Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

On feeders a big thankyou to the person who dropped the 2 feeders in to the sunbury tip yesterday [these are for the old person with grey hair who has fish in his backyard] I dont know who it was but if you read this thanks aneyway

HD, personally I am not a big fan of the demand feeders:
1) you need to train the fish to activate the feeder
2) if the fish get playful, your feeder can be emptied rather quickly anf thus stuff up your whole system

The automatic feeder I purchased works a treat, I only use it when going on holidays and set the feed levels to what the fish are devouring at the time...it works off four "D" cell batteries and manufacturers specs say these will last for a year

VB has one also and I believe he uses his constantly as he gets home late from work - he may add to the efficiency of his one.

TCL also has her system setup with an auto feeder but she hasn't returned from hols to advise if it was a success

pictures? links? prices?

if possible

Frank

Yeah me too - the trout dont like feeding by artificial light.

Jezz F&F... scored again.... good one mate...

Can you post a pic (or two) of how those ones work?

The only problem with the type Les and I use is that the minimum feed is still a bit of food and may be too much until the fish get a bit of size about them or you have a lot. I think about 100 grams is the minimum. I dealt with this issue by filling one of the dispensing barrels with plaster, which reduces the minimum feed to about half of what it was before.

Thanks everyone. Based on feedback here and a bit of reading we did order one, well actually two. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=14436

They disperse 15grams or 30 with a "double feeding" up to 4 times each day. For now, that will work great. When the fish are full size, it won't be enough food, however, they will be better able to handle a few days with reduced rations so we should be set. I'll post back after we get it as to how effective it seems to be.

heres the pickies

Awesome F&F, they look like beauties, good score

Heard they are the type that they jam up and burn the motors out




...just kidding, nice score

WTF are people throwing such things out for

This topic made me remember that Jim Fah does have pic of a Automatic Feeder
on one of his pages -
http://autopot.com.au/default.aspx?Page ... 1d98874672
that I’ve never seen (noticed) there.

And didn’t see that one advertised on E-bay,
will have to ask him about it next time I see him.


Good idea VB, getting the same feeder ready for spring, still too cold, SP not feeding at all.

And why are they always in Sunbury

I've tried several "fish feeders" here is some info about the feeders that I finally found that worked.

Well, this is the brand feeder they are.
Image
Ergo automatic pet feeders. I got the large ones. The timers are not integral to the units. They are a separate digital timer that can do 8 programs and the increments go down to seconds.

They are not really meant for outdoor use so one must take that into account when deciding how/where to use it and protect it.

I have seen models for sale that seem to have been adapted for pond/fish feeding but they were all an extra $50 or more.

Image

Here is some info from one of the web sites.
Ergo Systems Auto Pet Feeder
Large - 20 lbs.
SKU: 436194
Limited Warranty. We at Ergo Systems Inc. believe that you will be pleased with your new Auto Pet Feeder. Please read this warranty carefully. Ergo Systems Inc will warranty this product to be free from manufacturing defects, including workmanship, when installed and operated according to operating instructions enclosed with this product, for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of original purchse. This warranty is non-transferable and applies solely to the original purchaser and does not extend subsequent owners of this product. Service Center: Ergo Systems Inc. 4642 Western Avenue Lisle, IL60532 (888) ERGOSYS E-mail: contact@ergosys.net. Repair service for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of original purchase at no charge for parts and labor with proof of purchase. Replacement of defective parts for a period of 12 months from the date of original purchase with proof of purchase. (Labor not included after initial ninety (90) days.) This warrranty does not cover cost incurred in the shipping of the product to and from Ergo Systems Inc. for service. Shipping to Ergo Systems Inc. must be prepaid and insured by UPS or other parcel delivery services. This warranty is void if the product is: Damaged dure to negligence, abuse, misuse, accident, modification, tampering, alteration, faulty installation and or acts of God. Used commercial applications or rentals. Modified or repaired by anyone other than Ergo Systems Inc. The extent of Ergo Systems Inc. under this limited warranty is the repair or replacement of the product at the sole discretion of Ergo Systems Inc. in no event shall Ergo Systems Inc.'s liability exceed the purchase price paid by the purchaser. Under no circumstances shall ErgoSystems Inc. be liable for any loss, direct, indirect, incidental, foreseen, unforeseen, special or consequential damage arising out of or in connection with the use of this product. This warranty is valid only in the United States of America and Canada.
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I can't give a long term report yet but so far they are pretty good. Only a few things I wish were better.
1-wish it was outdoor rated.
2-wish the hopper was sealed somehow between feedings. (currently nothing to stop air, moisture and bugs from getting to the food through the auger shoot.)

As I've said in earlier posts, I really like a few things about them;
A-The agitator in the hopper in addition to the auger to dispense the feed. (other feeders I've dealt with had a tendency to jam up and not actually drop any feed even though the feeder had plenty of feed in it.)
B-Easy to open lid (screw on so not really raccoon accessible) (others were like 5 gallon bucket lids that are not so easy to open and close.)
C-See through hopper so one doesn't have to open the thing to see if there is enough food in it.
D-Flexible programing (some of the other feeders were not very flexible.)


Now that I can give a better report. They are still working and worked great while we were away on vacation.
I still wish they kept ants out better but otherwise they are working fine.
I have the timers installed in food containers to protect them from weather so I can have them out by the feeders for easier adjustment.