Aptasia.... please help

[XxMutedYouthxX]

I am starting to get aptasia breaking out in my tank quite bad. I nuked it with kalkwasser paste repeatedly but it kept coming back... I recently added a peppermint shrimp into the system and am going to get a small copper banded butterfly on tuesday.. anything else that eats it?

 

[JodiLynn]

You're adding a copper banded butterfly to a 10g tank (assuming your sig is correct)? I wouldn't do that.

Just kill off the larger ones with the kalk and let the pep take care of the smaller ones. I wouldn't feed the pep for a while as well, because that will encourage him to eat the stupid little buggers.

Bergia nudibranches also eat aptasia, but like I said before, I'd just settle with the pep and kalk for a while and see how it turns out.

 

[youpey]

joes juice. it is good stuff. i would be carefull of nudibranches as they can release toxins which could kill everything

 

[XxMutedYouthxX]

the toxins nudibranches actually arent toxic to coral... I went ahead and got a copper band... hes a micro guy about 1 1/2 inch or so. he will be plenty comfortable in here for a while the pep is starting to take out the small ones so we will see how things go from here i will prob still nuke the large ones again just to be on the safe side

 

[Unlikely_Hero]

Hmmmm.... I'm not sure if a Copperband that small is going to help you much with those. He might just end up getting stung and never touching them again, which oddly is what happened with the dozens of peppermints that I've bought to help my problem.

Agreed with youpey, Joe's Juice is the best since they try to eat it and end up getting shriveling up and dying. I've tried boiling water, which kills them instantly, but for every big one I hit, another bunch of small ones seemed to take its place. Like a hydra or something. If you do decide to go with it, just make sure you inject (for lack of a better word) the juice directly into their mouths to avoid getting any in your BTA. Everything else is fine. I've had clouds of it float over my ricordeas and zoo's and my clown try to eat it without any health problems.

 

[wazo90925]

joes juice...

 

[MarineTeng]

i used hot water, i got them early, i had about 4 of them, just microwaved a cup of tap water for about 3 mins, about 6-8 oz it was steaming, i had to do a group of two twice and haven't seen them since

 

[snorvich]

I believe that Joe's Juice IS kalkwasser. In any case, it sometimes takes a few treatments but it does work.

Regards,
Steve

 

[aquadog]

Look on garf.org for recipe for Joe's Juice. It works wonders!

 

[Avian]

I'm afraid of using Joe's Juice because on the RBTA I have in my tank.

 

[Beverly]

I use a needle tipped syringe to inject vinegar into aptasia. Usually one or two ml of vinegar kills them instantly. Make sure you inject right into them, not beside them. Having the powerheads turned off for 5-10 minutes helps keep the vinegar inside/near the aptasia. Have a turkey baster on hand to suck up any aptasia fragments that get into the water column.

Good luck

 

[Avian]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6401949#post6401949 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Beverly
I use a needle tipped syringe to inject vinegar into aptasia. Usually one or two ml of vinegar kills them instantly. Make sure you inject right into them, not beside them. Having the powerheads turned off for 5-10 minutes helps keep the vinegar inside/near the aptasia. Have a turkey baster on hand to suck up any aptasia fragments that get into the water column.

Good luck

How does vinegar affect the water chemically? Would it lower the pH?

 

[MarineTeng]

yes it will lower it, how much depends on ur tank size

 

[irmee4]

ive used joes juice a lot before. it is kind of difficult to get the aiptasia deep in your rock, but if you have a peppermint shrimp then you shouldnt have to worry about those. it comes with a syringe perfect for getting the aiptasia right in the mouth. good luck!!

 

[Avian]

I have a 55g w/ ~10g sump, how much would a syringe full of vinegar affect the pH?