Dips serve multiple purposes and each dip is different. The main benefits of dips is to knock off zoa predators which can come in on frags or wild caught colonies. Nobody wants to dip, but when you get nudis or a myriad of other hitchhikers then it becomes essential to do them. People who think their systems are pest free might not be aware that they do have pests or have something in their tank keeping them under control. Eggs however can sneak through and cause torment in your tank.
Dips can also help with the general health of a zoa and I have seen zoas that look bad come back from a nice dip. All sorts of things can harm zoas and dips cover that.
Dips that are commonly used and why:
Revive, coral RX (others that are similiar): General dips that are great for all new zoas. Will stun and knock off some hitch hikers but not all of them. Can also be used on zoas that don't look so hot
Lugols and other iodine dips: Good for freshly fragged zoas, helps in the healing process
Flat worm exit: Kills zoa eating nudis on contact, will not kill the eggs.
Fresh water dip: Also knocks off some hitch hikers and is generally used on new frags (don't use this method so if someone else wants to chime in feel free)
Hydrogen peroxide: Used to kill algae on zoas and can knock off hitch hikers. This can be very harsh on corals and can kill them if over dosed. Do some research first (again don't use this one so don't really know to much about it)
Furan II: Used to treat zoa pox and is also good with any bacterial problem that a zoa may be experiencing. I have used it on zoas without pox that just look bad and have had a great turn around with them (Be careful when handling the powder, this stuff is not good for you in large doses)
