SkiFletch
New member
Oh how I loathe these little flipping organisms. For years I've kept them in check with various chemical based snake oils, like Kalk paste, or AiptasiaX with varying degrees of success. Rarely I'd actually kill one, but more often they'd just go in hiding for a few weeks before coming back full-force. Well they've finally reached some kind of critical mass, so I'm done tiptoeing around. Recently had my heater break on me (mercifully it broke OFF) while diving the GBR and lost a few corals coming home to the tank at 60F (not as many as I would have thought though). Anyways, couple the two things together and I have some nice impotice to "blow up" my rock stack, completely re-design it, AND kill all the aiptasia while I'm at it.
So my methods, setup two tanks in the basement, one large rubbermaid horse trough (you all know the kind) with some temporary halides hung over it. The trough sits on a counter top and I insulated it with some nice foam neoprene on bottom/sides in an attempt to not pay toooo much for electricity. Other tank is just a 20g sitting next to it with a small heater and a couple pumps. Take the rock down from the display to the 20g in the basement. Let the Aiptasia come out of hiding, then pull the rock and unleash the fire on the little prics
This is a weller portable soldering iron/torch. Butane powered, nice controlled/constant flame. Keeps collateral damage to a minimum but Aiptasia killing to a maximum. I burn those little bastages until they've boiled and then keep going until they're glowing red-hot. It's strangely satisfying :angryfire:. Once done, place rock back in 20g for a while longer to see if I missed any. After an evening or so of going back every hour or two the rocks are usually nem-free. Leave them there overnight till the next day, transfer them to the trough, bring down another load, and continue killing. Nitrates are pretty wicked high in the 20g but whatever, that's the point. If any re-show up in the trough, back out for some more burnination. I plan on leaving everything downstairs for a while for observation in case some of the really little micro-nems escape the fire's clutches. Maybe a month or so before bringing them back upstairs. Really hope this leads me to the promise land of no aiptasia ever again. Likely it won't, but if it gets me back to a "controllable" state with them, I'll be happy.
So my methods, setup two tanks in the basement, one large rubbermaid horse trough (you all know the kind) with some temporary halides hung over it. The trough sits on a counter top and I insulated it with some nice foam neoprene on bottom/sides in an attempt to not pay toooo much for electricity. Other tank is just a 20g sitting next to it with a small heater and a couple pumps. Take the rock down from the display to the 20g in the basement. Let the Aiptasia come out of hiding, then pull the rock and unleash the fire on the little prics
This is a weller portable soldering iron/torch. Butane powered, nice controlled/constant flame. Keeps collateral damage to a minimum but Aiptasia killing to a maximum. I burn those little bastages until they've boiled and then keep going until they're glowing red-hot. It's strangely satisfying :angryfire:. Once done, place rock back in 20g for a while longer to see if I missed any. After an evening or so of going back every hour or two the rocks are usually nem-free. Leave them there overnight till the next day, transfer them to the trough, bring down another load, and continue killing. Nitrates are pretty wicked high in the 20g but whatever, that's the point. If any re-show up in the trough, back out for some more burnination. I plan on leaving everything downstairs for a while for observation in case some of the really little micro-nems escape the fire's clutches. Maybe a month or so before bringing them back upstairs. Really hope this leads me to the promise land of no aiptasia ever again. Likely it won't, but if it gets me back to a "controllable" state with them, I'll be happy.
I still have a long way to go
