Am I feeding my fish enough?

[Joe_D]

I Have 6 Neon Tetras, 3 Harlequin Rasboras , and a couple of Panda Cory cats.
As an old aquarium person, I am mindful of not over feeding for the reasons we all know .
They all get along great and all have great appetites etc.

When I feed my Corys sinking pellets etc, all the other fish then start feeding off the bottom at the Cory food also.... as if there are starved.

My tank is cycled (planted) with zero ammonia and Nitrites
However, I am trying to get my Nitrates down a bit. so I do not want to over feed .

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

How often are you feeding?

 

[Joe_D]

usually a smaller amount twice a day

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

I’d say that’s to much but I only feed every other day. In general if you want to lower nitrate then reduce nutrient import (feeding) and increase export via water changes. In a 10g you could very easily do 50% changes which will lower your nitrates by 50% too.

 

[Joe_D]

I'll try feeding ever other day

BTW .... in my 10 gal tank, I have doing 2 gal water changes about every third or fourth day
I use "Prime" as a declorinater

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

That’s just going to drop you by 20% so depending on how high or how fast they’re accumulating that may not be enough

 

[Joe_D]

Yeah.....
Tomorrow I will be doing a water change. I will test for Nitrates before that and depending on what it is, it may may be more than 2 gals

Personally, I do not like to do big water changes unless I really have to as it can stress fish .

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

As long as the temps close it’s fine, can even induce spawning a lot of times.

 

[Joe_D]

I tested Nitrates today and it was relatively high.
So, I did a 3 gal water change on my 10 gal tank.

This is the reading I got now after the water change.
To be honest I'm not quite sure how to interpret the readings. Do you place the vial directly on the card to compare colors or hold it a bit off of the card?.

Anyway, I interpret this to be about 20% ..... an acceptable level .
It's difficult to tell just from this pic.
In any event, I understand that this test is just a rough indication of a Nitrate content. Is there a better test available?

BTW, I am now trying to feed just every other day .... on even number days

 

[Aiken Drum]

Is there a better test available

https://www.cotswoldkoi.co.uk/produ...yadNB6cQVTZm5TlUuL7uXYsgYt5bgo_waAsjOEALw_wcB

I have no idea if more expensive equates to better

 

[Joe_D]

Thanks....
As i understand it Nitrate is not really an issue unless it's really high for extended periods.. Plants need some nitrate anyway..

So, I will see if increased water changes (volume ) with less feeding will bring it down a bit consistently.