The sole purpose for a dip is to remove predators as well as unwanted entries into your tank while causing the least amount of undue stress to your zoanthids. Contrary to popular belief, dipping is stressful, allbeit lease stressful to zoanthids because they are very hardy and tolerant and adapting very well and easily to all types of lighting. I'm not taking shots here by saying this, but I would never risk dipping my zoanthids without first adjusting the PH. Can they tolerate the dip without it, sure, the above reefers can vouche that this is indeed true. I prefer to take the safest mode of treatment to insure that I am exerting the least amount of stress as possible. This is achieved by playing it safe and setting the PH and temp. to that of your tank.
I dipped several new arrivals last week and each of them opened within 15 minutes of placing them in my tank. I have seldom if ever had a delay in expansion. I have heard many stories of zoanthids not opening after a dip. Some of the reason were attributed to not setting the proper PH and temp. Often the dip was perfromed improperly. Some have peformed dips and moved their Zoathids 3 and 4 times in one day after the dip. This is a recipe for possible fatalities. Anthony Calfo even speaks of it in one of his books I read. Yes, they are hardy, but I would never push the envelope on any of my corals.
Yes, I use 5 or 6 drops per gallon and I have never had any issues.
When new aquisitions are aquired, often we assume the conditions they came from were spartan. Trust me, that isn't true. Try testing the water in the bag from your LFS. Often the parameters are way off. I DIDN'T SAY ALL LFS, but I have had this experience. So you remove the colony from the bag with a PH and many other parameters that are off, and you place it in a dip where the temp surely isn't the same as the bag and the parameters won't be the same either. After a 5 to 10 minute dip, you now place them in your tank which has a whole new set of parameters. Do you get the picture. Many factors can and will cause a delay. Taking a colony that was recently shipped with one or two days of complete darkness, bumped and banged around in transit, unpacked, dipped and then place in a tank and turning on 250 watts of MH is a major mistake. As I said, there are a host of reasons for delayed expansion.
This is why I would love to see more discussions on the ins and outs, do's and don't as it relates to Zoanthids. So much knowledge is shared and attained that way.
OK, running my mouth too much again.
Mooch
