Feeding the fish. How long can they go wthout food?

[Iain]

I'm asking this question for 2 reasons

1. I need to reduce my disolved organics levels
2. Just curious for the holidays

[Chris Taylor]

"""I need to reduce my disolved organics levels"""
- Not sure for all species. I've left a tank for a week without food and
the fish seemed to be more than happy afterward (those little smiles and
wagging tails...), it seems logical that you'd you'd not get away with
feeding only once a week though.
- Do you have a protein skimmer?
- What foods are you offering, what frequency, and could you reduce the
quantity rather than frequency?

"""Just curious for the holidays"""

For your holidays you can purchase an autofeeder. It's better to use the
pellets (also leave less disolved organics than frozen foods) than flake as
the flake food is prone to absorbing moisture and 'clumping' (aggregating).
A recent overseas trip saw the tank fed from an autofeeder for three weeks.
Relatives popped round once a week or so to empty the skimmer and top the
water up (important for salinity stability). The tank was a little grimy,
but otherwise healthy upon our return. You'd be better off testing the fish
over a week or so with the new food. Mine wouldn't touch the pellets for a
few days and then got stuck-in when nothing else appeared.

I now feed the fish on average (but often more than) every second day and
vary the feed between pellets and frozen foods.

Hope this helps


Chris

"Iain" > wrote in message
news:Sh0cc.765$ox4.505@newsfe1-win...
> I'm asking this question for 2 reasons
>
> 1. I need to reduce my disolved organics levels
> 2. Just curious for the holidays
>
>