Home Made Food FUN!

[Logzor]

I find it really funny how everyone makes comments about the random stuff in my kitchen. Thanks for reminding me that I need more paper towels though! Ill put that on the grocery list.

The frozen food on the top did make it more difficult.

I was going to do two batches and stick the remaining in the fridge while the first was freezing. It was getting late so I decided to just pile it all on rather than going through the process twice.

The solution, now that I think about it, would have been to glue or tape two stacks of egg-crate together. You would end up with thicker cubes but be much more efficient as far as freezer space goes. For me, I had only so much wide but enough height left for another layer of egg-crate.

If you really needed the smaller cubes you could lay foil down over the first set, stack on more egg-crate, and repeat. This I what I will do next time around.

It was not too bad of a process getting it out, got my fingers a bit cut up though. I do not recommend this process if you have soft or weak hands.

 

[Roy G. Biv]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11805551#post11805551 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Logzor
I find it really funny how everyone makes comments about the random stuff in my kitchen.

Was it hard getting the red stuff off of your cut up hands before finishing your ironing?

 

[Snowboarda42]

Got any pictures of it being fed in your tank? All my food always ends up looking like soup in the water...

 

[Agu]

I do have a suggestion regarding storage of home made food.

I realize the idea of making cubes is appealing but it's not the best way. Unless the food is sealed in a container with no air, even a freezer bag won't prevent freezer burn and degradation of the food. Unless you have a vacuum packaging machine there will be too much air in your bags.

When I make food it's put into sandwhich size zip lock bags and pressed flat , about 1/4" thick. Then it's squeezed flat so there's no air in the bag and zipped shut. It keeps a lot longer in the freezer and it's easy to cut into pieces one bag at a time while the other bags stay sealed.

BTW,I buy raw mixed seafood from the freezer section at my grocery store for $3/pound and make about 4 months worth at a time.

 

[Whisperer]

Agree with Agu about freezer burn. They will end up very tough and dry when all the water have turned into ice. The flattened ziplock bag method should work. Just break a piece at a time and reseal.

 

[Agu]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11805928#post11805928 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Snowboarda42
Got any pictures of it being fed in your tank? All my food always ends up looking like soup in the water...

A friend of mine helped me solve that problem. Mix it in batches. Add 1/3 and blend, add another 1/3 and blend, and add the last 1/3 and blend. (He actually has a food processor just for making fish food but he runs a coral farm so that's justified )

With practice you can end up with fine to coarse food doing it that way.

 

[B.C.theReefer]

Making your own food is great. I love the whole idea of knowing exactly what im putting in to my tank!

I also use sanwhich size bags, and always double bag them! also i try not to make more than 6-8 weeks worth at a time. Keeps the food fresh.

 

[xenon]

I always rinse my cubes before I feed my fish.

The juice and small particles that dont get eaten really foul the water quickly.

I think its a great idea buy maybe if the chunks were bigger so that you can strain the small stuff that wont get eaten.

 

[KafudaFish]

To get the smell off your hands, try lemon juice and table salt.

 

[executivelewis]

Stainless steel seems to wick smells and oils away pretty effectively

whenever I have smells from onion or anything like that I rub my hands on my sink and it wicks the smells/oils away. You can also buy an expensive peice of stainless that looks like a bar of soap that does the same thing.

 

[mouscacha]

I've found the best way to freeze the stuff is in old frozen fish food trays. I prefer the brineshrimp+, or same brand trays. They usually come out easier. Just make sure to smooth out the tray with your finger. I usually crumple the tray when taking out the frozen food.

 

[BigH55]

Rub your hands with a lemon. It gets the smell off your hands. Worked in college and girlfriend never new I was cheating. Seriously, it works great.

 

[Mavrk]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11806282#post11806282 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Agu
I do have a suggestion regarding storage of home made food.

I realize the idea of making cubes is appealing but it's not the best way. Unless the food is sealed in a container with no air, even a freezer bag won't prevent freezer burn and degradation of the food. Unless you have a vacuum packaging machine there will be too much air in your bags.

When I make food it's put into sandwhich size zip lock bags and pressed flat , about 1/4" thick. Then it's squeezed flat so there's no air in the bag and zipped shut. It keeps a lot longer in the freezer and it's easy to cut into pieces one bag at a time while the other bags stay sealed.

BTW,I buy raw mixed seafood from the freezer section at my grocery store for $3/pound and make about 4 months worth at a time.

I was about to say it is easier to freeze it in thin sheets and break off what you need when feeding.

Remember safe food handling when feeding this (or other raw frozen food). Wash your hands after feeding your fish and be careful of cross-contamination.

 

[Logzor]

How often should I feed this type of food? The skimmer goes insane. I have to turn it off or way down when feeding it. It creates huge bubbles in the skimmer even an hour after feeding. I am guessing this food is 8x more potent than the brine cubes I normally feed....

It does not take out much actual skim but just makes giant bubbles.

Keep in mind I do not have a sump and use a HOB CSS 125.


Thanks for the tips. I will try the lemon juice thing. I will probably trade off a lot of this food since I wont be able to use it very fast. Not sure how much to sell it for, though.

 

[Roy G. Biv]

Its been a month now. How is this new food working for you? Anything you would do different??

 

[Teejo]

bump

 

[Roy G. Biv]

3/10/2008 10:22 AM
Hello Pmolan,

sirreal63 has just replied to a thread you have subscribed to entitled - Home Made Food FUN! - in the Reef Discussion forum of Reef Central Online Community.

Did this just vanish??

 

[Headache]

BigH55, I saw that and declare: Rediculous! but i dont think anyone else did...