My idea for a automatic frozen food feeder (Need some help)

[Fzech]

I was thinking on how to build an automatic frozen food feeder so I could feed my fish & Corals several times a day & hold food for several days. So with this in mind, I started to put some design criteria together.

The design criteria are: it must hold food for several days, needs to keep the food frozen, needs to dispense the frozen food, will thaw the food, dissolve the food in water & keep the food suspended, & deliver the food to the tank.

This looked like a daunting challenge:eek2:--Until I looked at the Refrigerator! The Refrigerator has an ice maker!':inlove:' Hmm what if you take a small ice maker and use it for holding & dispensing frozen food? Then wire the dispenser mechanism to a timer so you can control the amount & frequency of the dispenser. Then attach a acrylic tube (the tub will have insulation around it) to the output of the dispenser. Then cap the bottom of the tube and put an air line in it to keep the food in suspension & also help thaw the food. Also have a feeding line (it will have a valve connected a timer, to control the input of food) going to the tank (I may do a peristaltic pump). There will be two float switches in the acrylic tube, one will control low water level, and the other will control the high water level. These two float switches will control the fresh water top off. The water will decrease in height as the food is being dispense once the water reaches the low water level new fresh water will be pumped in.

So in a nut shell. You will put food in the ice maker then the food will be dispensed in a set amount in the acrylic tube where it will thaw, air will be constantly keeping the food in suspension; when it is time to feed the food the valve will open for a specified amount of time, when the water gets low the switch will fill it up and the ice maker will dispense more food and the cycle will start all over again.

I also included drawing of it.

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/586/43237Frozen-food-feeder.jpg

Some questions:
1: Which ice maker do you think will work the best?
2: How do you think the acrylic tube should be attached?
3: What timer do you think will work the best?
4: What Float switch do you think will work the best?
5: Can you give me some suggestions on how you would build it?
6: What valve or peristaltic pump do you think will work the best?

So what do you think of my idea? Is it a :thumbsup: or :thumbdown?

And do you have any suggestions?

Thanks, Fzech :lol: :lol: :lol:

[ReefRatz]

Originally posted by Fzech
So in a nut shell. You will put food in the ice maker then the food will be dispensed in a set amount in the acrylic tube where it will thaw

how do you plan to push frozen solid food into the tubing to thaw? ICE Crusher?

[kgross]

Zech,

That is not a bad idea. To be honest I would not even worry much about thawing the food, just make small cubes of your food and let them drop into the tank to thaw by themselves. It would not get as good of dispersion, but it would still work well. In your setup I think you could drop the cubes into the refugium and with some type of a grate in the outlet area of the fuge, and it would hold the cubes until they thaw enough to go through the grate. Rather than using an ice maker itself, all that you would need is an auger to move the ice. you would need to place a small freezer above the fuge, with the auger going into the some bucket for your ice cubes, then from the auger it could drop through a curtain to help hold the cold air in the freezer right into the fuge.

Kim

[moriartiholmes]

The big problem if I'm reading your post correctly is that you'll need a freezer right near your tank. If that's the case you might be able to skip the icemaker and use a regular fish feeder that some use to dispense dry foods. If it's in the freezer it might work just fine to dispense what you want.
The auto feeder I'm making is going to be an acrylic tower (PVC is fine too), 4"x4"x18" that I will add a cube of frozen to along with some cyclopeeze before work. It will thaw and when the timed pump turns on it will overflow into the main tank and feed the fish.
The only thing I'm worried about and it goes for any system like this is that I may end up with one fat dominant fish taking over where the food comes out.

[Fzech]

Thanks everyone for the replys. :thumbsup:


ReefRatz


how do you plan to push frozen solid food into the tubing to thaw? ICE Crusher?


No ICE Crusher. The food will simply fall from the dispenser into an acrylic tube (maybe I should of sed an acrylic cylinder) were it will thaw in water until it is fed.


kgross


just make small cubes of your food and let them drop into the tank to thaw by themselves.


I wunt to have the food dispersion very well in the tank. Good suggestion though. It would of made it much simpler.


all that you would need is an auger to move the ice.


Do you know of a good auger to move the ice?


you would need to place a small freezer above the fuge


Do you know of a good small Freezer?


In your setup I think you could drop the cubes into the refugium


The Refugium is on the top of the tank. I think it would work well if the Refugium was under the tank.


moriartiholmes


The big problem if I'm reading your post correctly is that you'll need a freezer right near your tank.


Why is this a problem? Is it the heat? If it is the heat, it will not be a problem because I have an exhaust system for that very purpose.



If that's the case you might be able to skip the icemaker and use a regular fish feeder that some use to dispense dry foods. If it's in the freezer it might work just fine to dispense what you want.


Can you elaborate more on this?


The auto feeder I'm making is going to be an acrylic tower (PVC is fine too), 4"x4"x18" that I will add a cube of frozen to along with some cyclopeeze before work. It will thaw and when the timed pump turns on it will overflow into the main tank and feed the fish.


Good idea.:thumbsup: That should work well. I wish I could do something that simple. The reason that I had this idea is to be able to feed my fish and corals while I am busy and on vacation.

Thanks again for Replying to my the thread! Fzech :fish1:

[ribs]

I'm going to mull over this stuff tomorrow, I've been posting about slow methods of continuous feeding (without introducing massive amounts of unconsumed nutrients), there's been alittle thought process going on here on this....it's an inspiring idea

[ribs]

no-ones offered any suggestions in other threads....but at least this one has offered a place to vent ideas :)

[armygreen11]

I read about an automatic feeder that instead of using frozen food, they just used fresh food and kept it refrigerated. You have to fill it every 3-4 days or so so the food doesn't spoil, but it should be fine for at least that long since it's refrigerated. Then all you have to do is have a container of food diluted in saltwater with an overflow built into it that dumps to wherever you want the food dispensed, and pump tank water to it whenever you want to feed the tank. The tank water would make the diluted food flow into the overflow. The only drawback is that everytime you feed the tank, there will be less food until you refill the container as it will dilute itself every cycle.

If you want to stick with frozen, just freeze up whatever you want into a sheet, and build an angled rack with a trough at the bottom to catch the food, and run tank water over it when you want to feed. The water will thaw the food and it'll flow into the trough and into the tank.

I'm not sure if the little peltier fridges get cold enough to freeze, but they'd definately work well for the fresh food doser. They're really small, and almost silent. I was thinking something like this:
http://www.thebuzzelectronics.com/item.asp?model_num=MR108&cid=193

The whole idea of using an auger just seems to me like overkill and I think would pose a big design issue. It'd look neat though. :)

[Fzech]

ribs


I'm going to mull over this stuff tomorrow,


I can't wait, to here what you come up with!:)


I've been posting about slow methods of continuous feeding (without introducing massive amounts of unconsumed nutrients), there's been alittle thought process going on here on this


Can you post links to the threads you have been posting on? And can you post any other threads you think would be useful?


it's an inspiring idea


I am honored you think so.:thumbsup:

ribs


no-ones offered any suggestions in other threads....but at least this one has offered a place to vent ideas


You mean this is one of the first threads to offer a suggestion on how to build one? ANY and ALL ideas are welcome!!!! We are :smokin: now!!


armygreen11


I read about an automatic feeder that instead of using frozen food, they just used fresh food and kept it refrigerated. You have to fill it every 3-4 days or so so the food doesn't spoil, but it should be fine for at least that long since it's refrigerated.


Thats a very good idea. Hmmm, I will have to give it a try (for fresh food I want to feed). Can you post a link to the article?


The only drawback is that everytime you feed the tank, there will be less food until you refill the container as it will dilute itself every cycle.


This is one of the problems I want to over come. Any suggestions?


If you want to stick with frozen, just freeze up whatever you want into a sheet, and build an angled rack with a trough at the bottom to catch the food, and run tank water over it when you want to feed. The water will thaw the food and it'll flow into the trough and into the tank.


Can you elaborate further on this (drawings etc.)?


I'm not sure if the little peltier fridges get cold enough to freeze, but they'd definately work well for the fresh food doser. They're really small, and almost silent. I was thinking something like this
http://www.thebuzzelectronics.com/i...m=MR108&cid=193


Hmmm, That it for the refrigerator. I wes looking at the web sit and I found this one that could get down to 40 degrees (http://www.thebuzzelectronics.com/item.asp?model_num=MR128%20SILVER).


The whole idea of using an auger just seems to me like overkill and I think would pose a big design issue


Do you have a idea, on how we can get a around not using a auger?

I wous looking on the web for Mini Freezers and this is wut I found.
http://www.atrendyhome.com/micofr.html
http://www.minicoolers.co.uk/index.htm?url=products/haier/index.htm
http://www.compactappliance.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=2914&itemType=PRODUCT&mtcCampaign=1494
http://www.shopzilla.com/8N--Haier_Upright_Compact_Mini_Freezer_1.3_Cu_Ft_-_oid--293780252


Thanks for posting. Fzech

[ribs]

From my own (very short) reef experience, I can tell this feeding thing needs some attention (critical thinking and clear reasoning) before settling in on a routine. This is partly from observing the few fish/inverts I have, the extraneous algaes that are present (none a nuisance...yet) and thru some research.

A good example from the research is found here (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-02/rs/feature/index.htm)
This and other articles give me clear direction to a proper feeding regimen, without the "never", "once a week", "once a day" potluck approaches. Additonally, determine what is the "lesser nutritional foods" that are served over the course of a day.

An interesting read (http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/5660506.html)

The auger thing is really a challenge to design and implement afforably, IMO. I would think a pusher/plunger delivery would be abit more feasible, will think about this some more, too.
Additional options (some mentioned already) that look promising:

Heater in mini-freezer that periodically heats the container/bag that the food is stored in, heater comes on periodically, the melt drips into the tank.

Periodically flow warmer (aquarium) water up into mini-freezer, over/thru/around stored food, the melt drips down into tank.

Well....some more later, lotsa options involved here! Lets see some tips/input!

[ribs]

another patented idea (http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/6220047.html)

[Fzech]

ribs


From my own (very short) reef experience, I can tell this feeding thing needs some attention (critical thinking and clear reasoning) before settling in on a routine. This is partly from observing the few fish/inverts I have, the extraneous algaes that are present (none a nuisance...yet) and thru some research.


Welcome to the Hobby! After two Setups (currently on number two going on three) and a lot of thinking about feeding I have decided to feed my Fish and Corals several times a day (in process of setting up number three). This is why I started this thread.


A good example from the research is found here
This and other articles give me clear direction to a proper feeding regimen, without the "never", "once a week", "once a day" potluck approaches. Additonally, determine what is the "lesser nutritional foods" that are served over the course of a day.


Thanks for link I will read it and tell you what I think. This is what I want to get a way from. In addition to the frozen and fresh foods, I am also planing on doing copepods, amphipods, mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, green water, etc.


An interesting read


I will read it and tell you what I think.


The auger thing is really a challenge to design


Designing is what I like the most! I am a drafting student and I love to learn how to design new things!! So when we come up with a possible approach, designing it will be the fun part!


I would think a pusher/plunger delivery would be abit more feasible, will think about this some more, too.
Additional options (some mentioned already) that look promising:

Heater in mini-freezer that periodically heats the container/bag that the food is stored in, heater comes on periodically, the melt drips into the tank.

Periodically flow warmer (aquarium) water up into mini-freezer, over/thru/around stored food, the melt drips down into tank.


Thanks for the ideas, I will take these into consideration and possibly alter or scrap my design!


ribs


another patented idea


I will read it and tell you what I think.


Keep the ideas coming!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks, Fzech