strings coming out of my shrooms

[parrotchute]

So, today, right after my water change, I noticed ALL the shrooms in my tank were closed up & had long stringy tentacles (2") coming out of them...about 4 minutes later, they were gone. Didn't hae a cance to get good pics. Any ideas?

 

[daugherty]

i am guessing some kind of slime from them

 

[parrotchute]

hmmm, wasn't slime. It was definitely an anatomical part. They retracted back to the center and the mushrooms look normal now. Some sort of reproductive function?

 

[daugherty]

i really dont know i have never seen mushrooms do that. they are kinda like a nem more than a coral from what i have read. it could be something reaching out for food? or reproductive? just trying to think sorry but some star fish expell their stomac to eat the food i have know idea if a shroom would do that. i am stumped on this

 

[parrotchute]

yeah, I've seen them do it a couple of times, but haven't been able to snap a quality photo in time. Imagine a shroom contracted (like a closed flower bud) with 4-5 2" long white strings extended from the center...very weird indeed.

 

[BigH55]

They are females and its that time of month

 

[mng777777]

are you absolutely positive that they strings were from the shrooms and not just a worm on the rock with the shrooms?

 

[parrotchute]

Absolutely sure. I dosed my tank again (as I did on the water change) with a PH buffer (garf) and it triggered the same response...I don't think they liked that.

They are strings that unfurl from the "mouth" of each mushroom.

 

[yote]

Sounds like the strings are related to stress.The quick changes in parameters with the waterchange and then again when adding the buffer,may have stressed them some causing them to slim.
Just a guess.

 

[jhnrb]

a sign of distress, I suggest you change your dosing method, and find a way to keep your water parameters as constant as possible. for dosing try the drip method or dilution and drip over a longer time period. also your makeup water must be properly seasoned and at the same temperature as the tank. freshly madeup saltwater is caustic and not able to support sensitive life, takes about 1 to 3 days with good agitation, airiation at the correct temperature before adding to the system. hope this helps.

 

[parrotchute]

Well, I'll admit I usually mix the water just before water changes, so I'll have to change that - but, it hasn't happened until I started using that PH buffer. (I was using PH Up before but the LFS recommended the garf buffer over it). I think it's more caustic than I thought and triggers a reaction...definitely will have to use more care mixing it. One of the problems I've been having is my pH has been hard to maintain since my skimmer died (should have the replacement pump tomorrow) so I've been requiring a lot of PH buffer, and trying to dose it slowly at the same time.

 

[parrotchute]

out of curioisity, just why is freshly made up saltwater bad? Anyone know the chemistry behind it?

 

[mng777777]

For one thing, it takes more time/agitation than some people allow for the salt to become thoroughly dissolved. If you mixed the salt the way you normally do and just left it standing in a bucket, you might be surprised to find salt settling on the bottom of the bucket. If the salt is not properly dissolved it burns the fish and coral tissue. Also, the specific gravity varies depending on temp. the colder the water, the more dense it will be, and since we use specific gravity to measure salinity, the temp needs to match the tank to get an accurate reading. Finally, aeration is vital, because standing water will have much higher CO2 levels. When oxygen dissolves into water, it forces the release of other dissolved gasses in the water, namely CO2. If you are dumping in water that has not been aerated, even if the temp and salinity match, you are throwing off the chemistry of the tank, because everything has to adjust to the new oxygen levels in the water. I think this is probably the least likely to cause trouble for you, but it is the science you requested. :D

 

[Rcpilot]

The stringy stuff you saw coming from the mouth of the shrooms was their guts. They do that when they are severely stressed. Most of the time they will retract their guts back inside after the initial shock wears off.

I bought an 8g rubbermaid trash can from the store. Tossed a small 60gph powerhead and a 50w heater in there. I keep freshly mixed saltwater in that trash can.

I use an old Oceanic salt bucket for storage of RO/DI water. I take the lid off every night before bed and dip a 1/2g plastic pitcher in there. Top off both tanks and pour the rest of the RO water back in the bucket. I go through about 2g or 3g of RO top off water a week. It's about a 6g bucket so I usually end up with about 3g or 4g left in the bucket on Sunday.

Here's my routine:
I change water on Sunday. EVERY Sunday. I change about 5g in the 30g display and about 1g or 2g in the 10g frag tank.

I drain the old water from the tanks and pour it down the kitchen sink.

Then I use my 1/2g plastic pitcher to dip new saltwater out of my 8g rubbermaid trash can and fill the tanks up to the top.

Then I take any remaining RO/DI water from my Oceanic bucket (usually about 3g or 4g) and dump it into the 8g rubbermaid trash can to refill it.

Then I set my 6g RO/DI bucket in the sink and turn on the RO/DI pump. Fill the bucket up about 3/4 full. Take it out of the sink and go fill the 8g rubbermaid trash can the rest of the way up. Put the RO/DI bucket back in the sink and let it fill up with RO/DI water. Put the lid on to keep dust and childrens toys out. Set it aside.

Now I go measure out about 3 cups of salt crystals from my bucket and dump it in the 8g rubbermaid trash can thats full of RO/DI water. Let it sit until Tuesday and then check salinity and temp with my floating glass hydrometer. Adjust salinity by adding more salt if necessary.

It took me longer to type that than it does to actually do my tank maintenance on Sundays.

My salt water "mellows" for a whole week before I actually use it. It sounds like a pain in the ass, but it's really not that much trouble. I spend about 15 minutes on Sunday doing all my weekly maintenance. One trash can for new saltwater. One bucket for fresh RO/DI water. One bucket full of salt crystals.

Thats it. Nothing hard. Nothing complicated. Nothing scientific. 15 minutes.

 

[parrotchute]

thanks for the tips & knowledge, I'll def start making water that way..
The problem is, I can't get PH under control, it's constantly low. Obviously adding PH up too much is stressing them, but I'm not sure what else I can do. It just stays low.

 

[mng777777]

have you checked the PH of the water you are doing your changes with? If you have to use PH up, add the dose to your water when you mix your salt. I would consider switching salt though if you are having to buffer your pre mix

 

[parrotchute]

the PH of the water I'm adding is somewhat low, but I dose it then too...hrm.

 

[yote]

I didnt know your skimmer was down.That could be why your PH is running low.More dissolved organics in the water,and less gas exchange.That'll cause you PH to drop.
Try getting more water moveent on the surface.Even if you have to point a powerhead straight at the surface to get a good current and more ripples.

 

[parrotchute]

yeah, the impeller died...been skimmerless for 3 weeks now!!! Kind of frustrating, was about to buy a new pump, but aquavue has been really good and is replacing it for free. I think I should have the pump back in tomorrow. I'll try that with the powerhead.

 

[wontonflip]

My 10g had stray stringy stuff around the time the largest one was distressed (it's fine now). When the shrooms got better, no more stringy stuff floating around.

I also prepare my saltwater mixture right before doing water changes...but I dump the water in the sump behind the triple baffle, so it goes through a lot before it gets sucked back up through the return hose.