Automating dinner: Do you use an auto feeder?

[Royal_pudding]

I use the Eheim autofeeder when on vacation. Reliable little beast. The tank has a hood that unfortunately has no hole for an autofeeder, I have always created a gap by misplacing the hood on the tank. Not a solution the wife approves.
I could set it on the middle brace but it then of course it is in a very humid area with no ventilation. I have always thought the pellets would clump up and jam the opening.
Anybody have experience with the eheim autofeeder in such situation?

 

[Rothric]

I just purchased a Plank by Avast, it definitely looks like an amazing feeder. Still plan to supplement with frozen.

I had an Ehiem decades ago in my FW days though. It was reliable and allowed me to be away at work for days at a time.

 

[JoJosReef]

I have gone through 3 eheim auto feeders over the last 6 years of operations. I love the idea of supplemental auto feeding of pellets or flakes. While they were operational they worked great. My Anthias loved it, even my tangs loved it. However, it went without fail, that I would knock it into the tank. One after a month of use, I think the longest I had one was around 3 months before I knocked it in the water. I even have covers on my tank but still managed to knock them in. I tried zip tieing them to a 2x4 on the wall and holding it over the tank, but, inevitably the zip tie blocked the drum from rotating. My tank has too thick of glass for the little holders it comes with. (340 gallon tank with 3/4" glass).


I manually feed frozen once a day, this allows me to use my own food or when on vacation to throw cubes of feed into containers of RODI and in the fridge - preportioned for the person coming to check things. I'd like to automate feeding frozen, but, I haven't found a reasonable and reliable way yet. I think it's coming eventually.

I have a 3D printed plank for mine. Works great for an AIO, not sure about how to do it on a regular tank, but surely there's a way. Can ziptie it down easily to the plank if needed.

 

[JoJosReef]

I've looked at the refrigerator options and came close to pulling the plug on using Versas to dose food from a dorm fridge. However, in talking with others, I'm concerned about the tubing being large enough to allow liquified frozen food to pass through, plus, frozen food settles to the bottom, so how do you ensure the dosing is getting food and not just liquid. So many failure points.

I don't even try with thawed frozen food. Thawed frozen will also likely spoil more quickly. I use only Reef Nutrition food which is already in an aqueous suspension that prevents particulates from settling (at least not quickly) and has long refrigerated shelf life. I currently mix multiple Reef Nutrition products into a single tube (ROE + Tigger Pods + Oyster Feast + Phyto Feast) in a ratio that keeps things in suspension (too much phyto or oyster and it isn't viscous enough for the ROE and pods). Soon to be switching to a two tube system with ROE/Pods in one and Oyster/Phyto in another.

If you want to dose mysis, you need a larger diameter tubing or it will clog. Mysis Feast would occasionally clog in my Reef Factory doser. The DOS doser runs the largest standard tubing at 0.33mm ID, as opposed to 0.2mm ID for the other dosers. Still a chance for clogs, though. 1/4" tubing would be great, but those dosers (e.g. various Kamoer pumps) are for larger volume dosing and don't have functions for dosing 1mL or less. So I add mysis by hand every now and then.

 

[Treefer32]

I don't even try with thawed frozen food. Thawed frozen will also likely spoil more quickly. I use only Reef Nutrition food which is already in an aqueous suspension that prevents particulates from settling (at least not quickly) and has long refrigerated shelf life. I currently mix multiple Reef Nutrition products into a single tube (ROE + Tigger Pods + Oyster Feast + Phyto Feast) in a ratio that keeps things in suspension (too much phyto or oyster and it isn't viscous enough for the ROE and pods). Soon to be switching to a two tube system with ROE/Pods in one and Oyster/Phyto in another.

If you want to dose mysis, you need a larger diameter tubing or it will clog. Mysis Feast would occasionally clog in my Reef Factory doser. The DOS doser runs the largest standard tubing at 0.33mm ID, as opposed to 0.2mm ID for the other dosers. Still a chance for clogs, though. 1/4" tubing would be great, but those dosers (e.g. various Kamoer pumps) are for larger volume dosing and don't have functions for dosing 1mL or less. So I add mysis by hand every now and then.

That's the issue, I've got 3 large tangs. One of the 10" in diameter. They eat larger chunks of food. They have a tough time finding smaller pieces. They also like chewing on the frozen chunks, biting them to break them up. I've done brine cubes and they still like those, but my understanding is that brine is much less nutritionally dense than Mysis.

 

[AKLiving]

I second, third, fourth, or whatever number we are on, the Avast Plank feeder. I have mine dump in the sump over the return pump 4 times a day and have my in-tank pumps stop. 2 of the feedings are when I'm likely near the tank to watch. Having just my return pump on seems to keep the food from settling quickly or sit floating on the surface and very little goes down the return before it is mostly eaten. I found food settling in corners of the return chamber so installed a super cheap powerhead that stirs everything up and out to the DT a couple times a day. All controlled with Apex so I can enjoy watching a feeding frenzy while sipping on a hot cup of coffee when I wake up.

 

[leon.1980]

Avast's The Plank is god-tier auto feeding -- everything from coral foods (reef roids, benepets, etc) up to flakes/pellets and freeze-dried mysis. Feed your fish AND your corals with the same device.

Next up for my tank is an auto (live) phyto feeder using home cultured phyto. But that's a long ways off, need to get the "forever" tank built first. I'll have much more leeway for science projects when the tank is in my office instead of the living room.

I agree. I love my plank. Crazy expensive compared to other feeders, however you’re getting a quality feeder that feeds very accurately every time.
I feed 3 times a day for 15 seconds each time. I feed a mix of reef jerky, paracocus, spirulina, tdo chromaboost, freeze dried rotifers and copepods

My fish have never been plumper, more colorful and more active since liking and varying my feeding times.
My coral are the same, more polyp extension, color and growth since I’ve started feeding more frequently. Especially my purple goegonia. It almost never extended its fuz like polyps. Now they are out all day every day. I’ll never go back to hand feeding once a day.
Makers of reef jerky had no issues telling me what was in it so I didn’t add something already in there.

 

[Azael]

I only use auto feeder when I am out of town.

 

[RobCamer]

Setting up a new plank on two of my tanks with reefpi and RoboTank. This thread is useful for autofeeder and reefpi: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/diy-auto-feeder-with-reef-pi.701874/.