zoa rescue advice needed

BummersReef · Feb 5, 2017

So tank is up and running for maybe 9 months now. Have had a few small zoas for months now ... maybe 7 or 8 polyps .... that have been staying alive, growing very very slow but we have bad lights. BUT Recently got a big zoa rock .... like 30 polyps, different colors ... real nice. got it at a recent frag swap

but it is unhappy in our tank and polyps are closing up and appear to have some actually dying. It's just not happy. We are about a week away from getting new lights and that will help overall I think but any suggestions in the meantime? it's in same spot as other zoas that are holding their own so flow should be ok. It was probably just a big shock going from previous high light environment ... or slightly different parameters. We figured it would at least hold its own though but I fear we are losing it. Any ideas of an additive, etc that might give it a little boost or something?
Parameters are good in tank, stable, KH fine ... sometimes phosphates get a little high but everything else is fine in tank ... we have total of about 250 gallons with 125 in DT. SKimmer, refug ... very stable
just hoping there might be a little B12 sort of boost that will get these zoas thru until new light arrive
(or maybe lighting is not the issue and it's something else .... I don't know!)
Torch and hammers love our tank btw ...... mushrooms do not ... if that gives anyone any ideas as to our unique environment
thanks
Carla
Here's a pic I think ...

CodyRVA · Feb 5, 2017

Image link is broken. How much flow do you have on them? And yea, might just be chemistry/lighting swing causing them to close up, how long has it been in your tank now?

sbash · Feb 5, 2017

I found with my Zoas (I have five or six different types), they do not need a lot of light. I had a zoa-pox issue once and I had to keep them on low lights in a hospital tank for several weeks. For months after curing them, I had to keep them in the entrance of a cave, they simply could not handle the shift in lighting very well. I slowly inched them out of the cave and now they sit on the open sandbed. I have found they can tolerate very low lighting (note the word tolerate); if they are not getting enough light, they will extend to be longer as they seek light. If lighting is the issue, you can find that balacing point and acclimate them accordingly...

kashman100 · Feb 5, 2017

Check them at night about an hour or so after the lights go off just to rule out pests

BummersReef · Feb 12, 2017

CodyRVA said:
Image link is broken. How much flow do you have on them? And yea, might just be chemistry/lighting swing causing them to close up, how long has it been in your tank now?

Been in two weeks now - still looks bad and now our tang is like eating the shrunken polyps?? Flow is medium at its right next to other zoas that are fine

BummersReef · Feb 12, 2017

sbash said:
I found with my Zoas (I have five or six different types), they do not need a lot of light. I had a zoa-pox issue once and I had to keep them on low lights in a hospital tank for several weeks. For months after curing them, I had to keep them in the entrance of a cave, they simply could not handle the shift in lighting very well. I slowly inched them out of the cave and now they sit on the open sandbed. I have found they can tolerate very low lighting (note the word tolerate); if they are not getting enough light, they will extend to be longer as they seek light. If lighting is the issue, you can find that balacing point and acclimate them accordingly...

What's a zoa pox? Should I just take it out? Don't want other things to get it

BummersReef · Feb 12, 2017

kashman100 said:
Check them at night about an hour or so after the lights go off just to rule out pests

Will do ... we do look close often during the day and have seen nothing moving in them

BummersReef · Feb 14, 2017

Ok so we are morons. Took out the zoa rock with the trouble gave it a good long soak with coral dip and TONS of bugs came off! Did not put back in tank but should I be totally freaking out and treat the whole tank for these unidentifiable bugs ??? Will the only go after zoa?

CodyRVA · Feb 14, 2017

BummersReef said:
Ok so we are morons. Took out the zoa rock with the trouble gave it a good long soak with coral dip and TONS of bugs came off! Did not put back in tank but should I be totally freaking out and treat the whole tank for these unidentifiable bugs ??? Will the only go after zoa?

What did they look like? Can you confirm they weren't pods?

BummersReef · Feb 14, 2017

CodyRVA said:
What did they look like? Can you confirm they weren't pods?

My answer shall only confirm my ignorance ... they looked like little tiny tiny bugs ... browns .... tons of them. I don't know what a pod is .... copipods?? The reason I call them bugs is the zoa rock was doing poorly and was getting worse and I saw the tang eating on the closed polyps....