New Member

Posts: 5
From:CT
Registered: Dec 2003

posted 12-15-2003 09:12 PM         

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2 questions: First, I have a brown algae problem; I clean it off the walls of the tank when I change the water, but should I do something more? Second, I live in a dorm and the dorms are closed for 2.5 weeks; the longest feeder blocks I have seen are 2 weeks. I don't want to get the expensive automatic feeders. Are there other things I can do? Should I just use the 2 week feeder and pray?

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New Member

Posts: 4
From:calgary
Registered: Dec 2003

posted 12-15-2003 11:20 PM         

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I just stared this aquarium hobby myself, and i had that same problem. At first i was concerned with the brown algae becuase i was sure it was supposed to be green. Anyway, i tried to keep sunlight away from tank as much as i could becuase the sun devestated the tank. After one day the algae would rise up very quickly. So at first i put a towel infront of the tank so that no sunlight would enter, this worked great. I also bought some otto cats, which eat algae, and are smaller than the typical algae eaters and better looking. I particularly dont like the look of regular algae eaters. I have 5 otto cats in a 30 gallon tank and it is doing well. I hope this helps.

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Member

Posts: 266
From:Canada
Registered: Sep 2003

posted 12-16-2003 08:18 AM         

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AmesShaps,

We need to know a few things before we can really answer your question with much certainty. What size tank/filter do you have? What fish and how many are in it? Do you have live plants? How long are the lights on/day (What kind of lighting - flourescent, incandescent etc.?) I was gone for a week recently and dropped a 2 week feeder in each tank. When I got back, both feeders were gone - there was just a sliver of one left in my 10 gallon tetra tank.

Bala has a good point about removing it from the sun. If there is one side in particular that gets a lot of sun, I might suggest aquarium backing (the paper that goes across the back with scenes of ocean backgrounds etc.) It might be more aesthetically pleassing than a towel.

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Member

Posts: 31
From:Newport, RI, USA
Registered: Nov 2003

posted 12-16-2003 02:33 PM         

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Hi! I would say that the brown algae is probably from to much light exposure, or maybe you should get an algae eater fish. I think that you should just put the 2 week feeder block in and they will be alright. I have three days without feeding my fish and they were fine. If a fish misses a few meals it should be fine. I read a post that someone who owned a betta and could not get it to eat for 11 days!

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Posts: 806
From:
Registered: Jan 2003

posted 12-16-2003 09:47 PM         

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For years I wondered how the manufacturer of the weekend and 2 week feeders knew how many fish and what size tank I had. One day I finally asked the question and found out that they design the feeders for the correct amount of fish in a ten gallon tank (which used to be the common size tank). The weekend feeders and such are designed to have very little breakdown in a tank. While I would never recommend weekend feeders for a Marine tank where the bacterial filter is much more critical, the use of them in a freshwater tank can be done without having any great difficulty with the bacterial filter. If you're going to be gone 2.5 weeks put in a 2 week feeder and a weekend feeder. If your fish are voracious eaters you may want to put in 2 two week feeders. Just make sure to check your water parameters and do a water change when you get back.

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Member

Posts: 65
From:canada
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 01-18-2004 06:49 AM         

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first for the algae buy a pleco and it will eat it and for the second u could get one of those block feeders that go for 2 weeks and throw in sum of the three day ones it should work good luck

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