Fresh food expiration--blood worms and gel

[QandD]

I've fairly recently started incorporating fresh/frozen blood worms (Omega One brand--it's what was available at the store and said that blood worms were the only ingredient) and gel food (Repashy Super Green) into my girls' diets. I bought the blood worms when I bought my juvenile oranda, thinking that a younger fish might benefit from some extra protein, especially since she might develop a wen. Otherwise I feed them NLS Thera-A almost daily, peas occasionally, a strip of nori sometimes, and sometimes some flaked spirulina but I think it might not be the best quality so I am going to toss it. 

 

Anyway, I have been keeping the fresh foods in the freezer until I need to use them, and put the gel in ice cube trays. I think I made the cubes a bit big though, still, and am I worried about how long such foods keep in the fridge after I thaw them. I will make them smaller in the future, of course.

 

I check the blood worms every time I feed them (I smell them, etc), and they seem OK, but I don't want to hurt the fish. I think they are too little to eat a whole cube in one feeding, so I usually wind up using the blood worms over 3-4 occasions, and sometimes keep them for a week in the fridge in an air-tight container. The same with the Repashy. 

 

Am I endangering my fish? I am more concerned about the blood worms since they are "meat" than the vegan Repashy. 

[Blitz]

I thaw my blood worms as I need them, but I thaw out enough Repashy to last about a week and keep it in the fridge. I haven't had any problem so far.

[GoldenSpoiledRotten]

I would only keep thawed bloodworms for up to three days in the fridge. Any longer and the blood comes out, leaving the worms brown or clear and no longer as nutritious.

If you are having issues using up a cube, I would suggest switching to the flat packs. This lets you get just as much as you need at a time.

[jmetzger72]

When I make Repashy, I slice it into one-week portions and separate these into small tupperware snack containers ( 2 inch boxes).  These are stored in the freezeer.  Then, I thaw one container of Repashy in the fridge and use or toss it out within that week.  For the bloodworms, I never store them in the fridge. I just slice a piece for feeding and put the rest of the cube back in the freezer in a little tupperware snack container.

[LisaCGold]

I make gel food using small ice cube trays like this http://www.amazon.com/Cubette-Mini-Ice-Cube-Trays/dp/B000I1ZXIK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1433130385&sr=8-1&keywords=Small+ice+cube+tray

After a day of freezing I pop the gel food out of the trays and put in freezer bag, then back in the freezer. I only take out about 4 days of food at a time. I keep this food in the refrigerator.