jackaninny Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 I have a damsel that's become a bad tank neighbor for the rest of the fish in my little Biocube 29. While my rockwork looks great it actually functions better as a fish bunker and I'm quite sure I'm not going to net the little sucker. I think the best plan might be to drain the tank down to a few inches of water - grab him and then use a pump to refill the tank. Maybe I expose everything for 5-10 minutes during the empty and re-fill process. Does this sound like a good plan? Anyone have a smaller fish trap that I could use in my Biocube 29? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grassi Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 Just get a gun I agree, drain to a couple of inches and also use some spare acrylic to limit his space Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 Most corals should be fine for anything less than 30 minutes. For an extreme story... once, I left a rock of zoas out overnight after fragging. Put them back in the tank hoping for the best and they were all out and happy the next day. dsoz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeFit Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 I believe salt water fanta-seas either rents or loans one out. I know Sea-Horse also rents one out. You can also make one very cheaply or for free out of a pop bottle. just search YouTube for fish traps. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackaninny Posted June 2, 2010 Author Share Posted June 2, 2010 I was at SWF last night and he could only find his large trap which too big for my tank. I'm going to check out YouTube although I think the drain the tank is going to be the least hassle and the fastest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeFit Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 I was at SWF last night and he could only find his large trap which too big for my tank. I'm going to check out YouTube although I think the drain the tank is going to be the least hassle and the fastest. Least hassle, but most intrusive and upsetting. I bet that DIY trap will work. I hate damsels too. took me 3 months to finally get mine out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 If the BC29 is a model with a halide, be sure to turn the lights off or the coral can dry out. That would be bad. Do you have a lot of sponge on your rocks? Most people are deathly afraid to take sponge out of the water because it may die. You may want to consider this in your plan. Also, if you wait for night time, most fish tend to "fall asleep" when it is dark. If you give your tank 30 minutes of dark before you start, the fish may be a little easier to catch. I have picked up fish with my hands when the tank is dark. Just don't have bright room lights and the fish will continue to sleep. As soon as there is a lot of light, the fish will wake up and be as active as ever. dsoz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReeFit Posted June 2, 2010 Share Posted June 2, 2010 fish traps don't always work.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gill Posted June 3, 2010 Share Posted June 3, 2010 Most corals should be fine for anything less than 30 minutes. For an extreme story... once, I left a rock of zoas out overnight after fragging. Put them back in the tank hoping for the best and they were all out and happy the next day. dsoz Ya but isnt that a missnomer since a lot of Zoas live in tidal flats and have evolved to put up with just such a mistake? Im not sure xenia could be left out over night? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackaninny Posted June 8, 2010 Author Share Posted June 8, 2010 Just reporting back that draining the tank was 100x easier that trying to net that little bugger. Got it down to about 3 inches - saw the target in an open corner and scooped him up. Put the siphon hose on the pump already waiting in the trashcan and pumped it all back in. Total time was <15 minutes. All the corals perked back up really quick even the Duncans that looked totally pathetic out of water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackaninny Posted June 8, 2010 Author Share Posted June 8, 2010 [ATTACH]8157[/ATTACH] As a warning for others Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfisher Posted June 8, 2010 Share Posted June 8, 2010 Glad to hear it worked. I couldn't believe how "snotty" duncans look when exposed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talkalot82 Posted June 8, 2010 Share Posted June 8, 2010 What we did to catch ours was put the net in the tank with some frozen food in it and he swam right in the net. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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