Barramundi fingerlings available - NOW.

[Murray]

Want to get some Barra fingerlings NOW !!!

Get them now and commence grow out over winter in an aquarium tank or similar that is easy to heat..............
Come spring and warmer weather into an AP system for grow out just in time for Christmas BBQ's

Queensland Redclaw has several hundred available right now....they are small but very healthy and already weaned onto small pellets.

Price, starting at $1.25

( cost will vary depending on how many you purchase + freight if you want them sent by courier.)

Phone and make a time for pick up 3200 0110
They accept credit card and are very nice people to deal with.

I picked up 50 yesterday, put them into my hanging basket so I can salt dip them 3 or 4 times then into the Aquarium for winter.
Will hook them up to a small canister filter and do weekly partial water changes for the winter. Easy to heat with one of those 300 watt aquarium heaters.
I am really excited to have another 50 barra on the way to the BBQ.......:carrot:
(in 9 months time)

[Castaway]

Thats a great idea. I would like 50 but I would need to rig up a small tank in my garage first - next to the hot water system. You should take orders Murray... ;)

[chainsaw]

Thanks Murray, Have to get my aquarium setup again.

[Murray]

I can pick up 50 for you Castaway if you want and keep them over until you get something set up. Transporting them up to your place when you are ready with an aquarium set up.

[Castaway]

Yes please and thank you. If you could buy 50 for me and keep them for a week or two I was planning on setting up a 3 foot long glass aquarium and 300W heater plus suitable aeration etc. Great way to keep Barra over winter if I can figure out the best way to filter this system indoors. Now we can eat our way through the Jades over Winter and get onto a new batch for summer! Thanks a lot Murray :)

[qwarla]

Castaway there are several options available to filter an aquarium.
Submersable filter/pumps and external filters are all available at the local pet store that also has fish.
Some of the powered internal filters also have a venturi to help in airation of the water.
When the shops are open again go in and have a chat to them.

These filters work exactly the same as a GB. It may be an advantage to fill the aquarium with water from the AP system so it gets a big dose of benificial bacteria straight off. Also when you have to clean the filter you could wash it in the AP FT so you don't waste any of the good stuff.

A fishing tackle shop up here has about a 6 foot tank with a monstor Mangrove Jack living in it. I'd like to drop a hook in with a worm on it

[Castaway]

Yes thanks Qwarla. Will look into it.

[RupertofOZ]

It's a long time between now and summer... a long time to heat....

A long time to grow... a lot of feed to give... to 50 fish in a 3' aquarium...

Long enough to have 50 x 500-600+gm Barramundi... if you keep the heat up around 22+... in a small glass can...

Feeding about 500gm/day (2%)... to 25kg of fish...

Frankly, I don't think there's an internal filter that has a paper bag full of cold waters chance of coming even close to coping...

And most external aquaria ones won't either.... you'd be looking at a fair sized Koi type external filter... backwashed daily... and probably twice weekly water changes....

Best of luck....

[RupertofOZ]

Actually... come to think of it... just keeping enough air for 50 Barra... going into a 3" aquarium... is going to look like a spa... and end up with 50% on the floor...

Sorry to rain on your parade... but IMO... don't do it...

What's the volume of a 3' aquarium... 3 x 2 x 1??? .... about 5-600L??

[Castaway]

Hi Rupe,
Sorry didnt mean to suggest that we keep them in a 3 foot aquarium for a number of months all the way till summer... Only an interim measure whilst they are quite small and vulnerable. 50 Barra 2cm in length will fit into a small jug...but I take your point...they will grow quite fast very quickly...so be prepared to move them to a bigger tank with plenty of aeration and clean filtered water. All good points.

[Murray]

Yep Rupe, these Barra are pretty small I can tell you. These hatchery people....they tell you "yes they are very big" and when you pick them up they are lucky to be 40mm long.....in this case they said...."they are a bit small" ......and they are lucky to be 20mm long !!!!
But they are healthy and very energetic.

And you are right, they will only be in the Aquarium until they need bigger diggs..... maybe three or 4 aquariums for grading purposes as winter draws on toward spring.

[Timmoie]

Hi all, the idea of plate sized barra for xmas sounds great.. is this a realistic grow out rate for SE Qld?

I'm not sure if you remember me Murray, but I was the late arrival to Ian's xmas party last year where the Jades were.......sacrificed?? to the greater AP gods. I still have the tank setup I had prepared for the Jades in the garage.. summer water temps were 32C+**.. would be perfect for barra's over winter :)

If there's any interest in a group(ish) buy over the weekend before they're all gone I'd be interested in joining.

Cheers,
Andrew

** I never indented to put the Jades in water of that high temperature... I was just attempting to get some cycling happening before they arrived.... ;)

[Tsaphah]

Oh dear, just read mail now, we have had the Gladstone Harbour Festival on up this way, met my mate from the hatchery(he's been on paternity leave), he still has barra available, says they are about 3-4cm. Thought they got rid of them.
Can PM his number to you Murray if you are interested.

[Murray]

Please do post hatchery details Tsaphah.

For myself, I have 50 Barra which is just great for now. But as a service to other members that will be teriffic info.

I will want to start another batch around September/October. I reckon that 100 Barra coming on for harvest throughout the year should be a very good thing.

Right now I can eat Jade or Silver, or Sleepie whenever the mood takes over. Being able to have a Barra will make AP all the more delightful. (Trout are missing....#$%^&, multiple verbal expressions of frustration)
Will need to knock up another tank and grow bed or two.

Perhaps we should have a thread containing Hatchery details.

[RupertofOZ]

Realistically guys... what sort of water temps would you normally run up there in QLD over winter??

IMO... if you get down around 18 degrees... you'll lose your Barra...

And at the size they are... you'll need to grade at least twice... (good point Murray, I'd overlooked it)...

IMO, you'll need at least a 1000L tank for 50 of them... and I'm doubtful that a 300w heater will maintain temps above 18 degrees in a 1000L tank...

Unless.... you can get some heat in during the day via growbeds.... and keep in in overnight... in a shed... with a heater and no pumping through the growbeds...

And I think you'll still struggle... it has been tried, with zero success... but give it a go...

The problem with keeping them in aquariums... is filtration... and without growbeds... nitrate buildup/removal... hence water changes and constant filter management...

And the power bill... ;)

[RupertofOZ]

P.S... I'm going to try and carry some Barra through until at least end of May down here... just because they're still too small to eat... but I don't like my chances...

I'll keep you posted...

[Murray]

Go for it Rupe, get those Barra as big as you dare. It is all good fun !!

You make good points, but I have never been afraid to give things a go. I will make adjustments as required, and hopefully have a success story to report.
Heating will always be a problem for the Barra, because it does not appear to be possible to finish them to a decent size just within the summer growing period.
Just as you guys down south have learned how to extend the growing period and management of Trout, I feel we need to try to do the same for Barra up here in the slightly warmer climes

Personally I don't mind if the end product is a bit expensive. Even if my fish cost me 15 or 20 dollars a kg on the plate, (they don't by the way) I am still better off than going up to the local supermarket and paying similar prices for stuff that comes from who-knows-where and been dunked in who-knows-what.

[RupertofOZ]

I'm certainly with you on the latter point Murray... and yep, it's worth trying...

[Byron]

id be interested in buying a few barra but i cannot house 50! castaway/timmoie maybe we can split 50?

[Murray]

If you contact the people at the hatchery, they will sell you 10 but you will pay a bit more each. Go and pick up is best.

[Byron]

good to know might check it out. thanks Murray. i will have to organise i time to come out and take a look at your set up. My old man liveds in beausdesert and i pass thru North meclean to get out there. Love the smell of the mushroom farm out that way!

[simonavc]

How big would the fingerlings get in four months at 20+ degrees?
I have a 800l tank with available. Would this do 50-100 or more for 3 months?
The tank is drilled for a sump (50mm downpipes) so filtration should not be easier. Sump(s) numbres and sizes can varied for almost any size bioload (I've got a few tanks doing nothing). I could probably use aquaponic grow beds to cope with bioload.

I Love Barra. Surely in SE Qld I can have plenty if I winter in a tank and summer in a dam.

Sok

[RupertofOZ]

How big would the fingerlings get in four months at 20+ degrees?
I have a 800l tank with available. Would this do 50-100 or more for 3 months?

Maybe double the size... at best....

And no... an 800L tank would only support about 50 fingerlings... preferably with about 1500L of growbed...

With anything less than 1000L of growbed... You might get away with 50... if you oxygenate heavily, water change... and remove at least half of them as summer approachs... and your feed rate climbs...

[Murray]

You can push it more by adding more grow bed or....dare I say it...an external filter of some sort.
But for starters, go safe....keep the numbers low. Better to have success early in your AP life, rather than loose heart by having a total wipe out.

Barra are big time poopers, they put out a lot of solid waste which can quickly get out of hand if your filtration system (grow beds) do not have the capacity to deal with it.
A system can get quickly overrun when you are pushing boundaries......how do I know this ..????...Whistling

[bigdaddy]

Hi Simonavc,

I have 1000 litre system with 1000 litres of fish tanks and 1000 litres of grow bed

I have 2 500 litre tanks joined together. with 10 barra in each,the system cycled naturally in 4- 6 weeks. no probs,Mid Jan the barra were 100 mm ( I paid more for larger fingerling's and have not regretted it),now they are pushing 240mm.

To date I have not lost 1 fish and my grow bed looks good,I think - see my Album if you want.

Good luck.

Cheers

[toffee]

Hey Murray,

First time poster. Big howdy to all.

Do you know where to buy barra fingerlings in the US? Live and swimming barras (or barra lookalikes) are widely available in Asian supermarkets here but don't know where to buy fingerling.

If no local hatcheries, would any AU hatcheries export them to US?

Thanks

PS. sorry to dig up an old thread.

[Murray]

Hi Toffee
No idea where you might get them in the US but I know they are exported to there.
They are not an easy fish to raise, they eat their brothers and sisters.
Perhaps Kellen might know where to get them.

[toffee]

Thx Murray. Just to clarify ~ Export as grown fish or as fingerlings? and how can I contact Kellen?

[Murray]

He is a member of this forum and has a Tilapia hatchery in the USA somewhere, so if anyone would know I think he will.

http://www.aquaponics.net.au/forum/member.php?u=507

Or do a search for Kellenw and you will find threads he has posted to , click on his name, then send him a private message.

[MicWit]

Anyone know the best priced place for barra now? $1.25 would be great, half what im finding them for.

Also, how cold can barra get? Im in north nsw, so im guessing I can throw them straight into my aquaponics tanks out the back?

How many should I stock in a 1000L tank if I plan to grow them to plate size, 6-800g?

[bigdaddy]

Hi Micwit,

$2.00 for 100 mm fingerlings is a good price...I wouldn't go for smaller ones myself....

27 C is the ideal for barramundi do not go any colder than that as they can easily get sick with less... 27 C with a 2 degree tolerance either way is recommended.

They would be good for summer with supplementary heating to keep the tanks at 27 C and full heating in the winter..They are a very temperature sensitive fish with one of the least tolerances to cooler water...You need to keep their metabolic system up y feeding them correctly and keeping them in warm water.. They grow well at 27 C less than the tolerance and they do not grow as well...

You should stock to the feed rate and filtration capacity of your system... I grew 20 nice ones with good filtration and feed rates in 2 X 500 litre tubs...I'd say you would need 1 Kw-about 1.3 Kw of heating in the winter depending on how cold wet, rainy and windy your area gets.....

Cheers.

[Yabbies4me]

-
Hi Micwit,

Price will vary according to availability and size... I think you'll be pushing the preverbial up hill to find them for $1.25... unless you want to buy 25-40mm specimens.

I would suggest it's a little late in the year to be looking at Barra, you may get away with it in Northern NSW, I dunno. I do know here in Perth the water temps get too low for Barra by about early April. Do you know what minimum the water temp will get to in your system, in your area, in the middle of winter?... They prefer water temps over 20 deg and will only do "well" when the water is over 22 deg... anything below 18 deg is stressful too them.


How many should I stock in a 1000L tank if I plan to grow them to plate size, 6-800g?
Your grow bed gravel capacity, not your fish tank capacity, determines how many fish you can safely stock, as BD alluded to.

25-30L of gravel per fish in a new system, or as low as 20L of gravel per fish in a well established system are widely accepted as safe stocking densities.

Cheers.

[MicWit]

Hmm, during the summer may not need heating, during the winter that would be a problem, would cost a fortune. Trying to think of the cheapest way to heat 1000L.

One option I thought is if I can patch it into offpeak, with enough insulation maybe if I can get it to 30c at night through the day it will only drop 10c or so, but they prob wont like the daily change in temp.

Next option I was thinking was gas of some description? Not sure how much that would work out and how efficient I can make it by keeping the heating unit inside the tank insulation.

The next think I would need to do is keep the water filtered as it wouldn't be going through the beds during the winter... unless I could swap out 1/4 of the water every week or something?

[bigdaddy]

Hi Micwit

To be Frank,

If you are not prepared to shell out for some type of heating to keep the water at 27C +-2 C over winter then do not bother with them...Sure, isulate and all that but be prepared to heat to recomended temps wirh these guys.....

Even at 20C it is still too cold for barra...You may want to do trout for 6 months and barra for 6 months...Barramundi are a magnificent fish, and great fun to rare, but they do not tolerate cold water or poor water perameters...

Cheers.