Zoas looking upset

[pwendlandt]

Hello everyone,

I wanted to ask you guys for some help with some orange zoas I have.

I’ve had these guys for quite a few months ago and they seemed to be doing fine. They grew quite fast as when I bought them I only had 2 heads now I almost have 10.

For the last few days for some reason they seem to be upset, some polyps are closed and puffy and others just don’t look as full as they did before. Before I wouldn’t even see the frag plug, now I can. Also maybe this will help but I used to have another pair of zoas next to it but those melted away, they fought for a few months to stay but a few days ago (right when this began to happen) those finally gave out and melted but I believe that it was due to coraline algae just out growing it. (You can see them in the pictures)

I’ll add my parameters here as well as some pictures and videos of it in case anyone could help me out I would really appreciate it!

The first to pictures are from before the rest are now

 

[pwendlandt]

Hello everyone,

I wanted to ask you guys for some help with some orange zoas I have.

I’ve had these guys for quite a few months ago and they seemed to be doing fine. They grew quite fast as when I bought them I only had 2 heads now I almost have 10.

For the last few days for some reason they seem to be upset, some polyps are closed and puffy and others just don’t look as full as they did before. Before I wouldn’t even see the frag plug, now I can. Also maybe this will help but I used to have another pair of zoas next to it but those melted away, they fought for a few months to stay but a few days ago (right when this began to happen) those finally gave out and melted but I believe that it was due to coraline algae just out growing it. (You can see them in the pictures)

I’ll add my parameters here as well as some pictures and videos of it in case anyone could help me out I would really appreciate it!

The first to pictures are from before the rest are now

Also just in case this helps, I’m running my light at its peek at the following intensity and I’ve been dosing vibrant for the last weeks due to a big issue I’ve had with green hair algae, I’ve been battling my phosphates and nitrates for 2 months now

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

What size is your tank? What depth?

Vibrant kills algae, but you know that corals have algae living in the tissue, so therefor vibrant can also hurt corals. How much vibrant are you using?

 

[pwendlandt]

What size is your tank? What depth?

Vibrant kills algae, but you know that corals have algae living in the tissue, so therefor vibrant can also hurt corals. How much vibrant are you using?

It is a water box 20, so 20 gallons AIO, the depth I can’t really tell you I can give you the dimensions tho if that helps, they are 17.7"×17.7"×31.9”

 

[pwendlandt]

It is a water box 20, so 20 gallons AIO, the depth I can’t really tell you I can give you the dimensions tho if that helps, they are 17.7"×17.7"×31.9”

I am adding 2 ml of vibrant once a week

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Personally I would suggest to use gfo to reduce the phosphate level.

For the nitrate, I would investigate why the nitrate is that high.... Is it test error, poor filtration, overstocked tank, overfeeding, lack of water changes, tap water?........ something is wrong with your water quality, its important to investigate that and correct it. A properly filtered reef should not have nutrients that high.

Correcting the nutrient levels is better solution than using vibrant. In my opinion, good luck

 

[pwendlandt]

thanks! I added a bag of chemo pure elite which I read helped, it did lower the phosphates a bit but not by much. I believe the nitrate issue comes from the pellets I feed so I started feeding every other day to lower that down, changing the filter floss every three days as well. It helps I just don’t want to starve my fish.

Do you have any adivice as to why the zoas are looking that way tho?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I'm sorry but I don't have any idea for you... the nutrients should not be too much for the zoa's, and the light is fine, so I'm not sure. Hope others see this post and can help you out. Good luck

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Do you have anything that could potentially be bothering them?
What about algae issues, any issues with that?

 

[ShanePike]

thanks! I added a bag of chemo pure elite which I read helped, it did lower the phosphates a bit but not by much. I believe the nitrate issue comes from the pellets I feed so I started feeding every other day to lower that down, changing the filter floss every three days as well. It helps I just don’t want to starve my fish.

Do you have any adivice as to why the zoas are looking that way tho?

You can feed frozen instead if you're concerned about pellets adding to the phosphate issue. And if cost of frozen is a concern, my fish love this: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Great-Va...-Mussels-Shrimp-and-Scallops-20-oz/2203882958

I put a little in a small food processor with some RODI water and blend it up pretty well. (My fish are small, so I need tiny pieces.) Then I spread it out on a thin sheet in the freezer until it's frozen back again. Once it's frozen, I cut and/or break it into small pieces and store them in a container in the freezer.

 

[BryanM]

I agree, I don't think the nutrients are causing the issue, but I'd definitely want to get them trending downward, assuming it isn't test error.

I think the easiest thing to do is stop dosing vibrant, and see if that's what's annoying the zoas. 2ml isn't very much, but if it is the vibrant I'd think you'd see improvement within 3 days.

 

[littlebigreef]

Handful of observations.

You don’t state how old the tank is though you do mention you’ve had these zoas a few months. The difference between a cycled tank and a mature one is a big one. Mature tanks have the established microfauna and macro algae to absorb nutritional input (in addition to your fish and corals). In a tank that’s merely cycled you can get stuck in a feedback loop of sorts.

You might be out over your skis with nutritional input vs nutrient export - hence the hair algae issue. Dialing back pellets helps. But dosing vibrant (a product I’d never recommend) is treating the symptom (hair algae) and not that underlaying import/export imbalance. Getting that dialed in will be difficult on a 20 gal - but not impossible. Getting that in place will determine your success moving forward. Reducing feeding (frozen can also boost nitrates/phosphates), more aggressive skimming, and reviewing your fish bioload is where to start. You don’t mention what’s in there but 20 gals of water is going to seriously handcuff you fish-wise.

Gfo is a means to an end. Managing excess nutrients via water change is going to be your best bet.

As for your lighting, you share what you’re running the light at but do you know your par? With the led units available these days you can likely dial it way back - especially on such a small system. Most zoas only need 80-140 par. Without a ton of coral in there that hair algae is going to soak up all that light and grow like crazy. You may want to consider reducing both strength and photoperiod.

Nutrients and lighting aside the only red flag I’m seeing is the alk reading 10.2. Most common zoas can tolerate high and low alk but they will absolutely not tolerate swings. Is your alk always that high? Or did a batch of salt mix up with a hotspot? Anything over 9 dkh is high (by my standards) and while tolerant, most zoas are not gonna thrive at that level.

 

[Bohemian Waxwing]

Is that the Saxby signature series profile?

In my similar sized IM tank, I found that running my whites above even 20% started to melt stuff. Those white LEDs are very strong. My first reccomendation would be dropping the whites down (blues and purples are fine).