Fish Feeding: When is it too much or not enough?

[revhtree Verified Admin]

It takes fish a while to start looking thin and on the other hand it takes a little bit for them to start looking plump. So as we know this has to do with how much or how little they are getting to eat. As I prepare my cube of food per day, look at my fish, look at my algae, I wonder is this too much or not enough? Some fish are FAT one is thinner. Is it enough?

So my question today is related to feeding your fish and how much. Not from what you have read but from personal experience.

How do you, personally, gauge when you're overfeeding or not feeding enough?

Thanks @vetteguy53081 for this photo

 

[Dragon52]

@vetteguy53081
What kind of tang is this. I think I need one.
Sometimes I think to much other not enough but my fish are all nice & plump so I guess I'm doing something right.

 

[ZoWhat]

I think the textbook answer is this:

Feed only the amount of food that is completely consumed in 3-5 minutes. If after 5mins if there is still food swirling around, you've fed way too much



.

 

[Roolin_W]

Probably not the right approach, but I like to feed my tank more than just feeding the fish. This way, anything can grab some food if hungry.

 

[ZoWhat]

Btw @vetteguy53081 .... what kind of tang is that?

 

[BeejReef]

I count my sexy shrimp.
If I'm feeding enough, I still have six :)

 

[Berlibee]

It's a very interesting question as It's tough to say when you're overfeeding. As fish alway looks hungry, no matter how much you will feed most of the time, they will want more. I believe in our hobby "overfeeding" is related to the water parameters in most of the cases. I just follow the same feeding schedule, twice a day, the same quantity of food. Discipline helps to keep fish healthy and avoid any water parameter issues. ;Happy

 

[Whasmack]

I only feed once a day; but all my fish are definitely fat.
If I could, I would feed smaller amount more frequently.

 

[MrWheelock]

I dont find the real problem to be wether I feed too much or too little. My nitrates and my fat two-barred rabbit fish say I feed too much. However I feel I dont feed a well rounded diet and will be making my own fish food when i get home thanks to, @bubbaque and his DIY blend, and aslo to @Bulk Reef Supply for their DIY as well.

 

[Salty Lemon]

I do a combination of a lot of things. But I do believe I overfeed more than underfeed. If my tangs start headbutting my clips, I'll throw some extra vegetation in. If I see food still floating around on the bottom, I've fed too much. My water tests tell me a lot. I'm still building up my collection, so fish are growing, I'm adding fish, and I'm adding corals, so things are frequently changing and I need to adapt. I think that is the hardest part.

 

[fishybizzness]

It takes fish a while to start looking thin and on the other hand it takes a little bit for them to start looking plump. So as we know this has to do with how much or how little they are getting to eat. As I prepare my cube of food per day, look at my fish, look at my algae, I wonder is this too much or not enough? Some fish are FAT one is thinner. Is it enough?

So my question today is related to feeding your fish and how much. Not from what you have read but from personal experience.

How do you, personally, gauge when you're overfeeding or not feeding enough?

Thanks @vetteguy53081 for this photo

What type of tang is that vetteguy3? Beautiful fish!

 

[Reefadore]

Wow - my fish consume the food within 10 seconds. Now I know that I’m not feeding enough!

 

[jasonrusso]

I feed a bit at a time until the fish start slowing down.

My puffer is a different story. The amount of food he could eat in 5 minutes is amazing

 

[JasonK84]

@vetteguy53081
What kind of tang is this. I think I need one.
Sometimes I think to much other not enough but my fish are all nice & plump so I guess I'm doing something right.

Btw @vetteguy53081 .... what kind of tang is that?

What type of tang is that vetteguy3? Beautiful fish!

 

[burton14e7]

I feed a mix of frozen food once a day and my auto feeder feeds pellets three times a day. Nitrates and phosphates still at 0 so I feel like I can feed more but that's a lot of food!

 

[steveb]

What type of tang is that vetteguy3? Beautiful fish!

Ditto

 

[pasquale petrovia]

Dussumier tang right?

 

[DH78]

Probably not the right approach, but I like to feed my tank more than just feeding the fish. This way, anything can grab some food if hungry.

I do the same thing. I like to make sure some stuff gets down to the sand for the starfish, shrimp, and crabs.

 

[DH78]

I dont find the real problem to be wether I feed too much or too little. My nitrates and my fat two-barred rabbit fish say I feed too much. However I feel I dont feed a well rounded diet and will be making my own fish food when i get home thanks to, @bubbaque and his DIY blend, and aslo to @Bulk Reef Supply for their DIY as well.

I feed pellets and my own homemade fish food. When I feed my DIY frozen food, the nassarius snails, Mithras crabs, and sand shifting star all come out to partake. This never happen until I made my own food.

 

[Dimmy007]

I was feeding once a day a mix of frozen and pellets. Everything was consumed farily fast between the corals and fish. The fish are fat and healthy and Right now my parameters test in the correct ranges but I feel like my tank is not the best looking. So after talking to a friend that only feeds once a week I am going to try that. Seems like a pretty drastic change to go from everyday to once a week but I will keep a close eye on all the changes.