Open up little guys! Why won't they open?

[Luckyduck]

So I just added these two colonies of Zoos to my 15G column about 5 days ago. Colony on the left seems happy and opened up right away. They're actually a little more closed than usual cuz the light just came on not long ago. The colony on the plug to the right of them however has not opened yet... at all. Seems like they're stretching to get more light but that surprises me as they're at mid to upper level in the tank and I have an AI Prime 16HD over them running the Ecotech Marine AB+ spectrum. Maybe they're a higher light demand zoo? What do you guys think? Should I raise them up higher?

 

[Crabs McJones]

Whats the flow difference from the one side to the other?

 

[Luckyduck]

Whats the flow difference from the one side to the other?

Not too much. Maybe a little less on the closed colony. It reflects off the glass on the front and comes back on both colonies fairly evenly.

 

[45ZoaGarden]

What are the water parameters? Also looks like there might me some slime in between the polyps. What do you see?

 

[Crabs McJones]

Was the coral dipped before adding it to the tank? Not that there is something bothering them.

 

[Luckyduck]

Water parameters are fair.
Salinity 1.025
Temp 78.8
Calcium is low around 250 (slowly getting that up)
Alk is 850 (also a touch low)
Magnesium 1280
Ammonia 0
Nitrites very small amount
Nitrates are a little high at 25
I did not dip them. No slime but there is some dust stuck around the bases I will blow it off with a syringe when I get back home this afternoon.

 

[andrewey]

I wouldn't move them. It's possible that they're just acclimating. It's much easier to harm zoas with too much light then too little light. I would give them some more time- I have zoas that took weeks to open up and ones that were open through the entire dipping process, even when I towel dried them!

Also, with regard to their stalks growth vs light/flow- that isn't something that happens on a day by day basis- that's growth patterns you can observe over weeks/months. You won't get that quick of feedback from zoas

Lastly, I would definitely look into dipping your zoas in the future. They're the ice cream cones of the sea- everyone loves to munch them and they carry a lot of hitchhikers. Especially if you're buying colonies- they're usually wild collected and guaranteed to have some fun surprises you don't want

 

[Luckyduck]

I wouldn't move them. It's possible that they're just acclimating. It's much easier to harm zoas with too much light then too little light. I would give them some more time- I have zoas that took weeks to open up and ones that were open through the entire dipping process, even when I towel dried them!

Also, with regard to their stalks growth vs light/flow- that isn't something that happens on a day by day basis- that's growth patterns you can observe over weeks/months. You won't get that quick of feedback from zoas

Lastly, I would definitely look into dipping your zoas in the future. They're the ice cream cones of the sea- everyone loves to munch them and they carry a lot of hitchhikers. Especially if you're buying colonies- they're usually wild collected and guaranteed to have some fun surprises you don't want

Andrew that's a great answer man! The ice cream cones of the sea lol I like that, good analogy. I will leave them be. A friend of mine who has been reefing for a long time said the same thing. I will definitely start dipping in the future too. Do you recommend any dips in particular? I've never done it before so I'll watch a few YouTube videos and educate myself!

 

[andrewey]

I have a few dips I like to employ, but I would say my work horse and all around favorite dip would be Bayer (yes, the insecticide). If you watch some videos on dipping with bayer, you'll learn the technique on how to dip/rinse, dipping concentrations/time. There's also a few good threads if you want to see the original Bayer dip thread

If you're dipping a lot, beyond being wildly effective for most organisms, it happens to be one of the cheapest

 

[danieyella]

Lastly, I would definitely look into dipping your zoas in the future. They're the ice cream cones of the sea- everyone loves to munch them and they carry a lot of hitchhikers. Especially if you're buying colonies- they're usually wild collected and guaranteed to have some fun surprises you don't want

I have to agree, and I love your choice of words. I've seen more things come off my zoas than any other coral I've added to my tank. I learned to dip when I brought home my armor of gods and many bristleworms and zoa eating nudis along with it. Luckily I was able to run to the LFS, buy some dip, and save everything from getting infested with nudis before it spread.

 

[Luckyduck]

I have a few dips I like to employ, but I would say my work horse and all around favorite dip would be Bayer (yes, the insecticide). If you watch some videos on dipping with bayer, you'll learn the technique on how to dip/rinse, dipping concentrations/time. There's also a few good threads if you want to see the original Bayer dip thread

If you're dipping a lot, beyond being wildly effective for most organisms, it happens to be one of the cheapest

Good deal. Thanks again brother.

 

[andrewey]

Of course! Anytime!

 

[Ashgoe]

So I just added these two colonies of Zoos to my 15G column about 5 days ago. Colony on the left seems happy and opened up right away. They're actually a little more closed than usual cuz the light just came on not long ago. The colony on the plug to the right of them however has not opened yet... at all. Seems like they're stretching to get more light but that surprises me as they're at mid to upper level in the tank and I have an AI Prime 16HD over them running the Ecotech Marine AB+ spectrum. Maybe they're a higher light demand zoo? What do you guys think? Should I raise them up higher?

Sometime it takes 10 - 12 days to get acclimated , so wait till

 

[Ashgoe]

Gradually increase the intencity of ur light n keep blue spectrum on higher side

 

[Fishko]

I added some new zoas and one isnt opening as well, i was planning on doing a peroxide dip, they usually open up really quickly if something was bothering them

 

[Luckyduck]

I added some new zoas and one isnt opening as well, i was planning on doing a peroxide dip, they usually open up really quickly if something was bothering them

I just ordered some Brightwell Aquatics Koral MD so if I'm still having trouble when I get it I'll give them a dip. They were accumulating some dust at the base of the plug so I blew them off good tonight with a monoject. I never thought of Peroxide. I have an organic vegetable farm and we use acetic acid as a fungicide. I could always run to the farm, grab some and dulite it. They look healthy though, I think they just need more time. My friend that gave them to me I asked him today and he said they took a while to open for him as well.

 

[Luckyduck]

Gradually increase the intencity of ur light n keep blue spectrum on higher side

Definitely not increasing the intensity of my light. It's already high and I'm using a custom spectrum from Ecotech Marine that they have had great results with. So if it is a matter of light it's a matter of placement. Increasing the intensity will bother the other corals that are happy.

 

[Thespammailaccount]

The dust or film you mentioned makes me think bacterial or lack of flow

 

[Ashgoe]

Definitely not increasing the intensity of my light. It's already high and I'm using a custom spectrum from Ecotech Marine that they have had great results with. So if it is a matter of light it's a matter of placement. Increasing the intensity will bother the other corals that are happy.

Placement is also a vital one
Keep placing diff place until looks good

 

[Luckyduck]

Placement is also a vital one
Keep placing diff place until looks good

That's the plan if they don't open in a week. You gotta give Zoos time. Some take days even a week or more to open. I think being patient will help to see. They may even have a bacteria on them, I plan on giving them a dip once my Koral MD comes in and hopefully that helps. Moving corals around too much isn't good for them. Consistency is key in this hobby. Changing light intensitys and moving corals around a lot is not a good idea. Zoos can adapt to many different light intensitys some just need more time to adapt to their new environment.