Flake food + Auto Feeder + Vacation = Problem?

[ufans]

I am going on vacation for a week next month and wanted to test drive my setup. My problem is that I have my automatic feeder setup to do two feedings a day of flake food, but it seems that most of the flake food just wants to float on the surface and get sucked up by the overflow box.

I am feeding 1 yellow tang, 1 goby, and two cleaner shrimp. The load isn't much and my tank is a 75gal tank.

Is there a way that I can rig the setup so that the food has a chance to sink?

I thought about rigging a piece of PVC so that the food falls down the PVC which is down in the water but I am afraid that the food will never sink. My other plan would be just put a net in the corner where the food falls.

Anyone have a good plan? or something else that I can feed them that will sink immediately?

 

[Anonymous]

Make a ring out of airline tubing, using connectors so that water cannot get in. This will float on top of the water surface. Make it as big or small as you wish, and place it under the feeder. You can hold it in place with a suction cup (one that has a plastic hook) or tie it in place with monofiliment. Once the food falls, it cannot escape without sinking, and none will make it to the overflow.

 

[ufans]

ahh.. dang. can't believe I didn't think about that. I actually have some airline tubing clips with suction cups that will work great.

Thanks!!!
Please wish my fishies (and shrimp) luck while I am on vacation

 

[Anonymous]

I will.
And I hope the same for mine when I do 10 days in June!

Lucily my automatic feeder is an uncle who lives a few miles away...

 

[Emperator]

or if you have a sump, have the feeder dump the flake into the inlet to your return pump.

 

[Anonymous]

They sell "feeding rings" that are designed to do the same thing - keep the flakes in the same place until they sink, thereby preventing them from being swept over the overflows. These feeding rings are nothing more than a square piece of foam sheeting 3"x4" by 1/4" thick with the center removed. I tape one of these to the side of the tank so that the flakes from the feeder falls into the opening (while I am on vacation).

 

[Anonymous]

auto feeders more often become the disaster that was waiting to happen

their gears stick, they fail, they clog, they never administer the same amount of food twice

i think they're evil

the best thing to do is premeasure out daily packets of food, w/instructions to explicitly use only the amounts of food you've prepared, NO MATTER WHAT!!! (most 'guest feeders'/babysitters will want to overfeed their friends fish), and have a friend feed the tank while you're gone

and hide the main food container :wink:

 

[cdeakle]

auto feeders more often become the disaster that was waiting to happen

I have also heard this a few times as well. To be quite honest most fish can survive a week without food. So if you can even get 1 buddy to come over at least 1 or 2 times to feed you'll be golden.

Vitz gave really good advice:

the best thing to do is premeasure out daily packets of food, w/instructions to explicitly use only the amounts of food you've prepared, NO MATTER WHAT!!! (most 'guest feeders'/babysitters will want to overfeed their friends fish), and have a friend feed the tank while you're gone

and hide the main food container :wink:

:lol: Sad, but true.

 

[carter92]

Don't starve your fish....just get a feeding ring...I have used them too..but now use a piece of pvc that drops just below the water surface..I also attach a worm feeder that drops just below the water surface and use dry food that will pass through the small holes..with each pass of my sea swirl more food is dispersed throughout the tanks..works great..

 

[Anonymous]

I have mine dump in an area of intense water movement. It gets into the water column right away.

vitz,
I don't understand; do you have probs with them feeding too much, or too little?

 

[Anonymous]

I have mine dump in an area of intense water movement. It gets into the water column right away.

vitz,
I don't understand; do you have probs with them feeding too much, or too little?

if by 'them' you refer to the auto feeders, it's both too much and too little
the 'rotating drum' type feeders are the worst-the amount of food dispensed if never the same per rotation-most food tumbles unevenly as the drum turns on the feeder

moisture at the drum opening will also cause food to clump at the opening after a few days-reducing substantially the amount of food dispensed

pellet food in a drum type feeder can be disastrous-i've seen some dispense half of their contents at ONCE into a tank


as i've stated above- i think they're evil

most people will do just fine w/out them-especially if they're leaving their tanks for less than a week-this goes for both fw, and sw, aquariums

 

[Baianotang]

you bet

 

[Anonymous]

I guess maybe I just don't have as much experience with them as you. I've been using both types for a year now with no problems. I can't be at these tanks 3 times a day to feed, so the auto feeder is ideal.

FWIW, sturgeon farms here in CA use the plug in type drum feeder with pellets to feed their juveniles. The larger sturgeon have a demand feeder that they bump when hungry to drop food.

 

[DK]

I use the auto feeders for all my vacations. The flake food or pellets work fine. I have the food dropped into a 2 or 3inch PVC fitting that I tape to the corner or the tank using duct tape and place the feeder above it. The fish figure it out immediately. Longest vacation - 14 days. Even the stupid but lovable puffer survives.