Mushroom problem

[nick540]

My tank has been up and running for over a year and in that year i have been quite sucessful at keeping a variety of mushrooms. Recently i made some changes to the water by starting to use R/O water and with the use of additives like live Phytoplankton and live Rotifers that i add every other day. I have also started using Kent coral Accell putting in a cap a day. I have noticed all my mushrooms are now looking not so hot, they have maintained their colour but are peeling off the rock and floating around the tank. My salinity is 1.025. amm. 0 ph 8.3 cal. 420, alk 2.9. etc...I was wondering if the coral accell was adding to this or what could cause about 8 mushroons to detach for the rocks they have been holding onto for about a year if not more...I do not get it, any help would be great as i am a begginer.

Thanks!

 

[jdieck]

Usually they detach to multiply after they have grown to a certain size. They also detach if they start getting a lo tmore or a lot less light than they are used to.

Have your lighting changed somehow? How old are the bulbs?
Is there anything in your tank that eats phyto or rotifers? Usually mushrooms need only light and some zooplankton rather than phyto.

 

[nick540]

My bulbs are 10 months old and it is the same lighting fixture i have used for the 10 months now so maybe it is time for a bulb change. My other corals (LPS and SPS) seem to enjoy the live phyto and rotifers as well as the feather dusters, but i think thats about all that eats them.

The mushrooms were quite big before so maybe you are right that they are just multiplying, eiter way it laving a big gap on my rocks and just floating in circles around the tank till i take them out and put them in my 2 gal.

 

[jdieck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11809240#post11809240 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nick540
My bulbs are 10 months old and it is the same lighting fixture i have used for the 10 months now so maybe it is time for a bulb change. My other corals (LPS and SPS) seem to enjoy the live phyto and rotifers as well as the feather dusters, but i think thats about all that eats them.

The mushrooms were quite big before so maybe you are right that they are just multiplying, eiter way it laving a big gap on my rocks and just floating in circles around the tank till i take them out and put them in my 2 gal.

Note that although phytoplankton will feed little pods and bugs that in tur feed corals, corals are also more for zooplankton.
If you want to feed the corals directly you can try some cyclopeeze, zooplex, oyster eggs or marinesnow. Just be easy on the amounts as with any phyto also they can be very polluting to a tank. One quarter of a teaspoon of the solid ones and one teaspoon of the solution ones once every three to four days can be enough.

 

[nick540]

Thanks for the info! I was using too much of it and probably polluting my tank.

 

[jdieck]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11809285#post11809285 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nick540
Thanks for the info! I was using too much of it and probably polluting my tank.

Good Luck!

 

[nick540]

They are looking better today without dosing.

 

[jdieck]

:thumbsup:

 

[Amadeusb12]

Maybe try making changes one at a time, that way you can pinpoint easily which change is doing what. JMO

Hope it was just the dosing

Beth