Soft Coral feeding

[Dave VG]

How do I know my corals are getting enough food? Right now I feed my fish twice a day. Will the corals also get nutrition from these feedings or do I need special food just for them?

Dave

 

[Piazzon12]

Most likely they are getting enough food. Between the feedings, fish poo, etc. Like Doc said, you can also stir the substrate a little to release nutrients and bacteria into the water column. If you really want them to grow fast, you can spot feed, but it isnt necessary.

 

[drbronx]

My own bias is to caution against coral feeding. Its difficult enough to control the nutrient cycle in our little glass boxes without adding organic matter. Fish food, fish poop, nutrients from the subsrtate and bacteria etc., should provide all the nutrients your corals need without risking nutrient build up, nitrates, algae blooms etc. And keep in mind, many or even most corals rely primarily on embedde photosynthetic algae which rely on light energy to produce nutrients for the host corals. Marketers will have you believe that you can't live without their products. I don't feed anything but the fish and corals grow like weeds. Having said that, there are a few corals that do require nutrients directly from the water colum since they have no photosynthetic capability (e.g., dendronepthia, scleronethia, sun polyps etc) however I typically recommend against owning these for that reason.

 

[nwrogers]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9911646#post9911646 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by drbronx
My own bias is to caution against coral feeding. Its difficult enough to control the nutrient cycle in our little glass boxes without adding organic matter. Fish food, fish poop, nutrients from the subsrtate and bacteria etc., should provide all the nutrients your corals need without risking nutrient build up, nitrates, algae blooms etc. And keep in mind, many or even most corals rely primarily on embedde photosynthetic algae which rely on light energy to produce nutrients for the host corals. Marketers will have you believe that you can't live without their products. I don't feed anything but the fish and corals grow like weeds. Having said that, there are a few corals that do require nutrients directly from the water colum since they have no photosynthetic capability (e.g., dendronepthia, scleronethia, sun polyps etc) however I typically recommend against owning these for that reason.

What he said