Pod Condo Questions

Irishfist25

New Member
I have a 75g tank with a 30g sump, approx. 120 lbs of LR and 2 inch live sand bed. Tank has been running for 5 weeks. I added first fish last week(pair of occ.clowns) they are awesome and doing fabulous! I was at my LFS earlier today and was practically given a scotter blenny. I knew they were picky eaters, but wasn't aware that their main food source was pods(similar to mandarins)until after I got home and he was already acclimating. I have seen a few pods in my system, mostly when changing filter socks. I know they live in the LR and I have a good bit of LR, but I also know that I cant have a large population of them this early into my tanks life. I have looked into making 1 or 2 pod condos for my DT. they can fit behind my existing LR and not be noticeable from the front of the DT. I can buy some pods to populate them with and hopefully be able to sustain a natural population after that. problem is, I've read that a tank this young doesn't have the food the pods need to survive and they will just die, my tank probably wouldn't be able to sustain this population for another few months. I could buy phytoplankton to feed them, but I would have to feed them in my DT(no room in sump) ive read that you shouldn't put phyto in your DT. So I need suggestions or advice on what I should do. keep in mind that I cant put anything else in my sump. I can put 1-3 pod condos in my DT and they can be moved easily for cleaning and whatnot. I would also prefer to not have to buy a small aquarium and set up a whole pod operation in it, if its avoidable. Thank you in advance
 

PSU4ME

JoePa lives on!!!
Staff member
PREMIUM
Hi there and welcome to RS!

In a 75g with 120lb of live rock I think your Blenny will be ok. It's certainly advisable not to get them until after the tank gets up and running but if there isn't another pod eating competitor in the tank I think he will do fine. They eat copepods and you can order them if you like.

Is the rock "fresh" live rock? If so, it should have a bunch of life on it and will likely have all the copepods you need to get things going

Your other option is to have a friend with an established tank hold him until you see your population flourish.
 

goma

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
PREMIUM
Welcome to RS! Start a tank thread so we can follow your journey!! :swmfish:
We love :camera:
 

Irishfist25

New Member
The LR was ordered online, but came still wet with towels around it also. It was 2 day delivery, so some stuff definitely died, but im sure some didn't. I know I can order them to feed, but I wanted to try a keep a population that would be self sustaining. that's where the condos would come in.
 

goma

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
PREMIUM
I think PSU4ME nailed it. Once you populate some condos with pods, the tank gets established and you don't have wrasses or something else competing with him for pods, he should do just fine.
 

shark32

Active Member
It can't hurt to order pods/amphipods to seed the tank (you might have to do it a few times) ... sounds like you have plenty of LR and as long as your are feeding the tank they will find something to eat... what type of pod house are you considering making? I have noticed in my fuge, when I leave the light off down there, my copepods multiply a lot more...and you said you see them when you are changing the filter sock, that must be your amphipods...copepods are really really tiny.. I can see them only because I shine a flashlight into the corners of my fuge and see a giant mass of moving tiny things that almost look like sand, but upon closer inspection with a magnifying glass, you can see they are living things..check out reefs2go for their amphipod/copepod selection..and good luck with your scooter! they are really cute and with any luck yours will learn to eat other foods as well!! I recused a mandarin who was on the brink of death in LFS three years ago and today he is a rather rotund happy fellow who loves all types of food!!
 

DianaKay

Princess Diana
RS STAFF
Hello Irishfist :wave:
:welcomera WELCOME to Reef Sanctuary :crowd:
Would L:heart:VE to see pictures of your scooter Blenny & tank set up :camera:
My pod population started out good, dwindled & then after adding a refugium it has held steady.
Best of luck wishes for keeping enough in your system :fingerx::fingerx:
 

reefer gladness

Well-Known Member
The purpose of a pod condo is to provide a place for them to reproduce safely. Regardless if you go with a pod condo or a traditional refugium you'll want to add some type of macro algae as food for the pods. Chaeto is the most common and easy to grow and if you have room in the sump I would setup the fuge down there.

There are many types of amphipods, copepods and isopods available also. The greater diversity you have the better, check out reefcleaners.org if you're in the US. You can get chaeto and a pretty diverse selection of pods from them though some items are not available all the time.
 

Irishfist25

New Member
Update!!!, so I have made a pod condo and bought some tigger pods from my LFS. The condo I made was from PVC with caps on both ends, I drilled so many holes into the pipe and caps that it looks like a wiffle ball. I put some filter padding into the pipe along with the pods I bought and placed the pipe behind some rock work. you cant see it from the front, but you can from the side :( (its worth it if it works) I will try and get some pics posted so you can see it later. thank you and any other advice is much appreciated.
 

PSU4ME

JoePa lives on!!!
Staff member
PREMIUM
Trigger pods will be great food, unfortunately they won't reproduce in your tank.
 
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