Maintenance on vacation

[mc12301]

Hi all -

I'm going to be away for about 2 1/2 almost 3 l weeks in July and need to get my tank prepared for my absence.

It's a 55g FOWLR - small bioload, just a clown, yellow tail damsel, coral banded shrimp, and fromia star.

I am going to siphon out plenty of detritus and do a 20% WC the day before I leave. The lighting system is on a timer, so I don't have to worry about that. My dad lives 15-20 minutes away so he can stop by every 4-5 days for top offs.

I am mostly worried about feedings. I figure I have three options...

1) Standard vacation feeder - do they really work? Or do they just foul up your water?
2) Buy an automatic feeder - anyone have any recommendations? I don't want it to be overfeeding (since I really only have two feed) and come back nitrate/phosphate spikes and algae blooms.
3) My dad can come feed every few days. Could the fish get buy on a feeding every 4-5 days for 3 weeks?
4) Stupid question but worth a shot. Any chance an algae sheet could be worth a shot? Give the fish at least something to nibble on in between visits from my dad?

What do you guys think? I would like to just go with Option 1 in the vacation feeder. I just wonder if they will actually work having never used one before.

Any suggestions?

 

[tjm9331]

4-5 days between feeding is fine, that's the option I'd go with. Portion out exactly what your dad needs to feed, Mark each bag with the date they should be fed that way he can't mess it up. I've made the mistake of just relying on someone knowing how much to feed, long story short he ended up crashing my tank.

Don't bother with the algae sheets, clowns and damsels aren't really know to pick at it so it would most likely just end up floating around the tank until it rots.


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[FirstContact]

Algae sheet is a bad idea unless the amount you put out would be eaten in one day. Fish can go a week or so without eating. Having your father stop by every 2-3 days is a great idea. If they get fed every 2-3 days you should be fine. You might look into an automatic feeder. The Lifeguard/Neptune Apex feeder are good ones. For me, they dump too many pellets. Put it on the lowest setting and add some scotch tape to decrease the opening. Practice before you leave. Have water ready for a water change on your return. When I’m on vacation my son stops by every other day to feed and check on the tank. A WiFi camera can put your mind at ease if you have a smart phone.

+1 on portioning food out into ziplock bags

Good luck and Happy Reefing!

 

[Sk8r]

Autotopoff, Eheim autofeeder with flake, 32 gallon Rubbermaid Brute trashcan full of rodi---set it wherever you need to.

 

[MondoBongo]

i use the pill organizers to portion out food. that way, it's already labeled for the day.

auto top off, as others have noted, is a must. i would not be waiting 4 - 5 days between top offs, your salinity will swing far too much in that time frame.

i also like to leave a list of emergency contacts in case something bad happens. usually that's a trusted LFS and/or some experienced friends in the area.

my last piece of advice is no major changes any less than two weeks prior to departure. this gives you time to work out any kinks.

 

[mc12301]

i use the pill organizers to portion out food. that way, it's already labeled for the day.

auto top off, as others have noted, is a must. i would not be waiting 4 - 5 days between top offs, your salinity will swing far too much in that time frame.

i also like to leave a list of emergency contacts in case something bad happens. usually that's a trusted LFS and/or some experienced friends in the area.

my last piece of advice is no major changes any less than two weeks prior to departure. this gives you time to work out any kinks.

Interesting... I only have to top off about once a week when I am home and I've never had any problems.

Anyone think feeding every 4-5 days is not enough to survive the 3 weeks?

 

[Conchman]

With a Fowler top off is not as critical. I’m lazy, so I would still consider a top off. Stabilizing is still a good thing. 2nd on the pill boxes, heck knows I have enough around, that’s what I fill for the fish sitter. Also I feed less. I do a few smaller changes, not one big one before.

 

[FullBoreReefer]

Interesting... I only have to top off about once a week when I am home and I've never had any problems.

Anyone think feeding every 4-5 days is not enough to survive the 3 weeks?

Woah, I lose 1-1.5gals a day on my 125 total gallons.

4-5 days for feeding is fine IMO

 

[MondoBongo]

Woah, I lose 1-1.5gals a day on my 125 total gallons.

yeah that's what i was thinking. my 75 gallon used to lose at least a gallon a day, up to 3 gallons depending on the temperature and humidity.

my 150 is usually about 2 - 4 gallons a day, again depending on temperature and humidity.

even in a large system, that's a significant amount of evap.

 

[on the spot]

Autotopoff, Eheim autofeeder with flake, 32 gallon Rubbermaid Brute trashcan full of rodi---set it wherever you need to.

Sk8r has on occasion pulled a gem out of the air.

I wouldn't wait for the day before you leave to pull off the miracle cleaning. Start now, do less more often would be my suggestion.

If you use a sump top off could be as simple as a float valve and gravity. Anything you can do to make the visit as simple as possible is always best.

 

[bcb577]

I just got back from vacation but I was only gone for six days so I followed my regular water change wich just so happed to take place the day before had my son feed small amounts every two days and showed him how much to add as I only have two fish and asking as both fish received a cpl pellets they should do fine the only thing I forgot to do is get an auto tip off but I showed him the level it was st and he did one fine job off everything when I got home you’d never know I had left