FDBW sticking to glass

[Psionic]

Ok, I cannot for the life of me get those dang squares to stick to the glass! How do you do it? I'm envious. Teach me your Jedi ways.

I could get the loose ones to stick, but I got the cubes this time and am just failing. It floats away 10 seconds later and I just hold it in my hand while they eat.


-Val

[vicdiscus]

what is FDBW? freeze dry black worms?

[dprais1]

is the glass clean? i mean have you wiped it down recently to get the 'slime' off it?

[Psionic]

Yea the glass is clean. I clean it every other day. I'm growing out juvies so the tank gets cleaned a lot.

And yup it stands for freeze dried black worms. They're from Al.

I just cannot get them to stick. My husband can do it. He says he just pushes hard on the cube to the glass and squeezes the cube. I try that and it doesn't work.


-Val

[TNT77]

I just squish em hard against the glass. Though I have noticed if I don't stick them right away they don't stay on well.

[dprais1]

and if you can't get it to work--don't worry the fish don't care. I stopped sticking my cubes to the glass just so I don't have to stick my hand in the water. the cube hit the water flow from my filter and the fish hang around the current and chase the worms around. plus none of the crazy frenzy.

just drop the cube in the tank

[Mep1127]

Pretty easy. Just grab a cube and press it on the glass so the air comes out of it. Once the cube feels really smushed on to the glass you should be good. You have to make sure the cubes have some chunkyness to them... If you have a small cube it may not stick so well.

[Psionic]

What I've been doing is pushing it onto the glass above the water level and dragging it down into the tank. Maybe I lack this special touch. I like having a cube on opposite sides of the tank so the smaller ones can pig out also during each meal time.


-Val

[TNT77]

What I've been doing is pushing it onto the glass above the water level and dragging it down into the tank. Maybe I lack this special touch. I like having a cube on opposite sides of the tank so the smaller ones can pig out also during each meal time.


-Val
Smush it against the tank while its submerged. When you drag it down you kind of break that stick to the glass.

[Cameronv]

+1 for this one LOL.

Okay so here's my experience with this problem. I'm glad you posted about it because I was just thinking about this a few days ago.

So I've ordered both al's and dans FDBW. Al's are australian BW and dans are california raised BW. The australian worms are a lot smaller in size than California's. My fish seem to like them equally so I switch back and forth usually when I run out of 50-100grams. Both of these worms are great.

The Californian raised are much larger and denser making them very very easy to stick to the glass. This has its disadvantages though. They take for ever to break apart and even some of my large fish (5-6inch) cant break into them and rip out worms for a few minutes - 3 to 5min. They can also be too large to feed to small fish like a maturing german ram. They come in the form of pressed sheets that you break up yourself, I'm not really into this pressed sheet.

Australian worms are much smaller and feel less dense in the cube form than cal raised. They come in individual cubes which I like. They are harder to stick on the glass but MUCH easier for all my fish to eat. Even my very small fish can eat them. They break apart much quicker giving everyone a chance to eat them. I think my fish like the taste of australian worms a little better IMO. These cubes give me trouble when trying to stick them onto the glass. If you don't stick them right they fall off and float for ever which drives me crazy.

Here's what I did. I took 3 cubes and stuck each of them w/ different pressure on different parts of the glass (which is wiped clean before). 1 pushing the entire thing on there, 2 lightly pushing and 3 pushing in between those. If you push the entire cube on there including the sides it comes off way too easy. If you push too soft the air in the cube doesn't release and can't cause a vacuum affect - keeping it on the glass. I push in the middle of the cubes and just enough too see some air release then stop. I've gotten it down to keep 4/5 cubes stuck on the glass until completely demolished.

[dprais1]

I trust you, but...

"I think my fish like the taste of australian worms a little better IMO"

how can you tell? is it the twinkle in their eyes? joking


why the obsession with sticking them to the glass? i don't get it.

here's my stance and what I have been doing. take a cube-soak in the tank water for 15-30 min.

drop cube in tank with the water

done

-cube breaks up real easy
-all fish get worms
-no fighting
-i'm guessing less chance of bloat because they are eating 'wet' foods that won't expand in their little tummies
-with my hob filter it actually takes them longer to finish a cube than sticking it to the glass, again minimizing the chance of bloat.
-its more fun to watch them chase the worms around the tank and catch them than the frenzy at the cube.

just my thoughts and opinion

[Psionic]

I'll give that a shot in the morning. It drives me nuts cause my husband and friend can do it so dang easily and mine just flutter away as soon as it is pecked at. When it first floats off, I'll grab it and try to stick it back. No go. I just wait there as they eat. Rinse and repeat for about 1-3 cubes... 8+ times a day. I like to mix up their food at random during each feeding. They love those worms. As soon as they see the bag, they're already nipping at the water surface. Eventually I get impatient and run it under the filter so it floats all over the tank.

I will get this! Mark my words, those cubes won't stand a chance -.- I've got a new 100 gram bag of cubes. By the end of the bag, I WILL get these things to stick.


-Val

[dprais1]

Val-

get a big piece of clear carton sealing tape.
press the cube onto the sticky side
press the sticky side against the aquarium glass (on the outside of course)

-mission accomplished

hope that helps
dan

[Psionic]

Sorry dprais, I wrote out my post before reading yours. I guess mine is just more convenient for the smaller ones. If it's floating around, they will usually wait for the others to finish or get poked away. I know that's just how things are, but I'm a total sap and feel bad that the small ones get the leftovers.

If it's on the glass, for some reason they get more forceful and peck at it nonchalantly. I think the larger ones get so wrapped up in nipping at it that they don't notice the smaller ones chewing away at them also.


-Val

[dprais1]

when you soak it for a little bit then it breaks apart so easy. its worth a try at least right?

[strawberryblonde]

Or you can take the lazy way out and do what I do. LOL

73900

That pic is from a LONG time ago, but it's the system I've been using for nearly a year without a hitch. I now have 2 Lee's feeder cones (the one piece type, not the 2 piece ones) and put one at each end so that all 9 of my monster discus can get food at the same time.

In the beginning I put 3 cubes into the feeder and let them nibble. As they grew I added more cubes at each feeding and they just munch on them for an hour or so till gone. These days they get 8 cubes in each feeder and it's gone within 30 minutes. Darned little piggies. LOL

[Keith Perkins]

I had all kinds of trouble getting the loose ones to stick, but when I switched to cubes I think I finally figured out my problem and from what you've said I think you're doing the same thing wrong I was. The trick for me was to immediately stick the cube to the side below the water line, don't allow for any time for them to absorb water. You said that when they don't stick you've try to reattach them without success, yea that never works.

[dprais1]

Or you can take the lazy way out and do what I do. LOL

73900

That pic is from a LONG time ago, but it's the system I've been using for nearly a year without a hitch. I now have 2 Lee's feeder cones (the one piece type, not the 2 piece ones) and put one at each end so that all 9 of my monster discus can get food at the same time.

In the beginning I put 3 cubes into the feeder and let them nibble. As they grew I added more cubes at each feeding and they just munch on them for an hour or so till gone. These days they get 8 cubes in each feeder and it's gone within 30 minutes. Darned little piggies. LOL

I like that, but i like your fish even more. that one on the far right is really nice!

[strawberryblonde]

I like that, but i like your fish even more. that one on the far right is really nice!

Thankies, that would be my RT from Hans. He's a "wee" bit bigger these days. <insert a few loud guffaws here>

[dprais1]

glad to hear that, i have a 3+ RT sitting in my Hans virtual shopping cart...alond with a BD and a Brilliant. Can't wait.

[Teshi]

I like to smoosh them to the glass so I can watch them eat it. Besides this gives me a chance to see who is eating, who isn't, if there are any white spots, holes ETC.... I like to smoosh it!!!

[dprais1]

sorry everyone, my mother and the world

smoosh it...smoosh it real good....

[stac545]

sorry everyone, my mother and the world

smoosh it...smoosh it real good....

Love it !!!! Now that song is stuck in my head. LOL

[Psionic]

Yesterday they got dewormed so they weren't too happy. But I would stick FDBW to the glass and they'd slowly eat them. I practiced and now I got it down! I just squished it in my hand to take some air out of it and then pushed it against the wall when it was wet. Now that they're back to normal today, they devoured them on the glass.


-Val

[Pilchard]

I soak them and use one of those little perforated cups.

[tannin]

My discus bite my fingers if I am too slow sticking the cube to the glass :)