Reef tank feeding guide

This guide covers everything you need to know about reef tank feeding guide in a saltwater reef aquarium context. No freshwater content.

Overview

Reef tank feeding guide — practical guide for saltwater reef keepers. Proper nutrition is fundamental to fish health, coral coloration, and overall reef vitality. Feeding strategy directly influences water quality—every gram of food becomes waste that your filtration must process. The goal is to provide complete nutrition while minimizing excess nutrients.

Key takeaways

Variety is essential. No single food provides complete nutrition. Rotate between pellets, frozen foods, nori, and live foods.
Feed small amounts multiple times daily rather than one large feeding. This mimics natural grazing and reduces nutrient spikes.
Target feed demanding corals. LPS and NPS corals benefit from direct feeding with a pipette or turkey baster.
Match food to species. Herbivores need algae/nori, carnivores need meaty foods, and planktivores need small particle foods.
Watch for waste. If food is reaching the bottom uneaten after 2 minutes, you are feeding too much.

In practice

A practical feeding schedule for a mixed reef tank:

Morning: Broadcast a small amount of high-quality marine pellets. Enough for fish to consume in 1–2 minutes.
Afternoon: Clip a sheet of nori for herbivorous fish (tangs, blennies, angelfish). Leave for 2–4 hours.
Evening (lights dimming): Target feed LPS corals and anemones with Mysis or Reef-Roids. Use a pipette or turkey baster to deliver food directly to polyps.
2–3x per week: Feed frozen food (Mysis shrimp, enriched brine shrimp, Cyclops) as a variety supplement.

Common mistakes

Overfeeding. The number one feeding mistake. Excess food decomposes and fuels nitrate, phosphate, and algae. Feed less than you think you should.
Feeding only one food type. A pellet-only diet leads to nutritional deficiencies. Rotate between 3–4 different food types.
Ignoring herbivore needs. Tangs and blennies need daily access to algae (nori). Without it, they develop HLLE and fade in color.
Not target feeding corals. LPS corals like torch, hammer, acan, and brain corals grow dramatically faster with 2–3x weekly target feeding.
Feeding during the day when corals are retracted. Most corals extend feeding tentacles after lights dim. Target feed during this window for best results.

Tips for success

Use a feeding ring or feeding mode on your wavemaker to keep food from blowing into the overflow.
Soak foods in Selcon or garlic extract to boost nutrition and entice picky eaters.
Grow your own copepod and phytoplankton cultures to provide free, live food for mandarins and corals.
Remove uneaten nori after 4 hours to prevent it from decomposing in the tank.
An automatic feeder is essential for vacation coverage—test it for a week before leaving to dial in portion size.

Frequently asked questions

How often should I feed my reef tank?

Feed fish 1–3 times daily in small amounts consumed within 1–2 minutes. Target feed corals 2–3 times per week. Adjust based on your water quality—if nitrate and phosphate are climbing, reduce feeding frequency.

What is the best food for reef fish?

No single food is best. A varied diet of high-quality pellets (TDO, PE Mysis pellets), frozen foods (Mysis shrimp, enriched brine), and nori sheets provides complete nutrition. Avoid cheap flake foods that cloud water and provide poor nutrition.

Do I need to feed my corals?

Photosynthetic corals (soft corals, most LPS, SPS) derive most of their energy from light. However, LPS corals like torches, hammers, and acans visibly benefit from target feeding. NPS corals absolutely require direct feeding to survive. Even photosynthetic corals benefit from broadcast amino acid supplementation.

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