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Topic Started: Oct 9 2008, 05:19:42 PM (208 Views)
Post #1 Oct 9 2008, 05:19:42 PM Shane
i have noticed over the past week or so that my reef tanks do not seem to be doing all that great, my 40 cube has had a bunch of coral die off along with corals not opening i have cyano growing and i have added more flow and stopped feeding, my 12 gal not even 1/2 of the zoos are opening i have added iodineand other supps.. and my 30 all of the softies seem to be closed up. any suggestions?
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Post #2 Oct 9 2008, 07:54:14 PM Crystal
have you been doing your regular water changes? you shouldnt be adding supplements if you arent testing for what you are adding.
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Post #3 Oct 9 2008, 08:20:23 PM Suzy
I agree with water changes and testing. Temps have gone down a bit, too.

These two tanks are seperate, right? It seems odd that both are having issues at the same time. Could anything have been sprayed in the air recently?

Do you have a sump on the tank with the cyano?
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"i was informed of some dolphin related testing going on up there"
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Post #4 Oct 9 2008, 09:30:16 PM Shane
the one with cyano does have a sump, skimmer and a rio 3100 return, a korila 2 and a powerhead(noname) pumps like 200gph...mind you this is a 40 cube 24x18x21, lots of cheato, and lr, ls. they are both seperate systems. i last did a water change last weekend when i set up my nano i took water out about 5 gal each. the only thing i add that should i should be testing for is iodine, the other supps are micro filter feed, and zooplankton, other stuff like that.
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Post #5 Oct 10 2008, 12:13:10 AM Crystal
its very doubtful that these tanks are using up enough iodine that you would have to dose. I have a 700 gallon system and never dose iodine. its never low according to the test kit. We just do regular water changes. I would stop dosing any chemicals right away. Start a schedule of weekly 10% water changes. Nothing else other than fish food. I'm sure things will change. Sounds like an issue of over dosing to me. Also if suzy mentioned temps i would try to get those stable. no more than a 2-3 degree change during day and night.
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Post #6 Oct 10 2008, 06:45:53 AM Shane
i only add iodine about once a month and i dont do regular water changes and never had a problem. i think what it is, is that my tank has been set up too long and i need to switch tanks again. the longest i ever had a tank running was 4 months and then i needed change so i either upgraded or downgraded, this one has been going since late june so its hit my 4 month mark lol. also these problems didnt start until i added my sun coral.

and i dont have temp swings in 2 of my tanks the 40 would be the only one. and it is only like 3 degrees
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Post #7 Oct 10 2008, 07:33:12 AM Suzy
Let's discuss the cyano for a second? Cyanobacteria is an odd growing mat, usually easily siphoned out during a water change. It can grow even when nitrate levels are low (when macroalgae goes dormant). It can thrive with zero nitrte level. This is because it is able to use the nitrogen gas in the water, where as algae needs actual nitrate. If you are willing to siphon it out weekly during a water change, it will eventually use up the phosphate it needs to grow and it will peter out. Do you have low a nitrate level? Also, I have found IME that chaeto species of algae are very inefficient at removing lots of nitrate and phosphate. They are great at maintaining low levels of bioload, but there are many who grow much faster. I have red leafy thing that grows fast, doesn't go sexual and is a treat for fish! Stop in next time you are down south?

I am not a fan of the iodine tests I have tried. Crystal, which are you using? Iodine is one additive I use without testing for, along with vitamins and amino acid supplements. I found I could not grow a lot of feeder shrimp without adding iodine. Crystal is right that it does come in our food and if you do not have a lot of consumers, you might not need it.

I am a fan of regular water changes. To me, it is not about removing or adding elements, it's about keeping them in the right balance. When a tank gets more than a few months old, and you can test that some elements are out of wack (low calcium or low alkalinity,high phosphate ect), you need to think about the elements we can't test for: potassium, boron, ect. There is a stellar chance they are out of balance too.

Have you tested for nitrate and phosphate?
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"i was informed of some dolphin related testing going on up there"
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Post #8 Oct 10 2008, 05:32:55 PM Shane
i just got done testing my alk and its way off ita reading about 30 dKH and alk is 10.74. i am going to test oh and cal, along with nitrates and ammonia.
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Post #9 Oct 10 2008, 06:51:24 PM Amie
Okay Shane, let's rethink your husbandry for a second. Did you say that you can only keep a tank for 4 months or you've gotten bored with your tank after 4 months and so you tear it down and create a new one? If you are not doing water changes, I would think that in a 40 gallon tank, if you are not doing water changes but are adding chemicals, it's eventually going to catch up to you.

You might want to consider, instead of going out and spending a bunch of money on tests kits, just do a 100% water change and get it all over with at once. If you need help, I'd be glad to walk you through it or even come up there. I would maybe even suggest vaccuuming your sandbed while you are at it.

At approximately .25/gallon of saltwater, it's a lot cheaper and quicker to do the water change.
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Post #10 Oct 10 2008, 07:15:04 PM Shane
well i figured it out. all params are norm cept cal and alk, i am going to dose for it, and that should be good. so i do think i am going to do the 100% water change tomorow it sounds like a good idea, i will have no need to dose alk and cal though. i have it all under control. i am going to remove the fish though. and my 12 nano is doing alot better, all the zoos are opening now. and my 30 all of a sudden changed over the past 24 hours. i wonder if my daughter was in there and did something? i dont know. thanks everyone

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