aiptasia outbreak

[pigmagnet]

how do you combatant a huge outbreak of aiptasia? i took all my rocks out and put them in the refuge, which has been clean for a month, with no lights. is this going to work? how long do you guys think this is going to take? me and the wife just had twin sons, so the tanks have seen better days. i could use your advise guys it is my reef tank and there isnt much in there these days.
thanks in advance folks.

 

[pigmagnet]

by the way i tried peppermint shrimp. had about ten or so and they all disappeared. had an evil crab hitch hiker that i do believe was a problem.

 

[eugeneK]

i don't think dark will do much. I've had an aptasia living in my dark nitrate trap for over 6 months and multiplying.

 

[JVManlius]

I used aiptasia-x, but seemed like they kept reappearing. I finally cured the problem by adding a Copperband butterfly. They are reef safe and I haven't had a problem yet.

 

[truebeliever71]

Aptasia-X along with peppermint shrimp has worked good for me. You'll need to use it a few times... but cleared up my aptasia problem.

Note: it's best to start the killing spree when you first notice them and not let them spread.

 

[redrider911]

I tried kalk powder and they came back. I had to pull the rock, torch it, scrub it, and put it back in.

 

[Johnny C]

I used aiptasia-x, but seemed like they kept reappearing. I finally cured the problem by adding a Copperband butterfly. They are reef safe and I haven't had a problem yet.

Don't take this personally, but suggesting that anyone add a CB Butterfly to control aiptasia isn't a good idea. They have a very dismal survival rate in captivity, especially in the hands of anyone but the most experienced hobbyist. Hopefully someday there will be captive-bred Copperbands available, but until then it's probably best that we leave them in the wild. JMO

 

[cardiffgiant]

I find that kalk paste works really well when you turn all of your pumps off and leave them off for 10 minutes after applying.

I have to fight at least a few aptasias 2-3 times a month. I'd go broke if I was using aptasia-x

 

[Steve Canyon]

In my 150, I did all the chemicals out there. Every month I had to do it again and again. I finally gave in and tried the copperband approach. The first one wedged himself in between a couple rocks the first night I had him. He died there. The second one got slashed open by one of my big tangs. Dead by the second day. The third one went in at the same time as a major restack. His fins were GONE by the next morning. I mean GONE. EVERY ONE!!! Somehow he survived and about 9 months later, is now my pride and joy. The apts were gone within a month. I haven't seen one since.
I went through a similar trial in my 46. Two copperbands committed suicide. I got a Kleins and LITERALLY within 23 seconds he was chowing down on apts!!!! I was told when I got him that he had been around town in a number of tanks. His previous record was 19 seconds. He had a HORRENDOUS outbreak of apts completely cleaned up in a week. I love that guy.

 

[redrider911]

I think Tom (TMZ) was researching a electric zapper thing to get them. IDK if he made one or not. Maybe he will chime in.

 

[reefman5511]

Since the rocks are in your fuge & you won't have to disturb your DT try what has worked for me a number of times - torch them with a propane torch.

 

[scott473]

aiptasia eating filefish. Not reef safe though. From what i understand they will eat any and all aptasia including larger ones.

 

[amazo]

Peppermint shrimp worked in my nano,they take care of anything small. But I have two bigger anemomes that may or not be aiptasia that they leave alone,I have a few of them in my 55 gal. as well and they don't reproduce or the offspring is getting eaten before I can see them(I also have 3 peppermint in the 55)

 

[teamdulski]

Aiptasia X is by far the best thing I have ever used.

 

[St.james of reefdom]

I have had Copperband B-flies to take care of my Aiptasia population in a number of my tanks. I have found that the Philippine CB's are not as hardy as other CB's. And I stay away from them.
The last one I had were from Singapore and did very well, they were Aiptasia mowing machines.
The Papua New Guinea strain worked very well also. They are more expensive than Singapores but worked quite well. My understanding is the Australian are fairly hardy as also.
I also have had good experience with Black and White Heniochus as well to remove the Aiptasia , with them I did loose some small fan worms but didn't have any problems with them bothernig corals at all.
So I would recommend the Copperband B-fly to take care of your Aiptasia problem

 

[tmz]

I think Tom (TMZ) was researching a electric zapper thing to get them. IDK if he made one or not. Maybe he will chime in.

Hi, Never got that to work. Stopped short of upping the current. May play with it again at some point.

SWP uses Raccoon butterflies(Chaetodon lunula) in rock tanks and they knock them out quickly. But hey are certainly not reef safe.

Personally, I just keep up with them with a hunt every 2 weeks or so( usually pick off or 6 through the 7 tanks . Running low nutrients also keeps them down.
I mix kalk powder with water to a pasty solution and spray them in the mouth using a syringe (from a salifert test kit) tipped with a few inches of airline tubing for reach. Low flow for a 15minute treatment helps the porcess.Need to be careful not to spray other organisms and not to do too many at once or ph and alk will spike from the calcium hydroxide..

Lystmata wundermanni (peppermints) work very well but they do harm acans and zoonthus,ime.

Never tried a copper banded(Cheimon rostarus).

If the rock is out of the tank and heavily infested a bleach bath and acid bath and reseeding the dead rock may be a useful option.

 

[JVManlius]

I did lose one Copperband who didn't make it, but I was successful with my second attempt. He has been cleaning up my aptasia at the first sign of it. I keep a bottle of aptasia-x just in case, but the Copperband gets to them before I can pull out the bottle. I was warned that Copperbands can be extremely difficult to keep, and I guess my one loss supports that view. But I don't consider myself an expert reefer and my Copperband is going on one year now. I guess that's proof that it's better to be lucky than good.

 

[zooman72]

I have to agree with Johnny C regarding the copper-bandeds...too little success keeping them long-term to justify sacrificing them for aiptasia "disposal" duties. I also recommend peppermint shrimp for aiptasia, but with the caveat that some will go after other polyps - I just removed a rather large one from my 20L after it ate several aiptasias because it turned on my new open brain. This last one is the only one I have ever had go after a desirable coral (at least that I saw...), but then it only takes one! I also had a friend a few years ago "employ" a Klein's butterfly to clear out a large population of aiptasias - it was quite successful, and it never went after another coral - again, not proof, but rather another anecdotal observation.....