NEWBIE, frags are dying (wanting to start a Zoa Garden!)

[vokrey09]

Hi, I have just switched from a 37gal FOWLR (running for about 8 months) to a 40gal breeder (no sump). Using the same powerheads, hob filter, hob skimmer, and 35lbs live rock.... all from the previous tank.

My current setup is:
40gal breeder
Fluval C4 HOB Filter
CPR BakPak 2+ Skimmer
TWO Hydor Koralia 425 Powerheads
35lbs live rock +40lbs of dry rock just added
20lbs of reef sand (no old sand was used from previous tank)
Tunze Osmolator 3155 ATO
36" Current USA Marine LED Light

Live Stock:
1 Yellow Tang
1 Six Line Wrasse
1 Melanarus Wrasse
2 Clowns
1 Blue Green Chromis
2 Peppermint Shrimp
About 10 snails
1 Brittle Starfish

It has been about 4 days since the switch, and everything had survived!
I went to my LFS yesterday and got a few frags to test out. I acclimated them last night and woke up this morning and most of them look like crap!
The frags were:
1 Green Hammer (has completely lost all of it color, pretty sure it is dead)
Green Star Polys (havent came out since they left the LFS)
Darth Maul Zoa (hasn't came out since it left the LFS)
Eagle Eye Zoa (was out a little last night but has retracted over night)
3 different acan frags (green, red, and orange; they look the best out of all of the frags but still looking gloomy)
AND 1 orange mushroom (which is too small to really tell, kind of lost a little color)


My levels are solid, temp is about 77. And the light is on an acclimate setting with 8 hours of light.

What could possibly be going on?

The only good thing out of this is that I saw how cool the zoa's looked in the tank last night and I 100% want to start a strictly zoa tank with all different types.

 

[morleyz]

Did you compare your salinity to your LFS? What is your alk? What was your acclimation procedure?

It's not all the uncommon for new corals to stay closed up for a few days after being introduced to a new environment.

 

[Sk8r]

Your dry rock won't have cycled yet, that's one. It's probably releasing phosphate, which corals don't like: a GFO reactor can uptake that before it become a worse problem.

Hammer is a stony, high light coral requiring calcium supplementation. It should be on the top level, nearest the light, which should be about 10,000-13,000 K either T5 or MH or reef-capable LED. Read my sig line parameters for where you should be, chemically for that coral, and pretty well any coral can live under those conditions.

Your zoas don't like that much light, and should be close to the bottom tier of rock. Your fish load is quite large in a very young tank, and this can lead to serious problems. Don't overfeed. The yellow tang is a particular problem, as his need for green food will add phosphates to the tank, and his size will demand that within a year you get at least a 75 gallon tank, else he will take to doing in the other fish. Finding him a home and going over to another, smaller species yellow fish, like the yellow watchman, would give you the splash of color and ease the size problem.