Pulsing Xenias

firedogg2

firedogg2

New member
Hey guys,
Quick question for ya. I have a small frag of pulsing xenias. Scene I got them they don't seem to be pulsing very strong. They close fine but they don't open all the way. All my levels are great ph 8.2 temp 77.9, and no detectable nitrates or phosphates. I'm running two fluorescents atinitcs and a 150mh. The guy at the LFS said that it could be that my tank is in to good condition to make them pulse. He said that xenias prefer slightly bad conditions. Whats your take on this. Thanks alot in advance.

Casey
 
Xenia can be very finicky corals. I have had mine grow like weeds and then had others not grow much and some have died on me. I've heard the theory that they like dirty water, but I don't necessary believe it. I have mine in the same water I grow sps in and they seem to like it. I've heard that they like higher pH and that supplementing iodine also helps, but I haven't noticed any effects from doing this. How long ago did you get them? Sometimes they may take a while to get adjusted to your tank. I wouldn't worry too much if they are just pulsing oddly. It may not look as cool but it may also be just something that they do from time to time. Good luck.
 
theres no real reason why xenia stops pulsing, just like theres no real reason bubble tips sometimes lose their bubble.. some say they like "dirty" water, others say its a myth, i know when mine stopped pulsing my PH was a little low but urs seems to be in check, your temp is a bit low IMO.. i keep my tank at 80 tho, some will probably say its too high
 
you have to be careful when taking on this sort of task. research what ever you can in order to cut down on mistakes that could be fatal
 
Yeah Ive heard alkalinity affects them pulsing as well. Lower the KH and they stop. But mine have always pulsed. I have Red Sea Xenia BTW.
 
Oh btw earlier today I noticed one clump of my xenia all stuck together and not pulsing at all. Later on it perked right up. Perhaps it needed some downtime? I mention this because yours might be fine if it pulsed before. Keep an eye on it and check out the link I posted above.

Good luck x 2
 
Thanks for all your help. I have been adding iodine once a week becuse I also heard that it may help. Hopefully they just need some adjustment time. They look very healthy but as I said just not pulsing very strong.I'll just give it time. Once again thank you.

Casey
 
Re: Pulsing Xenias

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10422811#post10422811 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by firedogg2
Hey guys,
Quick question for ya. I have a small frag of pulsing xenias. Scene I got them they don't seem to be pulsing very strong. They close fine but they don't open all the way. All my levels are great ph 8.2 temp 77.9, and no detectable nitrates or phosphates. I'm running two fluorescents atinitcs and a 150mh. The guy at the LFS said that it could be that my tank is in to good condition to make them pulse. He said that xenias prefer slightly bad conditions. Whats your take on this. Thanks alot in advance.

Casey
Click to expand...

who in the world would tell you that corals like bad conditions?
Xenia are good consumers of nitrates if that is what is meant by that.
I would have answered back to that guy--so I should let my tank go for a week or two and then come back and see you???

Xenia like lots of light --gradually move them up the reef till they are in bright light.
 
Well thats the way I felt about it. I'm not going to sacrafice my whole tank for one little stock of xenas. So Ill just give them time and see how they do.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10423090#post10423090 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Jim_Leyland
theres no real reason why xenia stops pulsing, just like theres no real reason bubble tips sometimes lose their bubble..
Click to expand...

I'm sure they are very good reasons why both xenia and bubble tips act the way they do, we just havn't figured it out yet. I agree with most here, xenia is a finicky coral that for some reasons will do fine in one system while fail miserably in another. They'll also start off fine for some and die off only to make a strong comeback later on. I've had xenia crashes before, shortly after rasing my KH levels, but there were so many other variables that could have contributed to the crash as well. I've had colonies spread across my entire 55g in less than 2 months, and then a month later, all dead. I've hear more often that PH can be a determining factor with xenia, when I did raise my KH levels, this was done to try and raise a very low PH level (7.6-7.8), I did get it up to 8.3 and noticed the xenia crashing afterwards. Of course now I"m sitting a few months later, my xenia is making a nice comeback and PH is still sitting 8.3 and 11dKH. It may not have been the levels themselves but the quick change in levels that did em in. Trial and error with these guys. Good luck! :D
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10425853#post10425853 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by RudeBoy
My paste experiences with Xenia not pulsing has been low Alkalinity... every single time.
Click to expand...

My past experiences, I had the best looking xenia while having extremely low ALK in my tank. It wasn't until I raised it that I had problems. Wierd little stuff ain't it.
 
I have kept many different Xenias so I believe I can give you some insight. What I have learned is this: Acclimating is very important when you first get your frag. I always aclimate for 1 hour at a slow drip. I never place the pulsing xenias in a high flow area. I have them in the lower portion of my tank and they have been pulsing for years. The other posters are absolutely right, your need a high DKH and high ph. Mine is 11.6 and 8.2. Other then that they will move on their own. Mine are attached to the glass, adjacent rocks and so on.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10426740#post10426740 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by INCEPTION7
I have kept many different Xenias so I believe I can give you some insight. What I have learned is this: Acclimating is very important when you first get your frag. I always aclimate for 1 hour at a slow drip. I never place the pulsing xenias in a high flow area. I have them in the lower portion of my tank and they have been pulsing for years. The other posters are absolutely right, your need a high DKH and high ph. Mine is 11.6 and 8.2. Other then that they will move on their own. Mine are attached to the glass, adjacent rocks and so on.
Click to expand...

is that also a lower light level? My tank is a high 110gal with only 150 watt halides so I had to make the top of the reef high light high flow for any sps's. I have had dying out xenia all over the place in the tank so it is difficult to get a fix on them---this new frag is placed about even 12 inches from the surface and it is moving towards more light?
 
Capn,

<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x35/Inception7/FULLTANK.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>

This is a picture of my tank, I am running 250watt halides... the xenias seem to thrive towards the bottom of my tank with low flow.. they are pulsing all day, as soon as the flow picks up they stop pulsing. Now there are moving up the acrylic towards the light.
 
DSC_0077.jpg


Here is my 55 before I started hacking away at the xenia, fragging it and selling it back to my LFS. Mine did poorly under pc's. Once I switched to mh's they took off! They seem to like high light, and are doing fine with high flow. (As you can see they are next to a powerhead.) And they have grown a ton even though I battle very low alkalinity. My kh was around 7-8 for awhile before I decided to raise it. I have no detectable nitrates either and they have always pulsed. So there are no "rules" so far for this coral. I too believe that there is a perfectly good explanation for why the pulse or don't pulse, we just haven't figured it out yet!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10454432#post10454432 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ahullsb
DSC_0077.jpg


Here is my 55 before I started hacking away at the xenia, fragging it and selling it back to my LFS. Mine did poorly under pc's. Once I switched to mh's they took off! They seem to like high light, and are doing fine with high flow. (As you can see they are next to a powerhead.) And they have grown a ton even though I battle very low alkalinity. My kh was around 7-8 for awhile before I decided to raise it. I have no detectable nitrates either and they have always pulsed. So there are no "rules" so far for this coral. I too believe that there is a perfectly good explanation for why the pulse or don't pulse, we just haven't figured it out yet!
Click to expand...

Beautiful tank!!! How long have you had that going? Also I am running powerheads as you are but I noticed you have the diffuser on the one on the right. Whats your thoughts on it? I am running 2 power head 1200s and it was brought to my attention that I need to worry about the flow distribution on them and was recommended what looks like the same type of diffuser you have (approx $10). Just interested on your thoughts. Excuse me if I sound like a noob....I definitely am!
 
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