Your opinion of various tropical staple flake foods, Tetra, Wardley, Topfin, Nutrafin, Aquarian, HBH, others?

Question

From best to worst, what do you think?
Nutrafin (Hagen)
Aquarian (Aquarium Pharmaceuticals)
Tetra
Wardley
Omega One
Big Al's (house brand)
Hikari
New Life
OSI
HBH
Ocean Nutrition
Pet Solution's (house brand)
That Fish Place (house brand)
Top Fin (house brand)
Aqueon (new?)

Something else? What do your fish eat well with? Which food keeps them healthy and colorful? Do you use "color enhancing" foods? Do they work?

Thanks for all your input!

Answer 1

They are all pretty much the same.

If you really want to bring out the color and life in your tropical fish, simulate their natural diet.

Chopped spinach and other greens for algae grazers such as mbunas. Sliced beefheart, bloodworms, mosquito larvae, small crickets, earthwors and clean feeder fish of appropriate size for piscivores and micro-predators like discus, Cichlasomine cichlids, oscars or angelfish.

Daphnia and brine shrimp naupli for little guys like tetras, barbs, rainbows and killies.

If you are going to feed live, then be sure to keep the feeder animal for a few days in clean conditions and feed them a good diet as well. Quarantining will prevent spread of diseases.

Answer 2

I have always liked using Aquarian and Wardley personally. There are several on your list I haven't used and can't speak to at all. While most any of these can be counted on to provide a good staple to a fishes diet supplemental feeding with other things is really needed for the best health of your fish. Those items need to be tailored to the needs of each fish with algae grazers getting plenty of greens, omnivores getting a good mix and meat eaters having as much meat and live foods as they need. I have always fed plenty of live foods and frozen foods to supplement fishes diets and feel very strongly that it contributes to the fishes over all health and condition.

On one additional note concerning feeding of supplemental foods, avoid land based meat products when possible. That is beef, chicken, pork etc. Especially raw organ meat such as liver, heart, etc. from those sources. Terrible material for fish over all as it provides the wrong amino acids and far too much fat. Those meats are not as well digested by fish as meat sources from water based or insect based materials. Also, avoid really messy foods that will foul a tank quickly. Very juicy fruits and very sweet fruits provide very little for fish that can't be found in a good staple diet plus vegetable matter. Therefore avoid these as they give the fish practically nothing and foul the tank very quickly.

MM

Answer 3

All my fish get Tetra flakes as a part of their diet, they also get Pellets(Hikari) frozen brine shrimp, freeze dried bloodworms and live Blackworms.

When I had my oscar I bred my own feeder fish(Mollies, swordtails) to make sure My live foods for him were safe.

Answer 4

because all the smells intertwine when they cook and smell good. it's not hard to make food smell good. it's harder to make food taste good. my neighbors are full chinese i believe doubt they came from America but their house is a total pig sty. theirs crap they bring home from work all over their front yard and back yard and it's all broken things like tables, fridge, washing machines,etc.. but from time to time when they are cooking it smells really good. but i highly doubt it tastes that good. why? just walk infront of their door step and you will understand why theirs craps everywhere including dead plants/animals decaying like fish. Im sure they don't shop at a real grocery store either but the local china town and everyone in my state knows the china town isn;t very good for groceries as it's been known to carry rats and it isn't even that tasty. that being said don't let the smells fool you.

Answer 5

i use hikari but they make pellets and not flakes. i think it helps to balance out their diet with frozen foods and fresh greens too. fish go crazy for bloodworms -- i read you shouldn't feed them to cichlids for some weird digestive reason though.

Answer 6

Tetra was always tried-and-true trustworthy and good quality. Its a sure thing.