Effects of feeding too much on tank water quality

[RD.]

Cory and Dan both bring up good points, and this is exactly why not all community settings work out long term. But I would say that typically while one attempts to get enough food to certain fish, other species end up getting more than their fair share. At least that has been my experience from what I have seen in various mixed community tanks over the years. I have seen malnourished fish, but IME it is a lot less common than ovefed/obese fish.

 

[Coryloach]

If people are that worried about water quality then cut the stock down.

I personally think this is the only sensible approach. If a bit more food is tipping the water quality, the tank is too small for the size of the fish that is actually capable of eating that amount of food....

Left over food on another hand is an obvious sign one is overfeeding. Only a blind man can't see that. Fish leaving left over food have definitely had enough they can handle...But don't confuse how much food a tank can handle with what a fish can handle.

I kept platies that looked like balloons all the time as they were literally in everyone's plate at feeding time, greedy little fish. They lived longer than expected for the species but were kept in larger tanks than the majority of people keep them in, large enough for an Oscar.

We've all left fish without food due to holiday, etc..and they were "fine". Yet, I am not promoting one feeding their fish once every few weeks......

In fact one year I had accidentally left the fish feeder on dumping copious amounts of foods each day for 3 weeks. I came back to equally happy fish....as water quality was not affected to cause an issue and it appeared all the food was eaten too... I am not promoting one dumping that amount of food either but I'd definitely promote setting up a tank that can safely handle accidental "food dumps".

One of the very plausible reasons for HITH in large cichlids is malnutrition....
Malnutrition can result in both, not feeding the right type of food or not feeding enough, plus other factors like flagellates contributing to the nutrients being "stolen" from the fish.

I am not saying anything new here. I am only pointing out the obvious. 34 years ago I put a few baby carp in a 5 gallon tank. I noticed if I fed more bread crumbs the water would become cloudy, so I fed less...They were "fine" for a while...When they died I thought I had overfed them....

 

[skjl47]

Apologies, I didn't realize you've imposed restrictions....

Hello; No not imposing restrictions, just an attempt to keep the thread a bit on track. Recently there was a thread about the death of a fish and that OP posted about being curious as to why the died. I have also known of folks who feed just because their fish seem to be begging for food. Some feed two or more times a day and so on. I felt that OP was feeding too much and wondered about an aspect of extra feeding I do not recall having ever been discussed. That being effects of too much food actually being eaten.
One somewhat common comment is the fish eat all the food which leads me to suspect some fish keepers must figure that excess amounts of food do not cause problems if the food is actually eaten. I tend to think this is not the case and have asked for opinions on that subject. Not about excess uneaten food laying around a tank nor about malnutrition from underfeeding.
But do feel free to go off on any tangent. I have been on these threads long enough to understand they take twists and turns. I can start a thread on fish malnutrition if you wish

I've only posted one sentence. The rest of it is quoted from the link in relation to reduced feeding in the fear of overfeeding. I thought it's relevant.

Hello; Refer to above comments.

 

[LBDave]

With the fish I have very little goes uneaten unless I try some type of food they don't like. But the ammonia level does go up after feeding (from 0 to about .005) for a few hours. Which may be some uneaten food. Doesn't mean I am not over feeding. These fish produce a lot of waste.
I think this thread is a great reminder that we should be striving to not overfeed and try to skip days of feeding. It is a good practice.

 

[dan518]

Hello; No not imposing restrictions, just an attempt to keep the thread a bit on track. Recently there was a thread about the death of a fish and that OP posted about being curious as to why the died. I have also known of folks who feed just because their fish seem to be begging for food. Some feed two or more times a day and so on. I felt that OP was feeding too much and wondered about an aspect of extra feeding I do not recall having ever been discussed. That being effects of too much food actually being eaten.
One somewhat common comment is the fish eat all the food which leads me to suspect some fish keepers must figure that excess amounts of food do not cause problems if the food is actually eaten. I tend to think this is not the case and have asked for opinions on that subject. Not about excess uneaten food laying around a tank nor about malnutrition from underfeeding.
But do feel free to go off on any tangent. I have been on these threads long enough to understand they take twists and turns. I can start a thread on fish malnutrition if you wish

Hello; Refer to above comments.

To have a full discussion about the effects of over feeding then the other side of the argument of under feeding needs to be mentioned, I see it as all the same overall topic not a random tangent.

 

[dan518]

try to skip days of feeding. It is a good practice.

Depending on the species in question.

 

[LBDave]

Depending on the species in question.

Yes. My statement is a general statement. But I believe that for most fish, skipping a day will not impair it.

 

[dan518]

Yes. My statement is a general statement. But I believe that for most fish, skipping a day will not impair it.

Generally no it won't hurt the fish, but researching the fish in question and feeding a tailor made regime to them will always be better.

 

[skjl47]

Yes. My statement is a general statement. But I believe that for most fish, skipping a day will not impair it.

hello; This is my view as well. With newly hatched fry and juvenile fish I do not skip days at all. With adult fish I do skip days and have for a number of years.

 

[LBDave]

hello; This is my view as well. With newly hatched fry and juvenile fish I do not skip days at all. With adult fish I do skip days and have for a number of years.

Agreed. Little critters like fry obviously need special care! Big 10-4