Algae Sheets

New favorite food for my BN. Have seen similar sold as seaweed sheets, but these are algae given to me by Carolan. Bn go crazy for it trust me. Softens as soon as it hits the water, I weigh mine down with cotterpins, holds together well, pieces that are separated are neutrally buoyant and are consumed off the intake filter. Never seen it go fungussy or break down like other foods and keep it in the tanks until fully consumed(doesn't take long). I believe she said that is is human-grade and available at health food stores.

Hi,I have tried the seaweed sheets but they break up real quickly and float all over the tank and clog the filter.I have tried a few different ways to try and avoid this but it's impossible.I wonder if the algae sheets are any different?

looks cool!

are they expensive?

I have no idea what they cost, but I do know that they are tasteless and take a long time to chew

Do you know the name or trade name of this product I'm imagining that it's a type of blue green algae product.

No, they were a gift from Carolan... haven't seen her on for a few days, but she'd be the one to ask.

Carolaaaaaaan!

Where are you when we need you?!?


I am also very interested in this seaweed thing.

Please keep us up-to-date!

I was in my LFS today and asked about these algae sheets.

They actually had them in so I bought some.

They are made/Distributed by Ocean Nutrition and are made from Green Marine Algae.

Apparently they are made from Natural Dried Seaweeds (Macroalgae) enhanced with natural garlic extract (or so it says on the packet).

Not cheap at £9.00 for 10 sheets, but it did come with a "lettuce" clip which has a sucker on it so that you can clip it to the sieof the tank.

Obviously not sureif its the same on that Carolan gave Jeff but the packet indicates they are sold in America, Asia and Europe.

I've only used a little strip and the Bn's seem to love them.

Hope this helps



Jon

Thanks Jon for the help!

I'll see if that is available in Hungary.
If not, I'll try when visiting Interzoo in May (Nuremberg, Germany).

Sorry to dampen some peoples hearts/ pockets, but the algae/seaweed sheets you are all refering to, is actualy called 'Nori' and can be obtained from most Chinese and Japanese suprmarkets/stores for less than £2 for ten sheets. Your local FS will rip you off.

I paid £4 for 24 sheets of this off ebay about 6 months ago.Mine was Omega One super veggie seaweed sheets.

Am sorry, but I would not trust Chinese products, since we are all aware of the poultry products full with antibiotics, chocolate containing human ashes.

I am ready to pay more for the sake of my fishes.

By the way, nori is for human consumption, hence some ingredients might be OK for us, but could be harmful to our little friends.

mmccannon wrote:

Am sorry, but I would not trust Chinese products, since we are all aware of the poultry products full with antibiotics, chocolate containing human ashes.

I am ready to pay more for the sake of my fishes.

By the way, nori is for human consumption, hence some ingredients might be OK for us, but could be harmful to our little friends.

Search nori on Ebay Mary, you will be supprised what you will find.
I have been feeding it to my BN's for a number of years now with no problems. Although it can be obtained from Chinese shops, it is in actual fact a Japanese product.

You might be right, but I have met the aforementioned products in Hungary. Maybe I am overreactiing.

mmccannon wrote:

You might be right, but I have met the aforementioned products in Hungary. Maybe I am overreactiing.

I don't think you are over reacting at all Mary, you're right to be concerned about what you can feed your BN's, I just thought I would pass on information about this product thaI have actualy used myself. The choice is entirely yours if you do not wish to use it.
Regards.

Bristlenoses wrote:

I paid £4 for 24 sheets of this off ebay about 6 months ago.Mine was Omega One super veggie seaweed sheets.

If their Omega One then they are good. Haven't found one of their products my fish don't like
Carol

Hi Carol,only trouble i had is they just break up and float all over in pieces and go into the filter.I can't get them to stay in one piece or one place unfortunately

I use large pre-filter sponges on my tanks to catch the excess. Plecs are often seen feeding from these intake filters... the bonus is that food is not wasted and the filters inside the units last much longer.

Bristlenoses wrote:

Hi Carol,only trouble i had is they just break up and float all over in pieces and go into the filter.I can't get them to stay in one piece or one place unfortunately

I have a plastic fry keeper (about 3inches x 5inches) that I turn upside down and prop on a rock Then I put floaty things under it. Such as flake, freeze dried foods etc. The Kuhlis and Bn have a good time and the food isn't in the filter I think it might work for that too.
Carol

Hey Carol that sounds like a plan.I will give it a go,excellent idea,thanks

Bristlenoses wrote:

Hi Carol,only trouble i had is they just break up and float all over in pieces and go into the filter.I can't get them to stay in one piece or one place unfortunately

Hi, I' m new here, I have found a little thing called a "feeding grid". It's just a folded over black plastic mesh with a suction cup clip. I close up the two open sides of it with fishing line which makes it a kind of basket- the top is held shut by the suction clip. I fill that with any of the marine algae (brown or green, freshwater fish don't seem to care for the red or purple varieties in my experience). It works like a charm, it stays put and none is wasted, the BN rasp on it through the honeycomb holes till it is gone.

Hello,


Just wanted to let everyone know about these algae sheets.

Yes I believe the ones I gave Jeff were Nori-so Japanese, I use Nori or other green seaweed sheets, but I always check the ingredients because sometimes you may find some seaweed will have added salt or preservatives.

Here in Canada and in many other countries around our world all food for human consumption must have a full list of ingredients as well as the nutrition facts-daily Values, or Nutrional value content and so on.

So for example the Yaki Nori is roasted seaweed-is traditionally eaten by many asian cultures as well as south american cultures and many island nations and other cultures around the world living close to any ocean.
Only ingredient is seaweed. Has 1 full gram of protein per sheet- each sheet weighs 2.5g so wow!!! Has 20% of the recommended daily (human) dose of Vitamin A for humans so again wow!!!, contains Iron, carbohydrates/Glucides- 1g so very nutrious again, 20mg of sodium(this I have found to be essential in that if there is added salt the sodium content will be very much higher).

I believe I purchased that specific package for $1.00 for 10 sheets, tharey last me a long time,I have afew other varieties as well but same process of selection, I find Plecos especially Bn's LOVE variety so I try to change things up for them and make feeding fun and interesting!>>> still have a few sheets left of the ones I brought for Jeff. Jeff said

Quote :

I use large pre-filter sponges on my tanks to catch the excess. Plecs are often seen feeding from these intake filters... the bonus is that food is not wasted and the filters inside the units last much longer.

This is something I also have in my tanks and I also have found that there is really is no waste so what is caught in the sponges gets eaten anyways and usually very quickly. But I love the idea of a "feeding grid" by Sarahdd- sounds good will have to see if I can find one!!!

.. they are sold by Ocean Nutrition and called "grid feeding clips". The are marketed as good for pointy nosed marine fish.

On the subject of nori, there seem to be different opinions about using it for BN due to the protein,, and some concern about salt. From what I can find, salt doesn't appear to be a problem, it's claimed most is removed in the processing and it is actually fairly low.
Protein is another matter, estimates are all over the map, from 20% all the way up to over 60%! The highest claims are from sites promoting it for humans, so there may be some bias.
I think one problem is there are several varieties of seaweed being marketed under the catch-all name "nori".
The seller BrineShrimpDirect here in the states sells 3 varieties of seaweed and gives a break down for each - none comes near 60% protein.
Nori sold for humans seems to all be cultivated in China if you read past the sometimes misleading branding. There are some claiming to be organic, using no chemical fertilizers etc.
The main difference, and perhaps an important one for fish, is whether it is raw or what is usually called toasted.
I am ordering a small quantity of a raw organic nori that claims has been dried at temps no higher than around 100 degrees to see if fish like it and if it appears different than the normal product sold specifically for fish Anyone ever tried such a product?