Feeding my clean up crew

[Iloveclownfish]

Hi everyone. I’m wondering how often and how much I should feed my clean up crew- I don’t want to starve them since my tank has little algae besides some brown algae on the glass. How much, how often, and what should I feed my clean up crew. I don’t want to raise nitrates by feeding so much so I’m trying to figure out how much everyone feeds.

[Sturgi_0225]

I don’t feed mine, just expect them to eat anything leftover from feeding fish

[Iloveclownfish]

52 minutes ago, Sturgi_0225 said:

I don’t feed mine, just expect them to eat anything leftover from feeding fish

Yes I got one of those hello reef kits if you know what I’m talking about. It tells you to feed the Cuc until you get fish to feed which I will be tomorrow but I want to ensure they get enough food since algae is not very much in my tank so I’m just looking for advice . Lots say no feeding but I don’t wanna starve 

[Airedale.Reef]

Alright! Those hello reef kits look fun! Excited to see your progress....

 

I do not target feed or add extra food in the tank for my clean up crew. As Sturgi mentioned, I just expect them to eat whatever is leftover from fish feedings or detritus/algae. If you have any hermit crabs, I do not see any harm in dropping a pellet or so just to watch them eat to ease your mind. If only snails, I wouldn't worry. 

[Iloveclownfish]

1 hour ago, AiredaleReef said:

Alright! Those hello reef kits look fun! Excited to see your progress....

 

I do not target feed or add extra food in the tank for my clean up crew. As Sturgi mentioned, I just expect them to eat whatever is leftover from fish feedings or detritus/algae. If you have any hermit crabs, I do not see any harm in dropping a pellet or so just to watch them eat to ease your mind. If only snails, I wouldn't worry. 

I have no hermits yet but I would like to get a couple in the future they didn’t cost very much either. Lots of people keep telling me to return the animals but I was just following the advice from the kit. I have a little freshwater experience but no salt, this is my first time. The directions tell you to feed your cuc but I’m not trying to over feed and cause nitrate or phos. Issues. I’m trying to gauge how much I should feed if any because of the lack of algae right now . Does tell you what to feed but not how much or how often. I’ve been watching brs videos to help me along the way very useful I will say along with the videos to go with the tank! I will definitely share along the way if you’d like 

[ajmckay]

It totally depends on your tank.  I have a 5g that's too small for fish really so I just have misc invertebrates in there.  I just toss in some flake food once per day and they go nuts. 

 

Since your tank is very new just be careful how much you add.  And I would just continue to follow the instructions of the kit, which looks pretty legit honestly.  Generally it's best to follow one set of directions rather than trying to merge together multiple different sets of directions.  As it happens there are multiple ways to accomplish this which is nice, but if you're new its easy to get persuaded to do stuff.  Ask questions, but don't go changing your plans completely.

 

[Iloveclownfish]

26 minutes ago, ajmckay said:

It totally depends on your tank.  I have a 5g that's too small for fish really so I just have misc invertebrates in there.  I just toss in some flake food once per day and they go nuts. 

 

Since your tank is very new just be careful how much you add.  And I would just continue to follow the instructions of the kit, which looks pretty legit honestly.  Generally it's best to follow one set of directions rather than trying to merge together multiple different sets of directions.  As it happens there are multiple ways to accomplish this which is nice, but if you're new its easy to get persuaded to do stuff.  Ask questions, but don't go changing your plans completely.

 

Definitely, the kit mentions to not follow more then one guide which I’m trying to do I just don’t want to cause an issue if I’m feeding too much or feeding to little. it’s a fifteen gallon tank  

[Crawford_T]

If you’re getting fish tomorrow, no point in feeding the cuc. Just get the fish and feed as normal. (My opinion). 

[Iloveclownfish]

14 minutes ago, Crawford_T said:

If you’re getting fish tomorrow, no point in feeding the cuc. Just get the fish and feed as normal. (My opinion). 

Well that was yesterday I got the clownfish today. What are some signs to look for if they are hungry though just in case ?

[Crawford_T]

The clean up crew? I mean I don’t know if any signs a snail is hungry. I’m sure they will be fine for a few days. Generally you’d want to wait until there is a food source, aka algae growth. Just fed fish as normal

[Iloveclownfish]

41 minutes ago, Crawford_T said:

The clean up crew? I mean I don’t know if any signs a snail is hungry. I’m sure they will be fine for a few days. Generally you’d want to wait until there is a food source, aka algae growth. Just fed fish as normal

Alright thanks, I appreciate all the help since I’m new to saltwater ! This community is very nice !!

[Crawford_T]

Just now, Iloveclownfish said:

Alright thanks, I appreciate all the help since I’m new to saltwater ! This community is very nice !!

Been a while since I’ve been into the hobby but I’m happy to offer help if I can! 

[Iloveclownfish]

28 minutes ago, Crawford_T said:

Been a while since I’ve been into the hobby but I’m happy to offer help if I can! 

Thank you. I just know some people can be not so kind to newbies but I’m trying to do the best for these animals that I can 🙂 

[Airedale.Reef]

3 hours ago, Iloveclownfish said:

Well that was yesterday I got the clownfish today. What are some signs to look for if they are hungry though just in case ?

I typically feed my clownfish a few pellets daily. It seems that you’re already cautious of over feeding to reduce water quality issues which is good. . I think the general rule is to feed as much as it will eat in 2-3 minutes. Given this, I wouldn’t additionally feed your cuc. They’ll find left over food/algae/detritus and will be fine.  
 

You may also want to invest in some testing kits if you haven’t already. Actually knowing these levels in your tank and what changes to make based on the results will greatly help you along the way. 

[Iloveclownfish]

32 minutes ago, AiredaleReef said:

I typically feed my clownfish a few pellets daily. It seems that you’re already cautious of over feeding to reduce water quality issues which is good. . I think the general rule is to feed as much as it will eat in 2-3 minutes. Given this, I wouldn’t additionally feed your cuc. They’ll find left over food/algae/detritus and will be fine.  
 

You may also want to invest in some testing kits if you haven’t already. Actually knowing these parameters in your tank and what changed to make based on the results will greatly help you along the way. 

Yes. currently I have some api and I’m working on getting salifert since they’re better. I have a couple. Ultimately  I would like to get some of the Hanna tests since telling the difference between colors is hard. 🙂 

[Crawford_T]

Just now, Iloveclownfish said:

Yes. currently I have some api and I’m working on getting salifert since they’re better. I have a couple. Ultimately  I would like to get some of the Hanna tests since telling the difference between colors is hard. 🙂 

I too am looking to get a few of the Hannah checkers. 

[Iloveclownfish]

Just now, Crawford_T said:

I too am looking to get a few of the Hannah checkers. 

Yeah I hear that they’re good but they are a little pricey but at least you’ll only have to replace the reagents instead of the whole kit 

[Airedale.Reef]

I highly recommend Hannah Checkers! It was a game changer for me with my 8g and very much worth their hefty price tag. Getting an actual number vs comparing color charts provided me with much more concrete information to make better decisions regarding my parameters and husbandry. 

 

I started with Nitrate and Phosphate in the first few months and eventually purchased Magnesium and Calcium once the tank settled in. 

[Iloveclownfish]

15 minutes ago, AiredaleReef said:

I highly recommend Hannah Checkers! It was a game changer for me with my 8g and very much worth their hefty price tag. Getting an actual number vs comparing color charts provided me with much more concrete information to make better decisions regarding my parameters and husbandry. 

 

I started with Nitrate and Phosphate in the first few months and eventually purchased Magnesium and Calcium once the tank settled in. 

I will probably try to get those soon then because color matching is hard lol 

[KC2020]

Here's a fun fact. Fish do a very poor job of digesting food because they're grazers, constantly eating. So their excrement leaves plenty for your snails to eat. Feed your clown what he/she will eat in a minute or two, a couple of times a day. Your snails will be fine.

 

 

[Iloveclownfish]

10 hours ago, KC2020 said:

Here's a fun fact. Fish do a very poor job of digesting food because they're grazers, constantly eating. So their excrement leaves plenty for your snails to eat. Feed your clown what he/she will eat in a minute or two, a couple of times a day. Your snails will be fine.

 

 

Ok I will feed her today 🙂 

[mcarroll]

On 4/28/2024 at 2:09 PM, Iloveclownfish said:

I don’t want to starve them since my tank has little algae besides some brown algae on the glass.

Maybe you can tell us exactly what critters you have?  And how many?

 

In general...

 

Herbovores like snails (Turbo, Astrea, Trochus, etc) will eat that brown film, which is mostly diatoms, which is a natural part of their diet.

 

No other feeding necessary.

 

If you have scavengers (eg hermits, nassariua snails, etc) then as someone else mentioned, dropping in a food pellet wouldn't hurt since hermits are semi-likely to kill your snails for food if they are hungry.   IMO you shouldn't have scavengers until you start feeding the tank, which shouldn't happen until you have fish.

 

On 4/28/2024 at 11:08 PM, Iloveclownfish said:

I’ve been watching brs videos to help me along the way very useful I will say along with the videos to go with the tank!

Seems like videos mostly regurgitate what you'd find here on the forums, but you have to start somewhere, right???  

 

Mostly I wish they didn't take a 15 minute video to deliver 1 minute worth of information....such a waste of time!!

 

IMO spending that time reading on the forums AND READING SOME GOOD BOOKS would serve you better.