Almost bought a crocea today

[Mark S]

Hey Greenstar. Let see your tank. If your going to talk the talk......better walk the walk.

[Greenstar]

O tay. Soon as I get a camera. In the mean time GTFO and STFU.

 

 

Still no one has been able to explain this whole removing the clam thing as anything more than retarded......

 

[davidr2340]

O tay. Soon as I get a camera. In the mean time GTFO and STFU.

 

 

Still no one has been able to explain this whole removing the clam thing as anything more than retarded......

 

Agreed. Why add all that stress to the clam?

[Greenstar]

I am also curious on the rationale behind it, unfortunately everyone who was a proponent for it has vanished.

[masterbuilder]

Ok Green... I said earlier that I don’t really see any reason to feed a clam (other than tiny ones, even then I am not sure). I never said I was a proponent.

 

But... the reason is...so you can feed it without adding additional or unwanted nutrients to your tank. Put the clam in a bowl while it’s underwater, remove the bowl and add whatever you want to feed to the bowl. When the clam has filtered out the food its going to eat, you can tell when it’s not actively feeding...reverse the process. Of course, the clam has to be attached to a small rock. The guys at clamsdirect.com used to do this on a slightly larger scale. They would dose a small tank with food and move several clams to the feeding tank (in a bowl/tub). They say now that it was not worth the labor and the clams seem to do just as well without any help. Is it stupid or retarded as you said...I don’t think it is....I just don’t fully agree that it’s helpful. Again, that doesn’t make it stupid or retarded..... just because you or I don’t agree with it.

 

I understand the idea behind the vodka/sugar thing too, same thing with Vitamin C....don’t think that it’s much help, maybe just the opposite. I can also disagree with these...without calling the person that does it, stupid/retarded.

 

p.s. Many of the clams we keep are out of the water at low tide. They seem to survive. Still I would not take my clam out of the water without a damn good reason.

[Greenstar]

I can also disagree with these...without calling the person that does it, stupid/retarded.

 

Hahahaha (or Ho Ho Ho) ...another "know nothing" from the Lounge. I would explain that common method of feeding but Greenstar wouldnt understand.

 

WOW, all that can be said for that reply.

 

Still unable to see the connection between a clam farmer who is dealing with several thousand clams and someone who is dealing with a single in a highly controlled environment. Furthermore I feel that this practice can not be justified for the home aquarium, because people having problems with excessive nutrient in their tank probably already have a problem, not related to feeding a clam (as I have previously mentioned). This sounds like a band-aid fix for a real issue that should probably be addressed before a person considers a clam. Therefore it is stupid for anyone to advice someone as the first and only method of feeding a clam is to remove it from the tank for feeding. Follow?

 

p.s. Many of the clams we keep are out of the water at low tide. They seem to survive. Still I would not take my clam out of the water without a damn good reason.

 

 

And many acroporas are exposed to 105+ degree temps while out of water. Your point?

[lakshwadeep]

xbwolfx, I would think methanol would be toxic even in small levels, but then again you wounldn't find me drinking nor dosing vodka anyhow. If methanol is a viable source, GOOD, it's $3-4 a gallon, a touch cheaper than whiskey.

 

Great avatar btw.

 

That was one counterargument against MrA in that thread.

[masterbuilder]

Therefore it is stupid for anyone to advice someone as the first and only method of feeding a clam is to remove it from the tank for feeding. Follow?

 

I can follow Green.... Where in this thread did anyone say that this was the first and only method of feeding. I think the OP just thought it might be ONE way to feed. You seem take everything to the extreme and add stuff that no one said. Anyway...you win.

 

p.s. hey, where is that pic you promised another poster of your tank?

[redfishsc]

That was one counterargument against MrA in that thread.

 

The argument against it that will stop me from even considering it is the fact that it is odorless, colorless, and generally comes in a clear gallon jug just like water.

 

It looks, and smells, for all the world to be clear water. Can you imagine the carnage of dumping a gallon of methanol over in a a tank of any size, thinking it was top-off? While most of us are intelligent enough to take measures to avoid it, it still would be a threat if someone else in the house, or a tank-tender while you are out of town, would do.

[Greenstar]

Or a little kid just happens onto it.

[aaron1987]

http://www.melevsreef.com/pics/0504/baby_maxima.html

 

Here is the only reason and way I would ever bother feeding a clam phyto.

 

Now that said, the notion that anyone who removes something to feed it lacks good husbandry skills or has bigger problems with their tank and should just be able to dump mass quantities of food into their display tank is asinine. When I first add any of my tubastrea, every single one of them gets removed daily and placed in a container for feeding a deluge of cyclopeeze and mysis until I'm content that they're eating readily. I don't do this in my tank because to flood the tank with enough to trigger a feeding response in the case of neglected tubastrea would crash my tank in a heartbeat. The reason it would crash it is not because my tank is in poor shape but because putting enough cyclopeeze in the water to tint it red is a ton of food. If I were trying to keep a small (<3") clam, I'd use a similar method to melev, but only because handling and readjusting a clam daily would probably not be tolerated well.

 

Bottom line: some things we keep require temporary care methods that are not practical or feasible in a display tank.

[Izzue]

Be sure to BURP your clams

 

They dont like air bubbles trapped in them.

 

Izzue

[StevieT]

Clam stuck to rock via foot

 

why would you remove just to feed? Should I remove my fish to feed them as well?

[aaron1987]

Clam stuck to rock via foot

 

why would you remove just to feed? Should I remove my fish to feed them as well?

 

Because the concentration of food required to illicit a feeding response from a starved tubastrea on a large scale would nuke my water quality. The notion of removing fish to feed is a red herring argument. But, for the hell of it: if I was attempting to keep a sessile and easily removable fish that consumed mass quantities of food which would otherwise negatively impact my water quality, yes. If I was keeping a tank full of that one particular species, I would happily feed it in the display tank, but since the other inhabitants of the tank likely do not share the specialized feeding requirement and would be negatively affected by me administering it, it makes the most logical sense to remove the individual.

[Izzue]

Folks...read-up

 

This is a very common way of feeding the crap out of something without

overfeeding your whole tank...

Easy way to feed clams...gorgs...and Suncorals without filling the tank full

of food.

Actually works well with Gorgs with addition of putting them in direct sunlight

to help the feeding...just dont bake them

 

Izzue

[StevieT]

Because the concentration of food required to illicit a feeding response from a starved tubastrea on a large scale would nuke my water quality. The notion of removing fish to feed is a red herring argument. But, for the hell of it: if I was attempting to keep a sessile and easily removable fish that consumed mass quantities of food which would otherwise negatively impact my water quality, yes. If I was keeping a tank full of that one particular species, I would happily feed it in the display tank, but since the other inhabitants of the tank likely do not share the specialized feeding requirement and would be negatively affected by me administering it, it makes the most logical sense to remove the individual.

 

 

except for the fact that the clam can make it's own food from light and is attached to the rock via it's foot, making removal stressful and hard to do. If you have the clam in the sand this is easier, but most clams do best on a piece of rock since sand can irritate it's underside.

 

Why not just feed in moderation and let the tank handle the rest.

[xbwolfx]

If I was keeping a tank full of that one particular species, I would happily feed it in the display tank, but since the other inhabitants of the tank likely do not share the specialized feeding requirement and would be negatively affected by me administering it, it makes the most logical sense to remove the individual.

actually, it makes the most logical sense to not purchase that individual, imo.

[BKtomodachi]

If you really feel like taking your clam out every day to feed, all the more power to you. I would never consider that, though. Huge PITA.

[masterbuilder]

Why not just feed in moderation and let the tank handle the rest.

 

That’s the best way.

 

BTW...people that do the bowl thing...have their clam attached to a small piece of flat rock, so its easily picked up by the rock. I am in agreement with you StevieT, but I can understand the bowl thing might work for some people. Like everything in reefin, what works for some may not work for others. Good example, one of the nicest reefs I have EVER seen uses the Vodka thing, it’s absolutely incredible. Its hard to argue with what he does. If I did that, I am sure it would be an instant end to my reef.

[redfishsc]

If you really feel like taking your clam out every day to feed, all the more power to you. I would never consider that, though. Huge PITA.

 

 

PITA = the reason I didn't buy the clam. I think it was big enough not to feed, but it was close. I am out of town often enough (with grad work and other obligations piling up) that having to feed a clam a time or two per week was just a headache waiting to happen.

[masterbuilder]

Hey Red,

 

With all the trash talk (I am guilty too), maybe you missed it. If its close to 3", no need to feed. Seems you have everything it needs...good light. I say go for it. I love clams.

 

If it makes you feel better, just add a 1/2 dose of DT's every week or 10 days. For a less expensive food, I saw on another forum that Fauna Marin Ultra Clam was working well for others. I have not used it myself.

[aaron1987]

except for the fact that the clam can make it's own food from light and is attached to the rock via it's foot, making removal stressful and hard to do. If you have the clam in the sand this is easier, but most clams do best on a piece of rock since sand can irritate it's underside.

 

Why not just feed in moderation and let the tank handle the rest.

 

I keep a 4" Crocea and don't remove it, nor do I feed it. I referenced Melev's small (< 3") clam feeding contraption as the way I would ever "remove" a clam for feeding (since clams of that size are not able to subsist solely through adequate lighting). I agree with you that removing a larger clam for the sake of feeding it would be an exercise in futility and more stress for the clam than it was worth. However, I was balking at the notion that removing anything from the tank to feed it was somehow a bad idea and is a poor reflection on that person's husbandry practices. It's practiced all the time for non-photosynthetic corals, among other things.

[aaron1987]

actually, it makes the most logical sense to not purchase that individual, imo.

 

Because tubastrea I find in stores are generally in poor shape from lack of feeding and it requires special effort for a week or two on my part to get them feeding regularly and readily it makes the most logical sense not to buy them?

[xbwolfx]

Because tubastrea I find in stores are generally in poor shape from lack of feeding and it requires special effort for a week or two on my part to get them feeding regularly and readily it makes the most logical sense not to buy them?

Apparently you assumed I was a mind reader. Well, I'm not.

 

There is a difference between temporarily feeding a specimen that is in poor shape out of the tank for rehabilitative purposes and removing it every time you want to feed it for the duration of its life (or a substantial period of time).

 

If keeping a clam means that we have to remove it from the water on a regular basis to feed it, then we, as hobbyists, should not be keeping clams in our tanks.

[aaron1987]

Apparently you assumed I was a mind reader. Well, I'm not.

 

There is a difference between temporarily feeding a specimen that is in poor shape out of the tank for rehabilitative purposes and removing it every time you want to feed it for the duration of its life (or a substantial period of time).

 

If keeping a clam means that we have to remove it from the water on a regular basis to feed it, then we, as hobbyists, should not be keeping clams in our tanks.

 

I assumed you had read the rest of the thread where I talked about it being for tubastrea. Regardless, removing it from the tank doesn't necessarily mean disturbing the clam or removing it from the water; take a look at the link I posted earlier in the thread to Melev's page on keeping small clams.