Not Happy Acan lord

[JoJosReef]

What light are you using/settings? I'm assuming it isn't getting too much light since the nearby blasto is doing well, but also is more center-of-tank, so could be in a hot spot. Have you tried moving it to the side or a corner?

How long has the Acan been in the tank? How long was it doing well? Did this start to happen after you switched to Reef Crystals?

What are you using for dosing Ca/Mg? How are you managing your ALK? Water changes only? Have you tried a more complete supplement like All-For-Reef?

Phosphate at or near zero is not good. That might make your LPS pouty. Might want to dose PO4 to keep it somewhere between 0.03 and 0.1ppm (alternatively, I dose NO3/PO4 just enough to make sure Salifert and Hanna tests aren't completely clear).

 

[twentyleagues]

What S.G. do you run? Using reef crystals other parameters should be much higher.

 

[Steven Garland]

As an avid Acan keeper,they can be pretty picky. Most of the time they are pretty easy to keep,even easier than most zoa's. But honestly,what REALLY makes them happy is the big 3 elements ROCK SOLID (Calcium,Mag,Alk),spot feeding,enough flow to visually see the polyps jiggle on the occasion.

I had Acan's that would go into hibernation when flow and feedings weren't ideal. I'm talking stay 2-3 polyps for MONTHS then I switched things up and within a few weeks exlpode in growth,I'm talking 2-3 heads a week.

Whatever your testing gives you either higher or lower than the "standard",just keep those numbers steady for best growth/color. You can have numbers all over the place and they won't care,but growth and color will be below subpar. So just remember that.

 

[Sh333]

As an avid Acan keeper,they can be pretty picky. Most of the time they are pretty easy to keep,even easier than most zoa's. But honestly,what REALLY makes them happy is the big 3 elements ROCK SOLID (Calcium,Mag,Alk),spot feeding,enough flow to visually see the polyps jiggle on the occasion.

I had Acan's that would go into hibernation when flow and feedings weren't ideal. I'm talking stay 2-3 polyps for MONTHS then I switched things up and within a few weeks exlpode in growth,I'm talking 2-3 heads a week.

Whatever your testing gives you either higher or lower than the "standard",just keep those numbers steady for best growth/color. You can have numbers all over the place and they won't care,but growth and color will be below subpar. So just remember that.

Look at the Acans; those are amazing.

Unfortunately, my Acan is not doing okay. I raised Mg to 1400 and Ca to 420, stabilized Alkalinity to 9-10. I started to feed it more often with reef roid and mysis (three times a week). After 4 weeks, it not only improved but also deflated more and more.

Then I put it in lower light and lower flow. Suddenly, it closed up tightly. I did a Lugol's iodine dip. I waited for another 2 weeks, but there was no sign of improvement. In the last attempt, I decided to frag it. Two frags are in the old tank, and the other two frags are in the nursery tank. Unfortunately, none of them are doing well. They are not completely dead, but they are as closed as possible.

Honestly, I do not know if there is any hope at this stage or not.

 

[Sh333]

What light are you using/settings? I'm assuming it isn't getting too much light since the nearby blasto is doing well, but also is more center-of-tank, so could be in a hot spot. Have you tried moving it to the side or a corner?

How long has the Acan been in the tank? How long was it doing well? Did this start to happen after you switched to Reef Crystals?

What are you using for dosing Ca/Mg? How are you managing your ALK? Water changes only? Have you tried a more complete supplement like All-For-Reef?

Phosphate at or near zero is not good. That might make your LPS pouty. Might want to dose PO4 to keep it somewhere between 0.03 and 0.1ppm (alternatively, I dose NO3/PO4 just enough to make sure Salifert and Hanna tests aren't completely clear).

Now that I have a Hanna, I can read phosphate at 0.12 ppm, and the nitrate level is around 5.

The Acan was doing well for almost 3 months. When I tried to move it to lower light and lower flow, it ended up closing up.

I use RedSea for Mg and Reef Fusion parts 1 and 2 (Seachem) for Cal and Alk.

I believe my pistol shrimp and goby have been nibbling at this Acan a lot, causing stress. Initially, I thought Reef Crystal might be the cause, but now I suspect this hypothesis may not be correct.

 

[JoJosReef]

Now that I have a Hanna, I can read phosphate at 0.12 ppm, and the nitrate level is around 5.

The Acan was doing well for almost 3 months. When I tried to move it to lower light and lower flow, it ended up closing up.

I use RedSea for Mg and Reef Fusion parts 1 and 2 (Seachem) for Cal and Alk.

I believe my pistol shrimp and goby have been nibbling at this Acan a lot, causing stress. Initially, I thought Reef Crystal might be the cause, but now I suspect this hypothesis may not be correct.

I'd be surprised about the pistol shrimp and goby unless they were very hungry. If you still feel that is the case, I would move the acan to a spot well away from their cave. They tend to be less adventurous.

I'm still curious about what light you're using. Parameter stability is a good recommendation given above. PO4 is a little high, but I wouldn't point the finger at that just yet.

 

[Sh333]

I'd be surprised about the pistol shrimp and goby unless they were very hungry. If you still feel that is the case, I would move the acan to a spot well away from their cave. They tend to be less adventurous.

I'm still curious about what light you're using. Parameter stability is a good recommendation given above. PO4 is a little high, but I wouldn't point the finger at that just yet.

yeahhh I move the frags away from their cave. Now that it is not fluffy, they do now like it anymore ha haaa.

I use AI Prime and my setting is:

It is sth like David Saxby light setting with lower white light.

 

[Sh333]

I'd be surprised about the pistol shrimp and goby unless they were very hungry. If you still feel that is the case, I would move the acan to a spot well away from their cave. They tend to be less adventurous.

I'm still curious about what light you're using. Parameter stability is a good recommendation given above. PO4 is a little high, but I wouldn't point the finger at that just yet.

and BTW I am using phosgaurd to lower the phosphate, and it is been two weeks that I cut down reef roid to once a week ( I used to feed the corals three times a week) to lower the phosphate. phosphate is now slowly decreasing.

 

[JoJosReef]

yeahhh I move the frags away from their cave. Now that it is not fluffy, they do now like it anymore ha haaa.

I use AI Prime and my setting is:

It is sth like David Saxby light setting with lower white light.

That's a good schedule over that tank. Are you sure the acan wasn't in a hot spot? I had my acan under a K7 mini in my Evo at similar intensities. When I switched to the K7 it didn't do well after a while, and my green acan eventually died--that one was stuck to the rock, not a plug. The red acan was moved to the further end of the Evo and recovered. It's now in the lowest par area of my office tank and stays fluffy, although it is less red--when it was under higher par, it lost it's teal rim and turned completely red, but under the lower par the teal rim came back.

 

[acananoreefer]

I rarely post but got notified this thread wasn't dead! Sooooooo, enjoy my thoughts and take what you want.

I would move the acan back to where it was doing well for 3 months. If you are using a refractometer to check your salinity verify the calibration against a standard solution or RODI water. I've had issues in the past with acans because of high salinity. I've also starved my tank before and the acans did not appreciate that at all. I personally don't run anything to remove nutrient from the water and would not at this point unless I was pretty certain it was a root cause. Doing a couple 5 gallon water changes will correct most issues. In my personal experience bottoming out various nutrients causes more issues than elevated levels.

Couple of pictures of my 13.5 evo right now. I chopped some stuff up to move to my 40, cleaned glass, and fed a few minutes ago so it's in various states. The large acan on the right I got for a bargain at a frag swap (I didn't kill those heads). The green one next to it, that was all me but it's growing new heads again. No powerhead currently and it's a new stock light (blue burned out on the old one).

 

[Sh333]

That's a good schedule over that tank. Are you sure the acan wasn't in a hot spot? I had my acan under a K7 mini in my Evo at similar intensities. When I switched to the K7 it didn't do well after a while, and my green acan eventually died--that one was stuck to the rock, not a plug. The red acan was moved to the further end of the Evo and recovered. It's now in the lowest par area of my office tank and stays fluffy, although it is less red--when it was under higher par, it lost it's teal rim and turned completely red, but under the lower par the teal rim came back.

um actually I thought about it. Because the acan started deteriorating during the hottest time of summer, the temperature of the tank could reach 85°F or 30°C.
On the other hand, I saw myself that my pistol shrimp cut its tentacles many times, and gobby was putting sand on it. That's why I think it is more probable that pistol and gobby might cause the acan stress out or even infected.
Anyway, the main reason is still mysterious; currently, the frags are alive, but they are not doing well. Do you have any ideas on how I can save them?

 

[Steven Garland]

If your temps get that high during summer or even at all I would get a small fan.

I would just put the acan somewhere and leave it alone for awhile. Keep params steady,keep the temps within range and keep it all stable. Low light,low-medium flow and spit feed it.

 

[TheGrimReeferTx]

Calcium seems a little low

 

[Sh333]

I rarely post but got notified this thread wasn't dead! Sooooooo, enjoy my thoughts and take what you want.

I would move the acan back to where it was doing well for 3 months. If you are using a refractometer to check your salinity verify the calibration against a standard solution or RODI water. I've had issues in the past with acans because of high salinity. I've also starved my tank before and the acans did not appreciate that at all. I personally don't run anything to remove nutrient from the water and would not at this point unless I was pretty certain it was a root cause. Doing a couple 5 gallon water changes will correct most issues. In my personal experience bottoming out various nutrients causes more issues than elevated levels.

Couple of pictures of my 13.5 evo right now. I chopped some stuff up to move to my 40, cleaned glass, and fed a few minutes ago so it's in various states. The large acan on the right I got for a bargain at a frag swap (I didn't kill those heads). The green one next to it, that was all me but it's growing new heads again. No powerhead currently and it's a new stock light (blue burned out on the old one).

How amazing that you could thrive such corals under stock light. I would have thought it was impossible.

Your points are true. I used to calibrate my refractometer with RODI water. When I brought my water sample to the LFS, they read the salinity as 1.023, while I was reading 1.025. They told me it is better to calibrate the refractometer with a saltwater sample with a salinity of 1.026.

I had algae issues, so I had to cut down the phosphate level. Now, I feed the tank twice a week with mysis shrimp. I see a prospect in one Acan frag; hopefully, it comes back to normal again.

 

[Sh333]

If your temps get that high during summer or even at all I would get a small fan.

I would just put the acan somewhere and leave it alone for awhile. Keep params steady,keep the temps within range and keep it all stable. Low light,low-medium flow and spit feed it.

Thanks a lot.

I love Acans. It was my first attempt at keeping them. For next time, I've learned my lessons: maintain a stable tank, avoid hot spots, FEED Acans, and don't stress them out with fishes or invertebrates.

 

[acananoreefer]

How amazing that you could thrive such corals under stock light. I would have thought it was impossible.

Your points are true. I used to calibrate my refractometer with RODI water. When I brought my water sample to the LFS, they read the salinity as 1.023, while I was reading 1.025. They told me it is better to calibrate the refractometer with a saltwater sample with a salinity of 1.026.

I had algae issues, so I had to cut down the phosphate level. Now, I feed the tank twice a week with mysis shrimp. I see a prospect in one Acan frag; hopefully, it comes back to normal again.

Yup, you should have less error with single point calibration if use a stock sample.

On the feeding side maybe feed more or target feed the acans. I feed my tank daily sometimes twice daily with a couple small refrozen cubes of brine shrimp/nano reef frenzy/reef roids and/or reef chili slurry. Sometimes I feed the small new life spectrum sinking pellets. I also target feed when I feel like it with a turkey baster.

 

[Sh333]

Yup, you should have less error with single point calibration if use a stock sample.

On the feeding side maybe feed more or target feed the acans. I feed my tank daily sometimes twice daily with a couple small refrozen cubes of brine shrimp/nano reef frenzy/reef roids and/or reef chili slurry. Sometimes I feed the small new life spectrum sinking pellets. I also target feed when I feel like it with a turkey baster.

Thanks a lot for sharing your experiences!

I should try once again with all this new information.