Shelf life of aquarium products

Plan-B

AC Members
Aug 6, 2004
31
0
0
Visit site
I live in a small town and have only one very expensive option to buy fish supplies from. For this reason I tend to buy bulk online or whenever I’m in the city. Now I find myself wondering how long these products (and others) will last before expiration.

Fish food – flake / freeze dried. (I keep mine in my freezer in an attempt to keep it fresher. I’m not positive this is a good idea though)

Fish food – frozen. (Things like frozen blood worms ect.)

Dechlorinators and other additives, buffers and conditioners.

Meds (I have a 1 gallon bottle of melafix pro and dosage for it is 5ml to 50 gallons. If melafix doesn’t expire and my fish stay relatively healthy this bottle could be around for 20 years)

Test kits – Liquid form / paper strip form.

Basically I’m curious as to how long these products will last sealed and also how long they have until expiration after being opened.
 
Many items have expiration dates on them - or they should. Things like flake foods, and pellets all last a year or more. Frozen food could last 1-2 years, or as little as 8 months. It really depends on many factors. Most medicines are only good for a year or so, as are test strips. Short summary: if you don’t need it, don’t buy it! :D
 
AquariaCentral.com