Can someone explain Pods to me?

ShaggyRS6 · Nov 9, 2019

I don’t know much about them, I see people talk about them all the time! I do know I want a Mandarin that eats them :) that’s all I know.

How do I keep them alive? Do they just die? Do they add to the bio load, do they do any kind of job other than being good? Etc etc!

Mr Fishface · Nov 9, 2019

There are different kinds of pods but most are really small organisms that live in the tank. They mostly eat algae and any left over food in the system so they are beneficial. Keeping them alive is easy - have a set up tank. If it has algae at all, they'll eat that. If no algae they will eat left over food. I would say the bio load they add is tiny and negligent really. For a mandarin you really want copepods in your system which is a smaller type of pod. Can be easily bought at some Petco's or from other reefers, they may even come in on a piece of live rock! I'll see if I can find a nice article here but hope this helps a little bit.

ShaggyRS6 · Nov 9, 2019

Mr Fishface said:
There are different kinds of pods but most are really small organisms that live in the tank. They mostly eat algae and any left over food in the system so they are beneficial. Keeping them alive is easy - have a set up tank. If it has algae at all, they'll eat that. If no algae they will eat left over food. I would say the bio load they add is tiny and negligent really. For a mandarin you really want copepods in your system which is a smaller type of pod. Can be easily bought at some Petco's or from other reefers, they may even come in on a piece of live rock! I'll see if I can find a nice article here but hope this helps a little bit.

Thanks for this! Excellent! So does everybody use pods? Sounds like there are no downsides!

Mr Fishface · Nov 9, 2019

I think everyone should at least. Lots of fish will eat them. They show a sign that a tank is a living and thriving place for me. If you have a refugium they will grow and cultivate a large colony over time for your tank too. Here is another thread I found that has a lot of info. I learned that some eat different things, which is useful for the tank. There are parasitic pods but I think those are pretty rare.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/types-of-pods.538695/
Any other questions about them? :)

Qasimja · Nov 9, 2019

if you have pods you cant have filter socks i guess? ive never been really good with pod population

Mr Fishface · Nov 9, 2019

Qasimja said:
if you have pods you cant have filter socks i guess? ive never been really good with pod population

I disagree. I run two filter socks on my tank and refugium is still loaded with pods. Do the socks remove some pods? You bet they do. But if you have an area for them to thrive, and you for sure have them in that area, they should do great. In my refugium i have a small bit of sand, lots of rock and lots of caulerpa prolifera algae. The socks always remove a few pods but its nothing compared to the amount on the walls on my refugium! If you did want to have maximum number of pods then sure, don't run filter socks. I'm not stressed though and continue to run socks.

I will say I didn't start out running socks. Perhaps starting with no socks gave them a leg up opportunity in my refugium.

ShaggyRS6 · Nov 9, 2019

What am I looking for I my tank for signs of pods?

reefwiser · Nov 9, 2019

Copepods feed on the micro size waste in your aquarium. I have found them in filter socks or just floss. To help get them established in a tank you can buy cultures of them to your aquarium. After a few months their population will be high enough for you to start see them. They breed fast and will be of great help to your aquarium.

ShaggyRS6 · Nov 9, 2019

reefwiser said:
Copepods feed on the micro size waste in your aquarium. I have found them in filter socks or just floss. To help get them established in a tank you can buy cultures of them to your aquarium. After a few months their population will be high enough for you to start see them. They breed fast and will be of great help to your aquarium.

Ok I’m sold! Where do I get these pods!

Dal-Reef · Nov 9, 2019

ShaggyRS6 said:
I don’t know much about them, I see people talk about them all the time! I do know I want a Mandarin that eats them :) that’s all I know.

How do I keep them alive? Do they just die? Do they add to the bio load, do they do any kind of job other than being good? Etc etc!

Pods are good.. Here is pic I took yesterday with them covering my glass. Like others have stated they are great for reef tank and shows its health. They will consume diatoms and other algae. I seeded mine from AlageBarn and supplemented with their OceanMagik which is a mixture of four live phytoplankton. The phytoplankton really help establish the pods.

.

flyline · Nov 9, 2019

One place to start looking is algae barn

reefwiser · Nov 9, 2019

https://www.algagen.com/algagenpods.html
https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/live-foods/copepods/5280-pods/

Idoc · Nov 9, 2019

Qasimja said:
if you have pods you cant have filter socks i guess? ive never been really good with pod population

If you add a culture of pods, add them after lights are out and shut off all pumps and powerheads while adding... this allows them to settle into the rocks easily and without being immediately attacked by your fish! Leaving the pumps off for 30 min or so won't have a negative effect on the tank. Also for the first night only, remove the filter sock and turn off the skimmer... then go back to normal operation the next morning.

Urtoo · Nov 9, 2019

Shaggy, I was in the same boat as you about two months ago. All I did was purchase a chaeto bag from a fellow reefer on R2R. In a week after adding them, I had loads.
A few weeks later I have gobs, and, yes that’s the correct amount after loads
I have a few pictures of them in my build thread, as well as some microscope photos of what they look like.

Urtoo · Nov 9, 2019

A photo of my front glass a moment ago.

where are you located?

ShaggyRS6 · Nov 9, 2019

Idoc said:
If you add a culture of pods, add them after lights are out and shut off all pumps and powerheads while adding... this allows them to settle into the rocks easily and without being immediately attacked by your fish! Leaving the pumps off for 30 min or so won't have a negative effect on the tank. Also for the first night only, remove the filter sock and turn off the skimmer... then go back to normal operation the next morning.

Excellent advice!