Phyto-feast directions

Phyto-Feast™ Live - Directions & Storage

How Much to Feed?

If you have not used Phyto-Feast™ Live before, start with 1 drop per gallon each day (100 drops = 1.3 teaspoons or 6.5 ml's) . Your animals will rapidly become accustomed to the phytoplankton (microalgae) and be able to feed on quite a bit more. Common dosage for a mature system is 1-5 drops per gallon each day, depending on your tank setup and animal density.

If your animals do not "clear" the water in less than an hour - back off on the amount you are adding because your systems is not fully digesting all the microalgae.

Always shake the bottle a few times before opening it. The larger algae cells such as Tetraselmis tend to settle to the bottom.

We recommend turning off your skimmer before adding the algae. Many customers have been successful by putting their skimmer on a vacation timer so it automatically turns back on later in the evening (2 hours is a good window).

Tank Size	Minimum (Daily)	Suggested Maximum (Daily)
10 gallons	10 drops (0.65 ml)	50 drops (3.25 ml)
100 gallons	100 drops (6.50 ml, 1.3 teaspoon)	500 drops (32 ml, 6.5 teaspoons)

Storage

Phyto-Feast^(TM) must be stored in your refrigerator. The best place to store algae is the bottom shelf, it is the coldest place in your refrigerator. The worst place to store it is the refrigerator door - it is too warm. Phyto-Feast^(TM) cannot be frozen - that will break many of the algae cells.

Here is an interested link on refrigerator dynamics: http://www.eufic.org/gb/food/pag/food25/food252.htm. It shows that when a refrigerator is at 41 F (5C) on the middle shelf the bottom shelf will be about 35 F (2C) and up to 59 F (15C) in the door. We recommend that the algae be stored below 40 F; in a door at 50 F + it expire quickly.

Do I need to worry about bacteria or algae blooms if use Phyto-Feast™

Typically No. Bacteria blooms would be caused if a significant amount of biomass remained in your system for several days. Your protein skimmer will quickly remove any excess Phyto-Feast^(TM)from your system.

Will soft corals and clams, and other bivalve shellfish feed on Phyto-Feast^TM products?

Microalgae has an almost magical affect when it is added to a marine reef tank - within seconds your animals come to life!

Tridacnid clams (juveniles and adults) start pulsing as they detect the food in the water
Soft and hard corals fully extend their polyps
Feather dusters and other types of worms expand
Some species of nudibranchs become active. We have personally seen a Spanish Dancer detach from the wall within seconds of detecting the algae and swim for 20 minutes. The store owner said they had never seen it move off the side of the wall before that.

Phyto-Feast

Live Zooplankton

Soft Corals
~80% of their diet

~20% of their diet

Hard Corals
~20% of their diet

~80% of their diet

Tridacnid Clams
Juveniles ~80% of their diet
Adults ~20% of their diet

Juveniles ???
Adults YES

Sponges
YES

YES

Ascidians
YES

???

Rotifers
YES

Copepods
YES

Cleaner Shrimp
Juveniles - YES

YES

Worms (feather dusters)
YES

YES