First time leaving my tank, what should I do?

[neltel_7]

I’m going to be out of town for the first time since I got my tank. What should I do before I leave? And what should I feed my fish? I have 2 skunk clowns, 1 sleeper goby, 1 lawnmower Blenny and 2 false percs and an anemone
And some basic corals

 

[Peach02]

bring the tank with you

but in all seriosness how long are you going for?
you can get weekend feeders that release food slowly but they are mainly for saltwater
you can also give them a big feed just before you go
you can ask a friend to feed them white you are gone
some LFS's will babysit fish for you
you can hire people to tank sit but they are usually expensive

 

[malacoda]

bring the tank with you

but in all seriosness how long are you going for?
you can get weekend feeders that release food slowly but they are mainly for saltwater
you can also give them a big feed just before you go
you can ask a friend to feed them white you are gone
some LFS's will babysit fish for you
you can hire people to tank sit but they are usually expensive

+1 Would really help to know how long you'll be gone.

In addition to the suggestions from Peach02, you could also:

• Put a big bucket or heavy-duty rubber maid container full of RODI water next to your tank and run a feed-line to your ATO from it.
• If you're dosing alk and Ca, make sure you're dosing containers are full
• If you use filter socks or filter floss, clean/replace it before you leave. Or, if you'll be go long, just remove them altogether
• If you use a skimmer, make sure the cup is empty. If you'll be gone longer than it takes for the cup to refill, turn off the skimmer or use a skimmate locker or bucket (if your skimmer cup has an outlet to run a line to one...)

 

[neltel_7]

+1 Would really help to know how long you'll be gone.

In addition to the suggestions from Peach02, you could also:

• Put a big bucket or heavy-duty rubber maid container full of RODI water next to your tank and run a feed-line to your ATO from it.
• If you're dosing alk and Ca, make sure you're dosing containers are full
• If you use filter socks or filter floss, clean/replace it before you leave. Or, if you'll be go long, just remove them altogether
• If you use a skimmer, make sure the cup is empty. If you'll be gone longer than it takes for the cup to refill, turn off the skimmer or use a skimmate locker or bucket (if your skimmer cup has an outlet to run a line to one...)

I will be gone for 2 days. Sorry I forgot to put that in there lol

 

[ScottR]

Food timer to feed fish. Corals and nem will be fine.

ATO filled up

Mix some SW for when you get back just in case

Do a water change before you go.

Everything will be fine.

 

[neltel_7]

+1 Would really help to know how long you'll be gone.

In addition to the suggestions from Peach02, you could also:

• Put a big bucket or heavy-duty rubber maid container full of RODI water next to your tank and run a feed-line to your ATO from it.
• If you're dosing alk and Ca, make sure you're dosing containers are full
• If you use filter socks or filter floss, clean/replace it before you leave. Or, if you'll be go long, just remove them altogether
• If you use a skimmer, make sure the cup is empty. If you'll be gone longer than it takes for the cup to refill, turn off the skimmer or use a skimmate locker or bucket (if your skimmer cup has an outlet to run a line to one...)

I will make sure to do all of those. My fang Blenny(which I also forgot to put in the description) only eat live or frozen food and so do my skunk clowns, I usually feed them misis and brine shrimp so what should I do? I can’t put it in the auto feeder

 

[jaxredsoxfan]

They will be fine for 2 days if you cant get someone to feed them. Just give them a healthy meal - but not so much to pollute the tank- before you go

 

[scriptmonkey]

I will make sure to do all of those. My fang Blenny(which I also forgot to put in the description) only eat live or frozen food and so do my skunk clowns, I usually feed them misis and brine shrimp so what should I do? I can’t put it in the auto feeder

I know this is not the most popular answer but I would feed the heck out of them before you leave and first thing when you get home feed them.. they should be fine.

 

[ScottR]

I will make sure to do all of those. My fang Blenny(which I also forgot to put in the description) only eat live or frozen food and so do my skunk clowns, I usually feed them misis and brine shrimp so what should I do? I can’t put it in the auto feeder

They’ll be fine for 2 days. Feed them well without over feeding before you leave.

 

[Tiger Brown]

Agree with @ScottR except you don’t need a food timer for two days. Feed before you leave, they’ll be fine.

 

[Tiger Brown]

Lol Scott’s next post beat me, you scoundrel.

 

[scriptmonkey]

You many not get christmas cards from them, but they will appreciate you when you get back.

 

[joekool]

I leave all the time for long weekends.
I have a lot of stuff automated through my Apex like my ATO system and autofill so you know I can monitor my tank while I'm gone and I can send somebody over to have a look at it but generally in 2 days you should be fine.

Do you have any kind of tank monitoring system? It really gives me piece of mind.

 

[Nicholas Dushynsky]

Just feed the fish a little more during the week before you go, then feed them as late just before you go, then again as soon as you get back.

For 2 days they will be fine without having someone else or a feeder having to do it.
If you already use an auto feeder then carry on, but if you're going to go out and buy 1 a couple days before you go, you wont have time to test run it and it could either dump all the food in the first time it runs and cause alot if issues, or just fail.

Also I wouldn't do a water change just before you go, maybe a week before (not day before). Just make sure your levels are where you run your tank. Then just do when you come back if you need to. Just make sure you have enough rodi for the time you're away.

 

[RedSea500MaxS]

Get someone to visit tank. Checklist. Any issue send a video.

 

[neltel_7]

I leave all the time for long weekends.
I have a lot of stuff automated through my Apex like my ATO system and autofill so you know I can monitor my tank while I'm gone and I can send somebody over to have a look at it but generally in 2 days you should be fine.

Do you have any kind of tank monitoring system? It really gives me piece of mind.

I don’t because they are rather expensive. I have ATO, and I manage my lighting and flow through my phone. Do you think monitoring systems are worth the money?

 

[neltel_7]

Just feed the fish a little more during the week before you go, then feed them as late just before you go, then again as soon as you get back.

For 2 days they will be fine without having someone else or a feeder having to do it.
If you already use an auto feeder then carry on, but if you're going to go out and buy 1 a couple days before you go, you wont have time to test run it and it could either dump all the food in the first time it runs and cause alot if issues, or just fail.

Also I wouldn't do a water change just before you go, maybe a week before (not day before). Just make sure your levels are where you run your tank. Then just do when you come back if you need to. Just make sure you have enough rodi for the time you're away.

Thank you! This was very helpful

 

[joekool]

I don’t because they are rather expensive. I have ATO, and I manage my lighting and flow through my phone. Do you think monitoring systems are worth the money?

All.i can say is that I thought they were expensive until I had one and couldn't realize why I hadn't bought one long before. It definitely gives me piece of mind while I'm out of town.

 

[Rich Klein]

My neighbor does the 3 feedings per day (plus Aminos A&B), and I get a local service company to check the equipment once per day. LOL - I am all-in with my reef. Oh - I didn't mention my oversized RODI ATO container that I put in-line with my regular container and the cameras that I have on the tank and sump waterline.