Coral feeding dome! - Ideas needed.

[CroMag676]

I created this feeding dome to keep my shrimp and wrasses from stealing the food from my Acanthophyllia. To make it, I drilled holes in an 8" food storage bowl and epoxied a printed flange/tube - to keep the shrimp's crumb-snatchers out - in the center. The problem is that it floats. To use it, I twist it down into the sand over the coral, then squirt food down the center tube. It works well enough but I would like to add some weights to it so that it will just sit on the sand. That way there is no risk to the sand sifting star or cucumbers that like to hang around the coral's base. I was thinking about something long and flexible I could epoxy on top of the bowl's top flange. Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[herozero]

Frag plug for weight? Bioball? If you're real adventurous you could try a magnet but then your acans need to be near the glass and I'd imagine you'd run out of real estate on the plastic cover. Wonderful idea. Do you have a tube that connects for squirting shrimp in there?

 

[CroMag676]

Frag plug for weight? Bioball? If you're real adventurous you could try a magnet but then your acans need to be near the glass and I'd imagine you'd run out of real estate on the plastic cover. Wonderful idea. Do you have a tube that connects for squirting shrimp in there?

I have a really sophisticated system. I reach in with a 10 ml syringe, or just my fingers if the chunk is too big, and squirt/jam the food halfway into the top tube. Then I grab a prepositioned acrylic rod - the ones the store uses to point out frags - with my thumb and pointer finger and use it as a ramrod while feverishly swatting away the onslaught of shrimp and wrasses with the rest of my hand. And yes, they have just been fed.

 

[Starbuxxx]

It can work if you're aquascape is set up for it and you may have to glue some rock or on top for weight. Some food will be lost on the sided but the other fish/critters will clean up afterward.

 

[FUNGI]

glue some LR rubble / LR piece on top outside....that should be enough weight to sunk it

 

[CroMag676]

Would lead fishing sinkers be reef-safe?

 

[Aaron75]

What about magnets? The plastic is thin enough, just put some small magnets inside and outside.

 

[fishyjoes]

Maybe affix an extra little socket (not sure the right word) where you can press the acrylic rod into so the rod's weight holds the container down (like if the rod is long enough to stick out of the tank).

Like if you just had the container with a long rod on it - just another idea.