Newbies BEWARE

V

vcam

New member
for the past few days i've been getting .1-.2 ammonia readings from my full cycled and good to go tank... and I couldn't figure out why!

Well I know now:

In the morning i would grab a cup of tank water and place a frozen cube of food inside. I'd let it defrost for a min or so then put as much as my two 1inch clowns could swallow.

This cup would then go in the fridge and then I'd take it out at supper and feed them again.

Well it turns out that cup after sitting in the fridge (which should preserve the food, or at least i thought it would )... was getting an ammonia reading between 2 and 4!!!! :blown:

I was essentially dosing my tank with ammonia every time I'd feed it.
DO NOT TRY AND SAVE FOOD.

:D just thought I'd share with all!
 
Yea...I never do that. Just grab a cube of whatever and hold it in front of a powerhead.
I treat them like me.... and I'm not eating leftover seafood left in the fridge...lol
 
Might be the "juice" from the thawed cube. I usually put the cube into a small net, then rest it in a small container of tank water just to defrost. Then I pull the net with the thawed food out, ditch the water and feed.
 
Not necessarily, it's just that I read (on this board) that liquid used to freeze the food is not good for the tank.
 
Defrost the cube in something that you can let the liquid drain out of....I have a small round top from an old deodorant that I drilled lots of holes in. Feed the amount you need. Don't put unthawed codes in the tank or put thawed cubes with all the liquid in the tank, you are adding lots of waste that just pollutes the tank and turns to nitrates and phosphates....
 
Maybe I'm doing it wrong but I don't separate the "liquid" from the food. I cut my piece and let it defrost in tank water. Fwiw I haven't lost any fish (knock on wood) since I started the hobby Nov 2014. Between two tanks that's 13 fish.
 
I've now started to cut them and only defrost the pieces and then put them in the tank, should I be straining the food out too?
 
I'm not sure it makes that much diff if the food is defrosted to order.

Nitrogen is a major building block of life, it's an important part of the food, and it changes forms as bacteria add and remove other elements too it. Like hydrogen or oxygen and stuff. That's what's happening when the tank changes ammonia from fish waste into nitrates, etc. But that's also happening when food decays. So when people feed too heavy and the uneaten food rots in the tank, bacteria are changing the nitrogen into ammonia, and then cycling it. Same when you cycle a tank with food. The nitrogen changes shape from whatev it is in the food, into ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, nitrous oxide gas. It's all nitrogen, but only ammonia really hurts fish.

Your food in the fridge is decaying a little, and the ammonia is very high because it's not diluted. I don't think that fish would even notice the diff between that "riper" nitrogen, and the fresh stuff. The reason for rinsing is just to get the extra nutrients (nitrogen and phosphate mostly) off the food. That way all the nutrition you are adding to the tank is in the food that gets eaten, no leftovers to rot and feed algae instead.

If your ammonia is regularly hitting .2ppm that's a problem. I'm just not sure it's because you are adding actual ammonia in ripe food, or if your overall N input is more than you are exporting. A cycled tank ought to be able to keep up better. What are your nitrates like? That's usually the form of nitrogen that's last to leave a tank, so import/export imbalance tends to show up there.

FWIW I defrost about a days worth in the morning and strain the 3-4 feedings I do during the day. At nigh I target the juice with some chunks in it at my suncoral and bubble. A few times a week I'll hit my lps with juice too, and sometimes I put some on the crackers I feed my worm culture. I frequently screw up and wind up feeding day old food. I haven't noticed any problem, and the fish don't mind.
 
I always defrost a cube in a red solo cup, feed my two tanks, and put it back in the fridge. The next night take it out, wait till room temp and feed again. I do this for like 4 days until the food is gone and I have been doing it for two years. Is it that big of a deal?
 
I used to defrost in a cup first, but then I bought this thing, which I love. I just toss a cube or half cube in and as it defrosts it releases bits of food. Works amazing. I can even tell when my fish are hungry because they will go check the food cup for food. I have never had any nutrient issues, but I have a fowlr, so i am less concerned with slight amounts than some people might be.

s-l300.jpg
 
bat21 said:
I used to defrost in a cup first, but then I bought this thing, which I love. I just toss a cube or half cube in and as it defrosts it releases bits of food. Works amazing. I can even tell when my fish are hungry because they will go check the food cup for food. I have never had any nutrient issues, but I have a fowlr, so i am less concerned with slight amounts than some people might be.

s-l300.jpg
Click to expand...

What a great idea! I may pick one of these up for my tank. Will make it super easy for my fish-sitter to feed when we are away.
 
Deinonych said:
What a great idea! I may pick one of these up for my tank. Will make it super easy for my fish-sitter to feed when we are away.
Click to expand...

That was the reason I bought it, for my fish sitter. But it's so great that I just started using it myself bc it's so much easier to feed.
 
Ummm ive been thawing out frozen food and storing the thawed out food for up to 3-4 days in the fridge and feeding until its gone for about 2 years now. Not seeing any problems..
 
Putting a little bit of water with the food that is at 2 to 4 ppm ammonia shouldn't be a problem. Think about how much you are diluting it when you add it to the tank. A running tank should be able to clear that much ammonia in no time. Your fish are adding much much more than that every day.
 
I never feed that type of food but it's nice to see all the ways to consider how to feed, if I ever need to.
 
CStrickland said:
If your ammonia is regularly hitting .2ppm that's a problem. I'm just not sure it's because you are adding actual ammonia in ripe food, or if your overall N input is more than you are exporting. A cycled tank ought to be able to keep up better. What are your nitrates like? That's usually the form of nitrogen that's last to leave a tank, so import/export imbalance tends to show up there.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what else it could have been...

The tank cycled completely on a a large raw shrimp (2-3 inches, should have cycled it properly). I then added 2 juvenile clowns, waited a week, 2 peppermints to clean, and now 3 frags of coral.

Is it possible I'm over feeding? I've been doing just what they can eat in 2-3 minutes twice a day. Plus a few pieces for the acans. Even if something did hit the floor, the 2 peppers should grab it before it rots.

Edit: nitrates are ~5
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Q
Which mini snail for artemia tank?
Replies
2
Views
121
griss
griss
R
Midas blenny missing
Replies
5
Views
223
griss
griss
A
First SPS coral. Is this bleaching?
Replies
6
Views
459
apavlik2
A
S
Nutrient Export
Replies
0
Views
2K
SantaMonica
S
N
Saltwater cycle possible stuck
2
Replies
26
Views
7K
Guygettnby
Guygettnby
Back
Top