NOPOX - anemones seem to hate it?

artieg · 04/06/2018, 01:18 PM

Using Nopox for 4 weeks now. Nitrates gradually coming down (currently at under 10.0, which is a record low for my tank). But a couple of things: first, green hair algae is as bad as ever. No impact on GHA so far. Is that because phosphate takes longer to come down? Or it just takes a while for it to die back? I have cut my photo period to 5 hours a day in an attempt to choke it off.

Second, my 4 BTAs hate life these days. 3 have disappeared entirely, and my poor clown pair has taken up residence in the hammer coral. 1 BTA has just shrunk and sits grumpy on the rock. LPS corals doing fine. SPS slowly coming back (that was what tipped me off in the first place).

Thoughts? I've done a couple of 30% water changes over the past month as well, so not sure if the anemones are just irritated with all the interventions?

ClownNut · 04/06/2018, 02:29 PM

not nopox, i have been using nopox since they came out.
my rbtas

Anemone Tank D3 by Li Cai, on Flickr

my blue gig

Blue Gig by Li Cai, on Flickr

i think you changing the lighting period might have some more impact.

hegeh · 04/06/2018, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClownNut

not nopox, i have been using nopox since they came out.
my rbtas

Anemone Tank D3 by Li Cai, on Flickr

my blue gig

Blue Gig by Li Cai, on Flickr

i think you changing the lighting period might have some more impact.

WOOOW... nice big anemone and clean neat tank..

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

bertoni · 04/06/2018, 11:10 PM

I'm not sure why the anemones are sulking. The drop in dissolved nutrients might be part of it, or maybe the bacteria fed by the NOPOx are causing some irritation. I probably would give it another week after the large water changes, and then start considering some sort of response. The issue might be the lighting schedule, so I'd probably change that first, but you could give it some time.

Dan_P · 04/07/2018, 05:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by artieg

No impact on GHA so far. Is that because phosphate takes longer to come down? Or it just takes a while for it to die back? I have cut my photo period to 5 hours a day in an attempt to choke it off.

Macro alga maximum growth rate occurs at fairly low nitrate and phosphate levels around the level where hobby test kits read zero. Nitrate and phosphate are at best rough indicators of water quality and the condition of the bio filter.

Competition, like bacterial growth, and predation, physical removal, are the other two ecological parameters to consider in reducing algal growth.

Dsekula · 04/07/2018, 07:29 PM

I've auctually had similar experiences when I was dosing nopox when I brought in a nem from a high nutrient system but not with the ones I had long term. For this reason I think it's not just the nopox but a combination with the change in nutrients. If nutrients were high and stable previously they may be going through an adjustment to the light as well, in which case the decrease in photo period is good. When I had nems going through this I'd switch up dosing with another carbon source every other, second, or third day depending on their health and system nutrients. The nems will adjust eventually but some of mine took months, just be patient and don't rush them. If they really react bad (I've had some that seemed near death) I've backed the nopox way back and dose something else in conjunction ie. 9 parts vodka to 1 part nopox.
This is one of the reasons I've been trying other carbon sources (it's happened to me with finicky corals too and it's such a pain)

Sent from my E6810 using Tapatalk

tmz · 04/07/2018, 08:59 PM

My rbtas( entmacea quadricolr ) have been healthy for about ten years of vodka and vinegar dosing at levels similar to the nopox mixture. Don't know why yours are struggling? Slowly amping up the dose slowly from the beggining may be helpful. Might alos try feeding them a bit.

artieg · 04/08/2018, 12:34 PM

Thanks! I have (had) 4. 3 of them picked up their tents and left, cannot find them (but I had a big tank with tons of rock, so who knows). One has stayed in place and has retracted, and refuses to eat when its favorite (raw shrimp) is offered, it won't grab it at all, just sits there sulking. It has been a fairly unhappy past two months, ever since GHA showed up after 2 years and I took steps to address that.

bertoni · 04/08/2018, 03:09 PM

That's long enough that I would start to take action. One month should be tolerable, but an anemone that won't feed or extend for two months might be fading. At some point, you might want to consider all the steps you've taken to handle the alga.

Uncle99 · 04/10/2018, 05:20 PM

I have been dosing 10ml NoPox for a year now. It took about 6 months to get to a consistent 5ppm. As for phosphates, I run GFO and scrubbed weekly the GHA, and this took about 4 months of .05 phosphate.

My BTA has not been negatively affected by NoPox.

But the BTA wants light and your photoperiod is 5 hours, to short, IMO, 8 hours should be fine, and still control the GHA, it does take time but be persistent.

There is also the option of using an LC to reduce phosphate fast, but it's only a temporary measure..

ReefCowboy · 04/15/2018, 05:52 AM

Not related, but Ive used NoPox for about three years in two sps tanks. At least my opinion has been that for purposes of NO3 reduction, it works like a charm and quick. I could keep nitrates between 0.5-1.0. Somehow, all things remaining stable, at different occasions corals reacted negatively and I could never pinpoint why. Adding it by hand everyday also is a big PIA.

I decided to follow a more natural path with an ATS and learned 5 or even 10 ppm nitrate aint a bad thing at all.

04/06/2018, 01:18 PM	#1
artieg Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2014 Posts: 66	NOPOX - anemones seem to hate it? Using Nopox for 4 weeks now. Nitrates gradually coming down (currently at under 10.0, which is a record low for my tank). But a couple of things: first, green hair algae is as bad as ever. No impact on GHA so far. Is that because phosphate takes longer to come down? Or it just takes a while for it to die back? I have cut my photo period to 5 hours a day in an attempt to choke it off. Second, my 4 BTAs hate life these days. 3 have disappeared entirely, and my poor clown pair has taken up residence in the hammer coral. 1 BTA has just shrunk and sits grumpy on the rock. LPS corals doing fine. SPS slowly coming back (that was what tipped me off in the first place). Thoughts? I've done a couple of 30% water changes over the past month as well, so not sure if the anemones are just irritated with all the interventions? __________________ 200 gallon peninsula, mixed reef 180 gallon sump, large skimmer, U/V sterilizer Three 72-inch Reefbrite XHO LED strips

04/06/2018, 02:29 PM	#2
ClownNut Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 1,859	not nopox, i have been using nopox since they came out. my rbtas Anemone Tank D3 by Li Cai, on Flickr my blue gig Blue Gig by Li Cai, on Flickr i think you changing the lighting period might have some more impact. __________________ Dont let me know where u lived if u have a nice pair of clownfish in ur tank!^_^ Clown kidnaper^_^ Current Tank Info: 300DD, SM200/RD3,ATI 60-8X80+4X75, 2 Sea Sweep & 4X6105 & 6208 Last edited by ClownNut; 04/06/2018 at 02:56 PM.

04/06/2018, 11:10 PM	#4
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I'm not sure why the anemones are sulking. The drop in dissolved nutrients might be part of it, or maybe the bacteria fed by the NOPOx are causing some irritation. I probably would give it another week after the large water changes, and then start considering some sort of response. The issue might be the lighting schedule, so I'd probably change that first, but you could give it some time. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

04/07/2018, 08:59 PM	#7
tmz ReefKeeping Mag staff Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: West Seneca NY Posts: 27,691	My rbtas( entmacea quadricolr ) have been healthy for about ten years of vodka and vinegar dosing at levels similar to the nopox mixture. Don't know why yours are struggling? Slowly amping up the dose slowly from the beggining may be helpful. Might alos try feeding them a bit. __________________ Tom Current Tank Info: Tank of the Month , November 2011 : 600gal integrated system: 3 display tanks (120 g, 90g, 89g),several frag/grow out tanks, macroalgae refugia, cryptic zones. 40+ fish, seahorses, sps,lps,leathers, zoanthidae and non photosynthetic corals.

04/08/2018, 12:34 PM	#8
artieg Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2014 Posts: 66	Thanks! I have (had) 4. 3 of them picked up their tents and left, cannot find them (but I had a big tank with tons of rock, so who knows). One has stayed in place and has retracted, and refuses to eat when its favorite (raw shrimp) is offered, it won't grab it at all, just sits there sulking. It has been a fairly unhappy past two months, ever since GHA showed up after 2 years and I took steps to address that. __________________ 200 gallon peninsula, mixed reef 180 gallon sump, large skimmer, U/V sterilizer Three 72-inch Reefbrite XHO LED strips

04/07/2018, 07:29 PM	#6
Dsekula Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Sterling Posts: 271	I've auctually had similar experiences when I was dosing nopox when I brought in a nem from a high nutrient system but not with the ones I had long term. For this reason I think it's not just the nopox but a combination with the change in nutrients. If nutrients were high and stable previously they may be going through an adjustment to the light as well, in which case the decrease in photo period is good. When I had nems going through this I'd switch up dosing with another carbon source every other, second, or third day depending on their health and system nutrients. The nems will adjust eventually but some of mine took months, just be patient and don't rush them. If they really react bad (I've had some that seemed near death) I've backed the nopox way back and dose something else in conjunction ie. 9 parts vodka to 1 part nopox. This is one of the reasons I've been trying other carbon sources (it's happened to me with finicky corals too and it's such a pain) Sent from my E6810 using Tapatalk

04/08/2018, 03:09 PM	#9
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	That's long enough that I would start to take action. One month should be tolerable, but an anemone that won't feed or extend for two months might be fading. At some point, you might want to consider all the steps you've taken to handle the alga. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

04/10/2018, 05:20 PM	#10
Uncle99 Crab Free Zone Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,906	I have been dosing 10ml NoPox for a year now. It took about 6 months to get to a consistent 5ppm. As for phosphates, I run GFO and scrubbed weekly the GHA, and this took about 4 months of .05 phosphate. My BTA has not been negatively affected by NoPox. But the BTA wants light and your photoperiod is 5 hours, to short, IMO, 8 hours should be fine, and still control the GHA, it does take time but be persistent. There is also the option of using an LC to reduce phosphate fast, but it's only a temporary measure..

04/15/2018, 05:52 AM	#11
ReefCowboy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Long Island, New York Posts: 1,742	Not related, but Ive used NoPox for about three years in two sps tanks. At least my opinion has been that for purposes of NO3 reduction, it works like a charm and quick. I could keep nitrates between 0.5-1.0. Somehow, all things remaining stable, at different occasions corals reacted negatively and I could never pinpoint why. Adding it by hand everyday also is a big PIA. I decided to follow a more natural path with an ATS and learned 5 or even 10 ppm nitrate aint a bad thing at all. __________________ Rimless 150 Gal Sps System: Giesemann Spectra/New Apex/2x MP40qd's+ 2x Gyre XF250's/Cor20/Custom Stand, Sump and Algae Scrubber/2x DOS dosing/Skimz Octa 205i Skimmer