's a learning experience and the day I know everything about fish is the day I'll stop keeping them, so I guess I'll keep fish forever!!

Cheers
Rigs