Aiptasia, again

[Anonymous]

After I lost my battle with aiptasia, I shut everything down. I restarted a new tank from scratch (tip of the hat for much help from Matt W.), ordered new live rock, finally got my fish back in, re-established the one major piece of coral that I wanted to put back, and everything was perfect. I even quarantened my live rock just in case. But no aiptasia.

Then I bought a mushroom/polyp/combo rock. I didn't see any aiptasia on it at the time, but they were in the system at this LFS.

Sure enough, Aiptasia came in with it. The first thing I buy, and the little bastards are back.

I hate this hobby.

I'll incinerate them, but it is probably like lung cancer. By the time you find it, it is fully metastatic.

 

[stubbsz]

I just live with them. Try not to overfeed and if there is one on a small rock, I'll take the rock out and torch it. I hat them too though.

 

[blackcloudmedia]

YEa I dont think that kalk injection method works, Im still trying to find something that WILL work.

 

[Anonymous]

Incineration is the only thing that works. YOu have to burn every cell. Unfortunately, I think by the time you find them it is too late. They are fully metastatic in the system.

 

[Anonymous]

Frankly speaking, Dear Commandante:

Your Top-side wussiness does no service to your Sumpland reputation. I hope that for your sake, and as an avid fan, that none of the Sumpantagonists see you in this moment of weakness.

Aptasia are killed like all other life's problems, smothered in thick lime paste. Hunt them down and smother them.

And please pull yourself together 8)

 

[Anonymous]

I'll second that.

 

[bleedingthought]

Man, I hate to hear that. Take the rock with them out altogether and take it back to the LFS. Seriously.

And you never posted pics of the tank at a finished state.

 

[Anonymous]

Frankly speaking, Dear Commandante:

Your Top-side wussiness does no service to your Sumpland reputation. I hope that for your sake, and as an avid fan, that none of the Sumpantagonists see you in this moment of weakness.

Aptasia are killed like all other life's problems, smothered in thick lime paste. Hunt them down and smother them.

And please pull yourself together 8)

I like his sensitive side.

 

[Anonymous]

I have has luck with Pepermint shrimps. If you cant get the aiptasia to go away I will give you my white acro collection for it.

 

[Anonymous]

Peppermint shrimp always worked for me too. But once the aptasia were gone the shrimp would die. For whatever reason I am OK with killing aptasia but not shrimp.

So I just went with keeping the aptasia at bay with the occasional syringe of hot salty water.

 

[Anonymous]

Frag what you want off the rock and then nuke it

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah lots of rocks (especially the homemade jobbers that zoanthids & mushrooms seem to come in on) tend to be quite soft, locate the aiptasia and try to scoop under it (ie through the rock). They become more problematic when they find nice little caves to live in.. I found one after 3 years of reefing in my system... it's not large, it's not splitting, so I'm unsure if I really want to disturb it, I would like it dead however.

 

[SnowManSnow]

joes juice works for me.. has never failed

b

 

[Anonymous]

What is joe's juice? I know the secret is known, I seem to recall it was a food like product mixed with something, so that they eat it but it kills them from the inside out.

 

[Anonymous]

Peppermints worked for me too.

 

[Anonymous]

Joe's juice is kalk with a bit of food in it to make the aiptasia open up. Right now incineration seems like the best bet. I lost my battle before after having tried peppermints (ate all my green zooanthids, but not aiptasia, and yes, they were the right ones), those nudibranches ($300 down the toilet), and HCl, NaOH, boiling water, etc. I am going after these with a blow torch and masonary drill.

 

[Unarce]

They started to pop up in my tank, too. I tried the Joe's Juice, but it seemed like it just made them fall apart and start more tiny aiptasia :x

Since I sold my Sohal, I decided to give peppermint shrimp a try again. I bought 4, and they seem to have mowed down most, if not all of them.

 

[Anonymous]

Is it true that you are what you "reef"? :twisted:

Do a joes juice and syringe them, then follow up with a few pep shrimps. That should do it!

 

[danmhippo]

Peppermint +1

 

[Kevin207]

I plan on putting 10 peppermint shrimp into my 30 gallon terminator/quarantine tank tomorrow. It has more aiptasia in it than the main tank since I have been messing around with it in there. If they do a job on the rocks in there, I will move a few pieces or rock and coral over from the 120 gallon tank to see if they will clean them up.

I have 3 big aiptasia (thumb sized when reaching for the sky). Should I move them over and then pluck them, or let the shrimp work on them in their full glory?