MrKrispy Posted September 19, 2003 Share Posted September 19, 2003 Hiya, I keep reading about some of my corals needing iodine. All I can ever find is "I add a few drops" or "supplement some iodine." I looked here and Reef Central, Fenner's book, Sprung's Reef books, and no quantitative luck. I tested my tank using the Seachem Reef Iodine and got around 0.1 mg/L (or whatever the scale read). The Seachem said NSW was about 0.6. Can anyone that adds iodine actually give me a good target amount to shoot for? I have a 10g with an open brain, frogspawn, candy cane, and a mushroom/tunicate rock. No fish or shrimp, just snails and a few hermits. I have the SeaChem reef iodine. Bottle states 1-2ml per 20gal. That doesn't help much either, I don't want to kill everything. Thanks alla youse Link to comment
onthefly Posted September 19, 2003 Share Posted September 19, 2003 I'm just hitchin' a ride with you Krispy.......I'e wondered the same thing. Why not shoot for the NSW level? Link to comment
LITTLEFISHEE Posted September 19, 2003 Share Posted September 19, 2003 I dose my tanks with Natureef iodine 2 times a week. The levels are normally 0.6-0.5. I like Natureef more than the SeaChem because you would have to triple your normal dosage to overdose your tank. So it's very easy to use. I might check my iodine every few months now. Do you guys dose iron? Link to comment
SeaMountain Posted September 19, 2003 Share Posted September 19, 2003 lol... I was actually wondering myself... I add a half a cap of SeaChem Reef and a half a cap of SeaChem Calcium once every two weeks is all I do. I'm wantiong to drop a cleaner shrimp in there but am curious about the iodine too. I don't even test for iodine yet so you're ahead of me there! Anyone have 'verts and not add supplemental iodine? Link to comment
onthefly Posted September 19, 2003 Share Posted September 19, 2003 Damn Sea, We pretty much run the same set up....I does once a week with Seachem Reef Plus (which does have I in it) and every other day with Seachem Reef Complete. Great results so far!!! In terms of inverts, I haven't added any "iodine" suppliements other than what comes in the reef plus...and all my herm have molted many times....my cleaner has molted twice in 3 weeks.....so no problems so far! Link to comment
MrKrispy Posted September 19, 2003 Author Share Posted September 19, 2003 I would like to aim for the NSW, but I don't want to add to much at once and kill stuff, but I haven't figured out yet how fast the iodine is depleted. I do my weekly water changes but just got the test kit Monday so I don't have anything to compare to. I can't find anything that describes what iodine level these corals prefer in a home aquarium. I hope we can get some more examples. Good to hear I am not the only one wondering! Link to comment
horsehunter Posted September 20, 2003 Share Posted September 20, 2003 I have also been wondering about iodine and hav not yet found a test kit locally. I was looking at past Tank of Months at Reef Centeral and Phish1 said he was adding 1 drop of Lugols Solution weekly with no indication that he was testing in a 20 gallon (this tank also has a sump). I saw in another thread that I now can't find someone thought 1 drop a week was overdosing in a much larger tank. I have Kent Marine Concentrated Iodine directions are 5ml per 50 gallons once a week or preferably 8 drops per 50 gal. daily. How does this stuff differ from Lugols? I was dosing 2 or 3 drops daily in my 20 but have decided to quit untill I can get a test kit. Thanks Frank Link to comment
tinyreef Posted September 21, 2003 Share Posted September 21, 2003 iodine's always been a touchy subject. i dose iodine heavily but i always favor softies due to their 'look'. currently, i dose about 4x the recommended dosage for lugol's AND 3x the iodine (KI). :x i gauge the 'need' from the reactions of the leathers & softies. and i'm always playing with the levels and adjusting to the varying livestocks' needs. my advice is for dosing (if you're going to at all) is to start at recommended levels and then adjust as the system/livestock reacts. i would interval changes in dosage by at least a week. imo recommended dosages do not take into account actual livestock needs, iodine cycle, and skimming which combined may outstrip the available iodine. probably your best bet is to maintain NSW levels but that is very low (about <0.06 ppm). overdosing easily becomes poisonous! sorry, for a lack of concrete steps but ime it's a nudge and observe process (especially if one doesn't test). i don't recommend doing what i do (flying blind, i.e. never test). while it's worked for me, it does not mean it will necessarily for you (i.e. individual & unique systems and hobbyists). Link to comment
phishhead Posted September 21, 2003 Share Posted September 21, 2003 yesterday i bought some Kent Marine (concentrated) Iodine and i think i'll follow the suggested amount. They say 8 drops per 50 gallons every day. so i figured i'll start with 1 drop per day. i'll let ya'll know the results. -JB Link to comment
horsehunter Posted September 21, 2003 Share Posted September 21, 2003 phishhead How big is your tank thats the same stuff I have? Link to comment
MrKrispy Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 I have started adding 2.5ml / week of the Seachem Iodide. I am testing for it, but it is still low. Apparently they weren't joking when they said it isn't stable in SW for long... Link to comment
tinyreef Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 Apparently they weren't joking when they said it isn't stable in SW for long... iodine cycle plus bio-mass assimilation Link to comment
phishhead Posted October 6, 2003 Share Posted October 6, 2003 My tank is 11 gal. Let me know if you come up with something horse hunter. I haven't added any yet. Link to comment
MrKrispy Posted October 6, 2003 Author Share Posted October 6, 2003 hey by the way, Lugol's is dosed differently than iodide. Lugol's is a combination of iodide/iodine, and I beleive it is much more concentrated. So make sure you read up on it before dropping it in. You might want to mailorder a iodine test kit too, worth the money (compared to nuking the corals). Link to comment
vitz Posted October 7, 2003 Share Posted October 7, 2003 i never used iodine, and never had a problem w/any soft corals-nor will i use it until the verdict is definitely out through some type of scientific/quantitative test results a reg water change, and just feeding fish a prepared food occasionally should provide your tank with all the iodine it ever will need Link to comment
luvtolean Posted October 9, 2003 Share Posted October 9, 2003 I didn't dose iodine for the first 8 mos or so, and my cleaner usually molts every 2 weeks or so. It's gotten huge. Same thing with my hermits. I decided to start dosing Lugol's, and found even with a 7 gal tank pretty heavily stocked, 1/2 drop every week or more is more than enough. My advice is that if you don't test for iodine, don't dose it. Link to comment
horsehunter Posted October 16, 2003 Share Posted October 16, 2003 How do you get 1/2 drop? Link to comment
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