How to Use Vitamins in a Marine Tank

Like all living things, saltwater fish and marine invertebrates require certain chemicals to survive and thrive, including micronutrients like vitamins. You can add vitamins to marine organisms' diets in ways including selecting foods naturally rich in vitamins and using vitamin supplements available from high-end pet shops and online.

  1. Dry Foods

    • Most marine fish and inverts will not take dry food like fish flakes, pellets and freeze-dried foods. However, a few common species, like clown fish, may. Still, prepared foods often lack vitamins. You can make up for this deficit by soaking foods in nutritional supplements. All you have to do is soak your dried prepared food in supplements for one to two minutes, then feed as you would normally. Do not pour liquid vitamin supplements directly into the water.

    Live Foods

    • You can use vitamin supplements to enhance the nutritional value of live foods. Since marine organisms eat so many different live foods, the specifics of how to do so may vary somewhat. With most aquatic organisms, you simply add a few drops of the supplements to their culture water. The exact dosage and procedure will vary based on the exact supplement you use. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions, then feed the organisms as you would otherwise.

    Other Sources of Vitamins

    • You can ensure your fish get enough vitamins without resorting to liquid supplements in most cases. Rotate foods for variety, and feed your fish a diverse diet. A varied diet ensures that fish get a variety of nutrients. Add various vitamin-rich grocery store foods to your marine organisms. Salmon, herring and crustacean meat are rich in vitamins and other important nutrients. However, you may need to pay more attention to surface skimming when you do this, since their flesh is somewhat oily.

    Invertebrates

    • Even sessile marine invertebrates like coral can benefit from vitamins. Many species of coral, even mostly photosynthetic species, eat small organisms for trace elements. You can feed either specially prepared coral foods or tiny live food, prepared with vitamins just as for fish. Some coral and other inverts absorb certain minerals directly from the water, their equivalent of vitamins. Fish stores that sell reef organisms often stock liquid supplements for corals.