Going out of town - Help Needed?

[TJDaddio]

Hi,

I have a pretty young tank, only about a month old and have crabs, snails, 2 bluefin chromis, and 1 ocellaris crownfish. Most of that was added in the last week. In one month, my boyfriend and I (we live together) are going out of town for 3 nights, then returning for 1/2 day, then leaving again for 4 nights.(Going from Delray Beach, FL to Tampa, FL, then coming back home to check on tank and re-pack, then heading to the FL Keys for 4 nights).

I'm very hesitant to leave my new baby. :( I have a timer for my lights, but what is the suggested time on/ time off ratio? I have a 30" T5 HO Quad Lamp Fixture with 2 LED Moonlights and it has two fans - it gets hot though!

Also, what is the best way to do this - feed them the minute before I leave, and leave a food block for them? Or try to have someone come take care of my tank while I'm gone? The longest we will be gone is 4 nights, but I can't go 4 minutes without peering into it and checking on everything.

Any advice for going out of town/ leaving a tank for a few days? Any info is appreciated :)

[CoralReeferGal]

We have an automatic feeder for the fish... you set a timer, and it rolls around and dispenses just the right amount of food! :)
http://www.thatpetplace.com/aquachef-automatic-fish-feeder

For lighting, we do 8 hours on and 16 hours off.

[TJDaddio]

Nice, thanks! Also, is it 8 hours at once or do you split it up?

[CoralReeferGal]

We do 8 hours at once. It's usually on from 2pm until 10pm.

[Neptunes World]

I would not even worry about light if you have no corals. Just put an incandescent light on a timer for 8 hours and save a few $$

[drktemplar]

I would not even worry about light if you have no corals. Just put an incandescent light on a timer for 8 hours and save a few $$

+1 i wouldnt waste the electricity :thumbsup:

[CoralReeferGal]

I would not even worry about light if you have no corals. Just put an incandescent light on a timer for 8 hours and save a few $$

+2 agreed. Didn't even think about what you've got in there lol :) def save the electricity if you can.

[yongpanda]

As people have already said, lighting is really unnecessary without corals. As for feeding, I'm sure they will survive for at least 4 days. I've only fed my clownfish once a week (but then again, I had a pretty mature system with great liverock and lots of pods).

I'd say leave it alone and feed it before you leave. I'd rather not feed it while I'm gone than depend on an automatic feeder that may overfeed and just cause nitrates and phosphates to rise.

[CoralReeferGal]

^^ good point, but in the 6 years the auto feeder had been on our tank, its always been accurate. It's better to spend a few extra bucks on a good quality one than to spring for a cheapy. Ours you can set by day of the week, time of day, etc and adjust how much food to how many fish are in there. JME though...

[reeflovin]

Feeding the fish and setting the lighting are the least of your concerns. I've gone 13 days without feeding my fish and they all lived (my automatic feeder jammed and did not dispense any food).

The big issue is makeup water. A tank can evaporate a lot in 4 days. Do you have an automatic doser?

[yongpanda]

^ reeflovin's absolutely right. Of all concerns, Auto top off is a big deal when away. Make sure you have some sort of system whether it be a friend coming by to top off your evaporated water, ato setup (i.e. jbj, tunze, etc), or by dripping water using dosing tube and a big water bottle placed higher than your tank.

[TJDaddio]

I also have 2 bluefin chromis that I had during the end of my cycle. so 3 fish

[TJDaddio]

And a friend of mine just gave me a small piece of live rock with star polys and 2 red mushrooms.

[Neptunes World]

Feeding the fish and setting the lighting are the least of your concerns. I've gone 13 days without feeding my fish and they all lived (my automatic feeder jammed and did not dispense any food).

The big issue is makeup water. A tank can evaporate a lot in 4 days. Do you have an automatic doser?


Oooh, I thought that was already accounted for seeing as one would have to top water off every day, but, one never knows I guess.

I cant find a blue fin chromis on google :(

[TJDaddio]

http://www.google.com/search?q=blue+fin+chromis&hl=en&prmd=imvnsfd&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=RpIBUNBFhJzxBK-n7I4I&ved=0CGEQsAQ&biw=1016&bih=563

It is the first two pictures when you search on google for them... they have yellow stripe on head and blue fins.

[Neptunes World]

Oh, odd, I thought they would be yellow heads or something. Okay, cool, thanks.