Why feed pellets?

[KevinC]

Going to start my FOWLR tank soon, so im trying to get the best color for my fish.

Is feeding pellets (or any dry food) to fish necessary? I have read a lot that states frozen food; Mysis etc, brings out the color of fish.

Since pellets increase phosphate, Why would people feed it at all? other than being cheap ofcourse

 

[CMMorgan]

I just got a fish from Oceans Garden. It's a great little DaVinci clown. Alas, he won't eat flake. Stubborn little bugger will only eat pellets. I'm trying to wean him off of them but it's slow....

 

[James_O]

Some brands guarantee better color in the fish. Also, pellets pack a lot more nutrition than just mysis alone.

The cost is another factor - pellets are much cheaper than frozen foods.

 

[James_O]

I just got a fish from Oceans Garden. It's a great little DaVinci clown. Alas, he won't eat flake. Stubborn little bugger will only eat pellets. I'm trying to wean him off of them but it's slow....

A DaVinci? (I also have a pair of DaVinci's ;Joyful )

 

[CMMorgan]

A DaVinci? (I also have a pair of DaVinci's ;Joyful )

I named him Leo. He is a long finned Davinci. This is weird but it gets seperation anxiety when I'm gone and it comes to the surface to give me fish kisses. (No, he is not begging because he likes the sinking pellets.)
Great little fish.... it is going to be hard to let him out of the QT in my office to set him free in the big tank. He's mu little buddy.

 

[BeltedCoyote]

Why feed pellets? Because they have good nutrition, don’t require thawing and rinsing, don’t need to be preserved at a certain temperature, and are quick and easy...

 

[CanuckReefer]

Because I am out of my own frozen mix....they'll eat it, and it works, but I find my own stuff they are more voracious with....

 

[KevinC]

Is feeding frozen really THAT expensive? i mean 3 packs oh hikari only cost $10, and i have been mixing it with PE mysis which last me about...well pretty long. if anything, Im more worried about having to do frequent water change with pellet feeding as I have notice significant higher phosphate when feeding pellets within my sps reef

anyways is the main idea: If I have the time and money, Feeding frozen food bring out better color than dry food will?

 

[Reef.]

If you read the ingredients on a lot of pellets they have nothing that your fish wouldn't get from a good mix of frozen food, many just a one or two main ingredients then some kind of filler such as wheat.

 

[HB AL]

Compare the ingredients in pellets to frozen foods and see the difference. I feed my fish a variety of Hikari cubes and Rods daily. I have 14 fish, 5 triggers, 3 tangs, 2 clowns, 1 damsel, 1 Harlequin Tusk, 1 squirrel fish and a bicolor blenny and they are all extremely healthy and colorful. Most frozen foods are superior to non frozen.
Here's a vid of my fish getting pumped up to eat. Feed your fish frozen and they will thank you for it.

 

[CanuckReefer]

Is feeding frozen really THAT expensive? i mean 3 packs oh hikari only cost $10, and i have been mixing it with PE mysis which last me about...well pretty long. if anything, Im more worried about having to do frequent water change with pellet feeding as I have notice significant higher phosphate when feeding pellets within my sps reef

anyways is the main idea: If I have the time and money, Feeding frozen food bring out better color than dry food will?

No it isn't, even less expensive / better when you make your own. Phos is often higher with pellets. I only utilize it in a pinch. It's handy to have on hand for a day or two. Then back to frozen.

 

[AlgaeBarn]

While there are a lot of variable as to if frozen or pellets are better depending on what is in either- A good reason to go with pellets is it is usually a lot easier to monitor how much you are feeding and how much your fish are consuming without polluting your tank

 

[davidcalgary29]

Is feeding frozen really THAT expensive?

Yes. Or, at the very least, it's not a budget option in Canada.

Pellets satisfy the pickers and sifters in my tank. The filefish seems particularly happy picking at things over a long period of time instead of a three-minute bings, and it (and the multicolor angel) haven't taken to masstick at all.

 

[BeltedCoyote]

Not saying frozen isn’t viable. For me I just use pellets daily and frozen every few days. But I’m only feeding clowns right now. This will change as my livestock list expands

 

[Neros503]

I feed pellets and flake because when we go on vacation they'll eat that from an auto feeder. I do feed frozen as well though.

 

[New&no clue]

I feed pellets and flakes because they can go in an auto feeder. If I could do frozen in an auto feeder I would do that instead.

 

[Azedenkae]

Same as a lot of others, it is just easier with pellets. I can change amounts fed quickly, and if I go on holidays well auto-feeding is much easier.

 

[M Stein]

Going to start my FOWLR tank soon, so im trying to get the best color for my fish.

Is feeding pellets (or any dry food) to fish necessary? I have read a lot that states frozen food; Mysis etc, brings out the color of fish.

Since pellets increase phosphate, Why would people feed it at all? other than being cheap ofcourse

I don't know much about bringing out the color. I haven't tried controlled side by side tests, but I'm not having any issues with pellets and flakes.

Feeding dry fish food is not necessary. In fact, fish generally prefer frozen, and especially live foods. That said, as an aquarist pellets do come with many advantages.

1) Despite the fact that fish are more likely to accept frozen (the majority of fish have no trouble accepting dry), Pellets often contain more nutritional value that frozen. It's like feeding your kids veggies instead of candy.
2) The cost is lower. Although frozen can last a while, dry will go farther. (10 pack of hikari is a good deal but still not cheaper than pellets or flakes)
3) Convenience. Dry foods don't take up freezer space and you don't have to head to the freezer every time you want to feed. Also dry foods don't need defrosting and can be fed automatically.

Oh, and as for phosphates. I'm not sure but I think on BRS they said that Frozen have more phospates. Either way, I run a reef and occasionally test for phosphates, but I have yet do have problem. Not in my 75 where I feed frozen, nor in my 15 where I feed dry. In a fowler phosphates are even less important.

 

[Uncle99]

A good pellet will have elevated protein and fat content, which IMM exceeds any frozen food in terms of content.

it’s quite the same in dog and cat food, whereas the wet stuff has a third of the fat and protein content, but they love it.

That being said, my fish love the wet stuff.

Variety is the spice of life.

Cant say I get any better colour with either.

Mine show there best colors when relaxed and dependent on lighting.

If my YT gets any stress, she pales a bit.

 

[Tamberav]

Going to start my FOWLR tank soon, so im trying to get the best color for my fish.

Is feeding pellets (or any dry food) to fish necessary? I have read a lot that states frozen food; Mysis etc, brings out the color of fish.

Since pellets increase phosphate, Why would people feed it at all? other than being cheap ofcourse

Convenience.

All foods have phosphate, it is a building block.

If you want to do the best for your fish then live foods like live worms, fresh frozen clam (the kind you would buy live to eat), quality frozen like LRS, and dried (not roasted) nori. You can add some selcon or fish oil too.

I completely disagree pellets are better then what I just listed.

Dry is a packaged processed food and not fresh food. What do we eat to be healthy? Fresh food not processed foods. The key is to pick the correct frozen foods as not all are equal.

Just look at the health of Paul B's fish