problems with my zoas

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Saltwater77

Member
So I have always been having problems with my zoas. My parameters are as follows;
Temp 78
Calcium 460-480 Api
Alk 10 Api
Mag 1380 Salifert
Salinity 1.025 Refractometer
Nitrates 20PPM Api
Phosphates .07 Hannah Phosphate Checker
Everything else is zero
Ph 8.3

No pests what so ever.
Ive had t5's and they never opened, Chinese leds and they never really opened. Now I have a radion xr30wpro probably 20 inches above the tank. Half of the zoas shrink or streach and the rest of them dont open. Intensity is very low on the radion like 4 clicks up. If I go up to 10 clicks then they close up. What to do. They dont seem to like white light. Better results under a bluish setting but then they strech again. Please help. I have like 40 different kinds of zoas and palys.
 
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strike2867

Member
Other than maybe your phosphates, I don't see an issue. The thing I always tell to people in these situations is take a sample of your water and bring it to the LFS. Let them confirm your tests with their test kits. Next is look for any metal or current in the tank.
 
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Saltwater77

Member
So would you recommend a grounding probe to eliminate stray current if it is present. I currently do not have a multimeter but will pick one up over the weekend and check for stray current. I ordered 2 grounding probes last weekend but haven't received them yet.
 
tomek77pl

tomek77pl

Member
I am having the same problem. Half of my zoas are shrinked while the other half are doing great. my ph is on the lower range of 7.7-8.1 but other then that my water is perfect. Last time I check I had 50 volts with my jeabo on and skimmer. do you guys think 50 volts is to high?
 
rako1

rako1

Premium member
tomek77pl said:
I am having the same problem. Half of my zoas are shrinked while the other half are doing great. my ph is on the lower range of 7.7-8.1 but other then that my water is perfect. Last time I check I had 50 volts with my jeabo on and skimmer. do you guys think 50 volts is to high?
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Yes it is get a grounding probe
 
rako1

rako1

Premium member
Start unplugging things to see where the voltage is comming from and replace it. You will never get rid of all the stray voltage when there is so many pumps and heaters and whatnot in our tanks but reduce it as much as you can an a probe will do the rest
 
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Saltwater77

Member
I can't believe that with the amount of people on this site that there isn't anyone else that can shed some light on out zoa problems. Surely there is someone out there that has mastered the keeping of zoanthids.
 
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Saltwater77

Member
I haven't checked for stray current yet. All water parameters are great except nitrates are 20ppm. All other corals are doing fine except the zoas.
 
madjoe

madjoe

Premium member
Saltwater77 said:
I can't believe that with the amount of people on this site that there isn't anyone else that can shed some light on out zoa problems. Surely there is someone out there that has mastered the keeping of zoanthids.
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Ive never figured out zoas all i know is when my water was crap they thrived once i stabiled my tank out for sps and the sps thrived most zoas melted or stopped growing completely while others stayed strong and thrived . Ived asked advise on them and people give good things to check but every tank runs different . Only thing i can say for sure is placement is big part of survival some like lower light some like higher same with flow i had rastas at one point i had to move them 15 times before i found a spot where they stopped melting . Any way good luck i gave up on zoas sold my collection or what was left left some that was stuck to rocks some did well rest went away
 
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Saltwater77

Member
I have taken water samples to aquapros and mike said he has not seen parameters as good as mine from other customers in a long time. I perform 40 gallon water changes every 2 weeks. I also have like $300 worth of test kits and check my parameters every day cause I cant figure out why i am having so many problems with my zoas.
 
anarchy

anarchy

Active member
I'm having a similar issue. Noticed my zoas were closing up and melting away. Parameters are fine but I don't test phos and nitrate so who knows. Sps are all doing good so that's what matters. I've got some stray voltage so I got a grounding probe and I'll see if that does anything to help. If not oh well
 
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Saltwater77

Member
I dont know. All i know is that i am currently in the process of setting up a 4'×4'×16" rimless tank that will only house my zoa collection. Will be running one radion xr30wpro gen3 with wide angle lenses, a maxspect gyre 150 and maybe a 130 i also have if the 150 isnt enough. Will also have a 75 gallon sump with an algae scrubber and reef octopus skimmer and a 55 gallon ato system all hooked up to a apex gold controller. Hopefully then i will be able to have success with my zoas.
 
madjoe

madjoe

Premium member
Do less water changes see what happens i havent done a water change on my sps tank in months the zoas that survived look great so do the sps . To clean is sometimes worse for coralsthen to dirty
 
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Saltwater77

Member
If i don't do water changes then my nitrates sky rocket. I think i have too many fish in that tank at the moment. Will be thinning out when i have more tanks set up.
 
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Saltwater77

Member
Grounding probe installed. Checked with an AC Voltage Detector. No stray current. Will see if I see any improvements with my zoas. Thank you to all that have replied to my post.
 
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