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Type a topic, species, or question, Darren has likely written about it

    Guides, tools and resources

    Everything I have built to help you feed your reef

    Free tools that work out your doses, step-by-step culture guides, and help when something goes wrong. All of it comes from 18+ years of growing live marine food in Wales.
    Start here

    New to live food? Read this first

    How to Feed a Reef Tank explains what phytoplankton, copepods and rotifers each do, and how they fit into a simple routine. Then let the Feeding Schedule Builder turn it into a weekly plan for your own tank.

    How to Feed a Reef Tank Build my feeding plan
    Interactive tools

    Find the right product, dose and routine

    Each tool takes a minute or two and uses today's prices and stock. No account needed.
    Feeding Schedule BuilderA complete weekly feeding routine with exact doses for your tank, your fish and your corals. Phytoplankton Dosing CalculatorEnter your tank size and get the exact daily dose in drops or ml, and the cheapest pack to buy. Phytoplankton FinderTell me what you keep and what you want phytoplankton to do. You get your best match and two alternatives.
    Culture guides

    Grow your own live food at home

    Setup, feeding, harvesting and maintenance, based on the same methods I use at production scale. Each guide has a PDF you can download.
    Copepod Culture GuideSet up, feed, harvest and maintain a Tigriopus californicus culture at home. Phytoplankton Culture GuideGrow Nannochloropsis oculata at home: lighting, nutrients, harvesting and storage. Rotifer Culture GuideKeep a Brachionus plicatilis culture going for breeding, fry rearing and reef feeding. Brine Shrimp Hatching GuideHatch live brine shrimp at home: equipment, water prep, hatching and harvesting.
    Mandarins

    Keeping a mandarin dragonet

    The mandarin is not difficult to keep. It is difficult to feed. These two pages cover how to get the feeding right.
    Mandarin Keeper HubWhere to start, what to do if your mandarin is struggling, and the live food that keeps one fed long-term. Keeping Mandarins Alive: the guide seriesMy three e-books on setup, feeding and long-term care. Read the first section free before you buy.
    Help and reading

    Something not right? Start here

    Practical fixes for the most common culture problems, plus answers and articles on feeding a reef.
    Culture Troubleshooting CentreCulture crashed, cloudy or slowing down? Find the cause and the fix for copepods, phytoplankton and rotifers. Live Copepods: your questionsOrdering, acclimating and using live copepods in your reef tank or refugium. The Reefphyto blogReef aquarium guides and live food articles. Use the search at the top of this page to find a topic.

    Can't find what you need? Ask me. I answer every question personally, and I would rather spend a few minutes helping you get it right than have you guess.

    Ask Darren directly
    Need the exact dose? Try the Phytoplankton Dosing Calculator.
    Want a full weekly routine? Try the Feeding Schedule Builder.
    Questions? Ask Darren directly.