Leaving on vacation - what to do?

[das75]

Looking for suggestions on care of my tank (feeding) while on vacation. Planning on being away for around 16 days.

Tank is FOWLR with 5” purple tank, 4” yellow (coris) wrasse, 2” bicoloured dottyback, 2 small ocellaris clowns and a cleaner shrimp. Currently feeding about 1/2tsp (3ml) of frozen mysis, 1/8tsp (0.63ml) flake and a 3”x3” piece of nori sheet daily.

Planning on getting a friends daughter over (works in a LFS) to feed every second day. Would doubling the current daily amount every second day be okay?

Also, what would this service be worth?

MP

 

[das75]

looks like pasting doesn't bring some symbols over.

It's a 5" tang, 4" wrasse, 2" dottyback and the amount of nori is 3"x3".

MP

 

[Anonymous]

I usually don't have anyone feed my fish at all while I am gone unless I am going to be more than a week, I just think there is too much danger from over feeding. Gives the tanngs some motivation to get every last bit of algae from the rocks. I have seen many threads where people come home from vacation to find thier giant can of flake food empty, a totally polluted tank, and the tank watcher says, "well they just always seemed so HUNGRY." Or, "I couldn't come for several days so I put in all the food at once."

Of course if the care taker works at the LFS you would think she would do a good job. You can also parcel out meals in tiny baggies.

As for how much it would pay, I would think this would depend on other chores she needs to do and the skill level involved. Just feeding?

 

[das75]

If I'm away for a day or two I don't even get my wife to feed them but thinking 2 weeks plus I've got to give them something.

Other duties would be adding top up water since loosing ~4l every couple of days and emptying/cleaning the skimmer cup.

MP

 

[Anonymous]

Put frozen food in a ziplock and mark them with the dates you want them fed. My mother does it while I'm away. If she can do it anyone can. She also adds top off water when the aqua dose is empty. I just invested in the AT-1 top off system.

 

[Anonymous]

How does 5 bucks a visit sound? That's probably how much I would ask for if I was doing it.

I used to take care of people's pets when they were on vacation, and that was how much I was usually paid for a visit unless I had alot of complicated or time consuming things to do.

 

[Mogo]

I'm in the same boat. Off on holidays for 5 days. I've got a neighbourhood kid coming over to show him stuff. He's done it before. I tell him the most important thing is his eyes. If something looks wrong then go to plan B. I pre-prepare (heh) the food in little pill jars and leave them in the bar fridge so all he has to do is drop it in. I have him check all water levels, skimmer etc. every day for normal.

Then I put my cell phone on roam and cross my fingers.

 

[ReefMon]

I always have my tank sitter feed a minimal amount when I'm out of town, it's much too easy for someone to over feed and not know it, plus I've rarely heard of healthy fish starving to death in a week or 2.

The one time I didn't cut back on feeding, I came home to a tank overrun with algae, and it took months to get it back in shape.

Happy Reefing!
Glenn R

 

[LFS42]

(1) get an auto-feeder. (mine cost me about $10)
most fish will take pellet food if they are really hungry
especially tangs
set it up for 2x a day

(2) get a friend to full up your sump.
My sump needs to be filled about 2x a week
I also prepared about 35 gallons a pre-mixed water
in-case something went bad

(3) enjoy the vacation

I just got back from a 8-day vacation
No water change was needed and all my tanks were fine.
I even left the feeder hooked up,
It's sooooo nice a simple

(now I just need the friend to come over and fill up the sump for me)

 

[liquid]

looks like pasting doesn't bring some symbols over.

Yeah phpBB doesn't like unicode, which gets inserted when you first compose your message in word processors like MS Word or any unicode enabled wordprocessor.

Shane