marine fish feeding schedual

[Fierro Nights]

i was wondering what would be a decent feeding schedule for marine fish. i have a 20 gallon tank w/ a few corals that iv had running for 7 or 8 months now, i have only lost a few guys, a starfish that was wounded, healed then got wounded again, a clown that didnt last a week and my shrimp i had for a long time died after i used a fumigator in the house. now i just have a striped damsel fish and a scooter blenny who have both grown alot.

anyway i have been feeding them a mixture of brine shrimp, blood worms, mysid shrimp, and recently some frozen tubifex worms which it seems only my scooter goes nuts over. i feed twice a day but never skip days like i have heard people do.

what are yalls feeding schedule and have you noticed your fish growing well?

i have a question too, my fire shrimp that i had, prior to his death seemed to actually be shrinking in size, very noticeable. it molted frequently (atleast 8+ times in 5 months ) but did not seem to grown, just shrink, was it not eating properly?

 

[catmel]

I dont have corals, so I'll let the others elaborate on that, but as for the fish it depends on the type of fish and food given. The blenny probably should be fed very small amounts several times a day, the damsel could get away with eating maybe every other day or so. I have two clowns and a coral beauty and I generally feed a small amount once a day ( when I feed pellet and flake and freezedried ) , to once every other day if I do something like frozen food that day.

 

[allycat]

hi Fierro. No two aquariums are the same, so they all have to be fed different. just a little note of caution. If you must use a fumigator or any chemical products air freshners etc, Turn of all pump's cover them and the aquarium compleatly. I don't use any chemical product's in the room were my aquarium is. Chemical products can destroy all your hard work very quick. Try to avoid them. I don't skip feeding , i tend to feed a small amount twice a day , brine shrimp,chopped musles,blood worm and some flake food. Just try with diffrent food's and you will soon find out what like's what. I feed my corals phytoplankton and cyclopeeze but only when needed' My normal feeding regime is twice a week. There is no hard fast rule on how often you should feed corals. Twice a week is adequate for most setups. Hope this help's

 

[melosu58]

I only feed every other day. On the off days I put a piece of feeze dried seaweed in there for my tangs. Been doing so for 10 + yrs now. If you have any questions about size of fish and corals check out my images. I have some fish and corals that are over 10 yrs old. Every other day will not hurt your fish but it will help your tank by keeping excessive nutrients down. I`ve got 10 yrs of experience to prove it.

 

[alexwhite]

Hey just found a great video on looking after Marine Fish, Sure you will find it useful as I did

http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=fd6pp5&s=4&hid=1&tag=fish+marine

 

[lando]

Like Mike I only feed every other day. Just as important as feeding a wide variety of proteins and algaes is using good quality dietary suppliments along with the food. Feeding high quality ingredients and suppliments will actually allow to get away with feeding less. Less food=less waste products. Look into products like Selcon, Vita-chem and garlic extreme as good suppliments.

 

[Fierro Nights]

thank you guys i really appreciate it, i was feeding twice a day everyday and ive been dealing with slime, ive been killing the slime by covering portions of the tank w/ a small bowl so i does not get any light when my corals get light, its working out great.

i had bought some formula two a couple of months ago and have only used two pellets since nothing seems to want to eat it, except my emerald crabs but only if its in their lazy reach, i have a striped damsel and it ignores it, my fish dont seem to respond well to food that does not have a live animal shape.

and has anyone used a food product called emerald delight? i looked at the ingredients and its just mashed spinach, lettuce and some squid w/ a few other things. is it okay if i just put some spinach in the tank as an alternative to dried seaweed.

 

[lando]

A lot of comercial flake and dry foods contain high levels of PO4 and NO3 (hence your slime issues). To compound the problem, the containers these foods come in suggest feeding 2-3 times per day. I am much more a fan of frozen foods. When thawed and rinsed with RO/DI water they introduce very little in terms of unwanted side-effects. (however, some frozen foods like Rod's Food do NOT suggest rinsing first as it washes away the micro particles found in it).

Feeding a tank is really a balancing act. You need to give the livestock what they need in terms of nutrition while always trying to reduce the amount of waste (both from the food itself and the post-digestion fish waste) your tank will accumulate. There are several things you can do to stack the deck in your favor. As mentioned, feed high quality foods loaded with suppliments less often and in smaller amounts. In addition, ensure proper water parameters by doing regular water changes and making sure you have plenty of biological filtration in the tank to proces waste efficently. Like I said...it is all a balancing act. A change in one area will cause changes in the others.