breeding neon tetras

[Cam.B]

Hi all

I have thinking about starting to breed neon tetras. Does anyone know any tips that could help me with doing this?

 

[tjudy]

Cool water... 68 - 72 F. Spawn them in pairs and collect eggs daily. Use a lot of methylene blue to darken the water to protect the light sensitive eggs. THe fry are very shy, so do not disturb them much.

 

[Cam.B]

I have a 5 gallon emty tank or a 12 gallon tank with 2 A.agassizii and 3 serpae tetras, what tank would work better. And where could I buy brine shrimp.

 

[Apistomaster]

I try raising Neons every few years but I haven't solved some of the egg disintegration or high losses among the newly hatched fry yet,

I usually use small tanks, I made some 16 inch long 4.5 gal but I have also tried them in 10 gal, especially when I use 2 trios. I normally work with the water not over 6" deep.
I use a floating and a sinking acrylic yarn mop over a egg crate covered with nylon fly screen as an egg trap across the entire bottom. Neons scatter their eggs all over the tank.
I use no lighting and have experimented with using enough methylene blue both to limit the light further and prevent so many eggs going bad.
I use higher temps. More in the range of 76-78*F. Almost straight RO water with about 15 ppm TDS and a pH of 5.5 to 5.8.
The problem i think I have is controlling early bacterial blooms. Even the males' milt can contribut to fouling of the water. I only use an air stone for freshening and circulation of the water.
Despite the widely available tank raised stock available to us now, most shops carry only Neons produce in the Far East, they remain among the most challenging fish for me. I have practiced and succeeded breeding some Pencilfish but the Neons remain a fish i still want to succeed in raising at least once very successfully.
I could not help advise you much except to share what I have tried. I have produced fry but only a few hardy survivors so there is much room for improvement. I try to be scrupulous about cleanliness but I still haven't perfected the techniques. I have raised dozens of Characin spp including over 1000 each Glow Lights, Black Neons, Embers and Black Phantoms.
Neons can be a tough nut to crack and I won't even begin to think about ever trying Cardinals until I make progress with Neons.