Add Iodine or Not?

[FinzAquatics]

i was reading a chemical today at work and it suggested that iodine was a chemical that should be added regulary. ive never used it in the past.... how do you guys feel about iodine

[stevenp]

I used to dose iodine until I heard Randy's presentation at a recent meeting. He reported that he didn't see any effects (positive or negative) of dosing iodine.

IMO, it's pretty tough to test for anyway. I have a couple iodine test kits and neither one of them seems to be that accurate.

[LockeOak]

I do add it, but I use it at less than half the amount recommended on the bottle (Kent Tech I). I can't really tell if it helps.

[jimmyj7090]

The problem is that there are several forms of iodine that can be in the water, and it's very difficult if possible to test each accurately so if you do dose you really have to do it blindly.

That said, most of the authors I've read more or less say it's necessary but from there opinions vary. The one thing I can say is that I have yet to come across any real clear reccomendation on how/how much/how often to keep the levels in check.

Randy wrote a really comprehensive article a while back, IIRC it is in the advancedaquaristonline archives.

[Andy O]

I used to dose it and found that my xenia grew like crazy when I did so to control it a bit I have stopped dosing as often. They say that it is helpful to inverts to assist in their moulting.

[FinzAquatics]

has anyone heard of a chemical called lugos solution, thats the solution i was reading and was unsure of

[mkeyb]

i have heard of it its just a concetrated form of kent tech i i use kent tech i and like andy o said my xania and clove polps grew like wild fire i haven't stop doseing all together just cut back to about half of recomended dosage i never real saw any diffrence in the way sps or lps reacted to it before or after switch in dosage

[jimmyj7090]

Yup, lugols is a common very concentrated form of iodine, the kent started packaging it under their name a few yrs ago, but it's been around for a long time before that.

Same consideration with that as any iodine supplement, the reccomended dosing instructions are at very best a guess with no real way to monitor.

It's good stuff, until you add too much, then who knows? No way to really know how much to dose until you dose too much and samething - possibly really bad - happens.

I'll look for a link to randy's article and post it if I can find it.

[jimmyj7090]

Randy's article's

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/mar2003/chem.htm

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/april2003/chem.htm

[Myk]

IMO/IME

Iodine is one of the most crucial and widely used trace elements in our tanks. All Inverts, fish, and corals consume and use Iodine to some extent (what extent exactly may not be known) We also know that Carbon and protein skimming can and will remove some Iodine. So with this being said, I feel that Iodine is an element that should be added somewhat regularly to our systems. Again the exact amount is a question. Especially if one is not testing for Iodine (which as said earlier can be tough and expensive) But dosing a bit below a manufacturers recommended dose is probably a safe bet.
We do know for a fact that Inverts and soft Corals will show positive benefits to Iodine dosing. Also as stated, I have never noticed any difference either way with SPS or LPS Corals. But who is to say that because I do not notice an effect that it is not causing an effect. there are millions of things that go on inside our little ecosystems that we will never notice. We do know that we do high Iodine dips on incoming Corals to get rid of unwanted things, and possibly to boost the natural antibiotics in the coral. Is it safe to say the same thing can happen if we maintain a good level of Iodine in our tanks???


-B-

[LockeOak]

I've heard all of these arguments for it before, so I decided that I would try it. The xenia in my tank certainly does well and my peppermint shrimp molts and all of that, but there's no way of knowing if my dosing had any effect. Everything in the tank is healthy, xenia/softies/lps/sps plus inverts and fish. Since I don't have money to spend on extra test kits I decided that I would only dose at half the recommended concentration and rely on frequent water changes to fix my mistakes, either in overdosing or underdosing. I bought a bottle of Kent Tech-I (which is advertised to have iodine in several different forms, as opposed to Lugol's reagent) for $10 that, at my current pace of a drop or two every two weeks, will last me until approximately 2047 (very roughly :)). I would be concerned about the effects of high iodine levels on the microfauna of our tanks, however, but there's no real way of knowing those effects.

[Jocko]

IMO/IME
We do know for a fact that Inverts and soft Corals will show positive benefits to Iodine dosing.Is this based on scientific studies?

[Myk]

No its based experience of thousands of reefkeepers.
that is why I said "IMO/IME"
I am not one for everything being scientific. Just because someone claims scientific data that doesn't make it any more or less valid in my book. But everyone is entitled to there opinions.
One of the funniest things that I have found over the years is that several people(scientists) that I know that keep reefs, actually have some of the most problems with there "scientifically" correct tanks.

-B-

[Greg Hiller]

I used to add it years ago. Then I stopped. I could never see a difference. Xenia kept growing like mad, shrimp and crabs kept molting. There is no question that iodine is necessary in small quantities for many organisms (humans included), but I believe that plenty comes in with the foods that we feed.

When I did add it I added it per the recommendations put forth by Sprung and Delbeek in the first TRA book. 1 drop Lugol's per 20 gallons tank water per week. Randy, in his articles a while back didn't think that Lugol's was a very safe way to add it. Maybe just because it's super easy to overdose, or because that form is so reactive. Randy preferred the idea of using sodium iodide, but I think he abandoned the idea of dosing altogether when he noticed that some of his mushrooms were loosing color when he was dosing to much of the sodium iodate form (yet another form). There is also a fair amount in macroalgae, so if you are feeding nori, your fish/tank is also getting iodine.

From Wikipedia Lugols is:

5% iodine (I2) and 10% potassium iodide (KI) in distilled water with a total iodine content of 130 mg/mL. Potassium iodide is added to render the iodine water-soluble.

[DavidY]

I say we run a huge pipeline from the ocean along rt90 with branches going off to rt95, rt495, rt93 and rt3 North up to Manchester, NH. The we can all find a way to tap into that and have a continuous NSW feed for our tanks. That way we never have to worry about dosing anything ever again. :D

[Sean Irwin]

Small, frequent water changes would be a better way to maintain trace element levels (along with other benefits to your water quality). Iodine is very reactive, it's a strong oxidizer. Iodine reacts especially well with organic compounds. It seems to be that iodine addition probably helped indirectly by increasing ORP to some beneficial level by oxidizing disolved organic matter that would otherwise negatively impact water quality. This indirect effect would also explain why people have very different experiences with Iodine addition as the optimal ORP for each tank varies.

[reefinghabit]

i dose 6 drops of lugols solution iodine, and also i capful of kent marines tech 1 iodine/iodide every week. i cant say if it benefits my home tank or not, but i do know my xenia grow out of control. and pulse like they are on fire. my tank is 125 30 gl sump 15 gl fuge.

[mkeyb]

i dose 6 drops of lugols solution iodine, and also i capful of kent marines tech 1 iodine/iodide every week. i cant say if it benefits my home tank or not, but i do know my xenia grow out of control. and pulse like they are on fire. my tank is 125 30 gl sump 15 gl fuge.

wow i would think this to be a overdose but if it works for ya cool!;)

[chunky_lover52]

it would seem to be, but if the tank is consuming it at that rate there shouldnt be any problem

[fanaglethebagle]

I started dosing, my xenia seems happy :)

[Greg Hiller]

Perhaps I'll try some iodine again and see if I see any change. Of course it will be yet another anecdote, but heck I've got the bottle around here somewhere or another.