The R2R Spotlight sections is going to grow from a Zoanthid/Paly focus, to care, pests, fragging, shipping, and zoa safe fish/inverts. Keep an eye on the title to make sure you know what section you are on. So the new and old sections will be titled:
A R2R Spotlight: "Paly/Zoanthid name here"
--This one is our old style where will continue to bring info on particular strains of zoas and palys.
A R2R Care Spotlight: "Care type or Pest"
--In this section we will discuss such topics as , the Zoa-Dips, Nudis, Sundials, Pox, other predators, fragging, shipping, and QTing zoas.
A R2R Fish Spotlight: "Fish/Invert"
-- This one is pretty obvious but we will focus on a certain type of fish/Invert and discuss its zoa compatibility, rarity, cost, food requirement, minimum tank size, and some other tid-bits of info.
And now to Dips
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Made famous by MUCHO, this method of removing bristle worms, Nudibranchs, flatworms and parasites from zoa colonies was simple and from his own words, effective. The one aspect of these predators that is not affected by this dip are nudibranch eggs.
The original recipe has been done and changed around by so many people that some feed back is what this section is all about. I've done this dip myself, but have been lacking some of the major ingredients so I'll post only on what I know.
Ingredients/Parts:
1. 5 gallon white bucket, with 3 gallons of RO water.
2. Add 1 or 2 drops of Lugol's Iodine per gallon of RO water.
3. Set your PH to 8.2
4. Set your water temp. at 78 degrees
5. If you have some Flatworm exit (FWE) made my Saliferts, add 2 drops per gallon to the RO water to kill any Flatworms.
6. Setup a wash off container (with your tank water) to place zoas after dip
Treatment:
- Leave the rock in the solution for 5 minutes.
- For a minute or two pick up the rock and twist it back and forth like you are trying to shake the pests off of it (think washing mashine). I like to use a small powerhead to give me some more blast power.
- Take the colony out and examine for any small Nudibranch eggs:
- I like to wash off any and all solutions in another container that has tank water in it. I don't treat my tank with Iodine or Flatworm Exit so I like to wash off as much as possible in another container before placing it in my tank.
Post Treatment:
- Run at most Actinic lights for the rest of the day.
- Place zoas in a higher flow setting to blow off any slime that may be produced. (Not SPS type flow).
Experience:
- I am pretty careful about what I put into my tank so everything gets examined before buying or trading. I have yet to need or see zoas on any colonies I buy, but I still do this as a precaution. Better safe than sorry I say.
Other info:
- Keep in mind that while MUCHO suggests using Lugol's it isn't always the easiest thing to find. You can get a reef version made by Kent or Reef Pure which will be more expensive than the medical version, but much easier to get your hands on. But if you think about it the bottle should last you a some time.
BTW: Keep in mind that future R2R Care Spotlights will feature the predators mentioned in this spotlight.
*****************************************
OK, it is getting late and I have some work to do. So if anybody has any comments
A R2R Spotlight: "Paly/Zoanthid name here"
--This one is our old style where will continue to bring info on particular strains of zoas and palys.
A R2R Care Spotlight: "Care type or Pest"
--In this section we will discuss such topics as , the Zoa-Dips, Nudis, Sundials, Pox, other predators, fragging, shipping, and QTing zoas.
A R2R Fish Spotlight: "Fish/Invert"
-- This one is pretty obvious but we will focus on a certain type of fish/Invert and discuss its zoa compatibility, rarity, cost, food requirement, minimum tank size, and some other tid-bits of info.
And now to Dips
****************************************************
Made famous by MUCHO, this method of removing bristle worms, Nudibranchs, flatworms and parasites from zoa colonies was simple and from his own words, effective. The one aspect of these predators that is not affected by this dip are nudibranch eggs.
The original recipe has been done and changed around by so many people that some feed back is what this section is all about. I've done this dip myself, but have been lacking some of the major ingredients so I'll post only on what I know.
Ingredients/Parts:
1. 5 gallon white bucket, with 3 gallons of RO water.
2. Add 1 or 2 drops of Lugol's Iodine per gallon of RO water.
3. Set your PH to 8.2
4. Set your water temp. at 78 degrees
5. If you have some Flatworm exit (FWE) made my Saliferts, add 2 drops per gallon to the RO water to kill any Flatworms.
6. Setup a wash off container (with your tank water) to place zoas after dip
Treatment:
- Leave the rock in the solution for 5 minutes.
- For a minute or two pick up the rock and twist it back and forth like you are trying to shake the pests off of it (think washing mashine). I like to use a small powerhead to give me some more blast power.
- Take the colony out and examine for any small Nudibranch eggs:
- Place the rock back into the tank for another minute of twisting but after the minute is done dunk the colony in and out to get rid of any loose pests.MUCHO said:inspect the rock for what looks like a tiny white 1/8 of and inch curly white piece of thread. They won't detach from the rock as the sack is very sticky. Inside this egg sack is up to 40 or so eggs just waiting to hatch. If you see one, just remove it with tweezers before placing the rock back into your reef.
- I like to wash off any and all solutions in another container that has tank water in it. I don't treat my tank with Iodine or Flatworm Exit so I like to wash off as much as possible in another container before placing it in my tank.
Post Treatment:
- Run at most Actinic lights for the rest of the day.
- Place zoas in a higher flow setting to blow off any slime that may be produced. (Not SPS type flow).
Experience:
- I am pretty careful about what I put into my tank so everything gets examined before buying or trading. I have yet to need or see zoas on any colonies I buy, but I still do this as a precaution. Better safe than sorry I say.
Other info:
- Keep in mind that while MUCHO suggests using Lugol's it isn't always the easiest thing to find. You can get a reef version made by Kent or Reef Pure which will be more expensive than the medical version, but much easier to get your hands on. But if you think about it the bottle should last you a some time.
BTW: Keep in mind that future R2R Care Spotlights will feature the predators mentioned in this spotlight.
*****************************************
OK, it is getting late and I have some work to do. So if anybody has any comments
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