starfish tips curled up
- Thread starter smejkald
- Start date
Jeremy0322
Active Member
How are the water levels, stars are uber-sensitive to water chemistry, temp, and salinity fluctuations. Post those and you may instantly have your answer. Also, is there anything which may be picking on them?
smejkald
Member
im sure no one is picking on them, but i will go get my water tested tomorrow. i dont know if you've heard, but i am using the filtering medium chemi-pure. its supposed to keep everything in check and i ve got the mangrove shoots for xtra protection. but i will get my water checked out and post it. although, the stars have had their tips up since i got them and i did get my water checked right after i got the linkia and all was well. oh well, thanks once again Jeremy0322. where in pa are you, i was born in pittsburgh and my mom lives in lancaster. have a good night, will write again tomorrow with my water readings.
Jeremy0322
Active Member
Im on the western tip of PA, about an hour north of Pittsburgh. I dont know a whole lot about stars, pretty much I types is what i know, that and that sand sifting stars like the on i have spend all their time in the sand lolol. Im just posting to suggest you check the basics, and maybe someone who knows a little more will post something better.
smejkald I hate to be a nay-sayer but you really NEED to maintain water changes. There is so much more to water chemistry than what can be accomplished with "chemicals" alone. There are so many other things (trace elements etc) that are depleted FROM the water system that your animals need to survive.
Mangrove shoots only help remove excess nutrients from the water column that would otherwise feed algae blooms.
Starfish are some of the most sensitive animals to water chemistry that we keep in our tanks and they are also some of the first to show signs of and succumb to less than perfect water conditions.
Mangrove shoots only help remove excess nutrients from the water column that would otherwise feed algae blooms.
Starfish are some of the most sensitive animals to water chemistry that we keep in our tanks and they are also some of the first to show signs of and succumb to less than perfect water conditions.
I have to go on record saying you're flirting with danger by NOT doing water changes. There are "so -called" products out there to do this but they are by far way to dangerous to mess with. There really is no replacement for water changes. Short-cuts in reefing lead to faster and harder tank crashes.
framerguy
Well-Known Member
As I have said before, waterchanges rule. But there are some trace element additives you can use if for some reason you can't do a water change. I have used Seachems Reeftrace and Reefplus, they are a tandem additive, use them both.
Now to your question. I think the starfish are merely trying to find food in the water column. Have you tried putting an algae strip in the linkias path? Their diet isn't really understood but many believe they are herbivorous. Try different things and see if it will accept offered foods. I personally think a 75g tank is too small for them, but I hope it works out. The serpents are meat eaters and appreciate bits of fish and shrimp on occasion. I feed mine about once a week.
Now to your question. I think the starfish are merely trying to find food in the water column. Have you tried putting an algae strip in the linkias path? Their diet isn't really understood but many believe they are herbivorous. Try different things and see if it will accept offered foods. I personally think a 75g tank is too small for them, but I hope it works out. The serpents are meat eaters and appreciate bits of fish and shrimp on occasion. I feed mine about once a week.
I believe it's a hoax or marketing scheme to think you can maintain a thriving tank without water changes for 99% of people. Granted there ARE a couple of very experienced reefers who can get away without water changes but they are the rare exception and not the rule 
Jeremy0322
Active Member
Going with what BigAl said, even the cream of the reefing crop would tell anyone to do water changes, because they got to that point doing a water change every week more than likely..
smejkald
Member
i guess i just believe in it so much because i had just bought three anemones and then my tank crashed right away and i got discouraged that i probably couldnt keep anemones. then i bought that stuff and everything was great again and now i have three anemones again and the starfish and they seem healthy.
Jeremy0322
Active Member
You wont find many people on RS that dont do weekly or bi weekly changes, it just makes life easier for everything. I have a 55 with a 20 sump, but i figured the water volume is about 45 in the tank and 10 in the sump cause its really only half full, and i do about 5 gallons a week. Its right around 10%, and it has worked nicely so far for me. And i have the ability to do much more than that if needed thought, you could do water changes, still use the chemi-pure, and then probably stop dosing trace elements depending on what you have in the tank, the salt mix has alot of that stuff right in it.