Do you remove all sponges and filters when feeding the tank?

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deputydog95

Member
Just curious. I always turn off the skimmer, but should we be taking out the filter sponges and floss when feeding the corals? Seems like a waste to leave them as I imagine if you leave both pumps on a lot of the food would get trapped in the media if you don't take it out.
 
goma

goma

Well-Known Member
RS STAFF
PREMIUM
I turn off my MP-10s and leave everything else on and in the tank when feeding.
 
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deputydog95

Member
I was turning off the skimmer and main pump, and leaving the chiller pump on. I don't have any internal circ pumps. However, it seems with very little flow in the tank, the food just hangs in the water column.

If I turn the main pump on, a lot of it gets whipped up to the surface and pulled into the skimmer box, which I assume then gets caught in either my filter pad or the foam filter.


I'm considering pulling out the filter pad, removing the foam sponge, turning off the skimmer, and leaving the main pumps on when I feed. It's only a few times a week. My thought is that it will keep circulating the food around the tank without getting caught in the filtration process.
 
Oxylebius

Oxylebius

Well-Known Member
The 2 cleaner shrimp, peppermint shrimp, and 6 nassarius snails eat any that makes it to the bottom, which is very little. Don't overfeed and you won't have much fall to the bottom of the tank. I turn on one pump after about 5 mins to circulate any left over tiny bits, which the corals and gorgonian grab. Then after about 10mins all pumps are back on. I also spot feed the gorgonian and corals once a week, again with pumps off and then slowly bring pumps back online as described above. When you turn off the pumps, watch your protein skimmer, depending on how your system set-up any rise in water level around the skimmer may make it overflow, you may either have to cut the protein skimmer off (which I don't do) or turn the cup up above the level of wet skimming (which I do) to prevent overflow of very wet skimmate.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
I hit Feed-Pause on my controller which turns off all pumps at once which is basically what everyone else has stated they are doing.

If your food is settling (to a large degree) to the tank floor you're possibly feeding too much. You want to feed what your fish can eat in about 5 minutes and no more.
 
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deputydog95

Member
Let me back up a bit...

When I say feed the tank, I mean specifically the corals. I only have one fish. The rest is inverts and corals.

Most of the corals food are fine particulate matter, which floats in suspension. It would make sense to have the pumps running to circulate the food, but I'm afraid the sponges would capture a lot of it, defeating the purpose.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
In the above case you'd be well advised to add some "in-tank" circulation means. Even the smallest of powerheads could accomplish this task so that you're not feeding the filter media and adding unnecessary load to the biofiltration system.
 
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