Rinsing Fish Food

P

Pulker

Member
I find no evidence or can see no reason that rinsing of fish food does any good other than potentially contaminating it with the holders and creating a mess as well as additional work. If someone has some data, I would appreciate it.
 
lcstorc

lcstorc

Well-Known Member
It will vary depending on the food, but most prepared fish foods use phosphates as a preservative and that is why we rinse. Phosphates are algae fuel.
Try soaking your food in RO/DI water and then test the water for phosphates.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Pulker said:
I find no evidence or can see no reason that rinsing of fish food does any good other than potentially contaminating it with the holders and creating a mess as well as additional work. If someone has some data, I would appreciate it.
Click to expand...

Data? Most of us are "Hobbyiest" and unable to provide any data other than our tanks and the results of our labors. I don't have any DATA but I can show you pictures of my tank "No rinse" and let you be the judge. The ONLY change I made was rinsing my food.

Here are a couple of shots of my tank "Algae Ridden"
IMG_4666.jpg

IMG_4667.jpg


And here is a similar shot (it's of the same back panel but from a different angle) and the ONLY change was rinsing food and heavy water changes to remove the algae FUEL. Once it was under control I went back to once a week water changes. You'll notice that the majority of that glass panel is now covered by Coalline Algae.
IMG_0051.jpg


  • What do you think they use to prolong shelf life?
  • Why does "preserved food" last so long in the freezer when un-preserved food has less than 6 months life IN the freezer?
  • Phosphates are nothing more than "Rocket Fuel" for algae. I'm sure you can google that aspect and come to that conclusion on your on.

But alas part of the beauty of this hobby is it's YOUR hobby. You do it however works best for you and in the end of the day if you're still enjoying it and everything is thriving that's really all that matters.

Rinse or not... it's up to you.
 
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