View Full Version : Ron Shimek or anyone who can help
pscheel
04/30/2000, 06:34 PM
I did something real stupid today. While doing a partial water change, I accidently siphoned out to much water and exposed about 2 inches of my red tree sponge. It had air for about a few minutes before I got the replacement water in. Do I need to worry? I had this sponge for 1 1/2 years and hate to lose it. Should I trim off the exposed area? TIA
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Pete
hesaias
04/30/2000, 06:59 PM
Hi
I believe I read where someone saved ansponge that was exposed to air by holding the effected area in front of a powerhead to help force any trapped air out of its tissue. I think they said this worked and saved most if not all the sponge. Other than this , Maybe someone who has had the same exp. can really help
HTH
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hesaias
My Reefscape (http://www.angelfire.com/on3/hesaias/index.html)
My Homepage (http://www.angelfire.com/on2/hesaias/index.html)
pscheel
04/30/2000, 07:03 PM
Thanks, I'll give it a try.
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Pete
rshimek
05/01/2000, 07:31 AM
Hi,
I think the effects will depend on 2 things. How long the sponge was exposed and the surface texture of the colony.
The problem with air on sponges comes from the adherence of very fine (you generally can't see 'em) bubbles in the opening to the water system. If the surface of the sponge stays wet or mucousy these may not form, but if it driest a little bit and the surface is fuzzy (and it is with most sponges), then small bubble form when capillary action pulls water into the animal as it dries.
When the sponge is resubmerged, the animal has no means to clear the bubbles out and they stay there. Cells touching the bubbles will often die. They start to decompose, and this causes more death downstream and there is a cascading effect.
However, for short duration and if you are lucky this can be minimal, or absent. I wouldn't mutiliate your sponge yet. Watch and see what happens. If if looks like it is dying, remove it from your tank and prune it as necessary. Do this in another tank and keep the sponge quarantined for a couple of days after the procedure. They produce a lot of noxious chemicals and mucus in response to this practice.
Good luck.
Ron
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