Automatic feeder installed in sump?

[Maddlesrain]

As you can probably tell from my current string of threads, I'm hoping to make my tank more automated. One thing I'd really like to add is an automatic feeder so that the fish are fed multiple times a day when I, or another family member is not home, and on a consistent schedule. However, I don't want the hardware sitting on the lip of my aquarium because they're all rather ugly in my opinion. My current string of thought is that I could hook the feeder up above the last chamber in the sump with the return pump and have a funnel leading to the pump's intake. The pump I'm wanting to work with is a vortech vectra. Would the food clog up the pump or would it suck it right up into the tank without problem? The last thing I want is to gum up the pump with food.

Does anyone else have an automatic feeder in their sump and get the food to the display another way?

Thank you as always!

 

[Waterjockey]

I suppose that would work for flake and other floating foods. Not so much for sinking pellets and the like.
Do you run socks?

 

[Gabriel Guirola]

I would just be worried of two things. First, that the food will eventually clog the pump or build up and then flood your house and second that the food is going to be crushed and the fish are not going to get the best out of the food. Really good idea though, I say try it and see how it works for a couple of days.

 

[Maddlesrain]

I suppose that would work for flake and other floating foods. Not so much for sinking pellets and the like.
Do you run socks?

The socks would be on the other end of the sump so they wouldn't catch the food unless it went all the way through the tank first.

I would just be worried of two things. First, that the food will eventually clog the pump or build up and then flood your house and second that the food is going to be crushed and the fish are not going to get the best out of the food. Really good idea though, I say try it and see how it works for a couple of days.

I'm not too worried about crushed food since the fish I'd be most worried about getting the multiple feedings would be anthias and nano-sized fish. The other fish would be supplemented with frozen which would have to be fed manually. The clogging, however, is also a fear of mine. Maybe running a separate, cheaper, pump for the feeding would be better? Something that if clogged I could replace/ easily clean and would be programmed to turn on only when the feeder was running?

 

[Waterjockey]

Do you normally leave your return pump running when feeding?

 

[Maddlesrain]

Do you normally leave your return pump running when feeding?

Yeah, I never turn it off. Unless I'm doing a large enough water change.

 

[Waterjockey]

I don't really see an issue then, except if you have a sponge on your return pump intake. If no sponge, and inlet slots are a decent size, it shouldn't clog up.
I have no sponge or any type of intake screen on my return pump, and it has been moving food around for nearly 3 years with no issue

 

[Daniel@R2R]

I don't think clogging will be am issue at all. You've got enough water mooching through there it should clean it out without issue. I'd be more worried about keeping the food from causing nutrient issues bc not all of it getting sucked up into the dt. I wonder if you couldn't do some kind of funnel setup so that you feed into a funnel that connects to a hose that ties into the inlet on the pump in some way...

 

[Maddlesrain]

I don't think clogging will be am issue at all. You've got enough water mooching through there it should clean it out without issue. I'd be more worried about keeping the food from causing nutrient issues bc not all of it getting sucked up into the dt. I wonder if you couldn't do some kind of funnel setup so that you feed into a funnel that connects to a hose that ties into the inlet on the pump in some way...

I thought about that as well, but the way I'm looking at it, water will just spray everywhere through the spare hole. I was thinking just siphoning out the pump chamber once a week/ removing maybe a pitcher of water, would help remove any waste there might be. I do fairly regular water changes anyway of very small amounts, so it wouldn't be too much of a hassle.

But to eliminate waste in the first place I was figuring I'd have a pvc attached to the pump (1") and have the feed funnel line only be 1/4" or so and have it stick a little into the inlet so all food has to be sucked directly through the pump. That would eliminate any possibility of the food settling on the sump floor.

 

[Marzvt]

This is exactly what I am planning to do for the supplemental feedings of my Anthias. I’m hoping the returns will spread the food out so the tangs don’t just grab it all

 

[biecacka]

Put pvc submerged under the water line right above the return pump. Then have the feeder feed into the pvc. This will contain the pellets there until they start to sink and assist with them going into the pump.


Corey

 

[Pete_the_Puma]

That is exactly how I run it now, I have a 140G Rimless tank and wanted to hide as much of the hardware as possible. I have the Neptune auto-feeder dropping a mix of small pellets with mixed in Reefroids 3 times per day. I run a L1 Vectra with the strainer attachment. 90% of the food ends up in the tank, haven't had any issues with this setup although it has only been going 4 months, I plan on cleaning my pump maybe every 6 months as opposed to almost never lol...

The only issue so far is that some of the food settles at the bottom of the return chamber instead of being sucked into the pump and every week or so I get in there with a turkey baster to removed the detritus, am considering placing a small powerhead in there to prevent this in the future.

 

[ss30]

If you have dry flake food going into a pipe it will stick to the inside of the tube, pellet would be the only way I could think it would work, but that might get mushed up by the pump and if that did happen you might end up just feeding the CUC!

 

[Simo2004]

That is exactly how I run it now, I have a 140G Rimless tank and wanted to hide as much of the hardware as possible. I have the Neptune auto-feeder dropping a mix of small pellets with mixed in Reefroids 3 times per day. I run a L1 Vectra with the strainer attachment. 90% of the food ends up in the tank, haven't had any issues with this setup although it has only been going 4 months, I plan on cleaning my pump maybe every 6 months as opposed to almost never lol...

The only issue so far is that some of the food settles at the bottom of the return chamber instead of being sucked into the pump and every week or so I get in there with a turkey baster to removed the detritus, am considering placing a small powerhead in there to prevent this in the future.

hi any updates on this love to see a video :)

 

[darrenspeaking]

I found this video from Reefdudes very helpful

 

[Aquajan]

I would also look into the humidity in the sump cabinet.
If the chamber is not ventilated enough the food can clog up in your doser depending on witch doser u use.

 

[alfaoscar1980]

That is exactly how I run it now, I have a 140G Rimless tank and wanted to hide as much of the hardware as possible. I have the Neptune auto-feeder dropping a mix of small pellets with mixed in Reefroids 3 times per day. I run a L1 Vectra with the strainer attachment. 90% of the food ends up in the tank, haven't had any issues with this setup although it has only been going 4 months, I plan on cleaning my pump maybe every 6 months as opposed to almost never lol...

The only issue so far is that some of the food settles at the bottom of the return chamber instead of being sucked into the pump and every week or so I get in there with a turkey baster to removed the detritus, am considering placing a small powerhead in there to prevent this in the future.

I run my tank the same way, but put a cheap Jabao wave maker in the return chamber. Since then, no waste has been collected from feeding pellets or frozen foods.