slave-of-rock
New member
Well seems as if we all got the same zoas 8D.
Whos got these Midnight Zo's
- Thread starter BlueStag
- Start date
enitnelaVeyaF
In Memoriam
meee! 
got these from a LFS too. pays to shop around
got these from a LFS too. pays to shop around
twon8
Formally registered membe
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i agree, i run carbon 24/7 and dare someone to say my zoas don't have good color. if zoas are so light dependent why wouldn't clearer water help them. perhaps mr. ugly saw the effects of carbon bleaching his zoas from the clearer water and more light penetration.
surfnvb7
Premium Member
i agree with both sides actually. i know what mr. ugly is talking about with running carbon sometimes. i had this problem last year when i added some carbon temporarily to clear up some algae issues.
you may be right twon8, clearer water would make sense to cause greater light penatration.
based on seeing some other people run things like ROWA, and esspecially purigen, I have a feeling its not so much clearer water creating greater light penatration which leads to bleaching (although this may be one variable), but these chemicals are actually "stripping" a protective coating of mucos membrane that protects most softies (i think these mucos membranes are derrived by nutrients in the water column). without this thick mucos membrane protecting the soft coral, light can easily penatrate and bleach the soft coral.
think of this as analogous to the epidermis of our skin. or applying a sunscreen lotion to our skin.
but you are right twon8, your zoas look amazing, so i imagine you really arent running "enough" carbon to really cause any problems in your tank. you have plenty of fish and tangs, so a good bit of bioload, it would take a big honking skimmer and chemical filtration to really run the tanks down to nutrient poor water column.
so yeah, i agree with both theories. just depends on the bioload and the individual tank specifics.
twon8
Formally registered membe
and i agree that running rowa will strip a tank of a lot, one reason i wouldn't run it. I know when i put carbon on the tank the water clears up quickly. I don't run any gfo, only carbon.
and i think it holds true in any area of our hobby that sudden changes in husbandry may have effects that are unexpected, but trying to attribute one cause with a specific effect is difficult if not impossible.
I am not saying it can't happen, just wanted to temper his statement with another side; there are newbies reading this and they shouldn't be scared of using carbon because it may make their zoas lose color. carbon is cheap and effective, something rare in this hobby.
and i think it holds true in any area of our hobby that sudden changes in husbandry may have effects that are unexpected, but trying to attribute one cause with a specific effect is difficult if not impossible.
I am not saying it can't happen, just wanted to temper his statement with another side; there are newbies reading this and they shouldn't be scared of using carbon because it may make their zoas lose color. carbon is cheap and effective, something rare in this hobby.
Azurel
In Memoriam
Amen to that!
I run carbon not quite 24/7 but enough and have never seen an issue, I did run phosgaurd for 3 weeks to remove silicates and initally it did cause things to close up that weren't close because of the silicates. After about 2 week it was like a light switch got flicked, all of a sudden everything was opening back up and looking better then it did before. The silicates where high and closing stuff up and making the tank look shabby and phosgaurd removed all of it. I also ran Seachem Seagel carbon at the sametime.
surfnvb7
Premium Member
good point. i would never run alot of carbon or any chemical filtration on a brand new tank (unless the live rock was uncurred obviously). biggest advice to newbies is to take it SLOOOOOOOOOW. start with a tiny bit of carbon at first, then use more. we see too many newbies dump a load of fish in on the 3rd week their tank has been up and running, and buying all of these new corals within the first month.
every newbie i've seen rush things in the first year have failed miserably in one way or another, and lost alot of $$ invested in their livestock.
i realize if you got the money its too tempting to rush into things, but patience pays off in the long run more than deeper pockets does.
Mr.Nudibranch
New member
Those "midnight zoos" are palys because I order some from marineflora.com and they look the same. If I am correct they are just a tad bigger then most zoos.
enitnelaVeyaF
In Memoriam
surf- cus my car died and with no way to get to work and class I have to sell some frags to pay for a new transmission. im not a total jerk, thanks 
surfnvb7
Premium Member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7466219#post7466219 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by enitnelaVeyaF
surf- cus my car died and with no way to get to work and class I have to sell some frags to pay for a new transmission. im not a total jerk, thanks
i wasnt being a jerk. just asking a question. i have my ebay preferences saved to email alert me when something comes up within a 250mile radius, with designated key words. and yours popped up this morning. some people on this forum have had their pictures stolen and used for auctions on ebay, so i was hoping this wasnt the case.
sorry to hear about your car troubles. i know your pain, i recently had a blown head gasket which set me back on some reefkeeping equipment i had to sell, and a future tank i was gonna set up
i should have just hired someone to total it and then collect the insurance :lol:
