ReefHomieJon
Well-Known Member
It has The power of Rods food with less phosphate lol
What fish food is best for the overall health of your corals? Is dry bad? Is frozen bad?
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- Thread starter revhtree
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chaoticreefer
Active Member
I chose "Other" because frozen and dry are not equal but I feed both. Dry is more dense with phosphates but frozen is more expense so I only feed it once per day.
Fish:
PE Mysis pellets and Seaweed Extreme pellets (both mixed together) for the first daily feeding.
LRS Reef Frenzy for the 2nd daily feeding.
Coral:
Continuum's Coral Exponential (if you want to call it food (Amino Acids)) every day
Alternate #1 (every other day)(for mainly SPS):
- BW's Reef Blizzard - S
- Continuum's Micro-Blast
Alternate #2 (on the opposite every other day) (Mainly for softies):
- BW's Reef Blizzard - O
- BW's Phytochrom
PS I carbon dose to keep my nutrients in check.
Fish:
PE Mysis pellets and Seaweed Extreme pellets (both mixed together) for the first daily feeding.
LRS Reef Frenzy for the 2nd daily feeding.
Coral:
Continuum's Coral Exponential (if you want to call it food (Amino Acids)) every day
Alternate #1 (every other day)(for mainly SPS):
- BW's Reef Blizzard - S
- Continuum's Micro-Blast
Alternate #2 (on the opposite every other day) (Mainly for softies):
- BW's Reef Blizzard - O
- BW's Phytochrom
PS I carbon dose to keep my nutrients in check.
My tank is a 120DT mixed pretty evenly with SPS and LPS. I don't intentionally feed any of the corals anything. I feed the fish almost exclusively NLS pellets, a mix of 5. and 1mm. It's the only dry food I've used in well over 20 years. Probably once a week, I'll switch it to Rod's Original or spirolina enriched brine. I do make sure my rock flower anemone gets a chunk then. If I think about it, I may hang some Nori on a clip for the Tomini Tang, but as fat and happy as it is I don't very often.
The bottom line, at least IMO, is that it doesn't matter too much what type of food you feed, but rather the amount and the frequency of your water changes.
The bottom line, at least IMO, is that it doesn't matter too much what type of food you feed, but rather the amount and the frequency of your water changes.
Seanie Cakes
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IMO we should just concentrate on which food is best for the fish instead of trying to decide which fish food is best for the corals and then feed that to the fish. IMO the corals will benefit the most from whatever is the most nutritious diet for fish.
For fish: First, I would avoid diets that are comprised of only one "animal" source, like just mysis or just brine or just clam. All animals need a balanced diet and no one food type will come close to fulfilling this requirement. Nobody knows for sure what the perfect mix is but most companies that make pellets or flakes are probably producing an acceptable balanced diet (extrapolated from studies from the fish farming industry) and I believe these should always be part of the diet.
But I also think that a balanced frozen food diet is important too. I've been making my own, very similar to the recent video that BRS came out with (although theirs is more complex and probably better than mine). Mine consists of a mixture of "human-grade" shrimp, clams, crab, scallops and salmon. To that I add finely cut nori, selcon, astaxanthin and a ground dog vitamin all mixed in a gelatin base and frozen in zip lock bags.
I feed the frozen concoction twice a day and a pellet/flake mix in between at least once a day. I've kept fish alive for over 20 years with this diet combo.
For fish: First, I would avoid diets that are comprised of only one "animal" source, like just mysis or just brine or just clam. All animals need a balanced diet and no one food type will come close to fulfilling this requirement. Nobody knows for sure what the perfect mix is but most companies that make pellets or flakes are probably producing an acceptable balanced diet (extrapolated from studies from the fish farming industry) and I believe these should always be part of the diet.
But I also think that a balanced frozen food diet is important too. I've been making my own, very similar to the recent video that BRS came out with (although theirs is more complex and probably better than mine). Mine consists of a mixture of "human-grade" shrimp, clams, crab, scallops and salmon. To that I add finely cut nori, selcon, astaxanthin and a ground dog vitamin all mixed in a gelatin base and frozen in zip lock bags.
I feed the frozen concoction twice a day and a pellet/flake mix in between at least once a day. I've kept fish alive for over 20 years with this diet combo.
jd371
Valuable Member
I make my own using mostly chopped clams. I also add some nori, fish eggs and a pinch of Reef Roids. I feed my fish every day and start off with live black worms then a small portion of the food I make with a cube of either mysis or brine shrimp.
I assume that dragnet is captive bred?
ReefBeta
Valuable Member
Fish food is never a cause of algae problem for me. The nutrient export we run nowadays are more often too efficient anyway. If there is algae problem, changing to different food or change amount of feeding rarely bring much impact.
On the other hand, frozen food is a lot superior that dry food for coral health, because I believe the juice from melted food is the best food for the coral.
On the other hand, frozen food is a lot superior that dry food for coral health, because I believe the juice from melted food is the best food for the coral.
this is the first time I will be answering the poll question before I vote. I am having to think about this as I answer
1. What do you think is the best food for your fish but has the least amount of negative impact on algae growth? Dry Food or Frozen Food?
IMHO the best food I use is EZ Masstick. Just about everything in my tank eats it. Even my Mandarin and corals as the messier eating fish get particles floating through the water column. Albeit only a tiny bit.
This food it easy to add supplements to as you just kneed it in.
2. What does your food list look like? List the brands and types of foods for us!
TDO pellets (in my auto feeder)
Nori, from the grocery store
A variety of frozen foods: Krill, mysis, pods etc.
Krill for larger mouths
Reef chili
A lot of different liquid foods
Frozen shrimp from the grocery, chopped finely
Different sea weeds
And more I am forgetting about.
I really like to feed a vast, variety of non-terrestrial foods. I want my animals to have what would be the closest to natural I can give them. It costs more but they are worth it.
What fish foods cause algae?
None, if properly used. This hobby is all about observation and (IMO) self discipline, to keep up with water parameters and live stock. I like to play chess. Always have. It is not my hobby as I do not spend a significant amount of time with it. I dabble in chess. Reefing is not a hobby to dabble in. This may offend, but if you want to dabble with fish, go fresh water community fish.
Enjoy the hobby!
1. What do you think is the best food for your fish but has the least amount of negative impact on algae growth? Dry Food or Frozen Food?
IMHO the best food I use is EZ Masstick. Just about everything in my tank eats it. Even my Mandarin and corals as the messier eating fish get particles floating through the water column. Albeit only a tiny bit.
This food it easy to add supplements to as you just kneed it in.
2. What does your food list look like? List the brands and types of foods for us!
TDO pellets (in my auto feeder)
Nori, from the grocery store
A variety of frozen foods: Krill, mysis, pods etc.
Krill for larger mouths
Reef chili
A lot of different liquid foods
Frozen shrimp from the grocery, chopped finely
Different sea weeds
And more I am forgetting about.
I really like to feed a vast, variety of non-terrestrial foods. I want my animals to have what would be the closest to natural I can give them. It costs more but they are worth it.
What fish foods cause algae?
None, if properly used. This hobby is all about observation and (IMO) self discipline, to keep up with water parameters and live stock. I like to play chess. Always have. It is not my hobby as I do not spend a significant amount of time with it. I dabble in chess. Reefing is not a hobby to dabble in. This may offend, but if you want to dabble with fish, go fresh water community fish.
Enjoy the hobby!
saltnut
Active Member
I feed the fish everyday. I alternate with frozen, LRS, marine cuisine, brine shrimp and mysis shrimp. A couple times a week I feed a little flake food before the frozen because the clowns, fang blenny and purple dotty back just really like it. My YWG will not eat flake at all.
I also feed the coral directly and broadcast feed the tank a few times a week with marine snow and reef roids.
I also feed the coral directly and broadcast feed the tank a few times a week with marine snow and reef roids.
What species is in question? There is no "right" answer. If anything there are mostly wrong answers. Since the corals we're throwing together come from very different environments and individual species can have different microbiomes and will certainly have very different feeding stratagies or prefferences.
journals.plos.org
www.sciencedirect.com
www.pnas.org
www.sciencedirect.com
www.nature.com
academic.oup.com
jeb.biologists.org
Coral farming: effects of light, water motion and artificial foods
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Comparing the capacity of five different dietary treatments to optimise growth and nutritional composition in two scleractinian corals
Developing an optimal heterotrophic feeding regime has the potential to improve captive coral growth and health. This study evaluated the efficacy of three exogenous diets: Artemia nauplii (ART), a commercially available coral diet (Reef Roids) (RR), and a novel, micro-bound diet (ATF), against...
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Fish as major carbonate mud producers and missing components of the tropical carbonate factory
Carbonate mud is a major constituent of recent marine carbonate sediments and of ancient limestones, which contain unique records of changes in ocean chemistry and climate shifts in the geological past. However, the origin of carbonate mud is controversial and often problematic to resolve. Here...
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Urea can be one of the major sources of nitrogen for phytoplankton, but little is known about its importance for corals. Experiments were therefore de…
Limited phosphorus availability is the Achilles heel of tropical reef corals in a warming ocean - Scientific Reports
During the 20th century, seawater temperatures have significantly increased, leading to profound alterations in biogeochemical cycles and ecosystem processes. Elevated temperatures have also caused massive bleaching (symbiont/pigment loss) of autotrophic symbioses, such as in...
www.nature.com
Utilization of different dissolved organic phosphorus sources by Symbiodinium voratum in vitro
Utilization of different dissolved organic phosphorus sources by Symbiodinium.
academic.oup.com
High phosphate uptake requirements of the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata
SUMMARYSeveral untested aspects of the regulation of inorganic nutrient uptake were examined using nutrient depletion experiments with the symbiotic coral Stylophora pistillata. The total inhibition of phosphate uptake in artificial seawater lacking sodium indicates the involvement of a...
jeb.biologists.org
Julbra
Active Member
I cannot find any definitive research so I am going out on a limb here.
Bearing in mind that corals get the majority (70+%) of their food via their zooxanthellae’s photosynthesis, here we’re discussing the other part.
In the wild, the polyps will indeed catch plankton, organic particles and absorb dissolved organics. Fish poop is a great source of coral food in our tanks. Coming more directly from (undigested) fish food we’re focusing on small particles and dissolved organics.
The dry pellets will dissolve faster and be more available to corals as dissolved organics before it’s caught by your filtration system. The frozen food on the other hand should get you more small particles if they land on a polyp.
So imo both should work but the pellets may provide more consistently rather than relying on luck of the flow.
Bearing in mind that corals get the majority (70+%) of their food via their zooxanthellae’s photosynthesis, here we’re discussing the other part.
In the wild, the polyps will indeed catch plankton, organic particles and absorb dissolved organics. Fish poop is a great source of coral food in our tanks. Coming more directly from (undigested) fish food we’re focusing on small particles and dissolved organics.
The dry pellets will dissolve faster and be more available to corals as dissolved organics before it’s caught by your filtration system. The frozen food on the other hand should get you more small particles if they land on a polyp.
So imo both should work but the pellets may provide more consistently rather than relying on luck of the flow.
I was making up my own recipe of products - hikari pellets (herb and carn), HPD, nori, mysis shrimp, selecon and garlic along with some BRS Reef Chil. All high quality products and I wasn't overfeeding (only one 1/2" cube a day for 7-8 nano fish) but still had a algae problem even though nutrients were low. I could manage with clean up and WC but a bit unsightly and annoying
After managing a dino outbreak - I found I still had more algae that I was happy with (don't a mind a little). Even though my PO4 was still managed to around .05 and nitrate at 3. So I tired going with just rinsed off frozen mysis. After a few weeks and some algae cleanups everything became much nicer - very little visible algae (GHA), but did have a little harder algae on the glass but very happy.
I was concerned about the nutrition of just rinsed mysis shrimp as the diet. I started feeding both pellets a few times per week soaked in Selcon and/or Garlic (yeah, I know - nothing proven about either but it makes me feel better). After a month, seems to be a nice balance. Haven't had to do any PO4 management yet (slowly rising .01/week) and algae is under control. Haven't started coral - may not. They look great so far.
After managing a dino outbreak - I found I still had more algae that I was happy with (don't a mind a little). Even though my PO4 was still managed to around .05 and nitrate at 3. So I tired going with just rinsed off frozen mysis. After a few weeks and some algae cleanups everything became much nicer - very little visible algae (GHA), but did have a little harder algae on the glass but very happy.
I was concerned about the nutrition of just rinsed mysis shrimp as the diet. I started feeding both pellets a few times per week soaked in Selcon and/or Garlic (yeah, I know - nothing proven about either but it makes me feel better). After a month, seems to be a nice balance. Haven't had to do any PO4 management yet (slowly rising .01/week) and algae is under control. Haven't started coral - may not. They look great so far.
1. What do you think is the best food for your fish but has the least amount of negative impact on algae growth? Dry or frozen food?
Either.
It depends on how you feed, how much you feed and what your system can handle.
Dry food tends to be much more nutrient dense. Dry food tends to have much more N and P but you need way less dry food to keep your fish healthy. Feed only a very small amount and your fish will be just fine and they will get all the nutrients they need.
Frozen has less N and P but is not as densely packed with nutrients requiring you to have to feed more causing more wasted food settling out and decomposing.
Feed whichever food appropriately and you should have good results with minimal algae growth.
2. What does your food list look like? List the brands any types of food for us!
I use my own DIY food that is great for fish and corals.
I chop up all the frozen meaty foods, then mix in the dry foods and liquid foods. Put it all into large zip lock bags and place in freezer.
MEATY PROTEIN
Frozen shrimp
Frozen scallops
Frozen mussels
Frozen cod
Frozen tuna
Frozen clams
Frozen silversides
Frozen squid
DRY FOOD
New life spectrum marine pellet food
New life spectrum algae max pellet food
New life spectrum jumbo fish formula
Marineland Bio Blend carnivore diet pellets
Freeze dried mysis shrimp
Freeze dried krill
BRS Reef Chili
Two little fishies sea veggies mixed seaweed flakes
Calanus
Paracoccus
Spirulina
LIQUID FOOD
Selcon
Zoe
Brightwell AminOmega HUFA omega
Brightwell Coral Amino
Kent Garlic
This food lasts my for over a year.
3. What fish food causes algae?
Any fish food used in excess can cause algae and other problems.
Either.
It depends on how you feed, how much you feed and what your system can handle.
Dry food tends to be much more nutrient dense. Dry food tends to have much more N and P but you need way less dry food to keep your fish healthy. Feed only a very small amount and your fish will be just fine and they will get all the nutrients they need.
Frozen has less N and P but is not as densely packed with nutrients requiring you to have to feed more causing more wasted food settling out and decomposing.
Feed whichever food appropriately and you should have good results with minimal algae growth.
2. What does your food list look like? List the brands any types of food for us!
I use my own DIY food that is great for fish and corals.
I chop up all the frozen meaty foods, then mix in the dry foods and liquid foods. Put it all into large zip lock bags and place in freezer.
MEATY PROTEIN
Frozen shrimp
Frozen scallops
Frozen mussels
Frozen cod
Frozen tuna
Frozen clams
Frozen silversides
Frozen squid
DRY FOOD
New life spectrum marine pellet food
New life spectrum algae max pellet food
New life spectrum jumbo fish formula
Marineland Bio Blend carnivore diet pellets
Freeze dried mysis shrimp
Freeze dried krill
BRS Reef Chili
Two little fishies sea veggies mixed seaweed flakes
Calanus
Paracoccus
Spirulina
LIQUID FOOD
Selcon
Zoe
Brightwell AminOmega HUFA omega
Brightwell Coral Amino
Kent Garlic
This food lasts my for over a year.
3. What fish food causes algae?
Any fish food used in excess can cause algae and other problems.
Last edited:
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