Decap eggs didn't sink immediately...

[chkhoo]

Hi everyone ,

I have tried decapsulating brine shrimp eggs last weekend and not sure if it was a success or not. After the bleaching and neutralizing with vinegar (not to forget the washing part too!), I add the decap eggs into the brine solution. But it didn't sink initially. After 3-4 hours, the eggs finally sink.
So, would like to know if its suppose to be this way or suppose to sink immediately? Any reason why it didn't sink immediately?
Any valuable advice is much appreciated. Cheers!!

Regards,
Nick

[gweesm1]

Hi Nick,

I guess you have not successfully decap the BS eggs. Decap eggs should sink almost immediately. Perhaps you had not left the BS eggs in the bleach solution long enough.

But anyway the eggs will still hatch.

Regards,

[chkhoo]

Hi gweesm1,

Thanks for your reply. Appreciate the advice!
If that's the case, should I used more bleach?
In order for me to know if the egg would sinks or not during the bleaching process, should i turn off the pump and see if it sinks?
Normally how long does it take for my eggs (since the decap eggs did not sink immediately after soaking them in brine solution)?
Thanks in advance!!!

Regards,
Nicholas

[chkhoo]

Another question....if I wish to use decap eggs straight away, how long do I need to soak them in the brine solution? I read a couple of articles online, but wasn't mentioned.
Thanks.

Regards,
Nicholas

[stormhawk]

Nick, if the BS eggs are not fully hydrated enough, they won't sink as quickly. Just to add, eggs that fully decap should be orange in colour.
Before bleaching the eggs should be soaked beforehand in normal tap water for some time before bleaching begins. This step is necessary for the eggs to sink.

Another tip, leave the decap eggs you made floating in the hatchery before you start bubbling the water. Give them about 30 mins before you start bubbling the water. I did this with my normal BS eggs and got about 95% hatch. The eggs gave out this pinkish BBS which was different from what I usually see. So far my fish have gotten fat on regular feedings from the pink BBS. If i'm not wrong, Ronnie said the eggs were from some other source. Not a bad hatch rate if I say so myself. :wink:

[gweesm1]

Hi gweesm1,

If that's the case, should I used more bleach?

The amount of bleach used will affects its timing, the more you use, the faster it is, however this will also means you have no room for delay or mistakes. I usually used about 150~200ml of bleach with 1 liter of tap water.

In order for me to know if the egg would sinks or not during the bleaching process, should i turn off the pump and see if it sinks?

Good idea!

Normally how long does it take for my eggs (since the decap eggs did not sink immediately after soaking them in brine solution)?

I don’t understand this question, do you mean how long does it take for eggs to be decap? If this is your question, it is answered above. Time is dependences on the amount of bleach used.

I hope this help.

[gweesm1]

Stormhawk,

if the BS eggs are not fully hydrated enough, they won't sink as quickly.

If BS eggs are decap, be it hydrated or not, it will sink. It is not the water that causes the eggs to sink. The shell of BS eggs cause it to float, so when you remove the shell, it stinks.

Remember all the shell floats after the BS hatch?? That is how you get rid of the shell when you are not using decap eggs.

Regards,

[chkhoo]

Hi gweesm1,

Sorry for the last question. It was incomplete. What I mean was how long do I have to soak the decap eggs in brine solution(to de-hydrate them) if I need to hatch them right away?

And since my eggs were not decap fully as it didn't sink immediately when I add into the brine solution, how long does it take for it to hatch?
Hope this is not confusing. Cheers!

[chkhoo]

Stormhawk,

Thanks for the tip. Guys, I find it hard to get rid of the bleach smell. I sniff on the brine shrimp and noticed that there's a very faint bleach odor. Is that okie? Or should I just allow it to go through the tap water till there's no odour?
Sorry for all the questions. I am trying my best to achieve this coz I need the BBS soon. Cheers!

[gweesm1]

Sorry for the last question. It was incomplete. What I mean was how long do I have to soak the decap eggs in brine solution(to de-hydrate them) if I need to hatch them right away?

The purpose of dehydrating the eggs are to stop the hatching, once the water is pulled out from the eggs, the hatching mechanism stops. If you need to hatch them right away, you don’t have to go dehydrate the eggs.

And since my eggs were not decap fully as it didn't sink immediately when I add into the brine solution, how long does it take for it to hatch?

It will be faster than the normal BS eggs as the shell are thinned by the bleach though it is not completely removed, but not as fast as the decaped eggs. Specific timing, I have no idea. It also depends on the strain of BS eggs you have. The current BS eggs (from China) I use, hatch in 16 hours without decap.

I notice that too, it seems almost impossible to get rid of the smell, but anyway it doesn’t harm anything.

Regards,

[gweesm1]

Give them about 30 mins before you start bubbling the water. I did this with my normal BS eggs and got about 95% hatch.

You can bubble immediately, but with just water and not Brine water. The rational of this is to allow water to get into the BS eggs, so be it bubbling or not, it doesn’t make much difference. Fresh water enter the eggs more easily as compare to brine solution. So add salt 1 hour later, after you have added the eggs will have a faster hatch.

The eggs gave out this pinkish BBS which was different from what I usually see. So far my fish have gotten fat on regular feedings from the pink BBS. If i'm not wrong, Ronnie said the eggs were from some other source. Not a bad hatch rate if I say so myself.

I suppose Ronnie got these eggs from me, they are from China and process in Korea. They hatch faster than the GSL strain and do not require lot of salt to hatch. I use normal aquarium salt (about 1 spoonful, disposable soup spoon) BTW they are smaller about the small size as the SFB strain.