Coconut Shells

[rfisher]

Hi All,

M local LFS have some coconut shell hideaways for fish in stock, they would be ideal for the kuhli Loach I am going to add to my tank. However they are quite expensive at around £5 or £6 each.

Does anyone know what you would need to do to make your own?

Thanks,

Rich

 

[HendrixTheOscar]

Ya maaaaann. Buy a b-luddy co co nut maaaann

 

[rfisher]

Ya maaaaann. Buy a b-luddy co co nut maaaann

Great Reply,

What perhaps I should have said was do you need to boil them clean, scrub them clean, Leave to them soak for a hundred years

Rich

 

[HendrixTheOscar]

Who knows? Oh wait, that's why you're running this thread

Well when you do eventually find out let me know and i might just have a go myself

 

[Seidge]

we used to make things out of cocunut at school.

I think you cut in half scrape middle out then you can boil it to soften the rest of friut and scrape until your down to the hard shell. Then give it a good scrub

 

[rfisher]

Thanks Seidge,

I will give that a try.

Rich

 

[daspricey]

put it in boiling water for a few hours and it's ready!

david

 

[emma12321]

Have a read of this http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...8130&hl=coconut i made some ages ago and they are still going strong.

Emma

 

[Seidge]

Have a read of this http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...8130&hl=coconut i made some ages ago and they are still going strong.

Emma

The images are now missing, any chance of uploading one so we can see

 

[rfisher]

Hi,

Yeah, that would be great if you could.

Thanks,

Rich

 

[geo7x]

The best way (though also the longest way) to remove the meat from the shell is to dry it under the sun. Will take probably up to 2-4 weeks, and it's going to stink like hell. (The smell might remind you of a stinky vinegar...that's how coconut vinegars are made hehe)

But on the bright side! The meat will curl up and peel off from the shell. No hard scraping needed, and you're absolutely sure there's no meat left.

2-4 weeks ? come on its not that hard to get the meat out, when i did mine it just peeled out pretty easily, needed a bit a coaxing but i didnt scrape much. suppose it depends on how ripe the old coconut is

 

[rfisher]

The best way (though also the longest way) to remove the meat from the shell is to dry it under the sun. Will take probably up to 2-4 weeks, and it's going to stink like hell. (The smell might remind you of a stinky vinegar...that's how coconut vinegars are made hehe)

But on the bright side! The meat will curl up and peel off from the shell. No hard scraping needed, and you're absolutely sure there's no meat left.

2-4 weeks ? come on its not that hard to get the meat out, when i did mine it just peeled out pretty easily, needed a bit a coaxing but i didnt scrape much. suppose it depends on how ripe the old coconut is

Yup, that's how them coconut farmers do it That's for mature coconuts, btw, where the meat is thick and hard. Younger coconut meat is soft, you can scrape it off with a spoon with little or no effort. However, since this coconut is young, you have to dry out the shell as well. Don't put anything in your tank that's not completely dried off (ie. coconut shells, branches, etc). It will attract fungus when it starts to rot.

Thanks for That, I have just got hold of two coconuts, cut them in half with a dremel and stripped them of their 'Meat' and I have hung them outside to dry as someone else mentioned about that the other day in my LFS. The Hot weather we are having at the moment, in the south east anyway, should be more than ideal. Will I still need to boil them up before I place them in my tank.

Thanks, Rich

 

[lucky62]

after drilling 1" access holes [ for my dwarf sized fish, not recommended but optional , and some fish could become trapped] I drained the fluid , boiled the shells for about a half hour , let them cool , scraped out the meat .
The meat could also be removed prior to boiling .

As for boiling , I boiled and rinsed mine several times , until the reddish color faded [ once you begin to boil you'll know that reddish color ] .

All in all it was quite a chore , but well worth the effort

I cut mine with a "hacksaw". Didn't drill the holes on the group below , but have on the last set because it was easier than doing it after cutting them in half .



my pics are still in that older thread by peaches / emma ?

 

[rfisher]

Thanks for that lucky62,

I still cant view the photos though

Rich

 

[lucky62]

too bad , I sent some pics ......via PM


I'll put 'em here too

hope that helps ........sorry about the big ones ........

and like bog , or "drift wood" coconut shells will be slowly broken down over time in the aquarium ........
.....so in about 2 to 3 years you'll need to do it again