Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Pond Boss Another good reason to raise fish in the basement

One half of my walk in basement is for taxidermy. Now the other half if for aquaculture (I have two 300 gallon tanks of fish in the other half).

Just did the taxes and was able to increase the floor space devoted to business for tax purposes!

So not only did the two tanks preclude any use of the humidifier upstairs (it got really annoying constantly filling the darn thing), but now I pay less taxes.

Win/Win!

My tax bill was substantially lower this year too due to all the money I'm investing in expanding the business. I'd rather put it where it isn't wasted!

Cecil, Ive been thinking of either raising some bluegill in tanks or haveing a small pond about 120'X120' dug next to my big pond for it. How many Bluegill could you raise in tanks compared to a small pond?

If biofiltraton, clarification, and aeration is sufficient you could raise up to a half a pound per gallon with the system I use. Some people raise even higher densities but I personally wouldn't go there for my niche market. Compare this to a typical density of 0.003 pounds per gallon in a typical pond.


My biggest outside pond is only 130 by 150 and I wouldn't have a problem with 2500 pounds of fish in it if I used surface aeration in the summer along with a diffuser system. Some aquaculturists raise 5000 pounds per acre or more.

I just was wanting a way to raise some bluegill or other forage until it was big enough to go in my main pond. The bass eat everything as soon as it goes in if its small. What would be the cheapest route to go?

That is a big "IF"!

Gotta let my nephew have the internet now, but, I will be back.

JKB,

Notice I said "could."

My PHD friend that raises hybrid striped bass by the thousands in an RAS said his fish don't feed optimally until density gets up to .25 lbs. per gallon. I haven't even approached the .25 pounds per gallon yet.

If your forage is bluegill (not hybrids), you have some cover for the bluegills, and you have several age classes you shouldn't have to worry about your bass eating everything up. If I wanted a good fast growing bass population with good growth in all age classes I wouldn't depend on minnows.

Have you read the Pond Boss books on ponds? If not you should.

Cecil, that's interesting. If I understand, they start feeding better when their size makes them crowded?

When the density is high enough (in this case larger so they occupy more space in the tank) there is more competition and a competitive response to feeding. I've seen this in my cages. It's the same as increasing the numbers but in this case they fill the tank more by their sizes.

I was also told by the producer to halt feeding completely for a day or so before resuming. He says if they know they will get fed on a regular basis they are less likely to feed aggressively. He's also a big believer in compensatory growth (fish catch up in growth or growth is stimulated if not fed regularly.)

I'm not sure if the research backs his beliefs up (Maybe Eric can tell us), but this is what he believes.

The hybrid striped bass grower that is a Purdue PHD also does some things that are not standard. He doesn't use electronic testing equipment (apparently doesn't trust it), and he hand sorts (doesn't use a grader.) If you saw how many fish he has it would seem that would be a daunting task considering it's only he and one other worker. He also has a specially formulated feed shipped in by Zeigler Bros. in PA.

1/4 lb/gal would be a good milestone to hit next time you fire your units up.

It would also be interesting to see how close you could sneak up to that 1/2 lb/gal mark before it became to laborious by water changes, cleaning, balancing water chemistry and at what point would supersaturation of DO come into play (if at all)

Fun stuff though

I doubt I will push the limit JKB. It's just not worth it for me to loose high value fish, (I do that already unintentionally), and I don't have to push the limit due to the prices I get. I also don't use oxygen or a ozone as I want to keep costs down. I'm a strong believer in the KISS principal. It works for me because it's idiot proof.