Automatic Fish Feeder

[redgator]

I'm looking for an automatic fish feeder when I go out of town. I'm thinking for using pellets in mine. I have a couple of questions. 1) Any way to make the pellets not float so they go into the overflow before it's eaten? 2) Any suggestions on any particular feeders?

I have a rimless tank and that should be noted.

Thanks.

[alb_56]

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4430+4460&pcatid=4460

The best.

[bnumair]

Eheim makes good reliable feeders. though all feeders are for dry food, nothing yet for frozen foods. so make sure your livestock is accepting dry food. best thing to do is to start mixing dry food with frozen and over time increase the dry quantity and reduce the frozen slowly converting the fish to eat dry foods.

[cloak]

Some people will use a feeder ring to contain the food from an automatic feeder. You don't have to use the cone with the little holes in it, just the ring itself. Eventually the flakes/pellets will become water logged and sink.

[davidfrances]

+1 on the Eheim automatic feeders

I use sinking pellets, plus either the CPR Smart feeder:

http://www.marinedepot.com/CPR_Smart_Feeder_Fish_Food_Clips_Feeding_Stations-CPR-CR10229-FIFDFECF-vi.html

or the Nutrafin feeding ring:

http://www.petsolutions.com/C/Fish-Food-Feeders/I/Nutrafin-Max-Feeding-Ring.aspx?CAWELAID=1630128130&CAGPSPN=pla&gclid=COjQ9eHJpL4CFScV7AodJTsAsw

[Pife]

Some people will use a feeder ring to contain the food from an automatic feeder. You don't have to use the cone with the little holes in it, just the ring itself. Eventually the flakes/pellets will become water logged and sink.

Feeding rings work great

+1

[davocean]

Someone on here made a DIY downtube box that used that eheim feeder that looked pretty cool, sinking pellets down so they would soak up and drop to bottom.
I think it was CA1ore, might search for that, but I'm sure you may get the idea.
I use NLS pellets that sink pretty fast.

[panalo]

eheim feeder works like a champ. was gone for a week with no problem. i feed formula one pellets.

[Frostslasher]

If you have an Apex controller, I'd highly recommend checking out their AFS Automatic Feeding System. I believe it's a relatively new product, but is very well reviewed, although a bit more costly than an Eheim feeder.

[thegrun]

I built this acrylic holder for my Eheim. The feeding tube sits below the waterline so the food floats until it is saturated and sinks. No more food down the overflow.
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)

[ca1ore]

I built this acrylic holder for my Eheim. The feeding tube sits below the waterline so the food floats until it is saturated and sinks. No more food down the overflow.
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)


+1

Built something like this a few years ago and it worked really well. Frankly, unless the OP is out of town a lot, I'd not bother with an auto feeder, particularly on a rimless tank. Even on my current rimmed tank, I don't like to clutter it with anything - just like the clean look. I recently bought the Apex feeder (rebadged lifeguard) .... thought about it ..... thought about it some more ..... and returned it! Did occur to me that I could have mounted it up in my hanging light hood, but then that would rather defeat the purpose of the feeding tube.

[FishN00b83]

I built this acrylic holder for my Eheim. The feeding tube sits below the waterline so the food floats until it is saturated and sinks. No more food down the overflow.
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)

That's a good idea! I use a piece of airline tubing with a little duel ended male adapter that floats under the apex feeder I recently got. I still need to kill the PHs though because the pellets will fly all over the place before they sink.

[HiImSean]

Some people will use a feeder ring to contain the food from an automatic feeder. You don't have to use the cone with the little holes in it, just the ring itself. Eventually the flakes/pellets will become water logged and sink.

This. I've used an Eheim feeder for the past 3years with no problems. I use a feeding ring to help it not get washed into my overflow right away. I use sinking pellets but the flakes usually get scattered from the fish feeding and a powerhead almost right underneath it.

[davocean]

I built this acrylic holder for my Eheim. The feeding tube sits below the waterline so the food floats until it is saturated and sinks. No more food down the overflow.
http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu262/greenirons/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg (http://s654.photobucket.com/user/greenirons/media/Aquarium%20Equipment/AutoFeeder002.jpg.html)

That's the one I was thinking about.

[EasyEd77]

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4430+4460&pcatid=4460

The best.

+1 I set this up when I went out of town 2 years ago and never stopped using it.

[SimonSKL]

I use a Rena auto feeder and a DIY ring using a PVC fitting. It works well.

http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv38/SimonSKL/125%20gallon%20build/F390CBBE-20AF-4001-A8EA-D96FADF2C695_zpsbidcbkpn.jpg (http://s667.photobucket.com/user/SimonSKL/media/125%20gallon%20build/F390CBBE-20AF-4001-A8EA-D96FADF2C695_zpsbidcbkpn.jpg.html)

http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv38/SimonSKL/125%20gallon%20build/AEC62BBD-3BEF-4308-8E60-6A9BAA80F071_zpslkdyrojk.jpg (http://s667.photobucket.com/user/SimonSKL/media/125%20gallon%20build/AEC62BBD-3BEF-4308-8E60-6A9BAA80F071_zpslkdyrojk.jpg.html)

[Scott07]

I recommend the 'Fishmate F14'.... It works especially well if you're trying to dispense small, precise amts. of food (pellet or flake). I highly recommend taking a quick look if you aren't familliar with it. As far as I have been able to determine it is the only feeder out there which works in this manner, ensuring the exact amount you want to dispense is what is actually dispensed. I purchased one of these a couple months back for a weekend trip out of town, fully intending to use it only occasionally for these sorts of trips... however I've since left it on my tank as a permanent fixture.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=4443

[masonicman]

I use a worm cone feeder ring with out the cones glued together and this feeder went I go on vacation. I works great.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=4443

[hkgar]

I use my Apex to turn off the return pump 5 minutes before feeding time and not turn on until 15 minutes after feeding time. The Apex also turns down the Vortechs for the same period.
I use the Eheim feeder, which I have had from before Apex introduced theirs.