# Question about mess



## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

Everytime i feed my p's smelt it breaks apart and makes a BIG mess of small bits on the gravel. I could go in and pick out some of the big pieces, but some are real small and brittle and when i grab them it breaks. Is it bad to have this excess food sitting around? Is there anyway i can prevent smelt feeding from being so messy? Thanks


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## o snap its eric (Feb 19, 2003)

Yes ans Yes. Chop your smelt into chunks and feed it your piranhas making shure they can eat it in one bite. Leaving too much uneaten food in the tank may cause planeria. Small worms crawling in your tank and bad water chemistry


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## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

o snap its eric said:


> Yes ans Yes. Chop your smelt into chunks and feed it your piranhas making shure they can eat it in one bite. Leaving too much uneaten food in the tank may cause planeria. Small worms crawling in your tank and bad water chemistry


 Cool thanks. Should i worry about this after having this problem only once in my new tank. The floor is scattered with little bits of smelt.


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## smb (Jun 1, 2003)

Like o snap its eric said, it's very bad to have uneaten food sitting in your tank.

You can get planaria in there, which isn't harmful, but ugly to look at. but it also decreases water quality immensely.

Never leave uneaten food in the tank for more than 30 mins. If they don't eat it within 5 minutes, they usually never will.

If it's only once that you have this problem, do a gravel clean and get rid of the excess food now.


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

Do you have a pleco or another bottom cleaner? If so, he'll be very thankful, and most likely stuffing himself asw e speak...
If not, you might consider getting one!


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## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

My pygos shred everything I put in there and there is always some small particles that float around and make it to the gravel. If you have enough bio filtration you will not have a problem with water quality....at least I never have. I only feed every few days but I am not going cut up the meat into bite size portions, way too much work and the particles are no more than the scales left by feeders. I do my weekly water changes and gravel vac and that is it and no worms in my tank.


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