newb feeding powder question

[Whitesage1]

I've had red cherry shrimp for about a year but I'll admit I'm still a newb. My fire reds have finally started breeding consistently. In fact they are filling up my 10g. So I bought some shirakura yellow powder baby shrimp food. I'm not sure how to feed it though. I've been pulling a little water out of the tank and mixing a couple of scoops in the water, shaking it up good and pouring it back in. It swirls around the tank a minute and then sinks to the bottom. Is that right?  I'm still dropping in a wafer of the ebi dama too for the adults. It's gone in about an hour. Is that too much?

[PlantDude]

I usually do it that method, or I'll take a fresh cup of RO/DI water and mix the powder foods. Another step that is optional is to turn off filter(s) before you pour your powder in, to ensure the powder is distributed instead of getting sucked in by the filter. For your Ebi, it sounds like you're feeding the right amount if they finish it that fast.

[jem_xxiii]

I usually just feed in tiny pinches mixed with some fresh RO. You can always check out the elevateshrimp.com store as they have a little container that you can suction cup to your tank where you can mix the powder until it drops into the tank. 

[Soothing Shrimp]

I just wet the bottom end of a bamboo skewer, stick it in the powder, then swirl the stick in the tank. Easy peasy.

[OMG Aquatics]

I usually use a tube and drop it into a feeding dish for a week to ensure shrimp are actually interested and eating this food instead of just polluting the tank.

 

If the shrimp loves it, then you can do what you're doing now.

[Clansman]

I extended a 20 ml syringe with a kiddies hard plastic twirly straw connected by a little air line tubing, I mix up a tiny amount of fine baby food mixed in tank water and syringe it to 7 or 8 feeding places , total food is half of a small pea

[DETAquarium]

Just within the last couple months I started really using powdered foods. I currently take pure RODI water add my powders swirl around and use a turkey baster to spread the powder at the bottom of the tank, primarily in my Mini Pellia carpets. 

[Whitesage1]

Thanks for the answers. How many of you feed the powder and what are your results? I've got a couple dead in the tank today but my shrimp are getting older and the tank water is fine. no ammo, nitrites and barely any nitrates. I did about 1/3 WC. I never have found a good way to vacuum but I have these little fluval intank filters that clean pretty well and are shrimp safe. 

[PlantDude]

I don't feed it exclusively, but maybe once a week. I have baby shrimp so I mainly do it for them and in general all the shrimp seem to like the food. How many are dead? Any sudden changes to your tank?

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[monty703]

I use an old glass test tube (the ones you get with the API kits) and put tiny spoonful in the tube and mix 5ml of tank water with it, then use a dropper to distribute it around the areas that I figure the berried mammas/baby shrimps are hiding in....aka cholla wood/driftwood/dense moss areas.

 

This way they get the 1st crack at the food, the adults can find food anywhere, but as most berried females and babies hide they don't always get the chance to grab some of the goodies that are delivered to the tank.....powdered foods like BioPlus/Gravidas/Geochem Polytase etc will ensure they actually get something that helps them without having to come out of hiding for it.