Filter Flow & Feeding Issues

[Ch4rlie]

Hope some of you guys can help me with some advice. I have a couple of issues regarding my new tank set up.
 
I will show a couple of pictures to try and help you visualise what I mean.
 
First off, my tank is 90 Litre /24 US gal, and filter fitted is an Tetratec ex 1200, i know this filter is a bit big for the tank but the outflow has been reduced by some 60% and looks ok to me.
 
There is a spray bar running across the rear of the tank and is above the waterline : 
 

 
 
And this is a pic of under the water to give an idea of flow.
 

 
And in the water you can see hundreds of tiny little air bubbles generated by the filter flow
 

 
Now, I need to ask if this filter flow is too strong for the tank?
 
Can too many like this bubbles affect the fish? (15 x Threadfin Rainbowfish)
 
Also will this affect the live plants as well?
 
I do also have a small airstone in the far corner, purely for decoration as I think looks nice but if this is going to affect the health of the fish or the plants then need to know if this is the case so I can promptly remove the airstone or at least switch it off.
 
The second issue I have is regarding the feeding. Today was the first time I've fed the fish (only stocked the tank yesterday!) and found that the flow of water forces the feed to run to the front of the tank then do downwards towards the gravel quickly. I know the shrimps and snails will like this!!
 
I noticed that fish were really interested in eating but some spat out the food straight away? I am using a new bottle of Nutrafin Max tropical Flakes. And only put in a small pinch of dried flakes in the water as was a bit unsure how much I should put in!
 
Do you know if Threadfins are picky eaters or anything or should I carry on feeding this flakes or swap to some other products like a different brand of flakes?
 
I will treat them to frozen bloodworm now and again as having read on this site lots of fishes and shrimps like this stuff!
 
To recaps, I need to know :
1 - Water flow from filter - too strong?
2 - Bubbles in tanks - affect fishes or not?
3 - Airstone issue?
4 - Flakes forced to bottom of tank quickly due to flow, will this affect feeding?
5 - Feeding tips regarding some spitting out food quickly
6 - Threadfins - picky eaters?
 
Any advice or information would be gratefully received.
 
Realise that I'm probably asking some silly questions but I'm more worried about the wellbeing of my fish and tank life than about my own embarrassment!

 

[levahe]

1. The flow looks OK, if you wanted to reduce the speed of the flow without losing lph you could increase the size of the holes in the spray bar.

2. You could run the spray bar under the surface of the water, but I think the bubbles won't affect the fish.

4. You could turn the Filter off at feeding time for 10 mins (just remember to turn it back on lol)

 

[Ninjouzata]

If they aren't having issues swimming then the flow is probably fine.
I have an airstone and a bubbling dragon ornament in my tank, it doesn't seem to bother the fish at all. I like it for aesthetics.
Like levahe said, you can turn the filter off during feedings.
You just need a pinch of food I think, though I worry and give my fish two pinches <.< >.>
They could be spitting it out to try and get it into smaller pieces, or are just getting used to the food. It took a month or so for my betta to stop spitting out food.
If you want to try a different food, New Life Spectrum Small Fish Formula seems to work well for my rummynose tetras, as they have such tiny mouths crushed up flakes just wasn't cutting it. 
Link to food: http/www.petco.com/product/112084/New-Life-Spectrum-Small-Fish-Formula-5mm-Sinking-Pellet-Fish-Food.aspx

 

[Ch4rlie]

Thanks for these advice, sounds like common sense really!
 
Think will try out that sinking pellet food as your comments about flakes being too big for the fish to eat makes complete sense and I like that idea. Also thanks for reassuring me that fish are sometimes picky eaters like your bettas taking a month to stop spitting out food.
 
Also think will try putting the spray bar below water as well as enlarging the holes at the same time, I have spare spray bar parts so won't be losing anything if does not work out.

 

[Blondielovesfish]

If you're worried about the food, you could always get a feeding ring?

 

[Ch4rlie]

Feeding ring? 

 
 
Also how can you tell if fish have any swimming issues due to filter flow? My threadfins look actually quite comfortable and not swimming hard or constantly swimming in one direction.
 
Tips on what to look out for would be fab!

 

[levahe]

I have quite a fast flow in my tank and I feed my fish (all small tetras) Hikari micro pellets. They float on the surface for a while and are the perfect size for the small fish to eat.

 

[Ninjouzata]

A feeding ring, if I'm correct, is something you can suction cup to the inside of the aquarium, like a little plastic circle, and so it would keep the food from being blown away maybe? >.<
Glad you are feeling a bit better. Sounds like your fish aren't having any issues with the flow so I wouldn't worry about it

 

[Ch4rlie]

Thanks guys for help clear that up a bit for me. Was worried for a bit and started to doubt myself!!
 
Will still try enlarging the spray bar holes and putting it under waterline just to see the difference then will choose which is best.
 
And will get some of these small sized pellets as mentioned. Sounds a better bet to me but will do both methods! 

 
May also get a feeding ring if all else fails.
 

 

[Blondielovesfish]

 
There's a feeding ring for you

 

[Ch4rlie]

Doh! I was updating my photos on photobucket and realised when I moved two pics to another album I have accidentally deleted them from the first post of this thread. So will repost them here........
 
There is a spray bar running across the rear of the tank and is above the waterline :
 
 

 
 
And this is a pic of under the water to give an idea of flow.
 

 

[Alm0stAwesome]

You are able to go back and edit old posts, it's next to the quote button. You can update the links there

 

[Blondielovesfish]

You are able to go back and edit old posts, it's next to the quote button. You can update the links there

 
The edit button dissapears after awhile

 

[Ch4rlie]

Yup, thats exactly what happened, edit link disappeared! Never mind!
 
Here is a bit of an update, have gone around the houses in regards to which spraybar position suited my tank best in terms of flow to stop any dead spots. Plants in corners are moving slightly due to flow so am satisfied there is a decent amount of flow around the tank now as well as aeration as there is a ripple at surface of water.
 
First, here is the outflow valve turned right done to about 60-70% off max flow rate!
 

 
Spraybar now positioned about an inch under the surface of waterline and holes pointed roughly 45 degrees towards front of tank.
 

 
View of top surface of water showing ample surface ripple to aerate the water.
 

 
I now find that feeding times a bit easier with the spraybar posiioned as such as previously the food was rushing to the front of tank and sinking too quickly.
 
Now the feed floats around to front of tank , goes along fairly slowly along sides of tank then behind spraybar and then to middle of surface where food sinks slower and now the Threadfins seem to enjoy this better, zipping around grabbing food, spitting them out then others eating that! Go figure!  
 
I have a question regarding feeding the shrimps. I have about 16 shrimps in the tank now and will they happily eat the fish food or do i need to feed them separately with sinking shrimp food pellets?
 
Also, how many times and how much am I supposed to feed the Threadfins, I am currently only feeding them once a day during the evening around 6pm.
 
I seem to come across conflicting advice about this feeding, some say once a day is fine, others say twice a day but smaller amounts of feed, 3 times a day etc etc
 
Just would like an idea which is best and I feel that I am overfeeding at the moment as loads of food sink to the gravel but the shrimps eventually eats some of that and the threadfins eat some as well. So not too sure at all if am feeding the right amount, just a fairly small pinch of Hikari micro pellets. Any tips would be fantastic!!
 
Have not used the feeding ring yet but seems to be ok for now but thanks very much for that tip. I now know these are available if need that anytime.
 
Ta!

 

[Alm0stAwesome]

I personally feed once a day just enough for all of the food to disappear in maybe 3-4 minutes. I know for sure that I am guilty of over feeding a bit lol but as long as my water quality is good, I'm happy. There are fish keepers who only feed every second day or even less than that so you're fish aren't going to starve that's for sure. However fish tend to be a little undernourished when fresh from the fish store so for the first several weeks you are just getting them up to a good condition usually. 
 
I would, at least once a week drop a sinking pellet in there to make sure that your shrimp are getting all they need. They probably are but this is just a safety precaution, especially as the tank is quite new and there isn't much in the tank to "snack on" this is often the downfall of new tanks and shrimp. I also feed frozen foods to my fish twice a week. It varies but is usually bloodworm as they prefer it to brineshrimp and mysis etc., though they do get that too. Finally, I fast my fish one day a week. This is to make sure they have time to clear out their digestive systems and helps to prevent constipation. 
 
Those Hikari Micro Pellets are brilliant though I rate them very highly I've been meaning to post a review about them actually lol - maybe there aleary is one

Oh! One more thing. The spraybar looks great You could even get away with less surface agitation than that if you wanted to but it's not hurting anything as it is, it's just if you like the look or not really. People with heavily planted/high tech tanks have very little surface movement actually as it helps the plants. All you need is for the surface to be moving and you're good to go!