what to do with reef on vacation??

cathyg_99 · #1 02-05-2011, 04:03 AM

what do you do with your tanks/reefs when you go on vacation???

is there any services you can pay someone to come in and feed/check on your fish??

Aquattro · #2 02-05-2011, 04:21 AM

I'm going away for a week, gonna feed well before I go and feed well when I get back.

daniella3d · #3 02-05-2011, 04:35 AM

I have my neighbourgh coming over every second day to feed my fishes and I put a web cam on my aquarium so that I can check if everything is ok. I can see if the fishes are swimming and if everybody is there. I can see if the water is clear and if corals are open, if my skimmer and lighting are working ok.

Quite a piece of mind. I check on my cellular phone the web cam image and since I have installed mini opera on my cell phone I can zoom in the image and see quite a lot of detail. 20$ for the web cam, free yamcam sorftware.

Some people have a net module on their controler, so they can get all sort of info via email. Salinity, temperature, PH, ORP and what ever they have their controler set for.

I do put my aquarium pumps and skimmer on a Noma 400 power backup when I leave, so that if there is a power outage the tank wont die from lack of oxygen.

Next time it's going to be tricky because I now have a copperband butterfly that only eat live white worms, and fresh oyster and mussles.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cathyg_99

what do you do with your tanks/reefs when you go on vacation???

is there any services you can pay someone to come in and feed/check on your fish??

steve fedyk · #4 02-05-2011, 05:15 AM

I use an auto feeder and have my neighborer check in very day. She has a tank to so its great.
I clean the tank before I leave and top up the fresh water, And its good about three to four weeks.

RedCoralEdmonton · #5 02-05-2011, 07:04 AM

Almost every shop in town also offers maintenance services..... Shop around for prices though cuz they fluctuate 30 dollars or more between them..... Or talk to me when you come in tomorrow cuz I don't think anyone is lower....

Steve

Bloodasp · #6 02-05-2011, 09:54 AM

I've gone 2 weeks. Filled my ato 2 weeks worth of water, dumped a bit of calcium into it. Asked the laziest person in the house to watch the tank(idea was he'll only do something to the tank if something looks wrong and won't do any extra work other than what I told him). The glass turned brown which was an easy cleanup, but other than that everything lived.

Aquattro · #7 02-05-2011, 01:25 PM

I guess it depends on how long you're going. I've gone a week, no attention to the tank. Two weeks and I had a friend stop in to change the top off jugs,and feed a bit. When I went for 6 weeks, I had sold my tank before going. Big range

For my next trip of a week, I'm fine leaving as I have ATO plumbed in and everything else is on a controller. I can check from the beach if I want to, but I'll probably be preoccupied.

kien · #8 02-05-2011, 02:36 PM

Going on vacation sucks, it is nerve racking for sure!

I use an autofeeder. I fill a larger rubbermaid tote with enough RO for the duration of the leave. I make sure all of my equipment has been cleaned. I place a powerhead on battery backup. Murphy told me that if something is going to fail it is going to fail while you're on vacation. I have a family member or a friend pop in once every other day or so to check and make sure there is still water in the tank and not on the floor.