surfsharkus
New member
I have a 6g tank and would like to know should I feed my reef right after I change the water or the other way around?... mabe something in between?
phyto feeding and water changes
- Thread starter surfsharkus
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virginiadiver69
New member
I would not do a water change right after feeding phyto. You could wait several hours and be okay.
surfsharkus
New member
Just a couple of hours or would it be better If i waited to change the water in a couple of days? Say three or so. To let all orginisms feed.
virginiadiver69
New member
I have been told to turn off my skimmer for several hours after feeding phyto so I would guess the same holds true for a water change. If your water has not cleared up by then you may be feeding to much.
Dingo Dog
Premium Member
Having phyto in your tank won't hurt anything. As long as there are suficient traces of phyto in your tank your corals, inverts, etc., will absorb it. Your corals will not receive much benefit if you do a water change too soon after dosing. I'd dose right after doing a water change.
surfsharkus
New member
ok thats what i have been doing... I change the water every week and afterwards i feed phyto a little less than one cap full.
I was wondering if the bottled Phyto I bought was any good. I bought Kent Marine.
I turned off my skimmer for 30 minutes after feeding phyto, and then the skimmer went crazy when I turned it back on and was told I should not turn off the skimmer. Maybe if I left the skimmer off for a couple of hours it wouldn't have gone crazy. What is everyone's opinion? Am I better off leaving the skimmer running and turning off the return pump instead, and then dosing the phyto with the return pump off after the display drains as much as it can into the sump?
Thanks, Pam
I turned off my skimmer for 30 minutes after feeding phyto, and then the skimmer went crazy when I turned it back on and was told I should not turn off the skimmer. Maybe if I left the skimmer off for a couple of hours it wouldn't have gone crazy. What is everyone's opinion? Am I better off leaving the skimmer running and turning off the return pump instead, and then dosing the phyto with the return pump off after the display drains as much as it can into the sump?
Thanks, Pam
taillonjohn
Member
I leave the skimmer off for at least an hour when feeding phyto. If you keep your skimmer running it will take the phyto out of the water. What do you mean your skimmer goes crazy? maybe its picking up more stuff?? (the phyto in the water?) thats normal. I just leave my powerheads on, and turn off the skimmer and filter for an hour or so, and feed the tank.
After I left my skimmer off for about 30-45 minutes after adding the phyto, I cleaned the skimmer cup and turned it back on. Came back 10 minutes later, and it was overflowing like crazy, with about 2" of tank water in the skimmer cup. I guessed that it was reacting to the phyto in the tank. Thanks, Pam
You might consider not adding phyto for a month or so and see if you really see a difference .. or just turn off your skimmer every once in a while (much of the green stuff in your collection cup is tank produced phyto anyway). Many new aquarist automatically think that phyto additions are mandatory in a reef tank and I suspect inappropriate/too much phyto is a common reason for nitrates and other water quality issues.
taillonjohn
Member
"So with sufficient live rock, etc. the phyto's just grow in the tank?!"
yes, sort of, but no. its a lot more complicated than that. with a properly mature tank, your tank will produce its own food/phyto. However, most of us use heaving skimming, so the food/phyto produced is useless. running the skimmer, and keeping the water clean, therefor keeping phyto and other food sources out of the water, is a choice we make. if we leave the food/phyto in the water, therefor making our water full of nutrients, with the limitations of an aquarium, we would end up with nuisance algae problems. this is a very short FYI, but please do much more research
yes, sort of, but no. its a lot more complicated than that. with a properly mature tank, your tank will produce its own food/phyto. However, most of us use heaving skimming, so the food/phyto produced is useless. running the skimmer, and keeping the water clean, therefor keeping phyto and other food sources out of the water, is a choice we make. if we leave the food/phyto in the water, therefor making our water full of nutrients, with the limitations of an aquarium, we would end up with nuisance algae problems. this is a very short FYI, but please do much more research
carman9941
Premium Member
in a 6 gal tank i think that your adding way to much if its almost a cup
carman9941
Premium Member
my bad i just re read you said a cap sorry
surfsharkus
New member
So, I feed after i change the water. Turn off the skimmer for 1-3 hrs and every things good. Right?
surfsharkus
New member
should i keep the power head on to move the phyto around the tank?
