Frozen vs Pellets

[MN_ReeferKev]

This may be a dumb question, but wondering if there is a difference between frozen and pellets in regard to what it does to phosphate/nitrate levels. Is either better or worse for trying to keep the nutrients low, or does it all just depend on amount fed.

Thank you!

 

[DaJMasta]

Smaller volumes of pellets will increase levels more because for the same volume/mass there is comparatively more of each in pellets (whereas frozen has lots of water). I find that pellets are more likely to be missed by fish (they stay in the water column for less) so a somewhat higher percentage of pellets don't get eaten by the livestock you're usually intending to feed.

The actual proportion depends on the food, I hear anecdotally that frozen has somewhat higher phosphate, but they're often made from the same kind of stuff and it's a big generalization that encompasses many food formulations, so I'm not sure I buy it.

 

[Reef.]

Frozen wins…I agree with the above post.

Fish prefer frozen too, so it’s a win win.

 

[MN_ReeferKev]

All of that makes sense.. i'm sure its been covered on here before but I was curious if anyone uses either to try and keep nutrients lower

 

[Reef.]

All of that makes sense.. i'm sure its been covered on here before but I was curious if anyone uses either to try and keep nutrients lower

I use 100% frozen, tried a few times with pellets but my fish don’t like them, and it stresses me seeing them laying on the sand bed, with frozen, any uneaten food gets sucked into the overflow and into the filter sock to be removed.

 

[MN_ReeferKev]

I use 100% frozen, tried a few times with pellets but my fish don’t like them, and it stresses me seeing them laying on the sand bed, with frozen, any uneaten food gets sucked into the overflow and into the filter sock to be removed.

Ah, i actually don't have that issue haha all of my fish will pretty much eat both which is why I was initially wondering.

 

[SPS2020]

Variety is the spice of life! :)

 

[undermind]

Regarding the ratio of nitrate : phosphate, I've seen it said that LRS – which is pretty much the quintessential frozen food at this point – happens to maintain the Redfield Ratio in terms to how much of each is added upon feeding. This was discussed in detail on one of the BRS Lives with Ryan and Randy when discussing the Redfield Ratio and whether we should care about it.

Other foods will not have as favorable a ratio. It just depends. But feeding an imbalanced food seems like it could be a primary cause of imbalanced nutrients in the tank. While I alternate what I feed, I use frozen almost exclusively; with LRS as the foundation. I've never seen an imbalance in nutrients.

I personally believe that frozen represents a higher quality food source. Yesterday while I was feeding my tank, I thought to myself – what would I rather eat? Fresh seafood that's chopped and frozen, or seafood that's been dehydrated, powderized, mixed with fillers and binders, and formed into a pellet. When put like that, I think the answer is clear.

 

[DaJMasta]

My approach is to overfeed and then look at nutrient export methods. Everything seems happy to eat and I get regular spawning with good fecundity, so I feed twice a day, mostly frozen, and then add some supplemental particulate foods and phyto - quite a bit of food for the size tank in a day.

My phosphate creeps up over time and I have been knocking it down with periodic Phosphate Rx, but with just a little carbon dosing, an oversized skimmer, and a small turf algae scrubber, my nitrate levels are no problem even with basically no water changes.

 

[Bpb]

If I had a local source for LRS I’d use that. But I don’t. So I feed exclusively pellets. I don’t pay too close attention to nutrients. They’re usually higher than I’d like. But I don’t chase them