# Feeding frequency



## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

How often should I feed my fish? I have a yellow tail tang, 5 hermit crabs, 1 snail, and 2 other crabs. The guy I just bought it all off said he fed the tank every 2-3 days, but I just can't agree that it's often enough.

He gave me seaweed that the tang likes, and some mysis (they ALL like this), and other frozen food he said they all liked. Gave me some flakes too, but said none of them liked that.

Yesterday we put a half page of seaweed on the clip, and a half cube of the mysis (sp?) 

Last night the wife put another half page of seaweed in there, and some small pellets that the tang ate right up. He ate both times, and seemed to really feast. Is that too much food for the tank? 

I'm questioning if once a day is good, or if we should do twice a day? Or too much?


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## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

I think most people believe in the feed less more often is better for the tank than feeding more less often. 

I feed 2 times a day every day except for the evening I give them a treat then I skip the morning feeding.


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## verdifer (Sep 8, 2010)

3 small feedings per day and you may want to add some Vitamin C into his food to try and stop him getting LLE, in general they are Herbivores and will graze on Algae in your tank but putting some seaweed in is also good, they need some meat thrown in also like the Mysis.

The snail you don't feed and if it is the small Hermit Crabs you don't deef them either they will pick away at anything they find, the other 2 crabs if they are Emerald or something like that they will also just pick away at anything they find.

Most Tangs will just graze away most of the day, you may run into a problem if you overfeed and he starts doing the toilet like crazy and throws your water parameters off, you will also want him to Graze on the Algae in the tank 1:So he gets food 2:It will clean the tank up.

He will need ample room to swim about along with rocks to hide behind and sleep behind this will make him feel better and less stressed, they like good water flow with plenty of Oxygen, good water is also needed since these fish are prone to Ich as they don't have a load of Skin Mucus, there is no real proof that garlic in their food will stop Ich but it is really no hassle to get food with garlic in it.

If the fish looked healthy when you got it and was swimming about the tank happy then you could ask the guy you got it from how long he had it, if he had it a while then you could just keep up the feeding the way he was doing it, if it gets hungry it will just pick some Algae from the rocks.


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## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

I just checked the salinity of the tank, and it's only at 1.011. Got some work to do to get it back to where it needs to be.

And I just picked up some more fishes  I'll update later, have to get the tank right.


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

The best thing to do is to feed once a day and watch your water parameters. If your nitrates start to climb too quickly, then cut back some more. You want to create a balance that your system and you can handle. Also watch the health of your fish. If they seem to be doing worse with more or less, then adjust properly. 
Do you have a refugium set up on your tank? If not, adding some plant life in one will help keep the nitrates under control.


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## verdifer (Sep 8, 2010)

You will want that Salt level up the Crabs won't like it that low if my memeory serves me correct 1.019 is the lowest your looking at with the usual 1.025 being a good number.


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## ladyonyx (Apr 20, 2009)

Once a day for sure


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## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

verdifer said:


> You will want that Salt level up the Crabs won't like it that low if my memeory serves me correct 1.019 is the lowest your looking at with the usual 1.025 being a good number.


Yeah, I did a PWC and added some rock, she's now at 1.018, Hoping my next PWC in a couple days will bring it above 1.024 and stay there for a while. Didn't want a drastic change in the tank.

I now have the before mentioned fish, but have added a yellow tang, blue damsel, a black convict (Think this is the wrong name) and a Picasso trigger fish.


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## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

OK, stupid question. The guy I got the additional fish from, was feeding the fish shrimp, a seafood combo. Cooked seafood combo, paella mix. (shrimp, squid, octopuss, muscles, surimi, scallops, crabs, clams, ect. ect.) Is this safe for the tank? Fish? ect?

I hope so, as I didn't want to change their diets. I just went to sams club, and bought a 20lbs bag for $11. It was frozen, so we took it to the food processor, and ground the snot out of it, and bagged it all up. It's now all the size and consistancy of the mysis & stuff that you can buy at the pet store. After being bagged into roughly one week in each bag, we have just shy of 6 months of feedings. Hope this is ok, Or else we'll be making a hell of a seafood chowder! 

We plan to feed twice a day, morning and night. What size servings should we do?


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## phys (Feb 4, 2011)

that sounds alright if the fish ate it before. Feed in small amounts at first to see how much they eat. They should only be fed as much as can be eaten in about a minute if you feed twice a day. Make sure you stay on top of those nitrates and phosphates.


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## ladyonyx (Apr 20, 2009)

Couple things: (1) This is a cooked seafood mix? I'd recommend raw since fish certainly don't eat cooked food in the wild and you want to match their diets as accurately a possible. Check out Rod's Food: ROD'S FOOD -Providing your salt water aquarium with the finest food. 
(2) I'm assuming these fish are in your 55g setup? If so, I'm also assuming that you are going to move your tang and trigger into a bigger tank once it's set up? They'll need it!
I'm guessing from the name that the other fish is probably a black barred convict goby (Priolepis nocturnus).


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## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

ladyonyx said:


> Couple things: (1) This is a cooked seafood mix? I'd recommend raw since fish certainly don't eat cooked food in the wild and you want to match their diets as accurately a possible. Check out Rod's Food: ROD'S FOOD -Providing your salt water aquarium with the finest food.
> (2) I'm assuming these fish are in your 55g setup? If so, I'm also assuming that you are going to move your tang and trigger into a bigger tank once it's set up? They'll need it!
> I'm guessing from the name that the other fish is probably a black barred convict goby (Priolepis nocturnus).


1)Well, the bag says pre cooked and further cooking needed. But all these guys absolutely love it. 

2) We're in the process of getting the stand for the 125 pretty (As close as we can, LOL) as we speak. It is a home made job with 2x6's, 2x4's, and OSB. (Which was covered with plaster and painted green, ugh!) We scraped off the plaster, and just cut some oak plywood to use to go around it. Then going to stain it, and put some doors on it. LOL I hope to have that finished tonight, and put the first coat of stain on tonight, 2nd tomorrow, put the tank on it, and get all the live rock into the tank by EOD tomorrow. Throw some pumps in for circulation. I still have to pick up a pump for one of my skimmers, and a pump to send the water back into the tank from the sump. 

Then I have to work on lighting for the tank. The hood I got is basically a shop light, and he has 2 smaller lights in the hood too. 

I hope to have the tank start cycling by the end of the week. I Already have 10-5 gallon buckets of live rock, live sand, and water from a 75 gallon that I bought when I got the other fish. (All buckets have rock) I just hope the 2-3 days in buckets don't make me start over with the live rock & sand. So maybe it wont go through a complete cycle. We'll see, and wait till the tank is safe.

3) Thanks, you were a lil off on the type, but you got me close, and I was able to spot it going through google images. It's a Black Clown Goby. Black Clown Goby - small : SilentdreamMarine - , Marine Buyers Club


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## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

phys said:


> that sounds alright if the fish ate it before. Feed in small amounts at first to see how much they eat. They should only be fed as much as can be eaten in about a minute if you feed twice a day. Make sure you stay on top of those nitrates and phosphates.


Nitrates are out of control right now, I have some buckets already mixed waiting for a PWC tonight. Had to get the cutting and such done on my stand first.


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## ladyonyx (Apr 20, 2009)

Ah yes, pre-cooked, whatever that actually means! Lol!

Home-made stands are fun; sounds great so far. Good luck with the new tank, and have fun with those water changes!


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## e-zlight (Mar 20, 2011)

e-zlight said:


> 1)Well, the bag says pre cooked and further cooking needed. But all these guys absolutely love it.
> 
> 2) We're in the process of getting the stand for the 125 pretty (As close as we can, LOL) as we speak. It is a home made job with 2x6's, 2x4's, and OSB. (Which was covered with plaster and painted green, ugh!) We scraped off the plaster, and just cut some oak plywood to use to go around it. Then going to stain it, and put some doors on it. LOL I hope to have that finished tonight, and put the first coat of stain on tonight, 2nd tomorrow, put the tank on it, and get all the live rock into the tank by EOD tomorrow. Throw some pumps in for circulation. I still have to pick up a pump for one of my skimmers, and a pump to send the water back into the tank from the sump.
> 
> ...


CORRECTION, the fish is a Domino damselfish, not a black clown goby. My bad.


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