Heads up!  I found $6 BRT's at Walmart yesterday.  I would have bought a couple, but the Prius was already full with a new Weber Platinum grill, bought elsewhere, and a 19 year old son.  I'll be going back today.

I am thinking about cutting some of these in half.  I typically don't use the whole volume of the BRT, and if they were shorter, I could incorporate them into my new rack system.   Jim W. got some that were made shorter, Tuff Stuff KMB104, but they are not readily available.  I can't find em, anyway.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/tuff-stuff-products-heavy-duty-feed-pan-7-gal--2229854
 
Three stores outside of St Louis, probably 45 minutes to an hour out.
22"x6"  7 Gallons. 
 
I've got two of them.  Great things.

Hey thanks, I was looking at Tractor Supply, and did not see that they had this.

i was doing some grocery shopping at Walmart today and seen some 18 gallon BRT's for Under $4. thinking about going back and getting some.

Wow, that's cheap!  I think I paid about CAD$25 for my 20 gallon Laguna GRTs (very, very dark green).  I bought smaller Laguna ones too...3 gallon and 7 gallon IIRC.

Do you guys have pictures of the BRT's in use that you can share. I still use glass tanks and am considering the change. What are the benefits of using the BRT's?
Thanks.

These are the ones I use: http://www.maccourt.com/products/ponds/pp2615.html

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

Here is it from Walmart!
 
http://www.walmart.com/ip...ndle-Tub-Blue/19400074

RLTW

180 Gallon Mixed Reef

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" Isaiah 6:8

Just remember to check what kind of plastic it's made out of!  I think I saw these recently and they don't have a recycling mark on them, making it difficult to determine if they're HDPE or LDPE (or something else).

Which is better and which is worse and why?

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Hey Matt,
 Can you post some pictures of how you set up and did your plumbing for your BRT's? Thanks!

HDPE is preferred Kathy.  Some leaching issues I've heard rumors about with LDPE.  Think about what most of our food is shipped around in; #1, #2, and #5.
 
CD - Um...sure....here's a straight on shot.

Attached Image(s)

MBI...or it never happened...

And virgin HDPE at that.  There is a lot of recycled stuff out there and you DO NOT WANT that stuff, well, unless you want dead fish.  If it doesn't look like a solid color, it's probably recycled material.
 
@Matt... I thought by law they had to put the # on it?  But I guess now that I think about it, our massive tigger tubs don't have number on them

Gresh - I know nothing about the law, but I know that if I'm looking at plastic stuff, I'm looking for the material identification.  I didn't see it on those tubs at Walmart.
 
I think I paid between $14 and $17 per tub for mine - well worth it I think.  I like that they even have gallon markings molded into them.

@Matt- Thanks for the picture. Thats a great compact setup. Are your happier w/the results of the BRT's over glass tanks and why? Thanks!!

Every time I've used BRTS I get more fish through than I had in the past with glass.  More serious breeders have all long since moved away from rectangular glass.  One need only look at setups like Edgar Diaz's, or the lab that Eric Cassiano and Witt set up at TAL for Rising Tide, and you know that the BRT is where it's at these days from a larval rearing standpoint.  Appears to have surpassed the kriesel in many instances.  Wittenrich explained his theory on BRT functionality best with his gradients of current and gradients of light observation and he was dead on; the BRT environment allows you to provide a myraid of micro-habitats so the larval fish will congregate in the one that best suits their needs, rather than you trying to figure out the exact conditoins they'd prefer and then providing that uniformly.  Plus,  I think BRTs are generally larger, more flexibile, offer greater surface area for gas exchange, they lack corners ( pelagic larvae know no barriers...a tank side is one thing, but getting stuck in a corner is a whole new challenge for a baby fish).

Just because you CAN do a fish with a glass tank, doesn't necessarily mean you should! 

@Matt- Thanks for the information. I appreiate it very much. Can you point me to a link to see setups like Edgar Diaz and the lab that Eric Cassiano and Witt set up? I would love to see their work.
I am getting great results in the glass tanks, but by what you are saying I could provide an even better environment for the fish and that's what it's all about I look forward to learning more about the BRT's use and to impliment them in my new larval system. Thanks again and I look forward to the links.

Should be able to see some of Eric's systems in this blog: http://www.risingtideconservation.org/
He will also be speaking at this event later this month: http://www.mbiworkshop.com/

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

Thank you very much for the links! I appreciate it.

Great info on there but no pics. Do you have any links on Edgar's build?

Yes, there are pics. Go to the second page of blog posts.
 
Edgar's place:

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

Wow! Thanks again Tal! I appreciate it.

Unfortunately there are no pictures of the setup at Eric's site.
Also unfortunate, there are no identifying marks on the Walmart BRTs….
 

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Need to go to the blog link at the bottom and then the "older posts" to get to the 2nd page. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/...eYQ/s1600/_MLW5663.jpg
Sorry if that link doesn't work.

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

Cool. Thanks again. Where did these guys buy the BRT's?
Are they the same ones at Tractor Supply? These are them. Are they safe?
 
http://www.tractorsupply.com/fortiflex-large-capacity-plastic-bucket-17-1-2-gal-capacity-saphire-blue-2229260
 
Thanks

Not sure if those are the ones they use. I use the ones from: http://www.maccourt.com/products/ponds/pp2615.html and http://www.tufftubs.com/htdocs/plinoval.htm

http://www.fishtalpropagations.com/#!home/mainPage
"Making captive breeding easier."

I just bought three from Walmart the other day. They have the recycle symbol on the bottom with a number 5.

Tal got ya on TAL / Rising Tide, Edgar's stuff isn't online as far as I am aware.

@Matt- Do you remember the name brand of the BRT's you have? Are they like ths one in the picture? 

Fortiflex Large Capacity Plastic Bucket, 17-1/2 gal. Capacity, Black

Those Walmart tubs look exactly like mine, but they were made in China, and don't have a recycling symbol.  #5 is food safe polypropylene.  You should be good to go.

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Clownfish Depot, I also have some Fortiflex tubs, and they do work very well. Got a batch of clownfish in one right now.

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Thanks Kathy. Thats good to know you are using them. I think they are the best choice I can find and will use them as well.
 What size fortiflex container are you using?
How many babies?
How long will you keep them in that same container?

I think its 17-20 gallons. I've raised neon gobies in them and kept them in for the better part of 2 months.  I've raised clownfish in them as well, but I usually want them in a glass tank before the month is up.
The trouble with them is you can 't observe the babies until they get bigger and get some color on them.  For instance, I raised some clownfish in one recently, and had no idea how many babies I had until metamorphosis a week later.  

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

For anythiing longer than a week, I do recommend using a sponge filter and perhaps a UV.  For the neons I used a bucket sump for the BRT with sponge filter, 100 micron filter bag, and UV on the return, powered with a maxi-jet 900 or 1200.

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Thanks for the info Kathy. It makes sense about not being able to observe the lownfish babies. I do like how my glass bottoms are painted white and I would miss that with the BRT's. I wonder if I could paint the inside bottom of the BRT's white so it would be easier to observe and keep the bottom clean. IS there a paint you know of that's safe for this? Thanks
 
Brian

Krylon Fusion spray.

check out Kathy's Clowns, llc website:
http://kathysclowns.com
Captive bred clownfish and more
(Wholesale to the trade.)

Thanks Kathy. I think I will try the BRT's without paint and see if I can manage

FYI, for the someone who asked - mine are Duraflex.  I really, really like that built in volume gage on them.  They hold 16 gallons max.  Standard bulkheads and holes made with cheap regular wood-type hole saws worked fine on them.

 
Interesting idea.  I always thought the primary point of using a BRT the fact that it is "B" = Black, but perhaps it is only the sides that need to be black, and a light-colored bottom might not be a problem for the larvae, and aid observation.  Does anybody else have any thoughts on this?