xenia questions.

[NanoReefWanabe]

this is driving me crazy...i have had the cespitularia for about 6 months now and all the hands seem to have fallen off...i look at the little frags i have of it and the hands are on there...but my larger piece has none...now i have just got a big frag of pumping xenia and it doesnt want to pulse...it is open and waving around...i am wondering if there is too much or not enough flow or too much or not enough light...i dont think it is a paramter thing, as far as i know xenia isnt too particular about water quality...i have only had the pulsing xenia for three days now...but it was pulsing in the baggie..

so could some peeps give me some ideas on flow and light they have their pulsing and blue xenia's under..

 

[BairdimusPrime]

I have waving xenia in my aquarium they spread like weeds... then their tops fall off... then they grow back... i dunno y but they'll be back and they'll take over in six months

 

[tylernt]

now i have just got a big frag of pumping xenia and it doesnt want to pulse......but it was pulsing in the baggie..

I've read anecdotal accounts of Xenia needing iodine, a high pH, and perhaps even a little nitrate to pulse.

 

[Thisseemsfishy]

Xenia's health are sometimes great indicators of how your water is. I have my blue Xenia's about 6 - 8in off the light in good flow, they seem t love it as they grow very quickly. It may be the case of not enough nutrients in the water. What type of filtration do you use? I would be careful adding iodine, you should test before you add anything.

And yes there heads will fall off from time to time, but they should grow back.

 

[NanoReefWanabe]

i have never tested for anything other then SG in my tank...i quite literally have no idea where any of the parameters are..

i change the water about every two weeks ~ 40% change
i have about 10 pounds of LR in a 10G system 5 g display
only other filtration is a bag of chemipure in the sump and a piece of filter floss wedged in the baffles...

i add 50ml of kalk solution and 200ml of topoff...

 

[Thisseemsfishy]

That all seems fine, you might want to invest in a test kit or two. Maybe the calcium's too high, but that's a shot in the dark. I noticed a few of my soft coral reacting negatively when my Ca was high, but have no real proof.

 

[NanoReefWanabe]

Xenia's health are sometimes great indicators of how your water is. I have my blue Xenia's about 6 - 8in off the light in good flow, they seem t love it as they grow very quickly. It may be the case of not enough nutrients in the water. What type of filtration do you use? I would be careful adding iodine, you should test before you add anything.

And yes there heads will fall off from time to time, but they should grow back.

the heads/ hands have been missing for a couple months now, just little nubs now...no real growth as of late either...though my pineapple sponges are taking off as is the coraline algae and the stupid spaghetti worms...man i wish i never put one of those in there...they are everywhere...only nice thing is they catch and eat all the crude floating in the water..

i am going to do a big WC tomorrow, water and salt is a tonne cheaper then test kits...likely do about a 50-60% change got a full 6g pail brewing right now..maybe that will get things in check...

forgot to mention i add about 3ml of marine essential elements on the weeks i dont do a WC..

 

[NanoReefWanabe]

ERRRRRRRRRRrr...stupid DP.

 

[Gill_bucket]

The pulsing xenia likes a ton of light.

 

[droth335]

i am going to do a big WC tomorrow, water and salt is a tonne cheaper then test kits...likely do about a 50-60% change got a full 6g pail brewing right now..maybe that will get things in check...

forgot to mention i add about 3ml of marine essential elements on the weeks i dont do a WC..

Salt may be cheaper than test kits but if you don't understand your water parameters you are really 'driving blind'. You really need this information to effectively troubleshoot (or get assistance in troubleshooting) a lot of issues we all encounter in this hobby. My test kits last me at least a year so, in the grand scheme of the expense in this hobby it really isn't a large investement. Replacing my fish or coral, now that would be expensive! Good luck with your tank!

 

[NanoReefWanabe]

Salt may be cheaper than test kits but if you don't understand your water parameters you are really 'driving blind'. You really need this information to effectively troubleshoot (or get assistance in troubleshooting) a lot of issues we all encounter in this hobby. My test kits last me at least a year so, in the grand scheme of the expense in this hobby it really isn't a large investement. Replacing my fish or coral, now that would be expensive! Good luck with your tank!

salt is designed to be be within acceptable limits of croal and fish...i am using reef crystals...( i suppose i could have a bad pail though) that said if the temp and SG are correct i see no need to test parameters constantly, i drove myself crazy with my last tank constantly testing and adjusting parameters...i suppose a couple kits wouldnt be bad though..

as for lighting i have LED lighting right now...thinking about adding more LED's though, thinking i am going to add 4 more RB...the colour temp of the tankis too white right now for my tastes...plus all the corals look washed out and pale without blue...

 

[tylernt]

if the temp and SG are correct i see no need to test parameters constantly,

Agreed. I consider temp, SG, ammonia and nitrates to be all you need if you're willing to do frequent water changes and don't have stony corals.

Your troubleshooting mode with minimal tests though isn't "test to see what's wrong" it's "do a couple of big water changes and see if things improve".

i suppose a couple kits wouldnt be bad though..

Yeah, for stonies I'd add pH, alk, and calcium.