What is best way to prevent flake food from being sucked up into filter?

[larryngu 31]

I have a twenty gallon tank and I feed my goldfish flakes.

I pre-soak the flakes.

Only problem is when I dump the flakes into the take some of the food ends up being sucked up into the filter intake.

Any know anything that would work to prevent food from being sucked up into intake filter tube?

Would it be a good idea to shut off filter while I'm feeding my fish?

[bodoba 2,980]

Most people turn off their filters when feeding if they are having this issue. Feeding usually only lasts 20 mins or so and then they turn them back on. That small amount of time doesn't seem to affect the cycle

[number20121 2,663]

Easy fix: switch to pellets.

They are healthier, more nutritious and cheaper (the same size jar of flakes and pellets of the same brand cost the same, but the jar of flakes is much lighter than the pellets)

Edited October 23, 2012 by Oerba Yun Fang

[larryngu 31]

Easy fix: switch to pellets.

They are healthier, more nutritious and cheaper (the same size jar of flakes and pellets of the same brand cost the same, but the jar of flakes is much lighter than the pellets)

My goldfish is a little too small for pellets. I'm trying to feed her Goldfish Granules from Aqueon.

I would soak the granules and offer them to her. It seems that the granules are too big because she has problem swallowing it. She would take the food in her mouth for 10 seconds and spit it out.

I will offer her the granules when she gets bigger.

Goldy is a month old fry.

[number20121 2,663]

Gotcha. In that case yes, flakes are the better choice.

I would just temporarily turn the filter off then. Just have a kitchen timer or similar as reminder to turn the filter back on!

[Helen 8,511]

turning the filter(s) off is the best option as fang recommended. i used to do this when i was running a 10 gallon. sometimes i would forget to turn them back on again and i'd have all sorts of issues.

i then decided to use the stove top timer as a reminder, but the house is so big, often, i never heard the bell and back to forgetting to turn them on again

so, i purchased an electric counter for the plug. when i was feeding the fish, i would set it for a 10 min power cut and then it would automatically go back on again. the timer was only about $5AU from the hardware store.

[larryngu 31]

Thanks Bodoba , Fang and Stakos.

I got myself a kitchen timer like Fang recommended .

[shellbell4ever 1,381]

I fed my babies New Life Spectrum pellets with no problems

and ditch the flakes

[fantailfan1 26,742]

When my fish were too small to eat pellets, I would crush them up into smaller pieces with a mortar and pestle (or between 2 spoons works also).

[Ms.Jenny 555]

You could get some Repashy and put in a little chunk for Goldy to slowly nibble on.

[dnalex 13,633]

My goldfish is a little too small for pellets. I'm trying to feed her Goldfish Granules from Aqueon.

There are 0.5mm NLS granules. They should be small enough for your fish.

[Helen 8,511]

you will need to presoak the pellets also. there's no adding dry food of any kind unless you presoak. some of those smaller pellets puff up to larger size. thing is, they're soft enough for a chunk to be sucked/torn/ripped off.. so there really are no issue with the size of the pellet, presoaked softens it enough to ensure every fish, even the little ones get their fair share of feed. sinking pellets are the ideal.

[shakaho 6,312]

I wish the people who say flakes are less nutritious than pellets would compare the ingredients and analysis of flakes and pellets of the same brand. Most are identical, but for a few, the flakes actually have more protein. I think the idea comes from the fact that stores with only low-quality food typically have only flakes for goldfish. Fang is right on in pointing out that, by weight, flakes are much more expensive than pellets. Flakes are great for sick fish and babies. I just rub the dry flakes between my fingers to make super fine baby food. I have not been successful in grinding pellets that fine, although other people have. I always keep high quality flakes on hand for the fish that need them.

[Pearlscaleperfect 3,561]

I always worry about the nutrients leaching out of the flakes however. They aren't nearly as compact as pellets and lose nutrients quite quickly. I would think a high quality flake would be suitable for a gelfood however.

[shakaho 6,312]

Which nutrients do you think leach out? It doesn't seem like a problem to me unless you are presoaking them for a long time. Besides, if the nutrients have time to soak out of the fish food before they are eaten, you're overfeeding big time!

Actually, if any fish food is going to lose nutrients in water, it is gel food. There, any small, water soluble molecules are already in solution. The gel that holds the food together is an open network that water, and things dissolved in it, can move through freely.