Another problem.... Xenia

[bolt696]

Hi,

I have had my xenia for about 4 months now. Started with one stalk, and broke and spread to about 9. Was thriving and doing great. I woke up this morning and they are all keeled over and dying?

Anyone have any ideas why?

 

[vyger]

Temp didn't go above 80 did it....sometimes they don't do well over that temperature or someththing wrong with water parameters...l ????Iodine levels...???Sometimes they will keel over for no apparent reason but if they are turning dark...that's not a good sign...

 

[bolt696]

Temp is 79 at night and can hit 81 during the day but this is nothing new.
I did buy an iodine test kit and it read zero. So I added 1/2 of a cap the other day which was half the dose you are suppose to add.

I read that the thrive on small traces of iodine?

 

[vyger]

Yes I think they can delpete the system of it.. if not supplemented in some form or another. I have a small 10 gal of just Xenia since they took over some rocks in another tank....

 

[LanginJoe]

The same thing happened to me after I started adding iodine. They came back ok though, I would do a water change or 2 without adding any iodine. I don't go by the bottle anymore either and I don't recommend it, more like half the recommended dosage depending on how stocked your tank is. Good luck, I hope they make it.
Joe

 

[vyger]

It's very easy to overdose iodine from what I 've heard so I don't add any either just water change and reef plus 2X a week

 

[bolt696]

Thanks for the tips. I did only do half the dose, and the test read zero. I will try more water changes. I hope they come back as they are still attached to the rock, but not lookinf good.

thanks

 

[Reef Junkie]

What's your alk and ph reading?

 

[bolt696]

They have been low my past few test. Ph was around 7.7. I have been adding Dkh buffer to try to raise it. If I am thinking of the right test, the alk was <.3 to 3 (somewhere in that color area on the test)

 

[Reef Junkie]

Your Alk isn't too bad, but your Ph is probably your culprit; it's low.
If you don't use a calcium reactor, you might want to start using a daily 2 part system.
Bill

 

[Reef Junkie]

Your Alk isn't too bad, but your Ph is probably your culprit; it's low.
If you don't use a calcium reactor, you might want to start using a daily 2 part system.
Bill

 

[bolt696]

My calcium has always been up there. According to my test kit, it is 500 to 600. I know the norm is around 450. I have not been adding any calcium do to the high test results. It might be the test kit, maybe I should try another brand.

 

[Reef Junkie]

Usually a high Calcium reading means your alk is low. You need to balance out your chemistry.
Try using B-ionic, it'll stabilize your alk and Cal. Which is a big part of keeping your tank healthy.
I highly recommend and use it.

2 Little Fishes also makes a 2 part solution, but one of the owners of the company is a pansy. :lmao:

 

[bolt696]

ok thanks

 

[vyger]

I have read that sometmes Xenia are the first thing to show signs that something is wacked out in the water parameters or something else is wrong...and from what you're sayiing PH ..low Calcium ..high..Alk...low??sounds as if they are reacting to that...... Xenia ,when there were in my larger tank started looking out of sorts , darker than normal and not extended even tho my other corals looked fine.. I checked my water parameters in the tank and everything looked fine...A week later my tank took a nosedive and crashed...Lost alot of corals and I still don't know from what. ...I 'm thinking something polluted the water that didn't show up in the tests....Could have been one of the kids sticking their hands in while they were cleaning the glass and had something on their hands or who knows??