How much should I be feeding a 2.5 gallon / 10 litre pico reef?

[ackshee]

Hi all.

I've got a 2.5 gallon aquarium that seems to be doing fairly well, but I'm a bit unsure of how much I should be feeding my livestock. Currently, I've been feeding every other day = 3-4 times per week. I see many people posting that they feed their aquariums 3-4 times per day! How do I know what's enough?

I am feeding a pre-packaged frozen blend of mysis, shellfish, shrimp, etc., and whenever I feed I am giving my fish a chunk about the size of a pea. My masked goby is nice and chubby. He was much skinnier when I first got him, so I am certain he is getting enough to eat. But I'm not sure about my other livestock that are more scavengers/foragers. My nitrates are consistently zero, so I think I could feed more if I wanted to.

I have:

1. One masked goby (Coryphopterus personatus)
2. Two blue-legged hermit crabs (Clibanarius tricolor)
3. Two Mexican Cerithium snails
4. One Astraea snail
5. Two sexy shrimp (T. amboinensis) which have disappeared (possibly died? no corpses found)

Any advice is much appreciated

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

The reason people feed so much is because they have fish that need multiple daily feedings. Even then, it's not 100% necessary to feed multiple times a day. You're feeding the right amount if your fish is fat. A fat fish is a healthy fish. I feed my nano every 3-4 days, and things do fine.

 

[AC1211]

As long as your fish looks good then odds are the rest of the livestock is reasonably fine.
I'd be concerned about 2 hermits and 3 snails in a 2.5 gallon. You might lose a snail at some point. Otherwise I wouldn't worry too much

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Your system is very different than most of ours. There is not enough space for filtration equipment on such a tank, so if you feed too often you will foul the water.

 

[ackshee]

As long as your fish looks good then odds are the rest of the livestock is reasonably fine.
I'd be concerned about 2 hermits and 3 snails in a 2.5 gallon. You might lose a snail at some point. Otherwise I wouldn't worry too much

Would you be concerned about losing a snail due to predation from the crabs?

 

[Solo McReefer]

Picos are 'expert only' for long term success

Recommend you get a bigger tank, and run that successfully for a year before trying a pico system

Good luck

Are 40 Breeders still $40 at Petco?

 

[ackshee]

Picos are 'expert only' for long term success

Recommend you get a bigger tank, and run that successfully for a year before trying a pico system

Good luck

Are 40 Breeders still $40 at Petco?

Yeah, so I've heard. I think that's a pretty narrow-minded view, honestly. I don't really care, I'm gonna rock the pico.

I inherited this pico tank from someone who had already had it running and established for a couple of years. The livestock are thriving. I also don't really have room to upgrade to a larger tank. I have old empty aquariums in my garage, but my house is small, and I have roommates.

 

[Polymate3D]

Picos are 'expert only' for long term success

Recommend you get a bigger tank, and run that successfully for a year before trying a pico system

Good luck

Are 40 Breeders still $40 at Petco?

This aspect of marine fishkeeping / reef is what frustrates me. It is true that bigger tanks will be more stable, but I feel equally that the Pico approach has practically no equipment made to match there needs.

Most Pico's still are open tops, which makes no sense as the salinity swings will be high. People putting AI primes over a 3G to use a tiny fraction of it.

It is why I am designing my own control board, heater, cooler(TEC) and pump for pico's. If anyone has any additions that would be helpful, please shout them out so I can look into them!


As to the question, a goby should be fine with the every other day approach I feel, but keep an eye on there tummy and how they are acting.

- Paul

 

[ackshee]

This aspect of marine fishkeeping / reef is what frustrates me. It is true that bigger tanks will be more stable, but I feel equally that the Pico approach has practically no equipment made to match there needs.

Most Pico's still are open tops, which makes no sense as the salinity swings will be high. People putting AI primes over a 3G to use a tiny fraction of it.

It is why I am designing my own control board, heater, cooler(TEC) and pump for pico's. If anyone has any additions that would be helpful, please shout them out so I can look into them!


As to the question, a goby should be fine with the every other day approach I feel, but keep an eye on there tummy and how they are acting.

- Paul

Yup, I've got a glass lid on my tank which greatly limits evaporation. I only have to top off 3 times a week.

To prevent temperature swings, I've got an InkBird controller hooked up to the heater, it works great.

 

[Townes_Van_Camp]

Would you be concerned about losing a snail due to predation from the crabs?

I would consider losing snails and hermits as a part of the game. The only crabs I have had that eat snails are large hermits. Every time it's been because they wanted the shell. Otherwise they scavenge and leave snails alone. Others may disagree. This is only my experience. I would add hermits, just make sure you keep wheels so they can upgrade their mobile home without going on a killing spree.

 

[ackshee]

I would consider losing snails and hermits as a part of the game. The only crabs I have had that eat snails are large hermits. Every time it's been because they wanted the shell. Otherwise they scavenge and leave snails alone. Others may disagree. This is only my experience. I would add hermits, just make sure you keep wheels so they can upgrade their mobile home without going on a killing spree.

That makes sense. I've already got about 6 or 7 empty shells of various sizes scattered around the tank, in hopes that the hermit crabs will choose those instead of hunting snails.