# Need advice on tank divider



## sarah5775 (Jul 12, 2006)

Well, my molly gave birth last night, and this morning I could not find a single baby molly in the tank :sad: It is as I feared- they have been eaten, probably by my barbs, black skirts and/or gourami. I am hoping that there may be one or two survivors hiding but I'm not getting my hopes up.

I want to see if I can save some from her next drop. Well, another tank is out of the question, and so is a breeding net (Mollies are much too big, it would stress her too much) So the only option I can see is a tank divider. I could move her when she's about to give birth and then raise the babies.

So I found two online. Has anyone had any experience with one of them?

http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl3684/cp18275/si1379379/cl0/pennplaxtankdividerextralarge

http://www.bigalsonline.com/StoreCa...uery=tank+divider&queryType=0&hits=12&offset=

Or of course I could try to make one- I read something about crafting one out of the things you get in a craft store for needlepoint and fishing line.

Has anyone had any experiences with tank dividers and can help me?


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

a breeding box works just fine its just key not to leave them in for more than a day or two. You can get a pretty big breeding net offline or in some lfs but most the ones petco or petsmart sells are pretty small the one i had was like 6x6x8 which is a decent size. you just have to be able to time it out pretty good for when she is getting close and then put a bunch of stuff in the breading box i use cut up artificial plants to help make her feel safe to have them and she should have the babies over night then just remove the mom and raise the babies in the net with liquid or powder fry food.


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## toddnbecka (Jun 30, 2006)

I've used the penn-plax divieders before, they're pretty easy to put into place and will hold up with you fish. Not suitable for large cichlids though. A good clump of live floating plants like Najas or hornwort is also helpful.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

toddnbecka said:


> I've used the penn-plax divieders before, they're pretty easy to put into place and will hold up with you fish. Not suitable for large cichlids though. A good clump of live floating plants like Najas or hornwort is also helpful.


idk if most conventional tank deviders are gonna be tight enough to keep the fry from passing through


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## sarah5775 (Jul 12, 2006)

Todd, thanks. Do you think that that divider will be able to contain mollly fry? They are pretty big so they probably wont' go through the holes, I hope.

I could try the breeding box for a guppy, and then when the fry get too big for the box but not big enough not to be eaten in the tank, then I could transfer them into the tank behind the barrier.

Do you think that would work?


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

sarah5775 said:


> Todd, thanks. Do you think that that divider will be able to contain mollly fry? They are pretty big so they probably wont' go through the holes, I hope.
> 
> I could try the breeding box for a guppy, and then when the fry get too big for the box but not big enough not to be eaten in the tank, then I could transfer them into the tank behind the barrier.
> 
> Do you think that would work?


mine grew to a big enough size to not get ate in the breeder net youd be suprised at how how small they can still be and i have some fish with some decent sized mouths who are scavengers and pick up any small fish they can. Its not the holes in the net you need to worry about its any spaces along the tank edge.


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## sarah5775 (Jul 12, 2006)

This is what I tried.

I have a little one gallon betta tank, which I put in the big tank and propped up on a rock (its a 55 gallon tank, but on the rock the one gallon container fits with the top just above the surface, had to drop the level a bit, but its ok.

Only problem- no filter in the tank and thus no air circulation. If I change 50% of the water every day that the fry are in there, do you think it will work without a filter? A gallon isn't huge, but its much better than the breeding trap.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I've used the penn-plax dividers, the fry can get under them. If you can empty the tank and lay down a bead of sealant, you can make a divider tight, otherwise, ?. I haven't tried the Lee's brand. The DIY one use plastic needlepoint mesh. They are study and water flows through. But how you anchor it is important. 

If you have a air pump, you can get a tiny sponge filter or make a filter out of a blob of filter floss and some rigid tubing. Doing frequent, large water changes (maybe taking the water from the main tank), should allow you to go filter-less, but I'd feel better is you had any sort of filter.


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## hXcChic22 (Dec 26, 2009)

sarah5775 said:


> Todd, thanks. Do you think that that divider will be able to contain mollly fry? They are pretty big so they probably wont' go through the holes, I hope.
> 
> I could try the breeding box for a guppy, and then when the fry get too big for the box but not big enough not to be eaten in the tank, then I could transfer them into the tank behind the barrier.
> 
> Do you think that would work?


What about using pantyhose to stretch over the divider? It would still allow circulation but the holes are far too small for fry to go through. It's the same concept as using pantyhose over the filter intake so they can't get sucked up.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

But even a divider a fry can get under will save some fry.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

a one gallon may seem better then a breading net but the truth is that the breading net has 55 gallons worth of water passing through it so their waste doesn't build up in the one gallon. And not having a filter its risky most places recommend doing 75% chance in fry tanks every day and have strong circulation sponge filters work but ehhh i hate them i just used a real filter with nylon covering it and cleaning it every day another thing i fond works is taking one of the really fine nitted nets like the blue ones and actually cutting that and covering the filter intake it doesn't clog up as fast as the nylon. and your going to get mineral build up where your tank is drained so you really gotta keep it clean.


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## toddnbecka (Jun 30, 2006)

The penn-plax divider will work well enough for molly fry, they're relatively large at birth. A one gallon jar is a bad idea; even with daily water changes it's not nearly as good as the water quality in an established aquarium, and as the fry grow it only gets worse faster. A 10 gallon tank with plenty of live plants is a much better setup for females dropping and raising fry to a fair size, though it can quickly become overcrowded if you have regular broods of fry.


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## sarah5775 (Jul 12, 2006)

The penn-plax dimensions are 11 3/8"x 17 1/2". Will that fit a 55 gallon? That is the biggest one they make.


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## toddnbecka (Jun 30, 2006)

The other alternative would be eggcrate (ceiling light panel) and plastic canvas, attached with fishing line, to contain the fry.


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