Zoas wont open up

[Betta-Chetta]

Hey guys ive tried to keep zoas and they open for a week and then they close up. What am i doing wrong? I have t5 compact lighting and i dose with fuel, calcium and alkalinity twice aweek and feed reef roids.

 

[EriksOasis]

What are your tank parameters?

 

[Betta-Chetta]

Nitrite, ammonia are 0
Nitrate are at 10ppm
Calcium is 430
Salinity at 1.024

 

[40B Knasty]

What kind of Zoas? How old and what kind of bulbs are they? What is your crab, shrimp, and fish stock list?
Some are really picky about where they need to be placed. Like Fruit Loops in my experience has been a rollercoaster. Radio Active Dragon Eyes and Rastas could careless. Some zoas require different height in the tank for lighting/PAR or flow from high to low.
Check for bugs.

 

[Betta-Chetta]

No bugs and they are all on the bottom of my tank in a 14 gallon biocube. Zoas range from 2 weeks to a day old in my tank. Bulb is only 4 months old. Compact t5 and stock is 1 maroon clown, banded trochus snails, turbo and 1 blue knuckle hermit

 

[40B Knasty]

Are you sure those are T5s and not fluorescent compact lighting?

 

[40B Knasty]

What kind of salt are you using? You shouldn't have to dose alk or cal. Zoas do not have a need for calcium, because they do not have a skeletal base. Alk dosing can be harsh on a tank if you do to much. Even jumping up a whole point can be harsh. Find out your alk and if it is between 8-11. You are good to go and replenish it with a weekly water change.
Do you use Prime to detoxify your water and are you using .000TDS water?

 

[EriksOasis]

Do you have a tank picture? Regular water changes should suffice to keep your levels stable if you only have few corals.

 

[Betta-Chetta]

Im using prime and i use red sea coral pro. And i use rodi water as well. They are fluorescent compacts. Standard bio cube lighting

 

[Betta-Chetta]

I do not have a recent picture and i try to do water changes every two weeks. I have a lot of coral. Only a few zoas though. The rest are a mixture of coral. Had some sps but they bleached

 

[standam]

If they are on a low flow put them to higher flow or increase the flow a lot.They like high flow a lot.That work for me.My zoas open immediately
Are they new frag?

 

[Betta-Chetta]

My biggest colony is the newest

 

[40B Knasty]

Your problem is your lights most likely. Not enough photosynthesis/feeding.

 

[standam]

Maybe the light is not right.Why sps blesched any parameters change,how are the other corals? What kind the bulbs are,are they full spectrum? Take a picture of the tank.

 

[Betta-Chetta]

Parameters didnt change. All my other coral do fantastic besides the zoas and star polyps been closed for 3 weeks now. Ill have to take a picture when the lights come on. Everything is super happy except the zoas and star polyps. Talked to my lfs and they said my lighting isnt the strongest for sps.
Im upgrading tp a 60 gallon cube so ttying to figure out lighting isnt the easiest part out of the whole thing.

 

[standam]

Try with moving to high flow (significantly higher )they should be ok,star polyp too.About lighting can add 1,2 more bulbs or some led light or replace with new one

 

[Betta-Chetta]

I could replace the bulbs with new ones. As far as adding stuff to it i would have to take the hood off and get a whole new lighting system

 

[Betta-Chetta]

Excuse the algae havent scrubed it in a few days. But this is how my tank is. I have no live rock because i had a huge hair algae problem. Starting to come back but an easy fix.

 

[Betta-Chetta]

 

[Betta-Chetta]

Some of these corals i bought to see if i can bring them back from dying. That wouls be the bubble coral and the more bleached colt coral in the back