Film on the glass. Patches on the sand. Cyano creeping across rocks. You reach for the scrubber—but what if the cleanup crew ate the mess before you saw it? Copepods are nature’s janitors: Tisbe graze biofilm, Apocyclops shred detritus, nauplii vacuum sand beds. This guide arms you with the exact seeding density, feeding rhythm, and parameter locks that turn pests into pod food—zero chemicals, zero effort.
The Pod Menu: What They Actually Eat
Tisbe pods are detritivores on steroids. They scrape bacterial films, diatom layers, and leftover phyto within hours. Apocyclops tackle larger chunks—uneaten mysis, fish waste, macroalgae scraps. Nauplii swarm sand, preventing cyano mats by consuming organic dust. A 2024 Tropic Eden study found seeded tanks reduced visible algae by 68% in 21 days—no scrubbing required.
One 8oz bottle of live pods out-cleans a dozen snails with zero bycatch.
Pod Diet:
- Tisbe: biofilm + diatoms
- Apocyclops: detritus + scraps
- Nauplii: sand organics
Left: Apocyclops — detritus shredders. Right: Bio-actiV — pod population rocket.
Seeding Density: How Many Pods Per Gallon
Start strong. 1 mL of Apocyclops 8oz per 10 gallons seeds 5,000 adults + nauplii. For heavy algae, double to 2 mL/10 gal. Add at lights-out—pods hide in rockwork before fish wake. Refugium bonus: seed 4 mL per 10 gal of fuge volume for continuous export.
Wait 48 hours. Glass film vanishes. Sand brightens. Cyano edges retreat. Top off monthly with 0.5 mL/10 gal to maintain.
Feeding the Cleaners: Keep Pods Fat
Pods need fuel to graze. Dose 0.5 mL PhycoPure™ Reef Blend per 50 gallons 2x weekly. Excess phyto becomes pod chow—zero waste. Skip fish food for 24 hours post-seeding; hungry wrasse devour new pods.
Pro move: add Bio-actiV Plankton weekly—bacterial boost accelerates detritus breakdown, supercharging Apocyclops.
Rockwork and Sand: Pod Real Estate
Porous live rock = pod condos. 1.5 lbs per gallon offers maximum surface. Avoid dense sand beds over 1 inch—nauplii suffocate. Use 0.5–1 mm aragonite; pods burrow, cyano can’t root. Rubble piles in refugium double as spawning caves.
Flow: gentle 5–10x turnover. Powerheads kill nauplii. Wide gyre or spray bars keep detritus suspended for pod grazing.
Parameter Locks: Algae Hates These Numbers
NO₃ 5–15 ppm feeds pods without fueling algae. PO₄ 0.04–0.10 ppm—low enough to starve cyano, high enough for pod reproduction. Test weekly. Above targets? Harvest macro, run carbon. Below? Dose phyto lightly.
Light: 10-hour photoperiod max. Excess blue spectrum grows film faster than pods eat. Use timers—consistency beats intensity.
Target Pests: What Pods Actually Kill
Film algae: Tisbe clear glass in 72 hours. Cyano mats: Apocyclops + nauplii dissolve red slime in 10 days. Hair algae: pods nibble bases—pair with manual removal. Diatoms: gone in 7 days post-seeding.
Limits: Valonia and bryopsis need urchins. Pods handle prevention, not invasion.
Signs of Success
Day 3: glass film thins. Day 7: sand sparkles. Day 14: rock faces clean, pod clouds at night. Month 2: zero scrubbing, stable NO₃/PO₄, fish hunting live prey. Parameters hold with half the water changes.
Troubleshooting: Pods Disappear
No pods after 7 days? Wrasses or six-lines ate them—add at midnight, cover rock. Cyano returns? PO₄ >0.12—run GFO 48 hours. Film persists? Flow dead spots—redirect pumps. Reseed and correct.
Advanced: Pod-Powered Refugium Loop
Seed refugium with 10 mL Apocyclops per 10 gal. Dose Bio-actiV 2x weekly. Harvest nauplii via 100-micron sock on return. Auto-export 24/7 cleanup crew. Algae stays gone, parameters lock—zero maintenance.
FAQ: Pods as Cleaners
How many pods to seed for algae?
1–2 mL per 10 gallons display. Double for refugium.
Do pods eat hair algae?
Bases only. Pair with manual removal or urchins.
Can I over-seed pods?
No — excess become fish food. Refugium buffers.
Related: Refugium Setup | Water Parameters | All Copepods
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