salzik February 21, 2012 February 21, 2012 My tank just finished cycling and was ready for some inhabitants, so I added some snails and hermit crabs and a blue damselfish. Since I have the one fish in there, I thought flakes should be sufficient for now. I turned OFF the powerheads but kept the main pump and protein skimmer running. The problem is that when I add the flakes, most of it stays on the surface of the water and make their way to the overflow. I even pre-soaked the flakes on a spoon with aquarium water, but most of the flakes still work their way to the overflow and end up in my sump. I was thinking of turning OFF the main pump as well, but that seems like overkill and even then, most of the flakes will stay on the surface and the damselfish doesn't like to venture up that high in the tank. What I've read so far didn't touch on this. Are there any feeding tricks I need to know about, or is that just how it works? Thanks in advance.
RubberFrog February 21, 2012 February 21, 2012 Turn off your return pump. The flakes will sink after a while.
salzik February 21, 2012 Author February 21, 2012 OK thanks. That's kind of what I thought but I wasn't sure if it was OK to stop all water movement three times a day. How long should I wait before turning ON the return pump and powerheads? I'm thinking it will take 5 minutes for the flakes to sink and another 5 minutes for feeding.
Marc Weaver February 21, 2012 February 21, 2012 Pinch the flakes between your fingers and push them under the water. Some will come back up but most should fall into the tank. You have to break the surface tension of the water to get them to sink.
schenktank February 22, 2012 February 22, 2012 you could always just buy frozen food like mysis shrimp or brine. sinks when thawed out.
flowerseller February 22, 2012 February 22, 2012 Pinch the flakes between your fingers and push them under the water. Some will come back up but most should fall into the tank. You have to break the surface tension of the water to get them to sink. I do this but hold it under water for 10 seconds and swish it and then let it go. Stays under water and the fish halmp it. I feed mostly flake and have for 25 years. RBTA's love it.
Origami February 22, 2012 February 22, 2012 I pinch the flakes, hold them under water to get them soaked, and release into the downwardly-directed stream of my returns. This drives the soaked flakes down toward the bottom, distributing them through the tank. The fish love chasing the flakes around.
Jon Lazar February 22, 2012 February 22, 2012 I do this but hold it under water for 10 seconds and swish it and then let it go. Stays under water and the fish halmp it. I feed mostly flake and have for 25 years. RBTA's love it. I pinch the flakes, hold them under water to get them soaked, and release into the downwardly-directed stream of my returns. This drives the soaked flakes down toward the bottom, distributing them through the tank. The fish love chasing the flakes around. I do it like this too. Plus the fish learn that they can nibble food from my fingers...always fun.
salzik February 22, 2012 Author February 22, 2012 Thanks for the replies! I've started to stop the return pump and I crush the flakes and pinch them into the tank and they start to sink, so that's good. Although the flakes are in small pieces, the little damselfish seems to only prefer the flakes that are small specks. It looks like he attempts to eat the other small flakes, but spits them out as soon as he starts to bite it. The flakes are pretty small, but I guess he can't eat it until it's a tiny morsel.
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now