Will Acros survive fallow tank?

[Scoobysnack77]

hello fellow reefers, i just wanted to get all your opinions on my situation. i just had a fish come down with ich so I drained my tank and I'm leaving my tank fallow for 73 days to kill off the ich while i copper treat my fish for a month in a HT. i have a tank full of gorgeous acros that are accustomed to under 1ppm of nitrates and about .03 to .08 of phosphates. i tested today and both nitrates and phosphates are 0. will this affect my acros? my approach to my low nitrate and phosphates is to dose acro power for aminos daily, a few times a week add red seas reef energy part a and b which is a liquid coral food, every few days night feed phytoplankton and zooplankton and once a month night feed some ground up raw oyster. your thoughts and suggestions?

[mr.maroonsalty]

To me it sounds like a lot to go through, but hats off to you. You are worried with less nutrients that your corals may suffer? I think that they will be just fine.

[addictedreefer]

I have heard of corals being shocked when nutrients are suddenly removed. I would feed some commercially-prepared coral foods to the tank a few times per week to keep some nitrogen/phosphate sources in the water.

[thegrun]

+1 to the coral foods, there are several good ones on the market. Feed the corals two or three times a week.

[twon8]

I think two months without fish shouldn't be too bad. If the acros start looking pale feed the tank. Ill be very interested in how they respond

[SoloGarth]

I just went through the same thing. I lost a lot of corals due to the change in input to the tank. I tried feeding with various coral foods but they don't seem to hold a candle to fish poo haha. Anyway one of the side effects of my coral feeding was an explosion of amphipods that got huge and started attacking my acros. I'm not sure about cause and effect here as they could have been peeling of dying flesh but that is not the way it seemed. Anyway something to consider: No predators + extra food = population explosion. I have gotten several prophylactically treated fish back in the display and these problems have gone away. Growth has resumed and color has returned but it was a rough couple months.

[noj3333]

Do you have any inverts? I believe they cannot contract ich, and they would provide you with a slight amount of bio load.

[SoloGarth]

Yes very slight bio load. I have tons of small snails and brittle stars. Also one 7 yeah old hermit crab and a cleaner shrimp. That at least doesn't compare with even a couple fish. Perhaps some bigger inverts might but I wouldn't trust them in the tank.

[SoloGarth]

And no inverts cannot contract Ich. Fish only.

[Scoobysnack77]

To me it sounds like a lot to go through, but hats off to you. You are worried with less nutrients that your corals may suffer? I think that they will be just fine. thank you :) it is a bit stressful for both me and my fish. I'm jut trying to make sure my corals aren't stressed either

[Scoobysnack77]

I have heard of corals being shocked when nutrients are suddenly removed. I would feed some commercially-prepared coral foods to the tank a few times per week to keep some nitrogen/phosphate sources in the water.
right now I'm feeding red seas reef energy part A and part B. I'm also feeding DT's phytoplankton and frozen cyclop a couple times a week. plus amines are dosed daily. should i stop doing water changes or turn off my skimmer?

[Scoobysnack77]

I think two months without fish shouldn't be too bad. If the acros start looking pale feed the tank. Ill be very interested in how they respond

sure , ill keep you posted. so far its been a couple of weeks and the corals look fine. i guess the foods are keeping them happy but as we all know time will tell

[Scoobysnack77]

I just went through the same thing. I lost a lot of corals due to the change in input to the tank. I tried feeding with various coral foods but they don't seem to hold a candle to fish poo haha. Anyway one of the side effects of my coral feeding was an explosion of amphipods that got huge and started attacking my acros. I'm not sure about cause and effect here as they could have been peeling of dying flesh but that is not the way it seemed. Anyway something to consider: No predators + extra food = population explosion. I have gotten several prophylactically treated fish back in the display and these problems have gone away. Growth has resumed and color has returned but it was a rough couple months. yes, this is one of the fears I'm experiencing :/

[Scoobysnack77]

Do you have any inverts? I believe they cannot contract ich, and they would provide you with a slight amount of bio load.
yes , i have two starfish, a bunch of snails, a clam and a quite a few hermits.

[thegrun]

right now I'm feeding red seas reef energy part A and part B. I'm also feeding DT's phytoplankton and frozen cyclop a couple times a week. plus amines are dosed daily. should i stop doing water changes or turn off my skimmer?
Keep feeding the corals and running the skimmer and making water changes.

[rgulrich]

What thegrun said. Worked for me with for 3 months.
Ray

[SoloGarth]

Yeah I think it really depends upon the system. I carbon dose so the constant influx of food into the tank is necessary. Without carbon dosing things probably are less likely to go south during the fallow period. If I had to do it again I would shutdown the BP reactor during the fallow period. Certainly not needed.

[Scoobysnack77]

right now I'm feeding red seas reef energy part A and part B. I'm also feeding DT's phytoplankton and frozen cyclop a couple times a week. plus amines are dosed daily. should i stop doing water changes or turn off my skimmer?
Keep feeding the corals and running the skimmer and making water changes.
won't doing those three things strip the tank of the little nutrients available?

[SoloGarth]

It is important to keep inputs and outputs high. So feed but also export nutrients. You don't want to degrade water quality. Sort of a balance and one that is easier with fish in the tank.