Heavy metals and corals

[Cory]

I found this article posted below. Im curious if anyone has experienced coral death due to a known heavy metal in the tank.

http://scialert.net/fulltext/?doi=rjes.2009.96.102

ABSTRACT
Specific aims of the study were to quantify heavy metal concentration in the coral tissue and to determine the toxic effect of metal on coral Galaxea fascicularis. The concentration of heavy metals in the coral tissues were assessed using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) technique. Various oceanographic parameters were also measured on sampling sites. Controlled tolerance experiment testing copper were performed on coral organism. Series of exposures at different range concentrations (0.025, 0.050, 0.075 and 0.100 mg L-1 Cu) were conducted for 96 h LC50. Results indicated that low variation existed among some oceanographic parameter in depth. Higher concentrations of Pb and Fe were detected in coral tissues. Short duration (24 h) laboratory assay demonstrated dramatic effects ( tissue bleaching and death) on coral at copper concentrations (0.1 mg L-1 Cu). The LC50-96 was determined to be 0.032 mg L-1Cu (II). The present experimental results demonstrated that heavy metals can have deleterious effect on coral animal, at relatively low concentrations and for brief exposures.

 

[marke]

Thats a good article. There are many more like it discussing how toxic metals can cause coral damage. No one is going to admit to a tank crash due to metal toxicity. This is due to the fact that it is difficult to test for these at home. So when something bad happens in our system we have no way of attributing it to toxicity. So reefers blame it on anything. Bad food, bad additives, got a bad coral, etc. A lot of toxic metals get attached to things in our tank, like algae,rock, sand, cyano,etc. At some point down the road, maybe due to a drop in ph for an unknown reason, these metals can be released from these surfaces causing a toxic spike. Old Tank Symdrome is what Dr Slimak calls it. We should work to reduce metal input. Typically metals comes from fish food, industrial grade two part and magnesium in particular(trace additives are loaded in metals). Also freshly mixed salt mixes have high levels of toxic metals ( probably due to the use of industrial vs pharmaceutical grade raw material in the salt mixes. Thats why we dont do large water changes. Skimming, Carbon, Gfo can aid in the reduction of toxic metals. I personally think this is a bigger issue than most reefers realize. Dr Farley wrote a good article on this----check the stickys above. The only thing we can do is use good food, good salt, and good additives.

 

[Cory]

Thats a good article. There are many more like it discussing how toxic metals can cause coral damage. No one is going to admit to a tank crash due to metal toxicity. This is due to the fact that it is difficult to test for these at home. So when something bad happens in our system we have no way of attributing it to toxicity. So reefers blame it on anything. Bad food, bad additives, got a bad coral, etc. A lot of toxic metals get attached to things in our tank, like algae,rock, sand, cyano,etc. At some point down the road, maybe due to a drop in ph for an unknown reason, these metals can be released from these surfaces causing a toxic spike. Old Tank Symdrome is what Dr Slimak calls it. We should work to reduce metal input. Typically metals comes from fish food, industrial grade two part and magnesium in particular(trace additives are loaded in metals). Also freshly mixed salt mixes have high levels of toxic metals ( probably due to the use of industrial vs pharmaceutical grade raw material in the salt mixes. Thats why we dont do large water changes. Skimming, Carbon, Gfo can aid in the reduction of toxic metals. I personally think this is a bigger issue than most reefers realize. Dr Farley wrote a good article on this----check the stickys above. The only thing we can do is use good food, good salt, and good additives.

Yes it seems like a concern for sure especially unknown is the food we input and additves. I got a montipora thats bleached on me and im trying to dicern if its from this mirror thats been in the tank or diatom growth on it. All the softies are fine, so maybe its not the mirror as they are made of aluminum and sometimes silver. But silver is toxic i know to coral. But since the softies are fine id have to say diatoms. Ill never know really.

 

[joefishUC]

Interesting article. Thanks for sharing. I agree with your Marke, we need to be much more aware of everything that goes into one's aquarium. Having worked as the head of Triton-US for several years now, I have spoken with many people experiencing issues with coral decline presumably due to heavy metal toxicity. Like Marke said, for the longest time we as hobbyists weren't able to easily test for unwanted heavy metals at low levels in our aquariums. While I never push or scare people into going out and purchasing a triton test to determine if there is a buildup in their aquarium, I will recommend it if all else is testing fine and the corals are still suffering. Once the cuplrit is identified, (typically copper, aluminum, zinc, tungsten or tin) actions can be taken to remove the metal from the water. But simply removing it is only part of the battle. Identifying where it came from is the bigger issue. I encourage people to examine everything they do to thier tanks, the foods they use, the products they dose with, the water they rinse the foods in, the metal tongs and hardware sometimes laying on top of the tank, the stainless steel hose clamps under water, the pitting aluminum reflectors soaked with condensation, the old abandoned testing probes left for years in the sump, the old flow pumps with rotting shafts, etc, etc. Once things are cleaned up and awareness reaches a new level, the problems are typically dealt with in a swift manner never to come back. Thankfully we have a good body of anecdotal evidence and willing hobbyists (and you Randy!) to assist and guide us in the quest of having cleaner water with less toxicity.

 

[Cory]

Interesting article. Thanks for sharing. I agree with your Marke, we need to be much more aware of everything that goes into one's aquarium. Having worked as the head of Triton-US for several years now, I have spoken with many people experiencing issues with coral decline presumably due to heavy metal toxicity. Like Marke said, for the longest time we as hobbyists weren't able to easily test for unwanted heavy metals at low levels in our aquariums. While I never push or scare people into going out and purchasing a triton test to determine if there is a buildup in their aquarium, I will recommend it if all else is testing fine and the corals are still suffering. Once the cuplrit is identified, (typically copper, aluminum, zinc, tungsten or tin) actions can be taken to remove the metal from the water. But simply removing it is only part of the battle. Identifying where it came from is the bigger issue. I encourage people to examine everything they do to thier tanks, the foods they use, the products they dose with, the water they rinse the foods in, the metal tongs and hardware sometimes laying on top of the tank, the stainless steel hose clamps under water, the pitting aluminum reflectors soaked with condensation, the old abandoned testing probes left for years in the sump, the old flow pumps with rotting shafts, etc, etc. Once things are cleaned up and awareness reaches a new level, the problems are typically dealt with in a swift manner never to come back. Thankfully we have a good body of anecdotal evidence and willing hobbyists (and you Randy!) to assist and guide us in the quest of having cleaner water with less toxicity.

That's interesting so youve got some experience as to whats going on working there. What would you say was the primary cause of heavy metals in most tanks?

I like to run a simple tank. Ats, light, and a pump. Heat stays constant 78-80f due to the equipment. I want to limit all metal sources, i hate any metal. As far as hose clamps, i just use titanium now, but zip ties can be used too. Prefer titanium.

I think running cuprimine continously is a good safeguard. Not sure what can be done with pb, tin or the others besides water changes. Maybe algae can help.

 

[joefishUC]

That's interesting so youve got some experience as to whats going on working there. What would you say was the primary cause of heavy metals in most tanks?

I like to run a simple tank. Ats, light, and a pump. Heat stays constant 78-80f due to the equipment. I want to limit all metal sources, i hate any metal. As far as hose clamps, i just use titanium now, but zip ties can be used too. Prefer titanium.

I think running cuprimine continously is a good safeguard. Not sure what can be done with pb, tin or the others besides water changes. Maybe algae can help.

From what I've seen I can't really pinpoint one primary cause of heavy metals. Everyone has slightly different results and very different setups, products used, etc. Here are a few common issues I've encountered:

These of course are all anecdotal.

Ceramic biological blocks placed in the sump tend to leach Aluminum to the point of hurting coral tissue. I had recently had the pleasure of helping Todd Cherry determine that the cause of coral decline in one of his grow-out tanks was from high Al from some blocks he placed in the sump.

Elevated Lithium- Not really considered toxic or even harmful but still present in high concentrations in many American reefers tanks. Most likely from salt mixes or calcium chloride additives.

High Tin- probably from new pvc piping.

To answer your question- Water changes with RO/DI water should certainly dilute out tin and lead. Triton makes a product called Detox which is designed to target copper but people have reported that it strips out other unwanted heavy metals as well. Panta Lith by Panta Rhei is another heavy metal binder that helps as well. I like cupramine for fish-only systems but once the fish population is stable and healthy I personally would stop using it.

 

[Cory]

From what I've seen I can't really pinpoint one primary cause of heavy metals. Everyone has slightly different results and very different setups, products used, etc. Here are a few common issues I've encountered:

These of course are all anecdotal.

Ceramic biological blocks placed in the sump tend to leach Aluminum to the point of hurting coral tissue. I had recently had the pleasure of helping Todd Cherry determine that the cause of coral decline in one of his grow-out tanks was from high Al from some blocks he placed in the sump.

Elevated Lithium- Not really considered toxic or even harmful but still present in high concentrations in many American reefers tanks. Most likely from salt mixes or calcium chloride additives.

High Tin- probably from new pvc piping.

To answer your question- Water changes with RO/DI water should certainly dilute out tin and lead. Triton makes a product called Detox which is designed to target copper but people have reported that it strips out other unwanted heavy metals as well. Panta Lith by Panta Rhei is another heavy metal binder that helps as well. I like cupramine for fish-only systems but once the fish population is stable and healthy I personally would stop using it.

Why would you stop using it? Ill have a look into those detox solutions.

You know i just realized i said cupramine. I meant cuprizorb.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Just a minor comment, lithium is not a heavy metal. It is the lightest of all metals. lol

 

[Big E]

The biggest cause/issue I see right now is people overdosing trace metals. The hype on this(dosing) currently is ridiculous.

 

[Cory]

The biggest cause/issue I see right now is people overdosing trace metals. The hype on this(dosing) currently is ridiculous.

Yes i agree. What kind you talking about? The general mix, or a single thing like iron. Its probably because of companies that promote trace metal supplementation for growing bacteria.

 

[Cory]

Just a minor comment, lithium is not a heavy metal. It is the lightest of all metals. lol

Light lithium "ll", easy way for me to remember that.

What are they saying in laymans terms here?

"The LC50-96 was determined to be 0.032 mg L-1Cu (II)"

 

[redfishbluefish]

Interesting article.....thanks for sharing.

What I've always wondered about was introduction of heavy metals from plastics....and honestly not sure if leaching heavy metals from same would get to a level of concern. When I was working in industry, we had more and more of our plastic products made in a certain foreign country. We would always test the raw materials here in the US, and it was fairly common to find high levels of heavy metals in the plastics. We would mention this to our foreign supplier, and it would be clean for the next number of batches....but eventually the heavy metals would show up again. Now we tested our plastics because these where being used in medical devices. I cringe at what is being put into regular consumer plastics from this country. By the way, the most common contaminant was cadmium.

 

[Paul B]

I am certainly no expert on metals, Randy is the expert on that but I think the problem it is way overrated. Especially things like hose clamps, iron and metal leaching from certain foods. I would assume some flake foods and prepared foods could have some metals but If it makes any difference to this discussion I have hose clamps, probably 4 of them in my tank for 40 years as well as 6 or 7 stainless steel screws, stainless steel ground probe and thermometer.
Not counting many screws, razor blades, needles and other things I have dropped and lost in there over the years. I also have been collecting water here in New York since the tank started in the 70s.
I don't keep too many SPS corals but I do have a lot of montipora and have had plenty of acro's until my clown gobi spawned all over them and killed them.
I think if metals were a problem, my tank would have more metal in it than a chain link fence or Schwarzenegger's biceps. I also don't use carbon or any other materials that would remove metals or change much water. Also, if you do any diving on steel ship wrecks you will notice many more corals growing on the wreck than the surrounding rock. I wonder why.
I just thought I would throw this in.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Light lithium "ll", easy way for me to remember that.

What are they saying in laymans terms here?

"The LC50-96 was determined to be 0.032 mg L-1Cu (II)"

I'm not sure of the context, but that literally means that 50% die in 96 hours of exposure to cupric copper (Cu++) at a concentration of 0.032 mg/l (~32 ppb).

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Also, if you do any diving on steel ship wrecks you will notice many more corals growing on the wreck than the surrounding rock. I wonder why.

http://coralreefsystems.org/blog/shipwreck-ahoy

It's not all peaches and cream for shipwrecks.

http://coralreefsystems.org/blog/shipwreck-ahoy

"In 2009, we investigated a black reef on Millennium Atoll in the Southern Line Islands where an 85 foot steel tug had run aground in 1993 while towing a sailing vessel out through a narrow reef passage. Instead of the 66% live coral cover found elsewhere on Millennium, near the wreck coral cover was reduced to less than 17% of the substrate. Similar declines in coral and increases in turf algae have been observed on black reefs at Fanning and Starbuck.

How are these shipwrecks causing such devastating effects? One clue comes from the observation that the black reef on Millenium extends for about 2500 feet downcurrent from the ship debris, thus suggesting that some substance has leached from the wreck and is dispersing with the reef water. The prime suspect was iron. "

"Combined, our results suggest that iron enrichment at a shipwreck site selects for a subset of potentially virulent microbes that could be killing the corals and/or inhibiting coral recovery."

 

[bios]

I'm not sure of the context, but that literally means that 50% die in 96 hours of exposure to cupric copper (Cu++) at a concentration of 0.032 mg/l (~32 ppb).

LC mean lethal concentration

 

[Cory]

I'm not sure of the context, but that literally means that 50% die in 96 hours of exposure to cupric copper (Cu++) at a concentration of 0.032 mg/l (~32 ppb).

How can we visualize 32ppb of copper? 32 marbles in a 100 gallon? Or 1000 gallon?

 

[Cory]

I am certainly no expert on metals, Randy is the expert on that but I think the problem it is way overrated. Especially things like hose clamps, iron and metal leaching from certain foods. I would assume some flake foods and prepared foods could have some metals but If it makes any difference to this discussion I have hose clamps, probably 4 of them in my tank for 40 years as well as 6 or 7 stainless steel screws, stainless steel ground probe and thermometer.
Not counting many screws, razor blades, needles and other things I have dropped and lost in there over the years. I also have been collecting water here in New York since the tank started in the 70s.
I don't keep too many SPS corals but I do have a lot of montipora and have had plenty of acro's until my clown gobi spawned all over them and killed them.
I think if metals were a problem, my tank would have more metal in it than a chain link fence or Schwarzenegger's biceps. I also don't use carbon or any other materials that would remove metals or change much water. Also, if you do any diving on steel ship wrecks you will notice many more corals growing on the wreck than the surrounding rock. I wonder why.
I just thought I would throw this in.

Did you take that hammer out? Hammer Time! (Mc hammer rapper phrase)

 

[Paul B]

Randy very cool article. I also have dove on dozens of ship wrecks and observed just the opposite. I even see many anemones on steel wrecks and anemones are very sensitive to metals. In the picture on that site they show a huge propeller. Ship propellers of that size are bronze which have a large component of copper in them. Some propellers weight tons. Virtually all of the metal on a ship, besides the hull and superstructure is also brass, especially on an old wreck.
They didn't mention brass, which lasts forever underwater and keeps killing invertebrates as they still find Egyptian wrecks which contain brass. I am wondering if the copper in the brass is more important than the iron. I think most of the iron would wash away or be incorporated in the algae than bother the coral. It is interesting about the microbes and I didn't know anything about that so that could be important.

 

[Paul B]

Did you take that hammer out? Hammer Time! (Mc hammer rapper phrase)

Yes, I took out the hammer and added the can so I can write about aluminum, and cheap beer. I still think metal poisoning in the vast majority of cases in a tank is of no consequence unless you sink a ship in your tank. But that's just me and I can only go by what "I" see underwater and not what a scientist sees because I don't know that scientist so maybe he was on LSD or drank a bunch of cheap beer before he made his observations. Of course maybe her observations are accurate, but that is also one shipwreck. The girl who did the observing is also a student, or in other words, A Noob scientist. Maybe the thing is covered in parrotfish that ate the coral. What? It could happen!!

Here are about 500 pictures of corals growing on steel shipwrecks.
http://search.aol.com/aol/image?q=c...hipwrecks&s_chn=prt_btest-min-g&v_t=comsearch

Here are massive corals growing on the wrecks in Truk Lagoon.
http://lizrogersphotography.com/2016/01/coral-growth-on-the-truk-lagoon-shipwrecks/

Here is a quote I found in a National Geographic article about ship wrecks
"Ships made of wood provide a different hosting environment than those built of steel," says Benayahu. "Steel is a very successful choice of reef as wood decays. Steel structures are also covered fast by calcareous algae, which provide an adequate surface for coral larvae to grow quickly."