Questions about breeding

[New_b0401]

I have a few questions about breeding angels.
Where do you get your slate and what kind do you use?
What do your breeding tanks look like? Barebottom? Live plants? etc.
How do you hatch bbs? (the easier the better)
Feeding schedule? Pair? Fry?
Water change schedule?
Water parameters?
I may think of more but that's it for now

Right now my pair has been laying on the leaves of an amazon sword, but I would like to be able to pull the eggs. I have two rocks set up against the tank, but they aren't smooth so I don't think they will lay on them.
I have drift wood, rocks, live plants and a thin layer of gravel in my breeding tank.
I feed my pair three times a day once frozen brine shrimp. The other two times are a mixture of tetra color tropical flakes and cichlid pellets.
I do water changes once a week 50%
My water parameters are ph-8.2 ammonia and nitrite-0 and nitrate-10-20 (I can't tell partially color blind haha)

Any other advice is very much appreciated and let me know if you have any questions 
Thanks in advance!

[Mugwump]

I have a few questions about breeding angels.
Where do you get your slate and what kind do you use?
What do your breeding tanks look like? Barebottom? Live plants? etc.
How do you hatch bbs? (the easier the better)
Feeding schedule? Pair? Fry?
Water change schedule?
Water parameters?
I may think of more but that's it for now

Right now my pair has been laying on the leaves of an amazon sword, but I would like to be able to pull the eggs. I have two rocks set up against the tank, but they aren't smooth so I don't think they will lay on them.
I have drift wood, rocks, live plants and a thin layer of gravel in my breeding tank.
I feed my pair three times a day once frozen brine shrimp. The other two times are a mixture of tetra color tropical flakes and cichlid pellets.
I do water changes once a week 50%
My water parameters are ph-8.2 ammonia and nitrite-0 and nitrate-10-20 (I can't tell partially color blind haha)

Any other advice is very much appreciated and let me know if you have any questions 
Thanks in advance!

slate is floor tile from Lowe's cut in thirds...tilt it against the tank wall away from turbulence..
...
my tanks are gravel bottom with plants, etc....quite a few folks use bare bottom..
...
Take a 2 ltr pop bottle, cut the bottom off about 3-4" up....invert top in the base bottom...fill with water to about 1/2" from the top....add 2 good spoonfuls of non-iodized salt, or sea salt...put a 8-10" piece of rigid tubing (Lowe's)(same as under gravel air tube) push air line over the end of the tube....place tube at an angle in the bottle water.....adjust air to good rate, but not a froth....toss in 1/4-1/2 tspn of bbs eggs......water should be 80-82 deg's for hatching..cooler takes longer, warmer hatch rate plummets....I put my bottles in an old ten gallon with a heater....support the bottle sway with a couple rocks or what ever...fill the tank to where the bottles are stable, not bobbing around....16-24 hrs you harvest and start a new batch....bbs doesn't last long once harvested, I put mine in a small sealed container and refrigerate til next feeding (less than a day)..
.....
I feed all the fish at least twice a day, I'm heavy handed, but water changes keep things in check.
Fry, I feed three times a day..cleaning up the uneaten food.....a couple cory or BN small fry help keep things neat too...
....
I change fry water once/twice a day til dimes...then big changes every couple days....
Regular/pair tanks ..if pairs are close daily small changes, run the HOT mag to keep clean...most tanks big changes once a week, huge changes every other week....some daily's in there too...
.....
Water parameters..our water is neutral about 7-7.2 PH...no ammonia EVER...LOL...tds's mid 100's...works fine here....with a PH in the 8's you might check your tds's, and Kh.....Liz has a handle on adjusting from there....but blending R/O is definitely an option for lowering PH/tds's....
...

A hint on the leaf layers....grab a glass desert dish, the kind that stand on a stem....cut the leaf off and using a small plastic clip (dollar store$1)...clip the leaf w/eggs face down hanging off the stem bottom/base....place air stone next to the leaf, not under it. and adjust to a gentle flow passing by the leaf edge...thus moving water around the spawn 

typos are not my fault either...LOL.....

[LizStreithorst]

I do things a bit differently but I started with Discus so my ways are more Discus people's ways. 

For BBS, I just set my hatcheries on the counter top.  My fish room is never below 78 degrees and the cysts hatch just fine.  I use 2 liter hatcheries and add a heaping tablespoon of salt.  The amount of cycts I add depends on the number of fry and young juvies I have to feed.  Right now I'm adding about a teaspoon and have 3 hatcheries going.  I harvest it as needed but don't keep them in the hatcheries for more than 18 hrs from the time they hatch.

Some people have good hatch rates with a pH in the 8's  From what I gather, high pH is less harmful if your water comes from a reservoir or a lake.  I have community water that comes from a deep well.  I've had good hatches from my tap water rarely.

Everybody has their own way of doing things.  Once you find methods that work for you stick with them.

[Mugwump]

I do things a bit differently but I started with Discus so my ways are more Discus people's ways. 

For BBS, I just set my hatcheries on the counter top.  My fish room is never below 78 degrees and the cysts hatch just fine.  I use 2 liter hatcheries and add a heaping tablespoon of salt.  The amount of cycts I add depends on the number of fry and young juvies I have to feed.  Right now I'm adding about a teaspoon and have 3 hatcheries going.  I harvest it as needed but don't keep them in the hatcheries for more than 18 hrs from the time they hatch.

Some people have good hatch rates with a pH in the 8's  From what I gather, high pH is less harmful if your water comes from a reservoir or a lake.  I have community water that comes from a deep well.  I've had good hatches from my tap water rarely.

Everybody has their own way of doing things.  Once you find methods that work for you stick with them.

yep, the amount of water in the hatching vessels will vary...which allows for variations in salt needed....what you are looking for is a specific gravity of around 1.018...use a hydrometer to measure it, they're very cheap.....as Liz says, where she's at the ambient room temp is sufficient for hatching bbs....up north it's a bit chiller most times, hence I use a heated tank, and others use light bulbs for heating....the general premise is the same...keep the temp around 80 deg's for optimum hatch time.
...and she's very right about finding out how it works for you best....once you nail it, all that's left is making very sure that your hatching equipment stays real clean..... flushing with peroxide and wiping/washing them keeps things running sweet...

[New_b0401]

Thanks for all the great advice!
what are tds's?
My angels have spawned they just keep eating the eggs have spawned four times so I think Im gonna try pulling the egg if I have everything ready by the next time I'll do it if not then the 6th unless they figure it out before than lol they also will always spawn after a water change.
I have city well water small town runs off two wells

Thanks so much on the info for hatching BBS from what I was reading it seemed so complicated!

[Mugwump]

TDS = total dissolved solids..

making bbs hard??...naw...water, couple spoons non iodized salt...add air and bbs eggs....it's not rocket science, try not to make more of it than it is.................harvesting....turn off air, place light next to the vessel to attract shrimp.....wait about 5 mins......suck em out with a turkey baster....

and if you'd like, we can bring you a micro worm culture to the swap???.....easy to feed, easy to care for too.....it'll give you another type of fry food....

[PaulineMi]

I used to harvest the bbs with a straw. Put a finger over the top of the straw, dip the straw down into where the bbs are swimming, quickly lift your finger and then put it back over the straw and voila....shrimp harvest.  You've probably done this with soda. 

[New_b0401]

TDS = total dissolved solids..

making bbs hard??...naw...water, couple spoons non iodized salt...add air and bbs eggs....it's not rocket science, try not to make more of it than it is.................harvesting....turn off air, place light next to the vessel to attract shrimp.....wait about 5 mins......suck em out with a turkey baster....

and if you'd like, we can bring you a micro worm culture to the swap???.....easy to feed, easy to care for too.....it'll give you another type of fry food....

Thanks for the clarification 

I asked some fish buds on a different forum and they went one about how it may takes months to get it right and gave me like 10 different things I should try and came up with a list of stuff that would cost like $60 when I got done and I was just sitting here like  lol so I'm glad its not that complex!

I would love a microworm culture I've read good things about them!!!

[New_b0401]

I used to harvest the bbs with a straw. Put a finger over the top of the straw, dip the straw down into where the bbs are swimming, quickly lift your finger and then put it back over the straw and voila....shrimp harvest.  You've probably done this with soda. 

That I have Pauline! Used to drive my parents nuts.... so to say the least I'm an expert  hehehe

[PaulineMi]

Then you've probably made those funny sounds sucking on the end of a straw that really annoys people.  Lol. 

[New_b0401]

Then you've probably made those funny sounds sucking on the end of a straw that really annoys people.  Lol.

Well of course that's the best part! lol I'm past that stage now, but I was great at annoying my parents without doing anything actually wrong between the ages of 6-9 

[Mugwump]

TDS = total dissolved solids..

making bbs hard??...naw...water, couple spoons non iodized salt...add air and bbs eggs....it's not rocket science, try not to make more of it than it is.................harvesting....turn off air, place light next to the vessel to attract shrimp.....wait about 5 mins......suck em out with a turkey baster....

and if you'd like, we can bring you a micro worm culture to the swap???.....easy to feed, easy to care for too.....it'll give you another type of fry food....

Thanks for the clarification 

I asked some fish buds on a different forum and they went one about how it may takes months to get it right and gave me like 10 different things I should try and came up with a list of stuff that would cost like $60 when I got done and I was just sitting here like  lol so I'm glad its not that complex!

I would love a microworm culture I've read good things about them!!!

They love their bbs....

[New_b0401]

They sure do that one angel got a face full! lol