Zoas Dying: Help

[Laird]

About a week ago I lost a colony of candy apple reds. They all just closed up and then then they opened up a bit and now are faded and shriveled up.

Now a couple frags and colonies are starting to do the same thing.

I took out everything that looked bad and dipped them and then also dipped in Coral ReVive.

Horrible cellphone pics but here they are. Notice the weird grey stuff around the polyps.

White spots on the polyp plus a huge white gooey looking stuff next to the polyp

Paramaters are

.024
440 cal
9 alk
1350 mag

Everything else in the tank looks super.

 

[Lateral72]

It looks like a fungal/bacterial type of infection. I get a very similar malady on freshly imported pieces. I have very low success in battleing it. Iodine, Coral RX, Revive, H2O2 dips, Bi-Furan haven't worked.

 

[Laird]

I've brushed it off with a tooth brush. Hopefully that helps...

 

[lurchw00t]

Furan-2 or Red Slime Remover....

I've had a similar outbreak and just dosed Red Slime Remover. Works similarly to Furan-2 as it is also an antibacterial/anti-fungal treatment.

If you can QT them and treat them, its worth a shot.

Also, do NOT scrape any lesions or pox. This will cause the "infection" to spread.

 

[Laird]

Where can you get furan? Would petsmart or petco have it? My good LFS is already closed for the day.

 

[lurchw00t]

Where can you get furan? Would petsmart or petco have it? My good LFS is already closed for the day.

You can probably get it at petsmart/petco. I'd give them a call first.

I'd follow this article too: CoralPedia.com :: Articles :: ZoaPox (Zoa Pox); the search for the cause and cure

 

[tampasnooker]

Furan 2 would be a good treatment for either fungus or pox. Suggested dosages vary but don't be afraid to use it strong. I've yet to see an overdose of treatment with it.

 

[Ninjapotamus]

I use bifuran by hikari instead of furan2. Bifuran contains no methelyene blue and will not stain your polyps. Either is fine though...(Bifuran is also cheaper than furan2 and you get a lot more of it than the stingy little packets)

First you need to separate them from your other zoas. You want to stop the spreading before it gets out of hand. If you have another established tank without zoas that would be best.

Next, do a series of aggressive bifuran/Iodine dips. Procedure I use is as follows...

Use 80-82 degree water for the dip.... furan works best around this temperature. Take the bifuran and pre-mix it in a sealed container with a lid. I use a clean sports drink bottle... add a little saltwater and furan and then shake it up really vigorously. I use about 1tsp(sometimes more, i never really measure it too precise) of furan per litre of dip water.... The dip should be an opaque yellow. Some of the furan might not totally disolve.... (I know this sounds like a lot of furan... but I have never lost a polyp to this dip... almost no negative affect whatsoever. I figure its best to hit it with a really strong dose than a weak dose and lose the polyp to the disease).

Submerge the polyps in the furan dip for 20-30 minutes. Use a turkey baster to occasionally blast the polyps.

While your doing the furan dip prepare an iodine dip. I use about 10 drops per litre of dip water. You can use a stronger dose ... I have used 15 drops per litre with no ill effects. Transfer them from your furan dip to the iodine dip and leave them in for 15-20 minutes. Turkey basting again helps...

Finally rinse them in another container of fresh saltwater to remove excess iodine. Some yellow furan powder/residue may be clinging to the polyps/plugs... This is totally fine and will not harm your tank if you put it back in with the residue.

Do this for three days straight. If your corals arent handeling the dip well give them a day of rest between the three dips.

Observe... Usually after the first dip the disease stops progressing. After the second dip it markedly improves. After a third dip the polyps are much improved almost normal looking. It may take a week or more for the polyps to open back up, especially the ones showing signs of partial melting before the dip.

This is essentially my cure-all when dealing with disease on my zoas.... h202 would be a last resort if it doesnt work... but I havent had that happen yet... revive/coralrx are useful for pest removal. I have tried chemiclean dips(cyano remover) but it doesnt seem to be as effective.

Hope that helps!

edit:.... I wouldnt always recomend brushing polyps that are diseased. A lot of the times they become all mushy and will just fall apart if you brush them. Best to dip and let whatever is on the polyp die and then it will flake off with a turkey baster blast.