They don't need to be fed (really, most corals don't) since they have their cool symbiotic relationship. I find growth rates can be increased and sometimes better polyp extension can be exhibited with feeding, though. Bleached or otherwise damaged corals tend to heal better worn feeding as well. Also, if you run a ULNS, the corals can receive necessary nutrients through feeding that wouldn't be available freely in the water.
ULNS (ultra low nutrient system) is a technique for reef keeping where nitrates and phosphates are artificially maintained at very low levels using various dosing and media.
Similar in that they will eat, but its not necessary to feed food. It is kind of cool to watch them eat, though.
Yeah, if that's one of the 30" deep 240s, those are a bit of a bear to get to the bottom of. I have trouble reaching the bottom of my 180 and it's only 24" deep. I'd reccommend looking at the kent sea squirt (or a similar type feeder) for target feeding stuff. It like 24" long but can extend even longer. It's what I use for feeding stuff on the sand bed.
I bought these. It came with the precision tips also, but I took them off because they kept getting clogged. https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/skimz-coral-feeder-2-pack.html
Yes, many/most corals, photosynetic corals, have xoenthellie (my spelling is wrong) that creates sugars and other nutrients for food for th coral from light (hence photosynthetic). They also benefit from nutrients in the water like nitrate and phosphate. But let’s say, you have a low nutrient tank, or the amount of light on the coral isn’t enough to generate enough “food” for the coral to be healthy, fight off disease, grow, etc. that’s where supplemental feeding can be good for corals. And for the reefer, it’s rewarding to feed a coral, see the tentacles come out, and devour the food. When corals do expose their tentacles, I’ve always treated that as a sign that it is hungry and looking for additional nutrients.
That’s why you can feed corals at night
. When those pesky gobies are sleeping . Yes, Acans and plate corals will eat meaty foods. Acans love to be fed. Each polyp has short tentacles that grabs food.
It's a normal response from corals to put out tentacles at night. While I truly believe in feeding corals I think every night or day would be excessive and could possibly cause nutrient issues down the road.
Yep, this. They'll put out feeders every night *hoping* to catch something. In captivity, it's not hoping, they're pretty much guaranteed good since we target them.
