Develop a working sense of how much and how often to feed the fish in your saltwater aquarium. Use the guidelines in the following list and keep in mind that it's definitely better to feed them too little at first than too much.

  • Offer as much food as your fish will eat in five minutes. Food should sink no deeper than one third the height of the tank. Provide tablets, pellets, or sinking food for bottom fish and invertebrates.

  • Feed your food in very small portions over the five-minute period. If any food is left over after this time, you are an overfeeder.

    Some foods, such as lettuce and spinach, are nibbled over time, so the five-minute rule does not apply.

  • If you're home during the day, feed your fish and invertebrates very small portions over the course of the day. If you're not home, feed them twice a day at the same times every day, once in the morning at once at night. Keep in mind that some critters are nocturnal, so you may have to feed them after the lights are out.

  • Always feed your fish at the same spot in the tank. This lets you sneak food down to the bottom dwellers, while the surface fish are distracted.

  • Don't overfeed the finish, no matter how much you think they need more food. Overeating stresses your fish and causes detritus to accumulate in the tank, degrading water quality.