Buzz
Trout, alongside tilapia, catfish, and bass, stands as a favored choice for home fish farming. Utilizing a home aquarium makes the process quite manageable. Later, relish their presence in your meals or consider transferring them to a new aquatic habitat if you aim to take them to market.
Key Steps
Preparing Your Tank
Set up your aquarium before the arrival of your eggs. Position your tank on a level, sturdy surface such as a countertop, table, or stand. Maintain the temperature at 65 °F (18 °C) and introduce a dose of cleaning solution (like Stress Zyme) to initiate the nutrient cycle. Your tank capacity should range from 30 to 55 gallons (110 to 210 L).
- Obtain a dark cloth, cardboard, or Styrofoam to shield eggs and newly hatched trout from light exposure.
- Determine the number of eggs you plan to raise before acquiring your aquarium. Generally, every 25 gallons (95 L) of tank space can support approximately 100 eyed trout eggs.
- About 12 to 24 hours before your eggs arrive, lower the temperature of your aquarium to 50 to 52 °F (10 to 11 °C).
Invest in a chiller suitable for larger tank capacities. This is essential for maintaining water temperature around 50 °F (10 °C). For instance, a ¼ horsepower chiller is appropriate for a 55-gallon (210 L) tank. Smaller tanks should opt for chillers with at least ⅓ horsepower.
- Purchase chillers from online suppliers or local pet stores.
Select a location for your tank away from excessive heat and light exposure. If placing it near a window, ensure the shades remain closed until all fry can swim freely.
- Avoid placing your tank near a radiator (unless inactive).
Regularly monitor ammonia and pH levels using an aquarium testing kit. pH levels should be near-neutral (high 6s or close to 7) or slightly alkaline (high 7s or low 8s). Ammonia levels should ideally be close to 0, although under 2 ppm is considered safe.
- If pH levels are too acidic or extremely alkaline, perform a water change to prevent fish health issues.
Transitioning and Nurturing Your Eggs
Secure your eyed egg jar in a cushioned cooler during transportation. Transporting your eggs to the aquarium without proper care can result in damage. Use foam or crumpled paper to cushion the cooler and place the egg jar inside to minimize agitation and impact.
- Use ice made from dechlorinated water. If unavailable, ensure ice is sealed in a 0.528 gallon (2.00 L) container or Ziploc bag before placing it in the cooler.
Retrieve the sealed container and transfer it into your tank. The water inside the sealed container may have a different temperature from your tank. Allowing the container to acclimate to the new temperature of the aquatic environment is crucial.
- Acclimation should last between 15 to 30 minutes. Once the tank and jar are within 1 degree of each other, acclimation is complete.
Transfer the eggs into a hatching basket after acclimation. These net-type baskets are available at pet and aquarium stores. Alternatively, you can utilize a vibert box, which can be found in similar locations.
- Even as some begin to emerge on their own, allow the remaining fish to acclimate and explore the tank at their own pace.
Identify and remove eggs with white or opaque spots twice daily. White spots indicate fungus on the outer shell, which weakens or breaks it. This fungus spreads rapidly and poses a threat to other eggs. Opaque spots indicate eggs that will not develop—they should always be translucent.
- Do not discard eggs showing uniform cloudiness—this is not a cause for concern.
Eliminate leftover eggs with partially exposed newly spawned salmon. Some salmon spawn, known as alevin, may only partially emerge from their eggs. These eggs should be removed or isolated, as they often fail to hatch.
- Enzymes from fish break down leftover eggshells into foam that can accumulate on tank walls. Clean this foam daily with an aquarium sponge to maintain cleanliness.
Providing Nourishment for Your Trout
Feed your trout 2 to 3 times daily once they start actively swimming for food. Watch for trout swimming upward in the hatching basket or venturing out of it completely. This signals their transition to the swim-up fry stage, indicating it's time to initiate feeding. Scatter a small amount of size 0 food near the swimming trout or gently push it down to them using a plastic paddle.
- You may need to distribute food on both sides of the tank to ensure all fish receive nourishment.
- Wait for 10 minutes after feeding, then remove any leftover food accumulated in one area. Failure to do so can lead to overfeeding, which may result in elevated ammonia levels.
- Consider purchasing a turkey baster to remove excess waste and uneaten food.
Administer a dose of cleaning solution weekly after initiating feeding. Once you commence feeding your sac-fry with size 0 food, it's beneficial to provide a boost to your tank's nitrifying bacteria.
Gently detach the egg basket once all trout are actively feeding. As soon as you observe each trout swimming and feeding adequately, remove the basket and position it at the tank's bottom. Some fish may continue to hide within the tank initially, which is normal, but they should gradually acclimate and explore within a few days.
- Some fry may not adapt to feeding and may not survive—this is a natural process.
- Retrieve the basket from the tank once it's completely empty.
Eliminate fish with disproportionately large heads and small bodies. These are fish that fail to learn feeding behaviors and will not develop properly. Remove them as you encounter them.
- You may also encounter two-headed trout, which should also be removed.
Feed fish measuring 1 inch (2.5 cm) with 0.03 grams of food daily. Once your trout reach this size, you can transition to providing size 1 food. Similar to size 0 food, you may need to gently push it down to your fish.
- Use a small paddle to sink the food to the fish.
- Since you're likely to deplete your supply towards the end of the year, finish using size 1 food before transitioning to size 2.
Provide 3.4 grams of food daily to fish measuring 1.5 inches (3.8 cm). At this stage, transition to size 2 food. Monitor for leftover food and avoid overfeeding.
- Once your fish reach 2.25 inches (5.7 cm), continue with size 2 food but increase the daily amount to 10.9 grams.
- At this size, consider relocating your fish to a different aquatic habitat, such as a rearing rake or pond, if desired.
Essential Supplies
- Eyed trout eggs
- Aquarium
- Aquarium testing kit
- Aquarium sponge
- Cooler
- Dark cloth
- Cooler
- Dechlorinated ice
- Ziploc bag or 0.528 gallon (2.00 L) bottle
- Hatching basket or vibert box
- Cleaning solution
- Plastic paddle
- Turkey baster
Helpful Tips
- Regularly vacuum your tank's gravel.
- Consistently feed your trout regardless of their environment. Even when relocated to backyard ponds, consistent feeding is vital. Natural fish ecosystems lack sufficient food supplies, so stick to floating feed and observe their feeding behavior.
- Be cautious of overfeeding as it can degrade water quality and foster bacterial growth, filamentous algae, and aquatic weeds like pond weed.
