# Eheim Automatic Feeder



## BubbiBubba (Jul 8, 2012)

Anyone have experience with these??? 

Will it work for a single betta fish in a 5 gal Aqueon Bowfront Tank?

Help is appreciated! Bubba is in risk.


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## MrVampire181 (May 12, 2009)

No. Too much food. 

A fish is not a mammal. We need to eat 5-6 times a day to keep our body going. A big fish like sharks can go months without a meal. A betta can go up to two weeks without an issue.


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## Destinystar (May 26, 2012)

Sorry I have not yet had to leave Perseus for more than one night and day. But I was looking around in case I did ever have to be away for more then a couple of days or so. How about this one it has a video with it of a lady talking about how she likes it, its a seven day feeder. 

http://www.expotv.com/videos/reviews/18/167/TopFin7DayFishFoodFeeders/150809


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## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

I have this autofeeder. I left my 10 gal with guppies in the care of this autofeeder and came back to a bottom littered with food and a few dead fish. Unless you are going to be gone more than a week, your betta will be fine without food.


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## battered (Dec 24, 2011)

Slow release blocks aren't recommended. Extremely unreliable and can foul the water quickly. I found a fish feeder (the Fish Mate F14 Feeder) that allows you to determine the portions you feed your fish every day, which I think is amazing for bettas. You can even skip every other day or so if you want to minimize waste/ammonia buildup.


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## MSG (May 8, 2012)

*I need to get one of these F14's.*

I have the other fish feeders and they're are horrible with portion control.


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## zzrguy (Jul 3, 2012)

I have the Eheim it did not work well with pellets way to much comes out. I got the one from Zoo Med for Bettas and it works pretty good gives between 3 to 7 pellets and only feeds once a day.













Automatic Daily Betta Feeder: 

Automatically feeds your Betta once a day.
Great for scheduled feeding times or vacations!
Mounts directly to the side of tank, or use enclosed rail kit for round Betta bowls or other tanks.
Uses one AA size battery (Battery included).
Use with Zoo Med's Micro Floating Betta Pellet. (Includes sample food and conditioner)
*Additional Information:*


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## zzrguy (Jul 3, 2012)

http://www.youtube.com/embed/raAVeTBrszQ


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## battered (Dec 24, 2011)

I considered the Bettamatic as well, but ended up not getting it because of a lot of mixed reviews (http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Betta...TF8&qid=1342808216&sr=8-1&keywords=bettamatic). The biggest problem, however, was that if it did feed 4-5 pellets a day, that would lead to a buildup of waste, which would require someone to do water changes if the vacation was long enough. And if you aren't gone long enough to require a water change, you probably can just leave the fish unfed in the first place. If you have someone capable of doing water changes for you during your vacation, I don't see the point of getting an automatic feeder (they can just stop by and feed). Again, the problem of "overfeeding" (not really overfeeding, but you get the point).


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## zzrguy (Jul 3, 2012)

My fish eats all the pellets up to 7 pellets and if one makes it to the bottom the shrinp finish off.


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## battered (Dec 24, 2011)

I don't have anything against it - I'm sure it's fine for feeding and everything. I just meant, if a betta eats 7 pellets every day, he'll need a water change at least every week. This is simply not possible if a person is gone for a week+ long vacation and has no one to perform the water change. The fish then runs the risk of a high ammonia buildup/spike.


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## BubbiBubba (Jul 8, 2012)

battered said:


> I don't have anything against it - I'm sure it's fine for feeding and everything. I just meant, if a betta eats 7 pellets every day, he'll need a water change at least every week. This is simply not possible if a person is gone for a week+ long vacation and has no one to perform the water change. The fish then runs the risk of a high ammonia buildup/spike.


But what if the person's fish is living in a 5 gal tank that is cycled? Surely you wouldn't need to change the water as often as every week besides a PWC... & that could be done a week or two later when they return home, right???

ON ANOTHER NOTE: It's the 3rd week & I'm leaving in 3 days... They tank's not fully cycled yet... Good god what am I going to do?!


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## battered (Dec 24, 2011)

In a cycled 5 gallon, you should do water changes (not 100% necessarily, but a water change nevertheless) weekly at least. If it's one week, you could do a big water change before leaving, then do one when you get back. Not sure if there would be any ammonia spikes/anything in that time. If it's two weeks and you have the betta fed ~5 pellets a day, I feel like there might be some water quality issues without a water change inbetween that period. 

I think the best course to go is just to not feed the fish during the vacation. A healthy adult betta can go 1-2 weeks without food. Plus, you wouldn't have to worry about water quality issues.


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