zoas closing up after being healthy for a year..

[dwdesigns]

So I probably have almost forty types of zoas and they have been healthy.. I recently added live black sand and an apex system.. so I watched my Orp drop to 140 and finially raised up to 350 over the last two three weeks. however, it started with a colony of zoas. closing up. been closed for a while and some opened back up. then a colony next to it closed up and same thing happened.. however smaller colonies closed up beside them and i have relocated some.. but seems to be slowly spreading to about 6 colonies now... left side of tank is fine.. I did add in a new pump on the right side but would not think it would do this..

I have never had this happen before and do not know what to do.. Any help??

Also I have some kind of red algue growing.. does not look like red slime to me. any help??
I did does ultra life red slime remover today 15 percent water change.. however i do not think that is red slime as no air bubbles and not on any coral..

this is only happening to zoas.. not any other coral in the tank.

Thanks for any help..
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[bcavalli]

Is the red algea cyno by chance? Whatever it is, the red algea may be showing up due to some imbalance or excess nutrients. I would take your water sample down to your LFS and see what's glaringly off and make adjustments as needed.

 

[shrimpy brains]

How old is your tank? What are your parameters? What other livestock do you have?

Most of your zoas look pretty happy to me. They do close sometimes, feeding, night, etc. Also, soft corals in close parameters, can give off toxins as a way to keep/get territory and eliminate neighbors they don't like. So, moving them around can be a helpful thing.

 

[dwdesigns]

I moved all the small colonies to my frag tank sump.. I have multiples of most of the affected colonies so not really worried but pain.. my system is probably two years old.. been reefing for almost ten years.. my ph is 8.17 and i highly doubt I have high nitrates. i will break out my tester kits tomorrow and test everything.. hopefully adding in the red slime remover wont affect testing..

fish four tangs, blue spotted jaw. two clowns, and golden angel.. i know the angel may nip at corals but he hangs out on left side of tank.. and have not seen him pick at corals. had him for 6 months and this just started..

only thing that is near the zoas is two large anenomes but i have some zoas on that rock and for the most part they are not closed.. atleast 1 foot from zoas being affected

I have a hundred gallon with hundred gallon refugium packed with lr and 60 gallon sump.. smaller refugium frag tank with fiji mud with sand on top of mud.

i doubt it is cyno because no air bubles.. i have high enough flow two jeboa wp-40's pulsing alternately ever few secs

 

[grouper therapy]

How much sand did you add?

 

[dwdesigns]

90 lbs live black sand.. would have done that differently. ..

 

[dwdesigns]

It was a phosphate problem probably from the live sand.. i am running a GFO reactor and doing water changes to help fix it.. the zoas are mainly opening now aside from one or two colonies. any zoas affected are coming off the sand bed and it seems to help them..

I should have ran the sand in a seperate tank for a few weeks..

 

[jennm]

Check all parameters and post them. If nothing else, it will rule water quality in or out as a cause.

Jenn