Dipping question? -- Recipe

[lowfi]

Hey everyone,

Ive seen a bunch of recipes online for dipping zoas...just wanted to hear your opinion on what would be best for me.

Option #1 -

Using a combo of salifert flatworm exit & kent marine lugol's bath (sorta like Mucho Reefs recipe)

Option #2 -

Only use twolittlefishies revive coral cleaner bath

Would love to hear what you guys and gals have to think about this two options and reasons why you picked what you picked. Also how do you adjust pH of your dipping solution??

Cheers,

Sean

PS: Oh i almost forgot, no matter which option I go with, will these dips work for LPS also??? (this post was pertaining to zoas)

 

[lowfi]

bump

 

[ct_vol]

There are many different opinions and techniques on dipping... The thing to consider is what you are dipping and what preys upon the coral you are dipping...

FWE is affective against FW's and in higher doses against Zoa Eating Nudi's... Lugols is more affective against crustaceans, but does not always kill them, sometimes just stuns them and makes them easier to knock off when swishing in the bucket or blasting with a turkey baster...

LPS and SPS have different parasites, so sometimes need different techniques... Interceptor is affective against RB's and the like... Some people use Fluke tabs or Levamisole for AEFW's...

Not sure if that was what you were looking for or not...

Here is a link to a thread I made up for my club on how I personally choose to dip...

 

[lowfi]

how many interceptor pills come in a package?? and large size dogs? is that the biggest size pill (they only rank by weight not s, m, l, xl, etc.)

thanks!

 

[stevensun]

Does FWE kill AEFW?

 

[ct_vol]

lowfi~ 6 come to a package... Large size is the 50+ lbs...

stevensun~ The problem with FWE is that it does not kill 100% of the FW's in the tank/treatment... You can overdose and kill some of your snails, and still a few FW's will pull through... FWE MAY kill AEFW's, but if only a few survive, it is extraordinarily bad...

 

[Paco]

Are my zoas dead?

Are my zoas dead?

I traded for some zoas on Sunday. They were closed when the trader brought them over. I dipped them in an iodine based solution (Seachem Reef Dip, I think) for about 8 minutes. They still have not opened up. This is in a tank that has other happy zoas, SPS, etc.

We're going on 5 days now. What should I think? Are they dead? How can you tell?

Thanks!

Mark

***I'm an idiot...I meant to start a new thread and hit reply...***

 

[stevensun]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15328780#post15328780 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ct_vol
lowfi~ 6 come to a package... Large size is the 50+ lbs...

stevensun~ The problem with FWE is that it does not kill 100% of the FW's in the tank/treatment... You can overdose and kill some of your snails, and still a few FW's will pull through... FWE MAY kill AEFW's, but if only a few survive, it is extraordinarily bad...

Hi Randy, thanks for the reply.

How about FWE or FWE & lugol's in freshwater ?

I agreed with you that lugol's sometimes just stuns the pests rather than kills it except with very high doses but freshwater might be able to give it the final kick. I experimented a nudi with FWE in saltwater. With 10 times the recommended dose, the nudi's "branches" (their breathing organism I believe) started to fall off and after 10 to 15 mins, it lost its grasp to the surface and appeared dead. I think if combined with freshwater, the dip may be able to rid the pests for good with less concentration.

I also experimented FWE in salterwater on bristle worms. It doesn't kill it even with a high dose; it only stuns it. Freshwater on the other hand kills it within seconds. So I definitely think freshwater is worth consideration in a dip. Frankly, it's used in the original dipping recipes eg furan-2 and lugol's. Somehow they evolved to be conducted in saltwater. Do you think SPS can take a freshwater dip?

To answer the OP's question. You can adjust PH by adding marine buffer.

 

[ct_vol]

Again, it all depends upon the "pest" you are targeting... Some things freshwater is affective against, while others not at all... And really, all freshwater is going to do is dilute the lugols if that is what you are counting on to be affective against the pest... You might be more affective in doing a 2 or 3 step dip instead of combining them all into one...

 

[stevensun]

Maybe freshwater provides the salinity shock which is effective to kill simpler forms of organisms instead of solely relying on the chemicals? Are fluke tabs and interceptor capable of killing AEFW and red bugs' eggs?

Just want to clarify that I'm not arguing about the effectiveness of Randy's dipping procedure. I think it's a great step by step demonstration of a thorough and effective method. All I intend to do is bring some different perspective to the discussion and share my experience of dipping corals.

 

[ct_vol]

Nope, definitely unproven... As I stated in that thread, that is how I choose to dip to protect my tank, and thus far (knock on wood) it has proven effective... As I stated in that thread, I am open to suggestions for improvement, and I have done FW dips in addition to the 2 other steps in that thread... In fact, I will add that to the thread now...

I'm not sure that there is a proven treat all/ cure all out there... All we can do is our best to prevent an infestation, without stressing out the coral so much that we lose it before it even makes it in my tank... There are many different methods out there, and so long as those methods are effective, they should be mentioned and payed attention to... This is the reason that a discussion forum is so valuable, so that we can rely on the experiences of others and hopefully enjoy their successes and prevent failures...