Vacation for 10 days - will tank be ok?

[felipe]

My girlfriend and I will be going on vacation for about 10 days. We had a system with fish, live rock, and Xenia corals.
I was wondering if the tank would be ok for 10 days with no water changes/ feeding for those 10 days. Stocked with:
1 tomato clown
1 porkfish
1 hi-hat drum
2 damsels
1 sand perch
1 panther grouper
1 longnose puffer
And a coral banded, 1 choc. chip star, 1 serpent star, 1 sandsifter, 1 tiger cowrie, 1 mexican turbo and various hermits and crabs.
Thanks for the help!
Felipe

 

[drew2005]

Originally Posted by Felipe
My girlfriend and I will be going on vacation for about 10 days. We had a system with fish, live rock, and Xenia corals.
I was wondering if the tank would be ok for 10 days with no water changes/ feeding for those 10 days. Stocked with:
1 tomato clown
1 porkfish
1 hi-hat drum
2 damsels
1 sand perch
1 panther grouper
1 longnose puffer
And a coral banded, 1 choc. chip star, 1 serpent star, 1 sandsifter, 1 tiger cowrie, 1 mexican turbo and various hermits and crabs.
Thanks for the help!
Felipe
You'll be ok with water changes but i wouldnt wait 10 days to feed the live stock. Your going to need someone to top off the tank unless you have automatic topoff and enough water to last for 10 days. I would have someone feed at least 3 out of those 10 days.

 

[ophiura]

With those fish in particular you will need to have someone come in and ensure everything is OK and they are fed. You can premeasure out the amount of food you want fed...but IMO you will have some potential losses in that tank without feeding. Plus, you want top off...and want insurance that if the power goes out or something everything is still running.

 

[cain420]

thats awfully greedy of u.. go on vacation and dont take ur pets with you!

 

[felipe]

Thanks everyone, I got someone to come in on the 3rd and 7th days, as I will be back on the 10th day to take good care of them.
I am really hoping the tank will be just fine when I come back.

 

[ophiura]

What I do is leave buckets of RO water, and a container for them to use. I mark the water level (especially if you have a sump) so they just have to fill it to that level. I pull out and measure specific amounts of food that I want fed, with instructions on how to do so. That eliminates problems as well

 

[felipe]

One thing I am a bit worried about are power outages, although we haven't had one in a long, long time, so we should be ok.
I also have one more question: for those of you who have tanks that mix mildly aggressive fish and some peaceful ones, how do you ensure they all get fed when it is feeding time - avoiding one bully eating all of it?
Thanks much again!

 

[seahorse11]

Felipe, We are going on vacation for 2 1/2 weeks in May and I just bought an automatic fish feeder and a battery operated air pump. I doubt we will have a power failure in May but better be safe than sorry. The feeder I bought was a Daily Double II by Penn Plax and it feeds for up to 4 weeks. The air pump will automatically turn on when the power shuts down and will stop when the power returns. At least the fish will have oxygen during a power outage. I couldnt find a battery operated pump that a heater or the lights could plug into for a power outage. Does anyone know of one? I could only find the battery operated air pumps.

 

[felipe]

I have a miniature dachshund as well, so everytime I want to go on vacation it is a big ordeal, trying to find someone to care for him and now the fish tank.
I am a professional triathlete so I travel a lot, but usually they are quick trips over the weekend for a race and then fly back. I think that subconsciously I am trying to find ways not to leave my home!
I am still curious as how to ensure all fish get fed when some are a bit more aggressive than others.
Ciao,
Felipe
www.Felipe-Bastos.com

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by seahorse11
...I couldnt find a battery operated pump that a heater or the lights could plug into for a power outage. Does anyone know of one? I could only find the battery operated air pumps.
Perhaps buying a computer backup power supply and use that to plug in the minimal things you need. Just make sure the battery life is sufficient.
Just a thought here...
Denise M.

 

[fishy7]

Just a thought.....Vacation you go to relax and take it easy and not worry about things that bug us day in and day out.
How relxed are you going to be with the level of care you offer, while you are gone? :thinking:

 

[felipe]

I used the term vacation losely. I am going to be out of town on a recoinassance traiing camp previewing the race course of a race I am doing a month later in Spotsylvania, VA.
I rarely take vacations, and when I do, I usually stay home so I don't have to worry about things such as my dog, the fish tank being properly cared for while away.
I bet there is a lot of people like me out there
Ciao,
Felipe

 

[dragonzim]

Just out of curiosity, how does everyone handle vacation feeding when using frozen foods? I cant see myself using an auto feeded and having krill sitting in it getting rotten for a few days...

 

[ophiura]

Yeah, an auto feeder would definitely not work in this case. And these tanks really do need top off. No way no how would I leave a tank for a week or more without someone topping it off. You could really run in to some trouble, IMO.
I would say with the aggressive and smaller fish you have to feed a variety of size foods. Obviously the big guys are not going to worry about little pellets. So diversity is key. It can be a challenge, but it can be done.

 

[milomlo]

Have you guys ever used those block feeders? They are suppose to dissolve or something and release food. I am going on vacation in October for 7 days and am wondering about feedings as well.
I feed frozen foods mostly, but my fish will eat flake and formula 2 pellets. Don't know about my new starfish and my BTA though. Would they be ok for 7 days if I feed the morning I leave??

 

[ophiura]

These feeders are not sufficient for saltwater. I would not use them. If you feed flake or pellets, get an auto feeder.

 

[nrage]

Originally Posted by Merredeth
Perhaps buying a computer backup power supply and use that to plug in the minimal things you need. Just make sure the battery life is sufficient.
Just a thought here...
Denise M.

BIG WARNING ON THIS....some of the UPS's for computers like this have very sensitive breakers in them...I tried this when I first started my tank, and ended up taking it off. Test it thoroughly before leaving for an extended period...

 

[oreo12]

I put my frozzen food in bagies with tank size and day to feed left it in frezzer was gone 9 days came home everything was ok dirty glass was about it .

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by nrage
BIG WARNING ON THIS....some of the UPS's for computers like this have very sensitive breakers in them...I tried this when I first started my tank, and ended up taking it off. Test it thoroughly before leaving for an extended period...
Yes, that may be a problem however I believe that may depend on a particulr brand. What brand did you use? I have an APC on my main tank and haven't experienced any problems at all. Here in the country our power lines are above the ground and the winds can knock my schipperke off his feet during a snowstorm. I haven't had any problems with the APC I am using.
Denise M.

 

[nrage]

Originally Posted by Merredeth
Yes, that may be a problem however I believe that may depend on a particulr brand. What brand did you use? I have an APC on my main tank and haven't experienced any problems at all. Here in the country our power lines are above the ground and the winds can knock my schipperke off his feet during a snowstorm. I haven't had any problems with the APC I am using.
Denise M.
I have an APC also. I'm alnmost positive m Pump is what was triggering the breaker. It only happened about once a week or so. I moved it to my computer, and it works great, but wasn't good for the aquarium set-up in my instance.