When Should my Zoas Open? Also, Advice!

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

Hey guys, my first corals just came in today. I bought them from a reputable seller on here, followed a dipping procedure with Bayer, and placed them in my tank. Due to the fact that these are my first corals I wanted to know if my placement was alright, and if there was anything helpful you guys wish you had known when you started. This tank has been running for 5 years and is super well established. I am currently fighting some GHA, and added some cured dry rock a few days ago. Anyways, here are some pics. The first picture shows my purple death palys, the second is unknown- I got an extra coral I didn’t order- and the third are Bam Bams.

drewwCh · Nov 17, 2020

it's good that you've placed them on the sand bed to help then adjust to your lighting. as for when they might open, well, i don't know

it all depends on each individual zoanthid. but seeing as you got them from a reputable guy and have a really mature tank, i'd say at most in a week. they could take longer, or they could take less time.

oh and by the way, many reefers here feed their corals reef roids to help them grow, so you mifht want to try that too. as for me, i feed homemade frozen food to my fish and some of its "juices" get to the zoas, and they are really growing.

good luck!

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

Andrew C. said:
it's good that you've placed them on the sand bed to help then adjust to your lighting. as for when they might open, well, i don't know

it all depends on each individual zoanthid. but seeing as you got them from a reputable guy and have a really mature tank, i'd say at most in a week. they could take longer, or they could take less time.

good luck!

Thanks for the help! I did a lot of research before I bought them and was trying to acclimate them. My instant gratification won’t like waiting that long to see them!

splitting_lanes · Nov 17, 2020

They will probably pop open tomorrow, at least some may. Could take longer, but I doubt it.

drewwCh · Nov 17, 2020

jacka342 said:
Thanks for the help! I did a lot of research before I bought them and was trying to acclimate them. My instant gratification won’t like waiting that long to see them!

lol it was like that for me too, just can't wait for them to open up! a thing i learned is to only look at them once in a while until they're open, that way you won't stress too much about it

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

splitting_lanes said:
They will probably pop open tomorrow, at least some may. Could take longer, but I doubt it.

Fingers crossed! I want to see what this mystery batch is!

40g Nano · Nov 17, 2020

Do you have blue lighting?
It really brings out the coloration in them with a filter

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

14g Nano said:
Do you have blue lighting?
It really brings out the coloration in them with a filter

My current setup only has 4 blue diodes... I am saving up for an AI Prime though!

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

Andrew C. said:
lol it was like that for me too, just can't wait for them to open up! a thing i learned is to only look at them once in a while until they're open, that way you won't stress too much about it

A watched pot never boils, it’s just so hard not to look.

Reefing_addiction · Nov 17, 2020

I had zoas take a week to open

vetteguy53081 · Nov 17, 2020

Bring them off the bottom as sand and detritus can cover or smother it and make it unhappy. Even a couple of inches is good. Also assure it is getting some flow. Blow off with gentle blasts using a turkey baster when you move it up
Moderate light yes and feed once theyre open at least twice per week. Addition of iodine seems to keep them happy.

Salinity 1.024-1.025
temp 77-79
ph 8.1-8.3

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

vetteguy53081 said:
Bring them off the bottom as sand and detritus can cover or smother it and make it unhappy. Even a couple of inches is good. Also assure it is getting some flow. Blow off with gentle blasts using a turkey baster when you move it up
Moderate light yes and feed once theyre open at least twice per week. Addition of iodine seems to keep them happy.

Salinity 1.024-1.025
temp 77-79
ph 8.1-8.3

Awesome advice, I have created a little live rock island, would it be unwise to permanently place them all together? I am unsure if they fight etc

vetteguy53081 · Nov 17, 2020

jacka342 said:
Awesome advice, I have created a little live rock island, would it be unwise to permanently place them all together? I am unsure if they fight etc

Zoa mix with each other well

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

vetteguy53081 said:
Zoa mix with each other well

Alright, this might be a dumb question but would adding the paly be alright?

vetteguy53081 · Nov 17, 2020

jacka342 said:
Alright, this might be a dumb question but would adding the paly be alright?

I have palys in with zoas. . . all good.

Rickybobby · Nov 17, 2020

I had some zoas that didn’t open in my frag tank. I added some phyto a little bit of iodide and since then they have been happy

jacka342 · Nov 17, 2020

Rickybobby said:
I had some zoas that didn’t open in my frag tank. I added some phyto a little bit of iodide and since then they have been happy

I’ll have to try that if they stay closed for a long time. On the bright side one of the frags have started to open... only issue is I have no clue what they are.