Over feeding fish

[Rob6311]

Ok so I know this May seem like a very stupid question but I've been wondering what happens if you over feed your fish? Because I remember as a kid my parents told me not to feed my fish too much because they never stop eating and they'll blow up if you feed them too much. And now that I think about it that sounds like an old wives tale but is there any truth behind that?

[jrozzi]

no. however you will get high nitrates and increased algae growth

[oscarinw]

No. The fish won't die from over-eating. Yu will kill the fish from all the decomposed food in your water and the subsequent ammonia buildup from it.

[ca1ore]

It is hard to overfeed a healthy population of fish. There was always the old rule-of-thumb to feed them as much as they will consume in 5 minutes ..... 5 MINUTES! I'd have to add half a pound of food to my tank for it to last that long. Typically I feed two cubes per feeding, and it lasts maybe 10 seconds .... maybe! Four feedings per day, on average. I think most inexperienced people actually chronically UNDERFFED THEIR FISH.

BUT, you have to have export mechanisms to handle the input (food) otherwise you are going to end up with sky high nitrate and phosphate levels and all the lovely side benefits that come along for the ride. So, if you are going to maintain a high fish load, and plan to feed them well, you must be doing regular water changes, use a big skimmer and employ a good-sized fuge and/or ATS.

[cloak]

Your nitrate reading is basically an indicator of whether or not your tank is struggling to keep up with the current bioload. Plain & simple IMO. This can be due to overstocking, overfeeding, etc. Finding a balance is key. GL.

[mbauma]

What would cause higher nitrates(40) in a newer tank with only 1 small fish, 2 cleaner shrimp and a CUC from TBS?

I have only been feeding 1/2 cube of mysis a day and have an eshopps S200 skimmer rated for 150 to 200 gallon tanks.

[cloak]

What kind of water are you using, RO/DI, or something else? Are you sure EVERYTHING your feeding is being consumed? Do you clean any sort of mechanical filtration you might be using on a regular basis? How deep is your sand bed? Are you cleaning this on a regular basis as well? There are a lot of variables...

Also, maybe your test kit is just on the fritz. (old) This has been known to happen before. A second opinion is always nice. GL.

[mbauma]

Yes RO/DI using a 4 stage BRS model.

Pretty much, if the fish doesn't get, the skunk shrimp and stars get the rest.

Sand is about 3" deep on average. Nothing to clean, no algae on the glass

I picked up an API test kit too and it was about the same as my Red Sea.

[jrozzi]

1/2 a cube of Mysis a day is way too much in my opinion I do about an 1/8-1/4 of one every two days in my 30g

[ca1ore]

Originally Posted by jrozzi

1/2 a cube of Mysis a day is way too much in my opinion I do about an 1/8-1/4 of one every two days in my 30g

Means nothing in the absence of context. I have 40 fish in my 265, and I feed them 6 cube-equivalents per day. But I have nutrient export mechanisms on the tank to handle this. If I fed them 1/4 cube per day I would very quickly have a lot less than 40 fish. As long as input/export are balanced, you are not feeding too much.

BTW, there is a generally misunderstood point about the skimmer: it does not reduce nitrates, at least not in any significant way. It removes the organics that could become nitrates. A subtle, but important, distinction.

[jrozzi]

Originally Posted by ca1ore

Means nothing in the absence of context. I have 40 fish in my 265, and I feed them 6 cube-equivalents per day. But I have nutrient export mechanisms on the tank to handle this. If I fed them 1/4 cube per day I would very quickly have a lot less than 40 fish. As long as input/export are balanced, you are not feeding too much.

BTW, there is a generally misunderstood point about the skimmer: it does not reduce nitrates, at least not in any significant way. It removes the organics that could become nitrates. A subtle, but important, distinction.

the person that stated they feed half a cube also stated they had 1 fish....is that the context you are referring to?

[ca1ore]

Yes. If that one 'small' fish is a 1" chalk basslet then 1/2 cube per day is probably too much. If it's a 2" anthias, it's not enough. Context!