Kessil

Best Way To Remove a little Aiptasia?

Enderturtle

Enderturtle

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got like 2 baby aiptasia Id like to make extinct in my tank.

Any tips that actually work against them? I do have a lil kalkwasser i think i could use.

Let me know if you have good tips. Or i could just throw the rock out
 
Physically remove the rock, and chip off an area around the aiptasia so that it physically isn't in your tank anymore. There is no chemical or biological means that will eradicate them, at best you can hope to contain them. So if you have a couple pieces, remove it from the tank and get surgical, trust me on this, do not screw around with them!
 
sfsuphysics said:
Physically remove the rock, and chip off an area around the aiptasia so that it physically isn't in your tank anymore. There is no chemical or biological means that will eradicate them, at best you can hope to contain them. So if you have a couple pieces, remove it from the tank and get surgical, trust me on this, do not screw around with them!
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Absolutely the best way, but sometimes it's just not possible to remove the entire rock. In that case, what I've been doing, is using Aptasia X and then using coral glue to seal that spot.
 
Take the rock out RIGHT NOW, let it dry, soak in vinegar + tap water.
If you can see a couple, there are others.
If you can keep them from getting a start, it is worth a lot of effort.

Although I tend to think Aptasia and Majanos are inevitable if you buy/trade coral.

Joes juice works well on them for me.
 
I've got my share of pests but no aptasia yet. When I was at CRC I saw a full grown one just chill'n on the underside of a plug. Needless to say I didn't buy that frag.

Sorry to hear about your infestation. Sometimes the swaps give me the feeling of a big unprotected orgy.
 
Plus 1 on the hammer and chisel method.
I have a laser to zap the little suckers, but the laser is not 100% kill rate. sometimes you just piss them off and they grow right back.
 
Ditto on removing the rock if you can live without it. Otherwise re be and chip off piece of other corals are on that rock or even remove your good corals and transplant to another rock. Do not fool with aptasia!

If you absolutely can't move the rock the. I recommend aiptasia-x. Like every day over that spot for two weeks. I'm not joking. Joes juice may or may not work (it's rumored to be just kalk and saltwater) or make your own kalk paste.

But don't think it's gone. Plaster that area with kalk. As someone else recommended,matter you think you got it, cover that area with epoxy.
 
Small Peppermint shrimp worked for me several years ago, but I removed the shrimp after 4 months because I don't like crustaceans in my system. No Aiptasia reappeared since then; however, they also ate the yellow polyps which I feel neutral about. Keep the shrimp hungry or it will just eat the fish food instead of the glass anemones.
 
Plus one on glueing the aptasia I pull the rock out and cover it with super glue all around the aptasia so it's completely covered and I'm 100% sure there is no exposed aptasia then a little extra glue to be safe. And I shock the rock back in my tank it has worked every time for me. If u can't pull the rock out to glue then try coral putty.


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Peppermint shrimp have been a sure-fire solution for me every time. Kalk paste will kill them for sure, but it also kills anything else it touches, even corraline algae on your live rock! I find that I cannot use it in situ; if I can remove the rock and shoot the aiptasia in a bucket of saltwater, but since I began employing peppermints, it has not been necessary. Of course, the best medicine is prevention. I won't buy frags from a tank with an aiptasia anywhere in it. I quarantine my frags for 4-6 weeks, so any hitchikers have plenty of time to show themselves.
 
NOTE: If your tank is absolutely overrun, try a Klein Butterfly. Lovely fish, will eliminate any aiptasia it can reach.... BUT. if you feed other fish in your tank, it will eat that fish food... feeding more sparesely will make the other fish suffer, but the Klein will satiate itself with more aiptasia. AND it might then decide that your other corals may look delicious, but hey, if you are desperately overrun, it's a great way to at least take revenge on the aiptasia.

V
 
find someone breeding Berghia works as well, or borrow a matte file fish ( only problem is they may go after your polyps ), Mine did unfortunately after it cleared ever Aipt.
 
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