Leaving for 3 weeks. Automatic feeder?

Hello, I have a well cycled 10 gallon tank It has 8 ember and 1 Betta in there. will be leaving for vacation for 3 weeks. I have someone who I am teaching how to do a water change so they will probably go 2 or 3 times to do that when I’m gone. I don’t like leaving my fish without food for more than a week so I’m really considering an automatic feeder. I left them without food for 4 days on another vacation thinking it was surely okay and lost an ember tetra when I came back. Do you guys have any recommendations?

 

I strongly doubt the 4 day fasting caused death.

Lower your heater with a few degrees when you leave.

Let the person conducting the water changes also feed your fish. Best to use 3 airtight containers to store the food and tell the person to add the contents of 1 container after doing the water change. This way you can determine the contents without having to worry if too much is being given.

Perhaps this person doesn't mind feeding more than 3 times. Simply prepare more containers.

I use a "weekly pill organizer" for this purpose.

 

I agree with Rudd. Much easier to proportion food to be fed after the water changes than an auto feeder. We’ve all heard the nightmare situations where the auto feeder dumped 3 weeks worth of food in one go.

Set them out with dates and notes and leave them a gift for helping you out

 

Hello, I have a well cycled 10 gallon tank It has 8 ember and 1 Betta in there. will be leaving for vacation for 3 weeks. I have someone who I am teaching how to do a water change so they will probably go 2 or 3 times to do that when I’m gone. I don’t like leaving my fish without food for more than a week so I’m really considering an automatic feeder. I left them without food for 4 days on another vacation thinking it was surely okay and lost an ember tetra when I came back. Do you guys have any recommendations?

Fish can go a long time without food. In the wild, they do not always find food everyday. If your friend is visiting 2-3 times per week to change water, that is more than enough feedings to sustain your fish. In my opinion, maintaining water quality is far more important than missing a few feedings.

Longest time one of my fish didn't eat was over 1.5 months. That fish I had refused to eat for an unknown reason but after starving for such a long time, he ate fine afterwards.

 

Yes I was planning on the organized food portions. They may be able to come more. Dec 12 I leave with big water change and feed.
Dec. 17 they come to feed.
dec. 22 water change and feed.
27th water change and feed.
January 2nd i come back. Does this sound like a good plan?

 

I once used an automatic feeder when I was out of town for much longer than I wanted to leave my fish without food. The key was I set it up a week ahead over an empty bucket and monitored it daily. Seeing it do exactly what I wanted it to do day after day left me very comfortable putting it on the tank. It worked perfectly and my fish and I were all happy. Just make sure to get an established brand with good reviews, no cheap junk.

Dec 12 through Jan 2, are you sure you really need a water change here? Most tanks would be fine without. Especially with lighter than normal feeding.

 

These timers feed for 14 days. You decide exactly how much food drops each day.

I highly recommend you set this timer up well before you go on holiday.

You can still have days without food by not filling every slot.

Fish Mate F14 Aquarium Fish Feeder : Amazon.com.au: Pet Supplies

 

I know for certain my tank can go two weeks without a water change. It has a lot of plants and an oversized filter with extra media in it. I’ve never tested after two but with less feedings I suppose it might be okay. The snails in there do produce a lot of waste however…

These timers feed for 14 days. You decide exactly how much food drops each day.

I highly recommend you set this timer up well before you go on holiday.

You can still have days without food by not filling every slot.

Fish Mate F14 Aquarium Fish Feeder : Amazon.com.au: Pet Supplies

Thanks! I was looking at this one earlier today

 

The automatic feeders are simple and work well. Like others have said, set it up now and start using it to get it set right. Just load it with dry food that won't get stale and clumpy. I find the granulated food is the best, not flakes.


When leaving for 3 weeks there is the possibility of a filter failure. Having double filtration is great. I even do that on my 10 gallon tanks. Two small filters can't both go bad simultaneously!? Hopefully.

What about a power failure? Will your filters restart automatically or do they need to be primed manually!? Self priming filters are a must. Aquaclears don't self prime. But the tetra Whisper do, so that's a good one to add as a second filter.

 

I was away for 3 weeks in October. I bought the Eheim every day auto feeder and it's so reliable I use it if I'm going to have a busy few days. Not all feeders are created equal though. I have another one that is garbage. It dumps so much food and is inconsistent. I searched out reviews and bought the Eheim almost 2 months before our trip because I wanted to make sure it was functioning properly, and I wanted to see if my tank could go 3 weeks without a wc. My tank is a 32 gallon, planted and lightly stocked. The feeder is programmable and more importantly I found it easy to adjust for a small amount of food, which is obviously what I wanted. I watched it like a hawk every day. By the time it got to vacation time I had zero concerns about feeding and when I got home every one was happy and no signs of my tank being over fed. But, like I mentioned, they're not all good so ensure you get one that's well reviewed.

 

What are your nitrate levels like at the end of the week before a water change? I know my planted fish tanks can easily go 3 weeks without a water change and probably longer if they were only lighty fed.

I would get nervous having someone else do a water change for me even if they were a fish keeper. I make mistakes on my own tanks with things like heaters and filters and usually catch them in a few hours before anything disastrous can happen. If they left the heater or filter unplugged and left for a week that could be a disaster.

 

Griff, my opinion feeding a “pinch” of food every couple days is a simpler task than the water changes, if the help can do water changes under your supervision before you leave and up to your standards, the feeding is simple, less food is better. I’d be more concerned on the maintenance of the tank(changes) than feeding. You can go few days between feeding.

 

Hello, I have a well cycled 10 gallon tank It has 8 ember and 1 Betta in there. will be leaving for vacation for 3 weeks. I have someone who I am teaching how to do a water change so they will probably go 2 or 3 times to do that when I’m gone. I don’t like leaving my fish without food for more than a week so I’m really considering an automatic feeder. I left them without food for 4 days on another vacation thinking it was surely okay and lost an ember tetra when I came back. Do you guys have any recommendations?

I'd have the sitter feed the fish. However if you do buy an autofeeder, make sure to test the amount that gets dumped out over a plate or something before

 

I do own an autofeeder but I will always have someone who looks after those fish when I'm not around. It gives me more of a secure feeling that they'll be okay.

 

I do own an autofeeder but I will always have someone who looks after those fish when I'm not around. It gives me more of a secure feeling that they'll be okay.

I can't say much, I'm the exact same. Anything for the fishies!! Just make sure the feeder isn't pouring too much, that can hurt them