Dosing iodine

jasonrusso · Mar 6, 2017

After the recent lost of my beloved porcupine puffer, I read some articles on adding supplemental iodine. This is necessary because the puffers diet (prepared foods in the home aquarium) are high in thiamine which leads to iodine deficiency.

Has anyone had experience with this? Is iodine and iodide the same thing? Are all the major manufacturers (seachem, brightwell, kent) the same with different names?

eatbreakfast · Mar 7, 2017

What are you feeding? Shellfish and mollusks are provide more than enough iodine.

laga77 · Mar 7, 2017

A balanced and varied diet needs no supplements.

MaiReef · Mar 7, 2017

If you dose Iodide or Iodine, test for the levels in your tank.

laga77 · Mar 7, 2017

There are no reliable hobby level test kits for iodine.

jasonrusso · Mar 7, 2017

I feed shrimp, krill, squid, clams, oysters and mussels (when available), and Larry's chunky food (which has some fish in it, but it is the 3rd ingredient).

I am asking the question if I should do it. If I am wrong or do not need to, please tell me

eatbreakfast · Mar 7, 2017

You shouldn't need to do it with that diet.

AllSignsPointToFish · Mar 7, 2017

I dose a little iodine and check about once per month. The levels seem stable around 0.06 ppm.

eatbreakfast · Mar 7, 2017

A quality salt mix should have some as well and gets replenished during water changes. Be careful not overdose as iodine can fuel algae blooms.

jasonrusso · Mar 7, 2017

AllSignsPointToFish said:
I dose a little iodine and check about once per month. The levels seem stable around 0.06 ppm.

How do you check it? Which kit? Do you find it accurate?

AllSignsPointToFish · Mar 8, 2017

I use the Red Sea iodine kit to test for it. I have no way to know if it's accurate, but since it's a color comparison, you prepare a standard solution that you compare to your tank water sample. It definitely changed colors when I first started dosing iodine monthly.

jasonrusso · Mar 8, 2017

AllSignsPointToFish said:
I use the Red Sea iodine kit to test for it. I have no way to know if it's accurate, but since it's a color comparison, you prepare a standard solution that you compare to your tank water sample. It definitely changed colors when I first started dosing iodine monthly.

Did you notice any benefit?

AllSignsPointToFish · Mar 8, 2017

In my previous tank, I noted that softies, especially green star polyps and xenia, really benefited from iodine addition. The GSP were browning before iodine but regained that fluorescent green once I started dosing iodine. I think other softies may benefit from iodine addition as well, but I have no data to back up that conjecture. In the current tank, I don't have many soft corals, so I just try to maintain iodine at the recommended level of 0.06 ppm.

I would say that my observations tend to make me believe that proper iodine levels contribute to brighter coloration.

jaws789832 · Mar 8, 2017

This is off the triton test:
A Iodine dose can have the following benefits for your aquarium:
- Improves overall health of SPS corals and macroalgae
- Promotes metabolic processes in the reef aquarium
- Can be helpful against parasites and inhibit their reproduction

I dose it based on their recommendations. I dose about .5 ml a day of their brand.

jasonrusso · Mar 8, 2017

I don't do corals. I read that carbon and skimming can strip iodine out of the water causing issues with the fish.

One of the other posts said that the fish can get their dose from food and from water changes. I'm just wondering if a supplemental dose would be helpful

AllSignsPointToFish · Mar 8, 2017

I think if all you have is fish, as said above, a balanced diet should take care of it. A lot of shellfish naturally contain iodine. I periodically chop shrimp or scallops to add as a supplemental feed for iodine enrichment.

johnwick · Mar 8, 2017

Sorry about the loss of your puffer. Sometimes fish simply die and unfortunately there are many causes, some of which you'll never know. It is in my opinion unlikely that iodine deficiency caused the death and believe as others have stated that feeding a balanced diet along with a good water change schedule is your best bet. I would avoid adding iodine especially considering it's so difficult to test for. The best advice you'll ever receive in this hobby is to never add anything to your tank you can't test for. Good luck.

Paul J · Dec 4, 2018

After a ICP test and their recommendation over two days, see below.
I dose 0.11ml every day in my 88 litre reef tank. I have forgotten a day here and there and I never double dose. I could dose 0.77 per week but as I understand it Iodine works on a daily basis.
ICP test: -
We recommend the corrective dosage be carried out over 2 days. For the first 1 days the daily dosage should be 0.88ml. On the last day please use 0.18ml.
We recommend a daily maintenance dose of 0.11ml. If this dose is very low, then this can be alternatively be dosed weekly (daily dose x7)