Tetra Weekend Fish Feeder is a slow-release gel food block designed to feed tropical freshwater fish for up to five days without a person on hand. Handy for short trips, long weekends or anyone who'd rather not ask a neighbour to sprinkle flakes.

The 24g block is a nutritional gel format rather than a compressed pellet — fish nibble from it as they get hungry, which avoids the water fouling problems that come with dumping five days of dry food at once. The recipe includes daphnia, essential vitamins, trace elements and minerals, and uses Tetra's ProCare formulation aimed at immune support. Suits community tropical tanks.

Automatic feeders are the alternative, but they're overkill for a weekend away. A single gel block is simpler, doesn't need batteries, and won't cloud the water if the tank is stocked at a reasonable level.