Food variation - I feel like I don’t have enough of it!

[James_O]

Hey R2R!

I feed my fish twice a day, and that feeding includes either NLS pellets or mysis shrimp. Both are healthy, but I just feel like I’m repeating it day and after day after day.

What other food could I look into getting to provide more of a variety in diet?

I want to start feeding more frozen food because it’s better for the fish, coral, and tank.

 

[Zach B]

I'm a big fan of Rods Food & LRS Fish Frenzy

 

[kados]

+LRS or Rod's. Both have great variety

I'm a big fan of Rods Food & LRS Fish Frenzy

Agreed! Both have great variety

 

[Joe31415]

I have three different types of pellets and a bunch of different frozen foods. I typically feed them twice a day. In the morning they get a few pellets from which ever bottle happens to be most convenient for me. With the lights off and everyone in their hiding/sleeping spots this early in the morning, the only fish that grab them are the two clowns that hangout next to the overflow all night. So it really is just a 'few pellets', like, less than 10 probably.
At night they get frozen food. I keep a little portion cup in my fridge with a a cube of blood worms, a cube of mysis shrimp and some LRS fish frenzy and mixed up with a few drops of selcon or vita chem in it. Some things will grab anything that gets near them, some are more picky and just go for certain things.

I stopped target feeding the few corals I have as they didn't seem to be all that interested in it. Between whatever they can grab out of the water and the coral Amino (or reef energy), they all seem to be doing quite well.

If your LFS has LRS (any of the Frenzy packages), that would constitute a 'variety' of foods, at least IMO. A specific fish may not get quite as much of a variety if it singles out the same thing each time, but you can only do so much.

 

[James_O]

I'm a big fan of Rods Food & LRS Fish Frenzy

+LRS or Rod's. Both have great variety

Agreed! Both have great variety

Is this the stuff? https://www.google.com/shopping/pro...&ved=0ahUKEwjev_Tb3pLyAhVRmK0KHaKhBqsQgjYI3wc

 

[James_O]

If your LFS has LRS (any of the Frenzy packages), that would constitute a 'variety' of foods, at least IMO. A specific fish may not get quite as much of a variety if it singles out the same thing each time, but you can only do so much.

Ok! I’ll look for Rods next time I go. I know for a fact that they have LRS, so I’ll get some of that also.

So would you recommend I feed a certain frozen food selectively? Or mix two or three together in the same glass and then feed?

 

[Jekyl]

Hey R2R!

I feed my fish twice a day, and that feeding includes either NLS pellets or mysis shrimp. Both are healthy, but I just feel like I’m repeating it day and after day after day.

What other food could I look into getting to provide more of a variety in diet?

I want to start feeding more frozen food because it’s better for the fish, coral, and tank.

I use 3 different "Rods Food" blends, fish only, all for reef and fish eggs. Mysis, spirulina brine shrimp, Hikari omnivore, nori and pellets.

 

[Glenner’sreef]

So James, let’s take this to the next level. Next time you go to your local grocery store pick up in the canned fish isle: baby clams, oysters and (little) shrimp. Take them home put them in a blender (with juices) add some dried seaweed if you’d like. Blend it. If it’s too thick add water while blending. Take 4/5 ziplock sandwich bags and pour seafood mixture in each bag until the bags are (after zipped) are about 1/4” thick. Freeze them. Cheaper and those should offer your fish and corals a nice variety that you can use for many, many months. Not to mention you now have the bragging right that you make your own fish food. Good luck bud.

 

[Joe31415]

So would you recommend I feed a certain frozen food selectively? Or mix two or three together in the same glass and then feed?

No idea. I just know what I do. I just did it because it was convenient for me. Mix up three different kinds and give them a little bit each day. No concerns about variety when they get it every day.
Come to think of it. Even with the dry food I could probably mix them all up into one container.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

what about baby brine shrimp, live food is great too. I also feed them copepods from my copepod tanks sometimes. Some people feed live worms but I can't handle that

 

[dvgyfresh]

So James, let’s take this to the next level. Next time you go to your local grocery store pick up in the canned fish isle: baby clams, oysters and (little) shrimp. Take them home put them in a blender (with juices) add some dried seaweed if you’d like. Blend it. If it’s too thick add water while blending. Take 4/5 ziplock sandwich bags and pour seafood mixture in each bag until the bags are (after zipped) are about 1/4” thick. Freeze them. Cheaper and those should offer your fish and corals a nice variety that you can use for many, many months. Not to mention you now have the bragging right that you make your own fish food. Good luck bud.

My explaining to my fiancé why the blender smells.

lol another thing is to add vitamins / nutrients to the mysis shrimp , I add selcon

 

[James_O]

what about baby brine shrimp, live food is great too. I also feed them copepods from my copepod tanks sometimes. Some people feed live worms but I can't handle that

I don’t think I’m quite ready for live food.

 

[Glenner’sreef]

Hilarious!!!

 

[ying yang]

So far i got 5 frozen cube foods.
And 1mm pelletts.
Algae flakes.
Algae sheets as couldnt find nori in any supermarket in my city.

I buy 2 bags of live food once per week also whether it copepods/brine shrimp/mysis or blood worms.

I keep saying i will buy a white worm culture kit and grow my own but never seem to get aroynd to it.
Now i gof a copperband butterfly 2 days ago i will defo tommorrow be buying some fresh clams and freezing them and cutting them into small slivers.

I feed 2- 3 times a day and when feed frozen i use one kind then put that box to bottom of pile then next feed i use top of pile and move to bottom off pile and so on.

I see it same as our food,no matter how much something is good or tasty for us,if we had say steak for breakfast dinner and tea then we would get bored very soon and see it same way for our fishy friends.

 

[James_O]

So far i got 5 frozen cube foods.
And 1mm pelletts.
Algae flakes.
Algae sheets as couldnt find nori in any supermarket in my city.

I buy 2 bags of live food once per week also whether it copepods/brine shrimp/mysis or blood worms.

I keep saying i will buy a white worm culture kit and grow my own but never seem to get aroynd to it.
Now i gof a copperband butterfly 2 days ago i will defo tommorrow be buying some fresh clams and freezing them and cutting them into small slivers.

I feed 2- 3 times a day and when feed frozen i use one kind then put that box to bottom of pile then next feed i use top of pile and move to bottom off pile and so on.

I see it same as our food,no matter how much something is good or tasty for us,if we had say steak for breakfast dinner and tea then we would get bored very soon and see it same way for our fishy friends.

Dang! Now THAT is a variety!

I also might actually look into getting some different dry food.

Any other dry food brand recommendations besides NLS?

 

[ying yang]

Not actually sure on other dry foods brands.
What ive researched on dry food is they generally have higher phospate levels and well just basically what i got from my research was that live food is best then frozen then dry foods.
As i dont have any live food cultures going and lfs is 15 minute each way drive away to buy a £ 0.65 bag of live food,i only buy 2 bags a week,so imo next best is the frozen food and its really cheap at £ 3.00 for 30 or 35 cubes depending on brand.
I feed 1/2 - 3/ 4 cube 2- 3 times per day so its very cheap.

Edit: just got memory of watching a brs video on them making diy food and they spoke of what to look out for in the ingrediants.without watching video again i just be guessing but sure it mentioned get brand thats high in protein but also if memory serves me correct it says something about fat fontent as you want high fat content as fish always active or something like this but dont quote me on this as probably more into it than juat what i say.but maybe try find that video or others like it then you got more of an informed decision when looking ingrediants of the dry food.
But a guy above said some good advice of make your own frozen food.

 

[Jekyl]

Dang! Now THAT is a variety!

I also might actually look into getting some different dry food.

Any other dry food brand recommendations besides NLS?

Rods and LRS are both great

 

[Joe31415]

I don’t think I’m quite ready for live food.

Back when I had lizards (two bearded dragons and a water dragon), their diet mostly consisted of live crickets and meal worms. That I could handle, even silk worms were fine. But watching them eat a live, actively trying to get away, tomato hornworm was a bit harder. I think it was the size, those were about as big as your pinky.

 

[LeftyReefer]

I feed a variety of foods.
For frozen, I feed mostly Rods and LRS varieties. Original, breeder, nano, etc..
I also feed those frozen eggs from Rods, the polyp poppers and the tentacle teasers. All my fish go crazy for them.
I have frozen cubed brine shrimp and calanus that I feed on occasion too, along with some other random cubes like Furmula One, etc.. Nori for the tangs.
I use pellets in a automated feeder for feeding when I'm away. I have a couple varieties of pellets mixed together, TDO Chromaboost, NLS Thera-A, and Piscene Energy pellets. The mix offers a good variety when dumped into a feeding ring by auto feeder. Some sink quick, some float a few minutes, so everyone gets a bit where they like it.

 

[najer]

As said above variety is great, I have 6 different flakes, 3 different pellets and 3 powders, no idea how many types of frozen and nori.
Looking up the diet of your fish will help narrow down the best choice of food for them.