Whats going on with my clams?

[Genetics]

I have had my clams for a little over a year. This week I lost two of them for no good reason. My params are normal. Temp is stable at 80 all day round. This is a 29g tank with 400w of lighting. There aren't any pyramid snails on the shell.
Here's what I can't figure out. They are perfectly normal two days before they are dead and falling apart. The two that have died were in the sand on the bottom of the tank.....
I am starting to think that maybe it's my lighting? I currently have 150w 03 atinic VHOs and 250w xm 20k. Could it be my lights are already going bad??? I have had these lights on the tank for 7 months.. I have good ventilation to keep the bulbs cool to extend the bulbs life.

 

[AttackDonut]

Tricky, there are diseases that can wipe out clams overnight. That's all I could think of.

 

[Vili_Shark]

Hi,
I read a thread in Singapore boards, of some people that have lost thier Clams recently for no obvious reason.

 

[techdef]

did you change anythign else? If they're not quite getting enough food or light, the smallest thing can set them over the edge... addition of phosguard to your filter for example, can wipe out clams who are accustomed to feeding on your phosphates overnight.

-jamie

 

[jda]

How big were they? Were they over 3 inches?

 

[Genetics]

The smallest was 4+ inches. I don't know really what could have caused this. I haven't changed anything on the tank except replace a small amount of carbon in my sump. It has just been wierd. Could it be a bacterial infection of some sort? I read a post once about someone blaming bristle worms.... I don't know if I believe that since they are detrivores (if that's a word) and are probably feeding on the dying material...

 

[pjpeels]

From my own experiences, and from the stories of others. I find that most peoples problems are from underfeeding. The clams can be doing great and then just die. I noticed a discoloration in my clams a few months ago. Now I feed phytoplankton once or twice a day and the vibrant color has seemed to come back. I do have a Euro Reef Skimmer that allows me to feed quite a bit without risking pollution of the tank. I can be confident that any extra bad stuff will be skimmed out. Even without the skimmer, smoething will eat it. I used to underfeed my fish a bit too, but I have changed my ways and everything looks healthier and happier.
Later,
Price

 

[Genetics]

wow I just never thought after the growth that I had seen on the shell that the clam was actually starving. I will try to up my dosage for them to 4 times a week from the 2 I was doing.

 

[techdef]

spot feeding or removing them to another container for chow-time helps a lot. just plop 'em in tupperware full of tank water & plankton for 20 minutes, the water will turn clear & you'll have fat happy clams.

 

[Sloth]

Did you rinse or presoak the carbon before you added it?
I've heard that dry carbon can suck up oxygen quickly.