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The
word Vivier is derived from the French word for live/life: Vive.
The key aim of these systems is to keep your shellfish stock live
and in good condition for market.
As
you maybe aware, shellfish are very sensitive to changes in water
conditions, light, temperature and dissolved salts. So to improve
their survivability outside of their normal marine environment,
it is crucial to get these conditions balanced. Oxygen and toxins
levels must be monitored and controlled with pumps and filters,
whilst temperature is controlled by thermostatically controlled
refrigeration systems.
What
makes this process all the more interesting is that each species
has slightly different tolerances. Browns are fairly tolerant ,
whilst Velvet Crabs are highly susceptible to toxins, temperature
and low oxygen levels. Stress rapidly kills creatures if they are
not kept under suitable conditions.
The whole point of a vivier system is to keep the stock alive once
removed from their natural environment as the quality of shellfish
"meat" degrades rapidly after death.They do this by maintaining the water conditions at close to an
ideal as possible. Circulation pumps maintain a steady flow of clean,
areated water throught the tank system, whilst thermostatic refrigeration
controls water temperature within the ideal range for the stock.
Bio-filters, mechanical filters, UV/electrostatic and ionic exchange
filters are employed to remove toxins from the water and reduce
the risk of toxin shock in the stock. Monitoring systems warn of
any mishap whilst back up systems and batteries offer a level of
insurance in case of power or system failure.
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