Fish Mate P21 Programmable Automatic Fish Feeder for Pond & Large Aquariums

My old pond fish feeder had finally given up and at over £100 for an identical model, to be used for 2 weeks once a year it really wasn't worth it. So I took a chance on this one. I use 2-4mm pellets and this feeder will comfortably hold 100 grams of pellets rising to 140 grams with a bit of care when filling. For me that's perfect for 2 weeks feeding of the 5 large fish I have in my pond. They're not Koi, just Shubunkins and regular goldfish that are well over 15 years old and thriving. 10 grams a day keeps them fed and healthy. The feeder is a battery operated rotating drum built into a quartz clock mechanism. As. the drum turns, the feed is dispensed over a period of time, which is apparently better for the fish. Powered by one AA battery, it's supposed to be able to run for one year on this but this is not something that matters for my use - as long as it lasts for 2 to 3 weeks that's ok So far it has been good on that count.. I've been testing it over a few days and it consistently delivers the same weight of food every 24 hours. It is easy to set up and install over a pond, with several options for hanging or fixing. I will use the supplied bracket and fix it to a part of the water outlet from the filter. The drum is housed inside a plastic cover which is easy to open for access and refilling. I cannot comment on whether it is weatherproof as I've not used it outside yet. So far despite its size I think it is good value for the money. It works and will provide for my fish if I'm ever away.

A very reasonably priced fish feeder for a small pond. It is a simple device which rotates and drops out a quantity of food once a day. It runs off a battery so no wiring up issues. It has so far kept the food (sticks) dry and no issues of any creatures getting inside it. The amount of food being dispensed is not very scientific and will depend on the size of the sticks/pellets and how large you adjust the opening - so just takes a bit of trial and error to find the best setting for your pond/food/fish. Similarly the timing of the feeding is not particularly precise and seems to be gradual probably over an hour or two - the fish do not seem to mind. You do need to attach it/hang it over the pond somehow. It would be helpful if the cover was clearer so that the amount of the remaining food could be seen. All in all a reasonable product for the price and for simple holiday feeding seems to do the trick.

Used this when I went on vacation and it worked a treat, keeping the fish in my pond fed regularly.

Feeling a little mean only giving three stars here - as this is actually a fab product! However... there are some issues... and the issues being mine (I am saying mine, although from reading other reviews, it seems I'm not the only one with the issue) isn't completely watertight - both when it comes to the food compartment, and the battery compartment. Occasionally water will get in the food section. This doesn't happen each time it gets used, so I suspect this happens when it's been heavy rain. When the food gets wet it turns to "mush" and gets stuck, meaning no food for the fish. If it then gets hot, you get met with a "lovely" fungus ball when you open it. Secondly, somehow insects can get into the battery compartment! Each time after it's been used we have to clean out the creepy-crawlies that's decided to set up home in the battery section. That said - when it works, it's great. To solve some of the worry regarding water coming into the food compartment, we put a bag over it... not the prettiest, but it does the job. You can choose how much food you want it dispensing each day. Little hard to judge, so you might want to put it over a cup or similar a few days before going away the first time, filled with food, so you can see how much it dispenses, and then adjust the opening from there.

Takes a bit of practice to set the measure depending on the type of food you use. I also put mine into an ice cream tub on its side suspended over the pond with a cut out in the side for the food to drop this is just to keep the wind and weather off and works well for me.

FISH MATE Automatic Pond and Aquarium Fish Feeder (P21) Firstly and importantly, I only have a small, outdoor fish pond with three mid-sizes Goldfish and the area where the Feeder is sited is under a small tree. I feed them a good pinch of flaked food daily, and I needed a feeder that would hold enough food for 16 days. This unit is plenty big enough. I would suggest that, for my situation, this would hold nearly 2 months food. I tested the feeder for two weeks before my holiday which enabled me to adjust the settings accordingly to dispense the correct amount of food at the correct time and I'm pleased to say that it performed admirably. The only issue I found was that I had to crumb the larger flakes to make them smaller to prevent any clogging. HOWEVER, all the above took place in the warm/hot, dry summer (July & August) with little or no rain. At the time of writing this review, we are now well into September, the mornings are becoming cooler and the air damper with frequent showers. This is where you have to keep an eye on the Feeder, as if there is any condensation/moisture/damp on the interior surfaces of the Feeder, the flakes can and do adhere to those surfaces and this could soon reduce the amount of food being dispensed. I don't think the rain 'enters' the feeder, I think it is just moisture due to the damp air. Maybe this wouldn't be such an issue with pellets? I don't know, but unless it was warm and dry, you certainly wouldn't be able to use this feeder with flakes for long periods without occasional supervision. All that said, a quick wipe and dry of the interior surfaces and all is good again, but as to how often you would have to do this depends on how damp the air is. CONCLUSION..... I will use this feeder again. It is simple enough to set up and use and providing it doesn't clog up, the fishes should be happy!

This is quite a simple device, designed around the mechanism of a battery powered clock you might have on your wall. This means that it will feed once every 24 hours over the course of a few hours (as pellets slowly fall out). The device functions well when it is running, but beware of easy it is for it to stop working. Within about a week after beginning to operate it got stuck (I know it must have been about a week for unrelated reasons). Upon returning from my trip, I had found that a piece of packing foam had gotten stuck between the wheel of the feeder and the inside of the casing. I don't know if this was part of the transportation packaging or just some random piece of foam which was left in during the manufacturing process. I could not see this foam when I unpacked and set up the device so it was not very obvious that it was there. I would recommend running this device for a week or two before you intend to leave it unattended to ensure that it continues to operate. As I have quite a large pond compared to the number of fish, I think there were enough natural sources of food (insect eggs, etc.) that my fish were able to survive. But my fish have been hiding so far, although they appear to eat as pellets do disappear quicker than they would if they were left to sink.

Waste of money-doesn’t work. Tried to contact supplier for support but no answer despite several attempts. Would have returned but leaving for holiday and didn’t have time.

Going on a holiday,? who is going to feed the fish in the pond? This little device works well I use small pellets for goldfish and they survived me going away for 2 weeks.

Works perfectly. Happy fish!

Funziona bene

ARTICOLO VALIDO MA POCO RESISTENTE. LO HO DOVUTO RICOMPERARE IN QUANTO SI E' ROTTO DOPO CIRCA 2 MESI. PARTE MECCANICA NON SOLIDA.

It works well -- just much smaller than I expected. It only lasts two days for our fish. But it's perfect for a weekend allowing us to go out of town without worrying about the fish.