Will my rock die???

[Phil5613]

First what is the calcium level in the tank and what is the iodine doing for you? I would like to see the sg up a bit. my concern as always is supplementing and feeding a tank that doesnt need it yet and doing so with out testing. The two kits that in a test set that I have found the hardest are the calcium and the alk do to them being multi step,needing to do math and finally most calcium test say when the test water is very or deep blue. (not so easy for the color challenged like me!)

[freshtosalt]

Phil: I am adding the supps because I have A LOT of life on my rocks. You should see what is growing... I also have MANY live clams that came with the rock so I supplement with KENT MARINE Chromax Super-Concentrated Phytoplankton Suspension every other day.

I can't find a calcium test kit at my LFS. I will go to Tropiquatics next week. The iodine came with a KENT MARINE Reef Starter Kit that I bought when my coraline started to die off. Since I started using the kit, my coraline has taken off again and I have noticed my other "critters" being more active.

HELLO! WHAT THE HECK IS IT????? > I notice a very small white and black "snail" moving about on my rock last nigt. It doesn't look like a reg snail because it is almost flat. It is white with black stripes on it and it is smaller then a dime in diameter.

I have been noticing much of my "polyps" missing lately( I have some little things that look like red water balloons) and they are almost all gone. Tonite I saw the bugger again on a piece in the same spot that there "USE TO BE" a large growth of these pretty little balloons. I immediately grabbed the sucker with some tweezers and ripped it off my rock. I did not want to kill it, yet >, so I put it in the sump of my WDF until I can have someone take a look at it. Any idea what the little destroyer, as I call it now, is?????

[Birdlady]

Fresh to Salt...

I would slow up on the Iodine! That is a lot to add and can be overdosed, and is difficult to remove.

I add 1 or 2 drops of Lugol's solution Iodine supplement say, every 4 to 6 weeks, if that. You need to test for that and only add as needed...

That reef starter kit comes with calcium, right? That is what is making the coralline grow, most likely...

[OoNickoC]

[quote author=freshtosalt link=board=Newbie;num=1101754135;start=60#69 date=12/20/04 at 23:34:37]I also add 10 drops of Iodine each day ( prescribed does is 8 drops per 50 gallons and I have a 65 gal. tank).

The tank has been running, from day one, for 5 weeks Monday the 20th. This Saturday will be 4 weeks with live rock in it.[/quote]

Not sure who changed ur mind but way excess on the iodine IMO....there arent many nice looking critters that require near that amount. Using the recomended dosage in even nicelye populated tanks builds up. Also i wouldnt add a supllement like iod. Cal. Stro. ect....unless you can measure it yourself. Ive always skimped on it unless its for my mantis tank or one with a ridiculous amount of shrims,crabs,ect. I also like to think of the motto that most things semm to die off earlier than those which grow at a normal healthy pace....this is in the long run. My shrimp and crabs used to die off from molting too much due to excess iod.

[OldandNew]

Dieing too much due to molting too much...

There may be something to that, because the other day I did a dose of iodine per bottle (had not added any since starting up the tank - 3 weeks LR/LS/LSW) and the coral shrimp in the tank shed his kilt in a heatbeat. I'm not saying that he nor the tank didn't need the iodine dose, just that there seems to be a cause and effect there.

BTW, coral shrimp is doing fine in his new kilt.

Cheers,
Ray

[freshtosalt]

WOW!!!! I was just following the directions on the bottle that came with the starter kit. I'll cut way back. Thanks.

Hope you all have a wonderful Holiday season, and may all your wishes and dreams come true...

[Craig Manoukian]

Thanks FTS!

[freshtosalt]

Well, Christmas is over and all is well... I have more questions for you all...

#1) I have a 65 gal. tank and I have app. 105lbs of LR in it. There doesn't look like there is any room for fish ??!!

#2) I was using dKH buffer and got the Ph up to 8.2-8.3. I stopped using the buffer a couple days ago and now it is back down to 8.0. I did a 10gal water change after testing Ph, will retest tonight. What can I do to keep the Ph up? Anything between now and the time I get the Kalk drip set up???

#3) I already have test kits for ammonia, Ph, Nitrate, Nitrite, SG, and Alkalinity. I was going to get a test kit for Calcium. What else should I get test kits for?

Thanks,

Fresh...

[Craig Manoukian]

How much unobstructed water column do you have btween your rock work and the top of the water. I have about 12" of swim space as well as lots of places for fish to hide. I have enough room betwwen my aquascaping and side glass to clean the tank. the fish use these as swim lanes also.

Maybe remove a few rocks and start a sump, eh? Can you post some pictures? So we can get a look at what you are talking about?

Without any corals, no need really to test fotr calcium, strontium, or magnesium, but those would be good tests if you move to a reef set-up from a FOWLR.

[freshtosalt]

I just got a digital camera "for my wife" and took 6 pics of the tank. Now all I have to do is figure out how to get them here...

I have set up my "aquascape" so that the rock is along the back wall of the tank and there is app. 10" of free space twix the rock and the front of the tank. Basic dimensions of the "free water" is 10x28x24. There are also many small hiding spaces, I have one large rock angled so there is space to go under it as well as over, and around, it... I'll try to get some pictures, too hard to explain.

Most of the LR I bought has hard coral on it. There are also MANY clams attached to the LR, some of which have some very nice life attached to them.