lanman March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 I have a bit of an aiptasia problem in my 58-gallon tank. I am unable to keep up with it just injecting kalk. I kill 100, 200 more show up within a couple days. I'm looking for more drastic solutions. I have no problem removing some/most of the rocks into a separate tank, or whatever. Some, however, have corals growing on them. Okay - almost all of them have some kind of coral growing on them. So I can't just boil them... or anything quite that drastic. I was actually considering getting 10 peppermints, setting up a 'peppermint tank', and putting one rock at a time in there; and helping the shrimp with kalk. I tried putting peppermint shrimp into the 58. The aiptasia had them for lunch. Okay - maybe the gorilla crab did - but they didn't last a day. Ideas???? bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason the filter freak March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Thats an awesome aptasia shot! You would be able to do it a rock at a time because the second your put the rock back it's just going to repopulate. Try a copper band butterfly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Hey Bob, I would do a multi-pronged approach. I would go with a copperband, peppermints, and injecting all at the same time. I had rock that was as or more infested than yours is (there were aiptasia floating in the water column) and this did the trick. Another alternative is to get yourself some berghia nudibranchs. The problem with this is that they will die off when they have eaten the aiptasia and will leave some behind. If you can afford it, go with the berghias and sell them off as you go (they cost a TON) and when the aiptasia is gone to the point that the berghias start to fade, get some peppermints and a copperband and let them finish the job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 table to bang your head on perhaps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vaironman March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 I follow Davetlin suggestions and found a link that sell the berghia nudibranch. Cute little fellows. https://saltyund.ipower.com/osCommerce/cata...a0e166e84677188 Good luck Bob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddi March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Bob, I had a similar issue a couple of years ago; my tank was infested with Aptaisia. I tried injections, I tried scrubbing, I tried peppermints, I tfried nudibranchs, I tried removing rocks and cleaning them; nothing worked. Until I got a Copperband. Within a month, every single piece of aptaisia was gone; I could not recommned it more. The fact that it's one of my favorite fish is just gravy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NRehman March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Do copperbands bother shrimp or clams? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
percula March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 I like the peppermint shrimp tank idea. I had to actually pull a shrimp out of my overflow box after he went up and over to get the one aiptasia growing within the weir. Judging from the picture, you might need some big shrimp. Luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highland Reefer March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 (edited) Bob, I bought a copperband two weeks ago for the aptasia. I only have a few at this point. So far he has not touched one of them. I am wondering how long will it take before he develops a taste for them? He did find a Feather Duster that I thought I had lost, because I found the head at the bottom and he is constantly picking at the rocks. He has not bothered any of my coral or fish. I had a copperband a few years ago that did do a good job of getting rid of the aptasia. I am always in favor of biological control. My two cents. Edited March 28, 2008 by Highland Reefer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMsAquarium March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Bob, I bought a copperband two weeks ago for the aptasia. I only have a few at this point. So far he has not touched one of them. I am wondering how long will it take before he develops a taste for them? He did find a Feather Duster that I thought I had lost, because I found the head at the bottom and he is constantly picking at the rocks. He has not bothered any of my coral or fish. I had a copperband a few years ago that did do a good job of getting rid of the aptasia. I am always in favor of biological control. My two cents. I used a copperband a few yeasr ago. It did a great job. The trick is that the fish will only eat the them only if he's hungry. You have to force him to eat them Basically, do not feed the tank anymore for a while and the copperband will go after the aptaisia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
extreme_tooth_decay March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 I think everything is hit and miss with aiptasia given what I've read, but here's my own opinion and experience: I have yet to find an aiptasia Joe's juice did not kill on the first or second try. I had hundreds at one point, and after 2 (30) minute sessions I had 0. I tried a copperband, he never touched it (could be because he had easier food...but I had to feed the other fish in my tank, so starving him into submission wasn't an option). I then had the problem of disposing of him since I didn't want him for anything other than getting rid of aiptasia. I do keep peppermints, and I do think they keep the tiny aiptasia in check. They won't help for bigger ones though. good luck, tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkiCurtis March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Bob, I had a similar issue a couple of years ago; my tank was infested with Aptaisia. I tried injections, I tried scrubbing, I tried peppermints, I tfried nudibranchs, I tried removing rocks and cleaning them; nothing worked. Until I got a Copperband. Within a month, every single piece of aptaisia was gone; I could not recommned it more. I feel it as well.... My 29 gallon frag/reef quarantine tank is infested with Aptaisia as well. and did nudi's have 6 peppermint in there now. kalk is not keeping up. so it sound like the copperband is the last think besides breaking it down. Curtis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vaironman March 28, 2008 Share March 28, 2008 Bob, If you have time next weekend, I can offer my help to come over and get rock by rock to shoot each one with Kalk. Then you just need to do a second round a day later with what we miss. If we take our time and do it carefully the first time, there should not be much left after for you to do it on your own, plus get a few peppermint shrimp afterward and see if that helps you out on the cleanup. LMK, KLee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman March 29, 2008 Author Share March 29, 2008 Thanks for all the suggestions... I think based on the hit/miss of most things - I may take one rock out at a time, put it in a separate tank, zap it with kalk... put it in a sump, get the next rock... then a day later, move the rocks the other direction, zapping with kalk again on the way back. If I have an empty tank with good lighting, and can concentrate on the one rock, I might actually be able to hit them all. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edkruzel March 29, 2008 Share March 29, 2008 Bob, I agree with others here that you need to be aggressive and use multiples at the same time. I'd try and remove whatever LPS and clams you may have and leave them with a few peppermints to be sure they're not infected. I'd then add a small Raccoon until the last pest is gone. With so many, I'd Kalk patches at a time (maybe 4''x4'') and kill any gorilla crabs so that you could add peppermints to the main tank. Later (no aptasia left) you can remove the butterfly and add a small Longnose or Copperband. I recently had a Curly Q (close aptasia cousin) pop up on my rock and although they don't multiply as quickly, I thought it best not to wait. I added 2 peppermints and hoped that within the week they'd discover it and erradicate it. I placed them in the tank and threw away the plastic bag; I then returned to the tank to make sure they acclimated ok and didn't need my assistance (ornamental shrimp can be difficult to acclimate) just in time to see them finishing it off. Best of Luck... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman March 30, 2008 Author Share March 30, 2008 Bob, I agree with others here that you need to be aggressive and use multiples at the same time. I'd try and remove whatever LPS and clams you may have and leave them with a few peppermints to be sure they're not infected. I'd then add a small Raccoon until the last pest is gone. With so many, I'd Kalk patches at a time (maybe 4''x4'') and kill any gorilla crabs so that you could add peppermints to the main tank. Later (no aptasia left) you can remove the butterfly and add a small Longnose or Copperband. I recently had a Curly Q (close aptasia cousin) pop up on my rock and although they don't multiply as quickly, I thought it best not to wait. I added 2 peppermints and hoped that within the week they'd discover it and erradicate it. I placed them in the tank and threw away the plastic bag; I then returned to the tank to make sure they acclimated ok and didn't need my assistance (ornamental shrimp can be difficult to acclimate) just in time to see them finishing it off. Best of Luck... Yes - one of the objectives of moving everything out of the tank, and then back in, is so that I can find and eradicate that gorilla crab. He's a big one. About 2-3" across. What's odd - he was apparently in the tank for a very long time, and I never saw him. Then I saw him every day for about 4-5 days, and now haven't seen him again in over a month. I have 10 peppermint shrimp (approximately - that's how many I put in, they're hard to count) in my 240- and they don't do much at all for my aiptasia, except in one little area. But with regular aiptasia hunts, I'm able to keep the 240 under control pretty well. It's just the almost empty (except for frag racks) 58 that is out of control. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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