Squa. fine, Max. not- What do you thinK

[Erik765]

First my specs- 20 Gal. main, 10 Gal. sump, 15 Gal. ref. 110w of PC and 40w VHO but am (as we speek) ordering parts to add 175w of MH 14k to that. ( hopefully will have it set up within about 2 weeks) Cal. 300-350 I have ordered C-balance to help with this (should be here this week) Alk 3.5 meq/l (not bad) nitrate-30 (ref is not set up yet!) nitrites 0, ammonia 0, pH 8.1



I have recently purchased a couple of clams from two different LFS. A 2.5" golden squamosa, which is doing great. and a 1.5" Maxima, which is not doing so good. Currently, I am removing them from my tank every night and feeding them Phytoplankton as suggested by two other reefers posts from a previous thread of mine. I would super feed them! Remove clams from tank in a bowl with tank water add DTS until water is a greenish (light) tint. Do not put bowl under any lights (heat) Let clams stay in bowl 30 to 60 minutes (water will be clear again). Put clams back into tank another reefers comments- "Smaller clams do best if they are removable from tank to be fed several times a week.

I currently have I have been "power feeding and my clams stick their little spouts out when the are in the bowl and I don't put them back in my tank until the lights are off so there is no shock from being without light for an hour or more. When the max is in the tank during the day it does not stick out far at all and is pretty far up on the bottom too. Any suggestions? is it dying? Is it too late? I'll try to post some pics soon

 

[holeinone1972]

I think you are trying with good efforts. Try to get calcium levels up above 400. Try to eliminate nitrate levels or reduce them at least. A smaller tank like yours should not be too much trouble to do a large water change. Your ph is good. These tiny clams that some people sell(for way too much money) is a real shame. They are tough to keep alive and ask for alot of special attention. They are beautiful though. I commend you for trying, and if that lil bugger is going to make it, it will be in your tank.

Do a larger water change maybe 50%, make sure to have ph, temperature and salinity the same as your tank, we do not want to shock anything.

As far as waiting to returm your clam after feeding, I would not bother waiting till lights out. This will not hurt the clam, it will be just like a cloudy day, and then the sun shall appear again.

Best of luck, Rob

ps you are doing all you can!

 

[Squidman]

I would feed them every other day to reduce the handling stress to the clams. While I agree with HoleinOne about your nitrates being too high, I disagree about bringing them down to 0. IMO ideal nitrate levels for clams are between barely detectable and 5 ppm. Clams do need some nitrogen and while you don't want a lot, I like to have a detecable level so I know that there is some. Also, I leave my baby clams in the feeding container for no more than 30 minutes. I don't think it's a good idea to go too long without proper circulation. JMO