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Raw or boiled veg?
Posted: 15 Dec 2003, 13:57
by bagpiper
When feeding plecs with courgette/zucchini, potatoes etc, do you boil/blanche it first or just put it in raw?
Posted: 15 Dec 2003, 14:20
by Caol_ila
Hi!
I would never boil it! That will break up most usefull vitamins. At the most blanche them, but imo thats not necessary. I just put in all veggies raw and the plecos seem to appreciate this. Although ive never tried it i think blanched veggies will ruin your water much quicker. At 25°C a potato is stable for at least 2-3 days in my tank (after this its gone anyway).
Posted: 15 Dec 2003, 15:40
by Kostas
Posted: 15 Dec 2003, 20:11
by Yann
Hi!
I don't boil them either... I jsut try to make them sink by putting a weight on them or by "hanging" them on the furniture...
As Chris said, they last longer and won't foul the water as fast as boiled
Cheers
Yann
Posted: 16 Dec 2003, 06:37
by Waldo
I tuck mine under the clay pots. until they knock it out. jerks
Posted: 16 Dec 2003, 06:51
by pleco_breeder
Hello,
I usually feed them raw, but found a handy way of keeping them from floating. Tie a piece of light fishing line to the tank stand. Give enough length to reach a little farther than the intended feeding site, and tie a plant weight to the end. The weight can be shoved through the veggies, and effectively holds them down. The fishing line is there to keep from having to reach in the tank several times a week to get the weight back.
Larry Vires
Posted: 17 Dec 2003, 22:19
by Dinyar
pl*co_breeder wrote:The fishing line is there to keep from having to reach in the tank several times a week to get the weight back.
I like the idea of using a plain old net. One with a long handle, if necessary. My son has this irritating habit of sticking forks into veggies to make them sink. Industrial clutter in my fish tanks bothers me. Almost as bad as bubbling divers and castles.
Dinyar
PS: BTW, Larry, nice to see you here. It's been a while since Catfish List days!
Blanched or raw ???
Posted: 18 Dec 2003, 09:19
by Alan_au
I blanch or boil all my veg, that way it sinks on it's own. as for still being there a day or two later. There is nothing left an hour or two later. I tried the idea of weighing down a split raw zuchini but the fish didn't seem to enjoy it ( probably spoiled) yet the same amount of balnched veg in the same tank is consumed within a hour.
Alaso you take as many short cuts as you can when feeding over 50 tanks and some times a couple of thousand young fish.
Alan.