Feeding?

jfitzg14 · #1 12/04/2007, 03:23 PM

I have a 24 gallon Aquapod. I have three fish and a variety of corals. How often and how much should I feed this tank? I have been using a variety of different foods from flakes and pellets to blood worms and mysis shrimp. I also have reef roids and cyclopeeze. I am trying not to overfeed for obvious reason, but I am notsure about how often and how much. Any help would be appreciated.

Thizzelle686 · #2 12/04/2007, 03:40 PM

Why dont you tell us what type of fish you have because that might change how much you need to feed.

gsusfreak · #3 12/04/2007, 03:52 PM

once or twice a day?.....i think that should be sufficient....but yea, list the stocking list

i feed my fish 3 times a day....but in really small amounts....for 30 secs to 1 minute

jfitzg14 · #4 12/04/2007, 05:10 PM

I have a pair of perculas and a six line wrasse. I also have a cleaner shrimp and a coral banded. My fear is that I am over feeding and thus causing a nitrate problem.

Thizzelle686 · #5 12/04/2007, 05:17 PM

Well i would feed two times a day for about a couple minutes each time. have you tested your nitrates recently

gsusfreak · #6 12/04/2007, 05:24 PM

i have exactly the same setup...minus the cleaner shrimp, and also my clowns are occelaris....i feed formula 2 flakes in the morning, live baby brine when i get home from class, and then pellet food before bed......feeding times are always under 1 minute

jfitzg14 · #7 12/04/2007, 05:57 PM

Yes, I frequently check my nitrates and I am always around 20. I also have a little Aptasia and Bubble Algae. I am just trying to eliminate as much of the excess waste. Any ideas?

jacksonpt · #8 12/04/2007, 06:06 PM

Are you running a skimmer? If so - feed once a day. If not, once every other day.

Ontosrob · #9 12/04/2007, 06:09 PM

Turn off your main pump so the food doesn't get sucked into the back. then, feed and see how long it takes for your critters to eat. You maybe feeding to much?

jfitzg14 · #10 12/04/2007, 08:57 PM

I don't have a protein skimmer. I haven't heard anything good. I do notice a considerable slick on top of the water. Will every other dat be enough?

NanoReefWanabe · #11 12/04/2007, 09:42 PM

i only feed once a day...a sprinkle of ULTRAminF and a pinch of flake..

twice a week...basically every three days i feed a cyclops, rotifers, baby brine and mysis cocktail...usually spot feed the anemone, plate and shrooms the leftover gets blown in to the koraila...and the whole tank goes nuts..

jfitzg14 · #12 12/05/2007, 06:32 AM

Has any one had any success with a protein skimmer? If not, how often and how much water should I replace?

NanoReefWanabe · #13 12/05/2007, 09:51 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by jfitzg14
Has any one had any success with a protein skimmer? If not, how often and how much water should I replace?

What?

what do you mean has anyone had any success with a protein skimmer...everybody who adds one has success with...the proof is in the NOG at the end of the week...thick green slimey crap...once a week tells me mine is working just fine..

regarless of having a skimmer or not you should still be changing out about 25% of your water a month..how you do it and how frequently are up to you...some do one big change some do several smaller ones...i prefer larger less frequent ones as that wayi know i am getting out a bunch of bad water as opposed to a bunch of good/ decent water mixed with the bad..

i think i read somewhere you need to do 8 5% water changes to get out the same amount of bad stuff as you do with one 25% change...reason being is the bad stuff left behind from the 5% change is diluted with clean water...then your next water change instead of 5% bad water you get only 3% or so and 2% of the good water you put in a couple days before..inturn you take out less bad...and for the example say you had a 100gallon tank 8 5% changes would take 40 gallons of water, where as 1 25% change is only 25 gallons..even though water is fairly cheap you need not be waste full..

***With that said, your tank will tell you what is working and what isn't for your WC regiment*** if the fish and coral are happy, do what your doing, if not perhaps it is time for a change...also your water chemistry will also dictate when a change is necessary..

in closing....Adding a skimmer will do nothing but benefit your system, provided it is working; and even if it isnt your still aerating the water which is good too..

dsn112 · #14 12/05/2007, 11:01 AM

skimmers work well, I have stopped using mine recently do to running two diy aquaclear 70 fuges.

I want to see what the differences are in water quality. If you have enough natural filtration ie: LR and LS and good flow, skimmers aren't completely necessary.

I also want to see if my fuge can feed my corals and inverts by breeding pods and such. A skimmer can defeat that purpose in a small setup.

I do a 20% wc every 3 weeks

jacksonpt · #15 12/05/2007, 01:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by dsn112
If you have enough natural filtration ie: LR and LS and good flow, skimmers aren't completely necessary.

or if you don't overstock or over feed.

jacksonpt · #16 12/05/2007, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by jfitzg14
Will every other dat be enough?

I feed about twice a week, sometimes three times, but never more than that.

jfitzg14 · #17 12/05/2007, 01:24 PM

To clarify, it was my understanding that a protein skimmer is not very effective on nano reefs. If I am mistaken, please tell what protein skimmer I should buy.

jacksonpt · #18 12/05/2007, 03:17 PM

some people feel that they are overkill on such small tanks. Basically, they give you more room for error. If you're careful and smart with your tank then you won't need one. If not, then they aren't a bad idea.

It really comes down to a question of how responsible you are about stocking, feeding, water changes, general husbandry...

jfitzg14 · #19 12/05/2007, 03:29 PM

I would like to try one. Any suggestions?

jacksonpt · #20 12/05/2007, 04:13 PM

Not from me... I don't like them so I've never used one. I'm sure someone else will chime in though.

NanoReefWanabe · #21 12/06/2007, 09:57 AM

tunze9002

jfitzg14 · #22 12/06/2007, 12:29 PM

I don't have a refugium. Will this protein skimmer fit in one of the compartments of the Aquapod? How effective is this skimmer? Have you noticed a difference in water quality?

gsusfreak · #23 12/06/2007, 12:51 PM

honestly, i dont think you'll need a skimmer....you live stock sounds good and isnt overstocked....i'd a 2 week water change will be fine for your system

wolfofstone · #24 12/17/2007, 03:54 AM

12g cube master
T5 lights
300gph flow
Live sand
12lbs live rock
2 1/2 in of live sand.
5lbs of rubble rock.
Some crazy macro algae.
Current 10k led for alga
Floam filter. no charcoal.

How is your filtering system setup? What type of live rock? Flow rate? What are your other readings? How long has your tank been setup?

I turned the second channel into an algae fuge. I have tested my waters every few days and 0ppm for all the bad stuff. I even put food in with no fish to get any readings and still none; i went out and bought another test set to see if i was doing something wrong. The stuff sucks up everything! Finally put fish in and still 0 readings. I didn't trim it enough and had a hair algae problem but its going away after a trim.

I also used Nitromax Saltwater from oceanproaquatics.com. Give it a try all it is is bacteria in a bottle and it will help devlop or redevelop your filter.

scottydo · #25 12/18/2007, 03:43 PM

This still holds true:
Once a day to keep them alive
Twice a day to make them thrive

Now, regardless of how often you feed or how good the filtration, a skimmer will most certainly help. It's just common sense removing dissolved organics before they break down will slow nitrate build-up.