calling all softie keepers! what do you dose?
- Thread starter cyclops23
- Start date
reefnetworth
Premium Member
Marine Snow, and Cyclop-ezze. use as directed. worked for years, but can cause algea if overdosed. sugest 1/2 amount every 3 days to begin. test water 24 hours after for results. REEF-ON!!!
fsn77
New member
I dose Lugol's solution once weekly at a rate slightly below the recommended level (too much can be very bad). I was a bit skeptical about doing it, but ever since I started, the Xenia in my tank has really taken off. The other soft corals look better than before, too, but they haven't been in the tank as long as the Xenia so I won't give credit to the Lugol's for their improvement.
I add calcium, pH buffer, and KH buffer when test results indicate I should (usually 1x per week). My calcium additive also contains magnesium and strontium, so those get dosed occasionally, also. I rely on a 10% weekly water change to take care of the rest.
I target feed the corals that I can 1 - 2 times per week with brine shrimp or mysis shrimp with a dose of Selcon food additive. I've considered a phytoplankton feeding for our toadstool and kenya trees, but our tank is relatively young and I'm hesitant about the ill effects of accidentally overdosing phyto. Perhaps in another few months or so, I'll convince myself I can handle it.
I add calcium, pH buffer, and KH buffer when test results indicate I should (usually 1x per week). My calcium additive also contains magnesium and strontium, so those get dosed occasionally, also. I rely on a 10% weekly water change to take care of the rest.
I target feed the corals that I can 1 - 2 times per week with brine shrimp or mysis shrimp with a dose of Selcon food additive. I've considered a phytoplankton feeding for our toadstool and kenya trees, but our tank is relatively young and I'm hesitant about the ill effects of accidentally overdosing phyto. Perhaps in another few months or so, I'll convince myself I can handle it.
Kalkwasser for all topoff used in an auto topoff solution with redundancy ( which often gets overlooked ). Occasionally add Seachem Reef Builder for the Alk and Seachem Reef Advantage for the Calcium. Even with Kalk, tend to have to dose ALK at least once a week to keep above 7 DKH.
No other additives except what gets added during a water change.
I don't feed corals, may occasionally get something from the frozen fish food, or absorb nutrients from water column.
No other additives except what gets added during a water change.
I don't feed corals, may occasionally get something from the frozen fish food, or absorb nutrients from water column.
finding nemo
In Memoriam
I don't add anything but "Coral vibrance". They love the stuff and open up immediatly for it.
And are doing better then they every have since I started feeding it 2 months ago.
And are doing better then they every have since I started feeding it 2 months ago.
Art_Vandelay
Member
NUTIN 
I change 5 gal. every other day!
Use B-Ionic daily
I change 5 gal. every other day!
Use B-Ionic daily
Cubman777
New member
I use the 2part Bionic buffer every day, and Lugols Solution every week. I have pretty strong lights, and do a water change every 3 weeks. My soft corals go absolutely ape-poop. I have gone through severy different dosing and lighting regiments during my hobby lifetime. I have found the most benefit from using Lugol's. I used to dose Marine Snow, and then DT's Phyto, but found that the benefit of dosing these was far outweighed by the burden of putting extra nitrogen based nutrients into the water.
Target feeding most corals is unnecessary. Most photosynthetic corals receive more than enough nutrients through their own zooxanthelle.
Just stick to the calcium/alkalinity, and make sure that you provide enough Iodine. Softies love Iodine.
Target feeding most corals is unnecessary. Most photosynthetic corals receive more than enough nutrients through their own zooxanthelle.
Just stick to the calcium/alkalinity, and make sure that you provide enough Iodine. Softies love Iodine.
DiViNeLeFT
New member
i dont have very hard to care for corals and only do waterchanges, no dosing. i have a finger leather, kenya tree, green polyps, zoanthids, green star polyps, and a mushroom anemone. if i grind up some formula 1 pellets into powder and let it go in the flow of the powerhead all the corals open wide and start grabbing the food. if i put a few pellets on the mushroom it will close up and eat them. ive considered some zoo or phyto plankton additives but i think it would be about the same for the corals as the ground up pellets.
cyclops23
Premium Member
i was just wondering what works for everyone else. i usually just let the corals get what they can from the fish food, ocassionally give them some reef chili, no deaths yet. i'm trying to keep my calcium in line. but not overly concerned with it as i have only 2 LPS. i do weekly water changes with IO salt, and i figure that has enough iodine. they all look great anyway. whats Lugols? i've never heard of it. thanks!
graveyardworm
Premium Member
Regular water changes, Randy's two part and magnesium to maintain levels, several times a week DT's phyto and DT's oyster eggs, occasional Kents iodine, trace elements, and iron.
Lugols is a form of iodine generally used for coral dipping/disinfectant.
Lugols is a form of iodine generally used for coral dipping/disinfectant.
fsn77
New member
Salifert makes an iodine test, not sure who else does.
I do not test for iodine, but I dose slightly less than the bottle instructions. I use Kent Lugol's solution, which is very concentrated -- 1 drop per 25 g of system volume once weekly. Our total system capacity is 125 g before any sand, lr, equipment, etc. I've estimated our total system volume to conservatively be 80 g, 85 g max, based upon how much RO/DI water I had to make to completely fill it up initially. That said, I dose 3 drops once weekly (as if our system volume was 75 g). I'm not afraid of having overly elevated iodine levels at that dosing rate as quickly as our Xenia grows and how often our shrimp, crabs, and amphipods molt. I certainly would not recommend dosing without a test to everyone else, it's just my choice, especially after reading the potential reasons for false results with the Salifert kit. It's a risk, be it very small if you know what you're doing and very large if you don't. If overdosed, the Kent Lugol's solution can be counteracted with Kent Chlorinex or Ammonia Detox at a rate of 2 drops per every 1 drop of suspected overdose.
EDIT: Seachem makes an iodine test kit, also.
I do not test for iodine, but I dose slightly less than the bottle instructions. I use Kent Lugol's solution, which is very concentrated -- 1 drop per 25 g of system volume once weekly. Our total system capacity is 125 g before any sand, lr, equipment, etc. I've estimated our total system volume to conservatively be 80 g, 85 g max, based upon how much RO/DI water I had to make to completely fill it up initially. That said, I dose 3 drops once weekly (as if our system volume was 75 g). I'm not afraid of having overly elevated iodine levels at that dosing rate as quickly as our Xenia grows and how often our shrimp, crabs, and amphipods molt. I certainly would not recommend dosing without a test to everyone else, it's just my choice, especially after reading the potential reasons for false results with the Salifert kit. It's a risk, be it very small if you know what you're doing and very large if you don't. If overdosed, the Kent Lugol's solution can be counteracted with Kent Chlorinex or Ammonia Detox at a rate of 2 drops per every 1 drop of suspected overdose.
EDIT: Seachem makes an iodine test kit, also.
Last edited:
blange3
Brewer and Reefer
I was using the Kent Lugols and following the directions for a few weeks and got a Salifert Kit and found that the readings were off the chart. I discontinued with no ill affects, but no real improvement in my Xenia growth.
I've recently moved all of my LPS from this tank to a tank of their own and will be trying Lugol's again. I only stopped because of the readings, there were no ill affects noticed.
Other than the planned return to Lugols, I only do monthly water changes for my softies.
I've recently moved all of my LPS from this tank to a tank of their own and will be trying Lugol's again. I only stopped because of the readings, there were no ill affects noticed.
Other than the planned return to Lugols, I only do monthly water changes for my softies.
kass03
New member
I like seachems reef plus which has iodine and other things.
I had corals come back to life when I started adding it about 3 years ago.
I had an iodine test and it always measured 0
Granted my tanks been a reef for over 20 years and was prolly lacking certain things.
I rarely ever feed my corals just the fish flake food usually.
I also sometimes add seachems calcium and reef builder.
kass
I had corals come back to life when I started adding it about 3 years ago.
I had an iodine test and it always measured 0
Granted my tanks been a reef for over 20 years and was prolly lacking certain things.
I rarely ever feed my corals just the fish flake food usually.
I also sometimes add seachems calcium and reef builder.
kass
