Help! Xenia looks really bad!

[Devin R.]

I just purchased a Xenia coral as my first coral, and after the first night it looked really bad. The second night it got worse! I need help figuring out what's wrong with it. He's kind of deflated looking and he's slowly shrinking. Because this is a new tank I added some Iodine, Trace Elements and Reef Phytoplankton.

Should I have waited on the chemicals?

Is this normal for a Xenia when first introducing them to a new aquarium?

Could my water be to clean for this coral, because I have read that they prefer "dirtier" water.

Here's an image:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B56...it?usp=sharing

Here's a link to a video:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B56...it?usp=sharing
Be sure to change the quality to 1080p!

Any help would be great!

[Nina51]

xenia can be hit or miss. some people consider it a pest because it can take over. others can't keep it alive.

what are your water parameters, flow, lighting?

[Devin R.]

deleted reply

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Nina51

xenia can be hit or miss. some people consider it a pest because it can take over. others can't keep it alive.

what are your water parameters, flow, lighting?

Yeah, I've read that also. But I thought it was a rather pretty looking coral when I first saw it, so I decided to try it out and see what would happen.

My tank is a nano and it's my first reef tank, all others that I have/had have been FOWLR. It's 7.5 gallons with four good sized pieces of liverock, a couple of hermits & a snail. I always use Petco Real Ocean water from the Pacific Ocean when setting up my tanks because there is no mixing and the salinity is always great.

Water Parameters:

• pH - about 7.9 - 8.0
• Ammonia - looks to be 0 ppm
• Nitrite - 0 ppm
• Nitrate - 0 ppm

I'd like to believe if have great flow in the tank because I have a modified Aquaclear HOB filter and another internal filter with a pipe line that sprays water through holes currently stirring the water in every direction currently running on the tank.

I have an LED light on the tank that shines super bright white with some blue. It has about 51 White LEDs & 3 Blue LEDs with a night time setting for lights out.

I haven't tested the salinity (which I am about to do) but if the salinity & specific gravity are a bit to low/high; could it have something to do with it?

I need to purchase additional tests for other chemicals (which I know I should've done a long time ago )

[ReeferBill]

How new is your tank? Try some buffer to see if ph is the problem.

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by ReeferBill

How new is your tank? Try some buffer to see if ph is the problem.

It is pretty new, about 1 1/2 - 2 months. I believe the salinity was a bit to high for some reason. I'm going to level it a bit with some purified fresh water to see what happens. But I need to purchase a refractometer to be sure, because I'm using the Hydrometer that came with it and everyone knows that you can't trust those.

[Pigpen17]

Piggybacking on thread. I was thinking of getting one, and I have the same lighting type and the same low PH and a fairly new set up as well. Interested to hear outcome.

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Pigpen17

Piggybacking on thread. I was thinking of getting one, and I have the same lighting type and the same low PH and a fairly new set up as well. Interested to hear outcome.

Sadly I couldn't figure out the problem in time to save him.
He just fell apart, and now I'm terrified to try out another coral. Maybe I was one of the unlucky people who can't keep them (or lucky to others who consider Xenia a pain xD). But don't let my outcome stop you from trying. Who knows maybe you'll be able to keep them alive!

Maybe I'll try something easier like Zoanthids. Any suggestions?

[wieselsport]

Once upon a time Xenia was my first coral. I ended up raising it and propagating it it eventually took over my tank to a degree. I had to prune it like hair algae.

I think your tank is too new. That's the last thing I wanted to hear at your stage. You have hardly gone through your cycle, it will take over 6 weeks. Different organisms will develope and add to the maturity of your tank. I'd give It 6 months before adding a coral. Your tank will be much different then. It will have its own personality.

As far as the chemicals go. Don't add them next time. If a coral isn't doing well you won't be able to change it by adding chemicals after the fact. It all needs to be established before hand and be consistent. "Nothing good happens fast in a reef tank". That quote should pop into your head when doing anything with your tank.

It will be the coolest thing when your first coral does well.

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by wieselsport

Once upon a time Xenia was my first coral. I ended up raising it and propagating it it eventually took over my tank to a degree. I had to prune it like hair algae.

I think your tank is too new. That's the last thing I wanted to hear at your stage. You have hardly gone through your cycle, it will take over 6 weeks. Different organisms will develope and add to the maturity of your tank. I'd give It 6 months before adding a coral. Your tank will be much different then. It will have its own personality.

As far as the chemicals go. Don't add them next time. If a coral isn't doing well you won't be able to change it by adding chemicals after the fact. It all needs to be established before hand and be consistent. "Nothing good happens fast in a reef tank". That quote should pop into your head when doing anything with your tank.

It will be the coolest thing when your first coral does well.

Thank you for the reply. I kind of figured that was the main problem. What about any kinds of fish? How long should I wait before adding one in? Any nice nano fish that you would recommend? Also, I'll definitely remember that quote! Thanks again!

Oh and this strange critter crawled out of one of my live rocks, I was wondering if you could help in identifying it. Some people said it was a Lettuce Nudibranch, but I don't think so because this thing has a lot of tentacle like appendages.

[Novice101]

I think 6 months is a bit extensive I do agree nothing good happens fast but 6 months for coral is a bit much id wait three months at most xenia is honestly the easiest thing to take care of ever you may have some very odd cause. Check the coral itself for any bugs. Whats the temp of the tank?

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Novice101

I think 6 months is a bit extensive I do agree nothing good happens fast but 6 months for coral is a bit much id wait three months at most xenia is honestly the easiest thing to take care of ever you may have some very odd cause. Check the coral itself for any bugs. Whats the temp of the tank?

The tank is at about 78 to 79 degrees.

[Novice101]

Ok well that is normal you really shouldve put a damsel in the tank to help speed up cycling or some fish damsels are just really hardy to irregularities.

[Novice101]

Also I noticed from the video you have crushed shells and that stuff any reason you didn't do sand?

[Devin R.]

I think I will add one in to help with the cycle, and I'll trade him in later because I've seen how big they can get and if I don't like them that much now I don't think I'll like him when he's about 20x bigger xD
Are there any good nano fish you recommend for later?

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Novice101

Also I noticed from the video you have crushed shells and that stuff any reason you didn't do sand?

It's actually a mixture of live sand and crushed shells. The bag actually called it Reef Substrate. So I thought it would be perfect because you get the sand, all the bio-active stuff, beneficial bacteria, and a bonus endless selection of homes for the hermit crabs to choose from. xD
I noticed they liked it because as soon as I dropped them in some of them instantly chose a new shell. They chose some beautiful shells compared to the dark brown/black ones they normally had! Also I like the way it looks, because I live in Texas and we don't have an ocean we have the Gulf, and when you go down to our beaches that mostly what you see so (not to sound so sappy xD) it's kind of like home in a way.

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Novice101

Also I noticed from the video you have crushed shells and that stuff any reason you didn't do sand?

It's actually a mixture of live sand and crushed shells. The bag actually called it Reef Substrate. So I thought it would be perfect because you get the sand, all the bio-active stuff, beneficial bacteria, and a bonus endless selection of homes for the hermit crabs to choose from. xD
I noticed they liked it because as soon as I dropped them in some of them instantly chose a new shell. They chose some beautiful shells compared to the dark brown/black ones they normally had! Also I like the way it looks, because I live in Texas and we don't have an ocean we have the Gulf, and when you go down to our beaches that mostly what you see so (not to sound so sappy xD) it's kind of like home in a way.

[Novice101]

Go to liveaquaria.com they have a nano fish section but I really like the catalina goby . And oh ok I gotcha sounds interesting. You have to have fish while cycling because they create a good bioload for your tank to finish cycling.

[Novice101]

also im interested in the hob thing you have modified.

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Novice101

Go to liveaquaria.com they have a nano fish section but I really like the catalina goby . And oh ok I gotcha sounds interesting. You have to have fish while cycling because they create a good bioload for your tank to finish cycling.

Okay,
Oh yeah, the Catalina Goby is nice.
Thanks for the help! I'll definitely keep you in mind if I ever have any more questions! This whole Xenia thing was a big lesson for me xD

[Devin R.]

Originally Posted by Novice101

also im interested in the hob thing you have modified.

Oh yeah, that's nothing special, I learned how to do it on Nano-Reef's DIY Forums. It's actually the smallest Aquaclear Filter. The Aquaclear 20, and I just to the basket apart and used silicone to attach the grated looking part to act as a barrier so only the water can get out. I added some the substrate from the aquarium, chaeto, and a submersible light.

[Nina51]

Originally Posted by Novice101

You have to have fish while cycling because they create a good bioload for your tank to finish cycling.

NO, NO, NO, NO!!! while damsels might be hardy, it's cruel to use a live animal to cycle a tank and totally unnecessary and this is an antiquated method. you need to go back to the basics!!

[hoaglanddiver]

as the old saying goes, friends don't let friends buy pulsing xenia.. that stuff is a scourge upon my tank :-( AT 31" deep I cannot easily "scrape it off",etc.. my best shot is to nuke it w/ Kalk every so often.. Do yourself a favor and ditch it now

[gt1009]

Never add a damsel when cycling!!! I'm honestly fine with fish in cycling as long as you maintain a suitable ammonia level to not stress the fish. However, you will hate that damsel the day you want to get it out and spend hours chasing it around the tank with no results.

[Novice101]

I've just used them because they are hardy. Not many others would survive.