Trust, Before You Leave.

[Yazan]

Hi all.

Would like to say that many people have dicided to go on vacation or somthing like that and have left somebody that does not or knows only a bit about fish to care for thier tank(s) and fish.

Do not make this mistake again. I was about to make this mistake and don't want any body to make it again.

These are some ways to stop this from happening.

If your away for only a week, your tank should be fine,but, get "food blocks" or "food tablets" for your fish to feed on. When choosing a "food block", make sure that it says some thing like " 7 day food block" or " 10 day food blocks" are also avalibale. Also there is a good product called "automatic feeders" which some of them you can set the time, or just click the button to feed your fish., however, "automatic feeders" have their disasters. If something goes wrong with the "automatic feeder", it will drop too much food. Also you can leave your fish without any food for a week but no longer.

If you are going for a long time and need some one to care for your tank, make sure that,:

you know him/her very well and you have trusted him/her to do something and all goes well,
make sure he/she knows heaps about fish, and has excperianced keeping fish,
make sure you tell him/her where every thing is, whats it is for, and what it is,
tell him/her what to do,
tell him/her when to clean the tank, feed the fish, to do a water test etc,
tell him/her of any notices, such as sick fishes etc.

IMO, if you are going on holidays and you want some one to cycle your tank, I don't recomend it, as many things can go wrong.

This way you will save your self from this disaster.

 

[dthoffsett]

Good advise, but I have a little constructive criticism. Those food blocks you recommend aren't a good idea, they're mostly comprised of ash and other fillers giving little to no nutritional value, they also have a tendency to pollute the tank as any food that just sits on the bottom will. Your fish are much better off not eating for the time your gone if you have no one you trust to check on them, fish in the wild aren't fed everyday, and it won't hurt most (fry are the exception) to go a week without food.

Now a suggestion, in the past when I've had someone feeding my fish while I'm gone, I pre-portion food into one of those weekly pill holders, then all the person has to do is flip the top and dump it in. Even so, I only have that person feed them once a day or every other day.

 

[Yazan]

I'll mention "automatic feeders". As i've heard a lot of people use them when on vacation.

 

[Jozlyn]

I used an auto feeder when we went on holiday, feeds the fish a measured dose of food twice a day, every twelve hours just set and forget!

Further to the feeding blocks they're often made with a type of plaster and will seriously cloud up the tank if they're left in there and fish don't tend to like them too much either.

dthoffstets idea is perfect, and it's actually a good idea to hide the rest of the food if you're getting someone else to do it as they will often add a "bit" more thinking that the fish "looked hungry"!

 

[rdd1952]

You are correct that you definitely don't want someone who isn't fish literate doing the feeding unless you take matters into your own hands. The best thiing too do if you are going to be away for a 7 days or less is just leave the fish. They can easily go that long without food. And since they aren't being fed, they will create very little waste so even if the filter happens to stop working, there will be very little ammonia in the water to cause a problem.

I agree with dthoffsett about the feeder blocks and the pill thing. I actually used plastic cups but either one works fine. One other thing I'll add to it though is to hide the rest of the food so they can't decide on their own that the fish need more. They could do it every other day or every third day. The last time I was gone a week, my son came over and fed them the 3rd and 5th days and they were fine. Even though he's been keeping fish longer than I have, I still measured out what I fed them and used the cups just to make sure.

The biggest problem with the auto feeders is that they sometimes malfunction. If they stop working altogether, that's really not a problem as the fish will just go a few days without food. But if they start adding too much or dump the whole thing in at once you could have a major ammonia spike and come back to major problems or dead fish. If you plan to use one, get it several weeks in advance and start using it so you can get it adjusted to the right dosage and be confident that it will work as it's supposed to.

 

[Bignose]

fish in the wild aren't fed everyday, and it won't hurt most (fry are the exception) to go a week without food.

This statement right here cannot be emphasized enough. If it is only a 7 or even 10 day vacation, the fish will be fine. If the fish have been well fed and are healthy up to the day you leave for vacation, they really will be fine.

 

[dwarfgourami]

fish in the wild aren't fed everyday, and it won't hurt most (fry are the exception) to go a week without food.

This statement right here cannot be emphasized enough. If it is only a 7 or even 10 day vacation, the fish will be fine. If the fish have been well fed and are healthy up to the day you leave for vacation, they really will be fine.

Some small livebearers may be the exception. I always seem to have lost someone in the small poeciliids tank when I've done this (small= smaller than a guppy). These are probably not fish that would go for 10 days without food in the wild.

Yazan, you should have mentioned that there may also be problems with automatic feeders- some of them clog easily, others dish out too much food. Having had an automatic feeder disaster in the past, I now trust to the pill box method. Since I hide all other food, I feel confident in entrusting the job to my 11-year-old neighbour. He is told to feed once every 3 days to counter the fact that he is not cleaning the tanks.

All in all, I think it is better if these threads are made by people who have actual experience of the methods recommended. In my own experience, the method you warn against has proved a lot safer than the methods you recommend.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

you can be perfectly confident leaving someone in charge of your tank who knows nothing about fish providing they are trustworth, given accurate instructions and have a little common sense.

portion out the food and wrap it into little foil packages, instruct them to drop the contents of one packet in every 3 days, hide the rest of the food and there's no chance of them getting extra.

we will be leaving a friend/neighbour with no experience with fish in charge of our marine tank for 2 weeks in october, we'll run off all the RO water they need, put it into 2 litre pop bottles and all they have to do is pour one bottle in every 3 days and put one portion of food in. It is really not difficult as long as you make it clear for them. Also leave some written instructions taped to the side of the tank cabinet or something like that, then even if they forget what they're meant to do they can find out again easily.

 

[Yazan]

Thanks all. I'll just edit that.

 

[Yazan]

portion out the food and wrap it into little foil packages, instruct them to drop the contents of one packet in every 3 days, hide the rest of the food and there's no chance of them getting extra.

Good idea.

 

[highfire]

portion out the food and wrap it into little foil packages, instruct them to drop the contents of one packet in every 3 days, hide the rest of the food and there's no chance of them getting extra.

Good idea.

Yes, that's what I do. My good friend and neighbour who lives opposite has always looked after my tank while I've been away.
I put the day's food into little ramakins or egg cups, and line them up in the kitchen with a label on for which day to feed.
That's all I do, because I'm never away for more than 10 days at a time.
Had no problems atall - the tank has always been fine when I've come home.

 

[vinylman]

Tetra now make a slow dissolving holiday block that consists of a jelly that contains flakes and granules. Sounds like the treats they make in little foil wrappers. It uses nothing like plaster.

 

[Maxta]

I think dthoffsett's idea is best. Im going away for two weeks in the summer, so my neighbour will be feeding the fish. Luckily hes had a bit of experience as he used to keep a community tank. I will be putting the food in little containers and marking the day on them. I usually feed my fish twice a day in small portions, but il just change to 1.

 

[dwarfgourami]

I think dthoffsett's idea is best. Im going away for two weeks in the summer, so my neighbour will be feeding the fish. Luckily hes had a bit of experience as he used to keep a community tank. I will be putting the food in little containers and marking the day on them. I usually feed my fish twice a day in small portions, but il just change to 1.

Those pillboxes they sell in pharmacies are very useful for this purpose. I have 6 tanks, so I leave a labelled box for each tank- with both the boxes and the tanks numbered to avoid mix-ups. I usually ask my neighbour only to feed every two or three days to offset the fact that there won't be anyone doing water changes.

 

[mommyof2bettas]

I've left for vacation once and had to leave my fish-I left instructions for my grandparents on what to do. I think it works better with pellets because you can actually count how many pellets you're feeding. I separated the pellets in little containers-about 5 pellets in each (for my bettas) and they could just drop it in the tanks, as previously stated. With my community, I left them with little plastic bags with food in them and like the pellets they could just drop it in. If you aren't sure who you are leaving to tend for your fish actually knows their stuff, sorta quiz them before you leave. Ask them what they'll do, maybe leave them for a day before you leave and see how well they do.