Roy wrote:

Feeding is the least of the worries.....Odds are most if not all
folks over feed their fish more than the need anyhow.......the object
is to maintain them at a good level not make em fat and happy, well
happy perhaps but not with feed.

There is all kinds of problems that can go wrong......A tank can leak,
a filter unit can kick out, power can go out, and when its back up may
or may not retsrat some filteration devices.....Heaters can
stick.......water evaporates............all of which are more
important than them not eating for a mere 2 weeks, so at the least
hjave someone stop by and check on them. Make up a bucket of water and
make a mark on the tank with max and minimum water levels, so they
know when to top off tank.....trust feeding them to a bona fide fish
keeper less you risk a poluted tank when yu return.......but feed is
not a must have.nice yes, necessary no.

Do you pumps and filters restart ok after a power outage, if not, buy
one that does.......**** happens and if its gonna go south it will do
it when your not around to recity it.

I reduce all lights, fish really do not need much or any lights, but
live plants do, so if you have live plants you would be best having
the light on a timer, less you get a algae bloom from too much or
dead plants from insufficient light......

The only ones those feeding blocks benefit are the manufacturer, and
retailler, nd it gives some owners of the fish peace of mind, which is
a false security anyhow, but it suits them I guess......no amount of
overfeeding them are gonna make up for not being fed 1 or 2 days or
even 2 weeks later...........Prove that concept to yourself and eat
enough tonight so you do not eat tomorrow.

On 1 May 2006 14:06:47 -0700, "Mariachi" wrote:

I went away from 2 and a half weeks and i used a automatic feeder. i
asked pplz here what the thought of those feeding blocks and i got some
very negative comments about how crap they are in general - so i went
and bought an auto feeder..


Koi-Lo....
Frugal ponding since 1982.
Aquariums since 1956.
Some assholes Pond & Aquarium Pages:
http://tinyurl.com/9do58
*Note: There are several *Koi-Lo's* on rec.ponds.
But, I am the one and only original Koi-Lo.
~~~ }((((o ~~~ }{{{{o ~~~ }(((((o

Reducing lights is fine if you don't have a heavily planted tank....I
have to strike a balance in the summer between the tanks overheating and
plant health....last summer the plants got sacrificed...this year we've
put in air con... :-)

Gill