Newbie Fish food question

[fishymama]

So Sunday night we added our first set of fish, 2 Ocellaris Clowns and one skunk cleaner shrimp. RIght now we are using some food that was given to use with the tank. It is called New Life Specturm Marine Fish Formula. What food do you recomend. They do seem to eat it, but I wasn't sure. Also, what else do they eat? The book I bought really doesn't go into details on what to feed them. Can I place fresh letuce in there or something to that effect where they can "graze" all day.
Thanks
Cassie

 

[tizzo]

Here's my food choice. As far as the lettuce, they actually sell seaweed that folds onto a clip and stays in your tank all day. You are supposed to change it out daily of course. Lettuce has pesticides and such, not sure I'd use that. Here's the pic of the food. It's kept in the frozen part of the LFS's...
I just dip the cube, some falls off, dip again and again then whatever's left, I put in the freezer. PUtting in an entire cube is WAY to much!

 

[darthtang aw]

Tizzo's is the easiest and simplest method. For the life of me I can't think of what I use to sustain my diet for the fish, but I mix together a lot of things....
Basically you want to make sure they get a good mix of veg/meat in their diet. Flakes are worthless in my opinion. Half the fish I have kept refuse to go to the top of the take and get this food...It doesn't fall to the bottom it just floats till it because soggy and breaks down. It will also create a film on top of your tank over time I have learned...
Pick up dried seaweed and hang it from a clip as suggestion (all though the clowns may not take to this you will have to watch to see if gets eaten and stop if the don't) and pick up a frozen pack of just about any Marine labeled food. Some are better than others, but I have learned there isn't much of a difference between these marine mixed frozen foods.

 

[fishymama]

Thank you. I might even have some seaweed we were given. I will look tomorrow for the food.
Cassie

 

[lesleybird]

Hi, A lot of fish stores stock live brine shrimp. You can put some in the tank with a net but don't dump them all in the tank at once as the filter will suck them up. Usually my live brine will live a few days in a bowl of salt water. Don't feed them only this, only one of many things they like to eat. Lesley

 

[reefkprz]

New Life Specturm Marine Fish Formula is a great food.
some other good foods are:
ocean nutrition: formula one, formula two, prime reef.
omega one: marine pellets with garlic
any new life spectrum formula depending on needs.
home made is the best because you can completly controll the ingredients.
san fransisco bay frozen foods are good
so are sallys frozen foods
Brine shrimp is a waste of money. after 12-24 hours they are nutritionally void. (kind of like eating air) newborn brine are good but the time limit is so short that what your buying live is probably going to be too old.

 

[fishymama]

Originally Posted by reefkprZ
Brine shrimp is a waste of money. after 12-24 hours they are nutritionally void. (kind of like eating air) newborn brine are good but the time limit is so short that what your buying live is probably going to be too old.
Even the frozen Brine?

 

[fuax]

Spectrum is an amazing food it is all my fish will eat. I use the small sinking pellet and its a frenzy at feeding time.
I used to feed romaine lettuce all the time and I still recommend if you have a problem getting a fish to eat but the seaweed sheets are a much better food. In my experience I beleive the fish have a little bit of a hard time digesting the lettuce.
There are a lot of frozen foods out there you can try, not every fish will eat them all. IMO get a few small packages of different kinds if you want to feed frozen and see what they will eat and what they turn their fins up to.
Just so you know what I am feeding I have:
Asfur angel
yellow tang
sohal tang
naso tang
and bunch of crabs and shrimp

 

[earlybird]

Originally Posted by Fuax

I used to feed romaine lettuce all the time and I still recommend if you have a problem getting a fish to eat but the seaweed sheets are a much better food. In my experience I beleive the fish have a little bit of a hard time digesting the lettuce.
Did you try blanching it first?

 

[fuax]

Yup I sure have but I think its just cause my yellow tang is a pig and may be over stuffing himself. I still feed lettuce just not near as much as I used to. IMO the sheets are just better for them.

 

[flcandy]

Originally Posted by reefkprZ
New Life Specturm Marine Fish Formula is a great food.
some other good foods are:
ocean nutrition: formula one, formula two, prime reef.
omega one: marine pellets with garlic
any new life spectrum formula depending on needs.
home made is the best because you can completly controll the ingredients.
san fransisco bay frozen foods are good
so are sallys frozen foods
Brine shrimp is a waste of money. after 12-24 hours they are nutritionally void. (kind of like eating air) newborn brine are good but the time limit is so short that what your buying live is probably going to be too old.
I feed the small pellet as well and it is great. The fish, shrimp and crabs all love it

. I try to give them some dried brine shrimp as a snack as well but not often as my wrasse will not eat the pellet if he thinks there is a chance of me feeding the brine as well. Have fun! :happyfish

 

[lion_crazz]

I rotate feeding my fish Formula A, B, Reef Formula, and Algae Formula, as well as Julian Sprung's Sea Veggies. In just using these four frozen formulas, my fish are getting krill, clam, mysis, scallop, fish, fish roe, spirulina, marine algae, lettuce, seaweed, mussel, crab, lobster, squidd, plankton, zooplankton, kelp. I also put fresh pieces of banana into my tank (originally for my batfish), but I found out that my other fish love it as well. They get live brine as a treat every so often, as well.

 

[earlybird]

Originally Posted by lion_crazz
I rotate feeding my fish Formula A, B, Reef Formula, and Algae Formula, as well as Julian Sprung's Sea Veggies. In just using these four frozen formulas, my fish are getting krill, clam, mysis, scallop, fish, fish roe, spirulina, marine algae, lettuce, seaweed, mussel, crab, lobster, squidd, plankton, zooplankton, kelp. I also put fresh pieces of banana into my tank (originally for my batfish), but I found out that my other fish love it as well. They get live brine as a treat every so often, as well.
Is there much of a phosphate issue with the frozen foods you mentioned?

 

[reefkprz]

Originally Posted by FishyMama
Even the frozen Brine?
especially frozen brine as the producers dont care about the age so most likley the frozen is only as good as the added vitamins, unless the package says "frozen baby brine shrimp"