# This might sound like a dumb question but pls help clarify.....



## Robbieg (Feb 25, 2012)

Hi Guys so far my new 30g community tank is coming along well. Ive just added some corys and emerald eye raspbora. So here is my dumb question: how often should I be feeding tropicals?? Ive been reading on other sites that some aquarists feed once every other day? Some info says feed daily or 2x per day? I have no idea what to do now and thought the home town crowd would know. I have very basic tropicals: neons, raspboras, corys and platies. Lots of live plants. any help would be great.

Thanks in advance.


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## splur (May 11, 2011)

Most non-predatory fish can last at least 4 days without feeding. So a difference between once a day and once every other day wouldn't matter much.

Predatory being something like piranhas, arowanas, oscars, etc. They'd probably eat something in the tank if you starved them lol.


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## df001 (Nov 13, 2007)

Robbieg said:


> how often should I be feeding tropicals??
> Thanks in advance.


Really comes down to what your intention is - low maintenance, not breeding etc, then yeah you can feed the fish less. their behavior is a good indicator of how much you're feeding them.

if they are swarming the food and devouring it in no time flat with no spec's missed - chances are they're REALLY hungry and you might want to consider feeding them a bit more, or at an additional interval.

if lots of food is going un-eaten - you're feeding too much!

IMHO part of the reason why people dont feed as often is to limit fish-waste to lower maintenance - less fishpoop = less nitrates = less water changes needed etc. Bottom line your fish behavior is what you should go by.

I feed my 65 community tank 2x a day, but never so much that they dont eat it all. I also feed them a variety of foods - NLS pellets, spirulina flake, bloodworms, etc.


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## Robbieg (Feb 25, 2012)

Thanks so much for the quick response guys. OK I understand what you are saying. In my community tank, I feed them 2x per day once when I wake up 730am, and once after dinner 830pm. They ALWAYS eat all of the food, honestly they eat as if they haven't eaten in a week! I keep an eye on any uneaten food and its pretty minimal. I not to fussy with the water changes I try and change 20-25% every sunday. 

I also have another question if you dont mind the help, I have two plants : 1 narrow leaf java (its large), and 1 dwarf aquarium lilly. Now the LFS told me to leave both of them in the basket for a while (that was about two and a half weeks ago). They are both growing : the lilly has sent a runner into the substrate and the java has two new leafs. Question is at what point is do I take them out of the basket? wont keeping them in the basket hinder there growth?


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## XbrandonX (Nov 22, 2007)

Take them out of the baskets. 

Tie the fern to something with fishing line or thread, make sure not to bury the rhizome (the hard dark green 'vein like' thing) that all the leaves and roots come off of. If you bury this you will basically suffocate and kill the fern. 

Pretty sure you can just plant the lilly like you would most plants. If you are using standard aquarium gravel or sand then it is highly recommended that you place some fertilizing root tabs in the gravel around the lillys roots area first. These can be acquired at any aquarium shop (big als etc, what evers close)

There is no dumb question, ask away and people who are inclined will offer whatever help they can  If you have more plant related questions ask in the plant section and you'll get lots of responses.


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## df001 (Nov 13, 2007)

Robbieg said:


> Now the LFS told me to leave both of them in the basket for a while (that was about two and a half weeks ago). They are both growing : the lilly has sent a runner into the substrate and the java has two new leafs. Question is at what point is do I take them out of the basket? wont keeping them in the basket hinder there growth?


I always take LFS advice with a grain of salt - trust after you verify, as often the advice is part of a sales tactic, rather than actual correct knowledge.

IMHO - there almost no reason to leave the plant in its container in its final home, pull the plant, remove the mineral wool then dip for hitch-hiker treatment if necessary, then trim a portion of the roots if necessary (dont recommend for some species) and get it planted.


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## Robbieg (Feb 25, 2012)

Thanks so much for the help with the plant info !! Leaving the plants in the basket seemed a little odd to me, so grateful for a tool like this to ask an unbiased opinion


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## bob123 (Dec 31, 2009)

The dwarf lily should not be planted in the substrate, just lay on the top of the substrate and it will root itself. I had some and I planted them as instructed by LFS and they died, then a friend who has many in his tanked told me not to plant them as they will root on their own. Good luck.


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## Robbieg (Feb 25, 2012)

thanks for the advice on the lilly, just a question how much of that fibrous material will I have to remove from the root ball? And would you happen to know if this plant is invasive? Looking forward to hearing from you


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## bob123 (Dec 31, 2009)

I would not remove any of the fiberous root material as it will find its way into the substrate, and it is a slow growing and not invasive, if conditions are perfect sometimes it will flower.


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## Robbieg (Feb 25, 2012)

Great thanks for the tip! What I meant about the fibrous material was what its packed in , in the basket. Its like many layers of gauze, and the plants root system has grown around it. Should that be removed or is it not harmful to the plant. BTW how do I leave positive feedback? everyone here has been so generous sharing there knowledge I would like to acknowledge that.


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## george (Apr 11, 2009)

Robbie, to add reputation, under the person's picture you will see a balance. Click on it and its pretty straight forward from there.


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