Vacation feeding options

[turbo2oh]

Headed out on vacation for a week and trying to sort out my feeding plan. Current stock is:
• 2 clownfish
• 4 dispar anthias
• 1 royal gramma
• 1 tailspot blenny

I’ve got the Neptune AFS autofeeder and was planning to load it up with a mix of pellets and mysis flakes. I’ll probably use a feeding ring, but my worry is the clowns will hammer everything right at the surface. Maybe the anthias grab some too, but I’m not sure much will actually make it down into the water column where the gramma or blenny could get a fair shot.

Has anyone figured out a good way to balance this? Do you just live with the fact that the surface eaters get first dibs? I’ve been thinking about picking up an Avast Plank since it seems like it would disperse food better into the water column and give the mid and bottom guys more of a chance.

Curious what others do in this situation.

 

[tbrown]

They make those frozen cube feeders that seem to work pretty good. I use one in my freshwater tank right below the auto feeder and it dispenses into the tube, flow from a powerhead stirs it up pretty good and hydrates it so that when it leaves the tube it's not just floating. Similar to what the Plank does.

For my saltwater tank I have my auto feeders pretty close to where the surface is agitated by the wave makes so it drops in and immediately gets dispersed throughout the tank. (Plus I have a Plank on the opposite side).

 

[turbo2oh]

They make those frozen cube feeders that seem to work pretty good. I use one in my freshwater tank right below the auto feeder and it dispenses into the tube, flow from a powerhead stirs it up pretty good and hydrates it so that when it leaves the tube it's not just floating. Similar to what the Plank does.

For my saltwater tank I have my auto feeders pretty close to where the surface is agitated by the wave makes so it drops in and immediately gets dispersed throughout the tank. (Plus I have a Plank on the opposite side).

Aren’t the frozen cube ones ~$500?

Does the plank do a good job getting it down into the water column?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I use Eheims and a cheap knock off brand auto feeder with feeding rings. I use them even when I’m home to feed 8+ times a day.

 

[tbrown]

Aren’t the frozen cube ones ~$500?

Does the plank do a good job getting it down into the water column?

Not the frozen cube auto feeders, the tubes for frozen cubes.

 

[turbo2oh]

I use Eheims and a cheap knock off brand auto feeder with feeding rings. I use them even when I’m home to feed 8+ times a day.

Do you have any issues with getting food to the more passive fish?

 

[tbrown]

I have a similar setup for mine. I feed the Plank once or twice daily plus 2 additional feeders 2-3 times daily. I have flakes (meaty and vegetarian), pellets, and freeze dried. All fish are fat and happy.

 

[zbrusko]

I use Eheims and a cheap knock off brand auto feeder with feeding rings. I use them even when I’m home to feed 8+ times a day.

Do you have a screen lid? If so, do you just drop the food through the screen holes?

I am thinking about an auto feeder, but due to the tank being built into the wall, I have limited space in the sides & back of my tank. How far beyond the glass does the feeder protrude? Is it possible to set a feeder on a screen top, or must it be secured to the rim?

 

[tbrown]

Do you have a screen lid? If so, do you just drop the food through the screen holes?

I am thinking about an auto feeder, but due to the tank being built into the wall, I have limited space in the sides & back of my tank. How far beyond the glass does the feeder protrude? Is it possible to set a feeder on a screen top, or must it be secured to the rim?

Depends on the type/size of food, weight of the feeder, and size mesh on the screen top.

Mine is egg crate and can handle the flakes and the weight but I have then attached to the edge of the tank.

On my nano it sits on the top and I printed a special feeding tube with slightly larger mesh to allow for smaller flakes and pellets but still small enough for no fish to hopefully jump through. I also printed a "raft" that helps distribute the weight of the feeder and it sits on top of the lid.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Do you have any issues with getting food to the more passive fish?

No. It adds enough that it spreads around. Even the clowns that will not go more than 1” from their anemone get some.

 

[mmorrison55]

Avast marine plank is easily the best auto feeder on the market. And although I think it’s worth it, ill admit that it is pricey.

If you have an auto feeder already, you can buy the below, which includes everything except for the plank part for $60. It includes a feeding tube and sicce pump that ensures all food dropped into it is dispersed under water. You could sit your current auto feeder on top and let it drop the food into the avast feeding tube.

Plank 3.6 Mounting Platform and Mixing Assembly

Complete Plank v3.6 Mounting Platform and Mixing Assembly:Includes the v3.6 Sicce mixing pump, mounting platform, feeding tube, and all original mounting hardware. This complete assembly can replace your existing mounting hardware to align with the v3.6 model. It’s versatile, serving as a spare...

www.avastmarine.com

Also, their reef jerky freeze dried food is very good as well.

 

[Amstar]

Do you have a screen lid? If so, do you just drop the food through the screen holes?

I am thinking about an auto feeder, but due to the tank being built into the wall, I have limited space in the sides & back of my tank. How far beyond the glass does the feeder protrude? Is it possible to set a feeder on a screen top, or must it be secured to the rim?

I have an avast plank on my tank that is built into the wall. I have screens on top of each section of my tank -- what I did what just make the screen go around the planks tube -- so then the fish can't jump out and the screen still sits flush and doesn't stick up

it attaches to the end of the tank -- and I just measured and it is just a tad short of 3" that sticks out the back of the tank

in my plank I have several freeze dried foods that are rehydrated in the plank tube as they make their way down to the tank. Foods are:
pacific krill
Brine shrimp (don't have very much/use very much of this)
Copepods
calanus
mysis shrimp
algae pellets
rotifers
TDO chormaboost

I feed twice a day for two minutes each (using my apex) you can use a smart wifi plug if need be -- then I feed when I get home later in the night as well so I can observe in person the fish eating

 

[zbrusko]

Oh, this is interesting. Problem is, my tank also has eurobracing. The only parts that don’t are in the back with only 1/2” clearance. Is the bracing an issue?

 

[BeanAnimal]

I have tried several brands over the years. I use a Plank and think it is (by far) the best feeder on the market. That said, most of the name brand and knock-off options will work for you. Buy what you can afford, especially of this is for occasional use.

 

[turbo2oh]

Thanks everyone, I ordered the plank. Just seems like the easiest solution that would be plug and play and alleviate my concerns about everyone getting fed. I can sell the AFS. I’ll report back on how it goes!

 

[tbrown]

Keep in mind you're going to need a timer - 1 minute run time is the equivalent of 1 cube of frozen food per their calculations. If you want less than that per dispense you'll need a timer that works in seconds, not minutes.

 

[turbo2oh]

Just to close this one out, I did buy the plank. It’s working great so far with PE mysis flakes. I set it up with a manual feed mode on my Apex for now until I can dial it in.

 

[Boehmtown]

Tdo Chroma boost extra small. It feeds so many pellets at that size and they sink slowly. Every fish I've ever owned loves them. It's all I fed my fish for years