Removing excess food

[NewNanoTank]

So I just fed my 2 clown fish today (10g tank) and usually after feeding I try to remove (with my hands because I don’t have bottom feeders or a net) the left over fish food. However, looking at the tank right now there are 2-3 pellets I missed from previous feedings and 4-7 visible sized pieces of Mysis shrimp. Should I try to manually remove this food or should I dose some more beneficial bacteria today?
My test kits come in next week and tomorrow I need to do a 20% water change.
Also side note my clowns since yesterday have moved to the bottom of the tank and have been staring at the side glass wall all day.

 

[NewNanoTank]

The Mysis shrimp are from today’s feeding. The clowns weren’t as hungry as usual

 

[Kryptonian]

You should remove what food you see floating around if the fish aren't eating. There are more food pieces that you cannot see in the water column + fish waste that are helping you build bacteria. Visible pellets or shrimp breaking down from not being eaten cause unnecessary waste buildup on a small 10g system.

Unfortunately, there's a lot you just don't know about water quality since you don't have the test kits handy yet. Check back with testing numbers to better assess what's going on with the clowns. As long as they're not breathing heavily or showing signs of stress, I wouldn't get too worried. Clowns act weird sometimes. It's common for them to find one spot and stick to it.

 

[Tamberav]

Is the tank cycled? I don't bother to remove missed food but my tanks are cycled and such.

If the fish are not eating, they are probably stressed.

 

[NewNanoTank]

Is the tank cycled? I don't bother to remove missed food but my tanks are cycled and such.

If the fish are not eating, they are probably stressed.

It’s been a week and usually they eat. I’ve also been having to fight off internal parasites with medicated food but it seems that has mostly cleared up. Tank has been running since August 4th and I’ve dosed bacteria a good amount of times the last week. Also have live rock in the tank.

 

[Tamberav]

It’s been a week and usually they eat. I’ve also been having to fight off internal parasites with medicated food but it seems that has mostly cleared up. Tank has been running since August 4th and I’ve dosed bacteria a good amount of times the last week. Also have live rock in the tank.

Have you tested ammonia?

Healthy clownfish are gluttons for food.

 

[NewNanoTank]

You should remove what food you see floating around if the fish aren't eating. There are more food pieces that you cannot see in the water column + fish waste that are helping you build bacteria. Visible pellets or shrimp breaking down from not being eaten cause unnecessary waste buildup on a small 10g system.

Unfortunately, there's a lot you just don't know about water quality since you don't have the test kits handy yet. Check back with testing numbers to better assess what's going on with the clowns. As long as they're not breathing heavily or showing signs of stress, I wouldn't get too worried. Clowns act weird sometimes. It's common for them to find one spot and stick to it.

Yea they’ve chosen different places to hangout for a couple days then they move on but this spot is a bit weirder than the others lol. LFS tested my water a few days ago and said the PH was a little high but not to worry about it right now until I have my test kit.

 

[NewNanoTank]

Have you tested ammonia?

Healthy clownfish are gluttons for food.

I don’t think the LFS tested for ammonia. Definitely doing that first when I get my kit but I’ve been dosing bacteria in addition to the live rock just to try to keep it low until then.

 

[NewNanoTank]

A couple days the mocha would swim around the tank mostly against the current but now the Wyoming has been the more active one. The fish seem to have paired quickly though as they always swim next to each other or on top of each other, with the occasional fight for dominance.

 

[Fisheroo]

I would recommend feeding/removing leftovers using a pair of tweezers. In my experience it reduces a lot of the mess and keeps the water clean longer. If the fish are acting a little stressed I’d say just test as soon as you can once you get a kit, but if they start acting more than a little stressed that might be a sign of excessive nitrite/ammonia presence and you can dose Seachem Prime if you have any on hand just in case. Whenever I run out of the test solutions and the fish are acting stressed I always dose Prime to be in the safe side as it helps with ammonia and the like.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Excess food = overfeeding
remember, easier to add than remove. You will have to siphon it all up before you encounter issues with water quality and fungus as food spoils.