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AEFW Issue

Choose A or B or C

  • A: Frag the sps into 1" frags, dip, blow off & examine

    Votes: 1 25.0%

  • B: Remove the colonies, dip, blow off with power head, examine for eggs. Then transfer.

    Votes: 1 25.0%

  • C: Junk all sps and start over

    Votes: 2 50.0%
  • Total voters
    4
Da_Neefer

Da_Neefer

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Hi all,

I have a bit of a problem in the 69g tank with aefw. The 75g seems like maybe I don't. I've only had Acro's in there since the last frag swap. All my frag swap acquisitions were dipped, examined and put into the 75g as I found out the day of the swap. My problem is this.. I'll be moving coral out of the 69g into the 75g in preparation to move the 112g in. I obviously do not want to transfer aefw to the new tank. Short of killing all sps in the 69g when I break it down, what are my best options? I don't have a quarantine tank for coral and don't really have room for one.

My initial plan is...

Remove all non sps first and dip like crazy in a small tank with a power head before moving to the 75g. Also look over with a magnifying glass.

Then...

A: Frag the sps into 1" frags, dip, blow off & examine. Mount duplicates on 2-3" discs
Or
B: Remove the colonies, dip, blow off with power head, examine for eggs. Then transfer.
Or
C: Junk all sps and start over

I know there's risk both ways but it would be sad to have to destroy the sps I've been growing for the last 1.5 years. Are there better options out there? I assume all the live rock in there should be sterilized vs reused? I do have some live rock in the 69g refugium I wanted to use for the 112g.

Acro's would be the preferred meal and egg laying choice of the aefw but are millie's and other sps as riskyto move?


Idea's are welcome before I get this started in June!
 
Can you keep the 69g running a while longer? Since you will be breaking the colonies off anyway, dip, scrape eggs, return to 69g. Repeat this however many times is needed based on AEFW lifecycle.
 
one dip wont solve your problem of eradicating them. you can stun the adults, but the eggs will still be there and they will keep hatching and keep multiplying. without a separate qt tank, it will be hard to control and limit the aefw from spreading. unsure how many pieces you have, but if the sps you have are common and easily replaced, i would junk it and start fresh.
 
I would do either A or B depending on if I liked the growth pattern of the colonies I had. I would trust the dip and inspection with a good light, especially if you know what to look for. C is the most sure, but seems overkill when A is an option.
 
Srt4eric said:
Have you seen @Thales talk about AEFW on reefbeef? Pull, dip, inspect, scrape, repeat. Never dealt with them myself but he seems pretty casual about having them from time to time.
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It’s not a time to time thing. Once you have them, if you don’t actively and aggressively deal with them, they will not go away.

If you don’t love the SPS you have and are unwillingly to redip and scape acros once or twice a week for 4-6 weeks to eradicate them, I’d either pass them off to someone that already has aefw or is willing to deal with them (to eradicate or just to live with them) or junk them.

There is a thread on reef2reef using wormwood to deal with them, but not much (any) science has been done on it to be considered a proven solution. And it is a lengthy process (6 months of dosing the wormwood solution).
 
Meshmez said:
Can you keep the 69g running a while longer? Since you will be breaking the colonies off anyway, dip, scrape eggs, return to 69g. Repeat this however many times is needed based on AEFW lifecycle.
Click to expand...

A bit longer I suppose. I rent and the new tank is taking up a chunk of the garage. Wouldn't like to push it past end of July.
 
jhuynh said:
one dip wont solve your problem of eradicating them. you can stun the adults, but the eggs will still be there and they will keep hatching and keep multiplying. without a separate qt tank, it will be hard to control and limit the aefw from spreading. unsure how many pieces you have, but if the sps you have are common and easily replaced, i would junk it and start fresh.
Click to expand...

Here's a few pics that may help out. The 3" frag plug of Bonsai Acro was where the aefw was found. I broke apart the colony and fragged it the day of the frag swap. Some of these I would most definitely like to keep but as you can see some are pretty common. .


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jhuynh said:
one dip wont solve your problem of eradicating them. you can stun the adults, but the eggs will still be there and they will keep hatching and keep multiplying. without a separate qt tank, it will be hard to control and limit the aefw from spreading. unsure how many pieces you have, but if the sps you have are common and easily replaced, i would junk it and start fresh.
Click to expand...

Thank you. After fragging the seriously affected colony I started using a powerhead to try and blow off aefw but never saw any come off. After that is was just recently I saw bit marks again. New generation.
 
H2OPlayar said:
I would do either A or B depending on if I liked the growth pattern of the colonies I had. I would trust the dip and inspection with a good light, especially if you know what to look for. C is the most sure, but seems overkill when A is an option.
Click to expand...
Thank you. I'm leaning towards A at this point.
 
RandyC said:
It’s not a time to time thing. Once you have them, if you don’t actively and aggressively deal with them, they will not go away.

If you don’t love the SPS you have and are unwillingly to redip and scape acros once or twice a week for 4-6 weeks to eradicate them, I’d either pass them off to someone that already has aefw or is willing to deal with them (to eradicate or just to live with them) or junk them.

There is a thread on reef2reef using wormwood to deal with them, but not much (any) science has been done on it to be considered a proven solution. And it is a lengthy process (6 months of dosing the wormwood solution).
Click to expand...
Thank you. The long aggressive process is definitely the best option to eradicate them. If possible. The eggs of the seriously affected colony I broke up all seemed to be at the base, not the tips of the frags. This is why I am leaning towards A but if I miss any eggs I'd have to do that process with a bunch of small frags that I would keep unattached from the rocks of the new tank. Pretty impossible with the full encrusted sps I have now.
 
Da_Neefer said:
Here's a few pics that may help out. The 3" frag plug of Bonsai Acro was where the aefw was found. I broke apart the colony and fragged it the day of the frag swap. Some of these I would most definitely like to keep but as you can see some are pretty common. .


View attachment 38495View attachment 38496View attachment 38497View attachment 38498View attachment 38499View attachment 38500View attachment 38501View attachment 38502View attachment 38503
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I know you said u have no room, but I just picked up a frag tank you can temporary borrow. it's a 24x20x6 aio. i have frag mounting trays that u can take out for dipping purposes i can lend you as well.

I fractured the first metatarsal in my left foot, so my tank upgrade will be slow. just let me know and i will see what other parts i have laying around to get your aefw battle started, I am in san leandro.
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jhuynh said:
I know you said u have no room, but I just picked up a frag tank you can temporary borrow. it's a 24x20x6 aio. i have frag mounting trays that u can take out for dipping purposes i can lend you as well.

I fractured the first metatarsal in my left foot, so my tank upgrade will be slow. just let me know and i will see what other parts i have laying around to get your aefw battle started, I am in san leandro.
View attachment 38506
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This is very kind and generous of you. Thank you! I will be out of town all next week. Let me re-imagine my space and see what I can potentially do to make room. I wanted to clear the entire side of the room the 69g is on for a deep clean of the carpet and walls prior to putting in the new tank. Maybe I can put the frag tank in the garage for a few days and then get it inside. I'll DM you when I return from vacation. There is no doubt this would be much easier and safer.
 
jhuynh said:
I know you said u have no room, but I just picked up a frag tank you can temporary borrow. it's a 24x20x6 aio. i have frag mounting trays that u can take out for dipping purposes i can lend you as well.

I fractured the first metatarsal in my left foot, so my tank upgrade will be slow. just let me know and i will see what other parts i have laying around to get your aefw battle started, I am in san leandro.
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I guess at this point we shouldn't be surprised about the 4 RMS mounts over a 24" tank... :D
 
jhuynh said:
I know you said u have no room, but I just picked up a frag tank you can temporary borrow. it's a 24x20x6 aio. i have frag mounting trays that u can take out for dipping purposes i can lend you as well.

I fractured the first metatarsal in my left foot, so my tank upgrade will be slow. just let me know and i will see what other parts i have laying around to get your aefw battle started, I am in san leandro.
View attachment 38506
Click to expand...
This is why this club is so amazing.
 
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