Am I over feeding?

[mistergray]

I’m more so curious if my feeding schedule and the amount I use is acceptable or should I dial it back. I have 2 clownfish (about an inch and a half), a flame hawkfish (about two and a half inches) and a Royal gramma (about two inches) in my 32g. I feed them a half a cube of marine cuisine (includes mysis shrimp, krill & spirulina) once each morning.

This seems acceptable. At the beginning I was thawing and giving them the whole cube but I noticed a lot of food was going to the bottom and sitting until the snails and hermits came along. That’s when I decided to scale back.

 

[Jeffcb]

Just try not to feed them more than they can eat in 2 to 3 minutes is my general rule .

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I also have a 32 gallon with 5 fish, and half a cube is really a lot IMO. I was doing a quarter of the cube, then just a little corner, and now I've started using a knife and "shaving" a little from the cube. If there is any food flying around after 2-3 minutes then feed even less next time.

 

[mistergray]

Just try not to feed them more than they can eat in 2 to 3 minutes is my general rule .

I timed the feeding for the first time this morning for 3 minutes after reading this. Thx!

 

[mistergray]

I also have a 32 gallon with 5 fish, and half a cube is really a lot IMO. I was doing a quarter of the cube, then just a little corner, and now I've started using a knife and "shaving" a little from the cube. If there is any food flying around after 2-3 minutes then feed even less next time.

How many times a day are you feeding?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

How many times a day are you feeding?

just once.

 

[Gtinnel]

What are your nitrate and phosphate readings? If they aren't raising too high, then I'd say what you are feeding is fine.

 

[JCM]

As much as they can eat in 2-3 minutes sounds about right. Though I feed way more than once a day. Right now it's 10-12 times a day while I acclimate new anthias but normally 5-6 times a day. I like to eat more than once a day, by the way my fish eat I suspect they do as well.

 

[mistergray]

What are your nitrate and phosphate readings? If they aren't raising too high, then I'd say what you are feeding is fine.

My nitrate is 0. I don’t have a test for phosphate.

 

[mistergray]

As much as they can eat in 2-3 minutes sounds about right. Though I feed way more than once a day. Right now it's 10-12 times a day while I acclimate new anthias but normally 5-6 times a day. I like to eat more than once a day, by the way my fish eat I suspect they do as well.

Whoa! 10-12!? I’ve never heard of such, but then again I am this years old as it relates to this hobby. You must have a serious cleanup crew.

 

[Billldg]

My philosophy is that I will not starve the fish to keep my parameters, aka N03 and P04, in check. I will find other means to lower my N03 and P04, and let the fish get fat and healthy.

 

[Jekyl]

I feed one cube a day in my 90 gallon with 8 fish. Anything left over my CuC and shrimp eat.

 

[JCM]

Whoa! 10-12!? I’ve never heard of such, but then again I am this years old as it relates to this hobby. You must have a serious cleanup crew.

It only amounts to about 2ish Cubes a day, I just break it up over a dozen feedings a day so my P. Tukas can eat frequently. I'll start dropping it back to 5-6 feeding a day soon.

 

[JCM]

My philosophy is that I will not starve the fish to keep my parameters, aka N03 and P04, in check. I will find other means to lower my N03 and P04, and let the fish get fat and healthy.

Fully agreed. I'm going to keep my fish fat and happy. If my setup/maintenance schedule needs to change to account for that, so be it. Most of the fish we keep don't just eat once a day in the wild, im not going to make them change in my care.

 

[mistergray]

It only amounts to about 2ish Cubes a day, I just break it up over a dozen feedings a day so my P. Tukas can eat frequently. I'll start dropping it back to 5-6 feeding a day soon.

Ohhhh….that makes sense! What size is your tank?

 

[JCM]

Ohhhh….that makes sense! What size is your tank?

65 gallons

 

[workhz]

Do you guys turn off your return or power heads while feeding? The fish seem to like the food flying everywhere so have kept then on. My tunze have a button that pauses the motors but I don’t even use it.

 

[JCM]

Do you guys turn off your return or power heads while feeding? The fish seem to like the food flying everywhere so have kept then on. My tunze have a button that pauses the motors but I don’t even use it.

I do not turn anything off. Flow through my sump is only 2-3x total volume an hour, if it were significantly higher I would probably turn it off. Definitely wouldn't turn the powerheads off though. With a few exceptions, Fish are used to catching food in high flow.

 

[Billldg]

I am currently feeding a 1/4 sheet of Nori and 2 cubes of frozen daily for 1 Tomini tang, 4 Blue/Green Chromis, 1 Yellow Flanked Fairy wrasse, 1 Pintail Fairy wrasse, and 1 Divided Leopard wrasse. The snails pick up what is left over. I will eventually feed at least 3 cubes of frozen when I add the rest of the fish, 5 more tangs and a few more wrasses, to the tank along with a full sheet of Nori daily.

 

[davidcalgary29]

I do not turn anything off. Flow through my sump is only 2-3x total volume an hour, if it were significantly higher I would probably turn it off. Definitely wouldn't turn the powerheads off though. With a few exceptions, Fish are used to catching food in high flow.

My dwarf angels seem to enjoy performing aquatic acrobatics catching grindal worms and mysis flying through the tank, so I always keep everything on for them. It's fun to watch them do it, too.