Firereefer's 168g

[Kensington Reefer]

Updated parameters:

Temp - 76.5°F (hydros)
pH - 8.02 (hydros)
Alk - 7.4 (hanna)
NO3 - 9.3 (hanna)
PO4 - 0.26 (hanna)
Ca - 410 (salifert)
Mg - 1275 (salifert)

@Alexander1312
Salifert much easier to test and I think more accurate results.

@RandyC
Yes, that's right fenbendazole, not fluconazole.

@Kensington Reefer & @PjFish
Okay I think I'll have to systematically do a rock at a time and dry it out/boil it. It's literally all over my tank. I feel bad for all the fauna living on each one.

Does anyone know if it spreads by contact only or spawns into the water column as well?

Don’t bother boiling the rock
Just leave in the sun for a month, and then you can use it again
You could seed some new rock in your sump

 

[H2OPlayar]

Next battle after the cyano... Purple cloves View attachment 79362

Just toss the whole rock in fire. Those things are terrible. More serious solutions are cover the entire mat with an epoxy sheet, or take the rock out and use the fire of the sun for two weeks in your yard.

Does anyone know if it spreads by contact only or spawns into the water column as well?

It can detach from the rock and show up in the plumbing eventually. I assume it could spawn but that is a higher bar to reach than one detaching itself, settling somewhere new and growing which is likely what you saw here.

I'm with KR, cook new rock in your sump, unless it is there already, then you need to clean the sump and maybe run a filter sock for a while to catch the little buggers. Ps, I never suggest running socks so this is how much I hate these corals.

Then systematically take the good coral off a rock, stick it on a rack or something temporary, let the sun cook the rock for a week or so depending of your local climate, stick it back in your tank, and turn your skimmer up a little to help clean out the decaying dry coral.

Lots of ways to do it, but the cloves are one of the hardest pest corals to deal with imo.

 

[Fire_Reefer]

@H2OPlayar

Ahhh gotcha detaching from the rock especially when scrubbed in the tank.

Im pretty bummed. I got all this rock with the tank and I don't think it was infected until I added rock from my old tank. Now it's on almost 90% of the rock in here. The rock has so much life on it and in it. Pods/brittle stars/Bristle worms etc... Even a strawberry crab that I've only seen once in 2 years. It'd suck to nuke them all.

 

[H2OPlayar]

@H2OPlayar

Ahhh gotcha detaching from the rock especially when scrubbed in the tank.

Im pretty bummed. I got all this rock with the tank and I don't think it was infected until I added rock from my old tank. Now it's on almost 90% of the rock in here. The rock has so much life on it and in it. Pods/brittle stars/Bristle worms etc... Even a strawberry crab that I've only seen once in 2 years. It'd suck to nuke them all.

You won't be nuking it all, that stuff lives on in your sump rocks. Also why we suggest doing one rock at a time, so the micro fauna can catch up and repopulate the rocks in the sump. You got this!

 

[PjFish]

I had another larger rock with a gorgonian colony which the cloves spread onto via contact. They never jumped rocks nor found in other areas of the six ft tank but I never scrubbed them in tank..I wouldn’t suggest ever boiling any live rock especially the real porous stuff just to many health hazards when it vaps air born outdoors or especially indoors!! Bleach soaking method neutralizes palytoxin among other nasty die off from what is mentioned on other forums. There have been numerous reports of people getting sick letting the rock dry out in the yard then scrubbing it weeks later. Since a kid growing up in a stone mason family business using muriatic acid/ hydrochloric acid on a regular basis I prefer that method which saves75% of time and work down the line. It starts dissolving the outer layers of the live rock and everything encrusted on them. With all the different densities of live rock advisable to test a rock tracking the time it takes to remove the outer 1/8 layer first since it can literally dissolve whole rocks fairly easily which you paid by the pound for lol. It does alter the look just a bit but once cured and in tank no real difference..After your satisfied neutralize the acid dumping baking soda in with rocks stopping the reaction. Make sure to wear protective glasses/face shield and gloves I also just wear a tee shirt and shorts. Maybe not recommended but I’d rather feel the small sting on bare skin when the acid splashes on it so you can easily then just hose off or splash with baking soda water. Pants and long shirts just soak up the splashes amplifying things then get tracked into your car seats lol.. Rain gear always an option have used it acid washing large vertical stone walls..
I then remove rocks into another bin of hose water and baking soda to soak a day or so before drying out in sun for a week depending on the outside temps. Then start the curing process in saltwater. Ive done the bleach method also using the same rock side by side but better results with acid. Had high phosphates curing with the bleach rocks..Acid rocks barely anything. Dipping whole abalone shells in diluted muriatic acid for a few minutes gives them an amazing look!!
Was at the Paradise fire within a few weeks of containment helping several friends who lost their houses who barely got out themselves . We managed locate more than a dozen of their horses who miraculously survived relocating them to another county. Numerous tree stumps were still smoldering even months later was pretty crazy. I miss Paradise and fishing on Lake Orville beautiful place haven’t been back in a while plus all my friends relocated.
Anyhow people should do whatever method their comfortable with well informed of the hazards and or complications plus having a safety procedure/ plan in place ahead not googling protocols after an incident lol. Blanket statement not meant for you specifically @Fire_Reefer ..

 

[PjFish]

Hmmm?? Not sure what corals you got currently or if there’s an option putting them in another smaller tank temporarily..But there are some pretty voracious fish like large angelfish, butterfly fish and the larger file fish that eat corals..I had a peppermint shrimp who took out a large zoa patch. Several BAR members have fowler tanks with large fish who can’t keep corals since they get eaten . Maybe find one who’s willing to drop one of your rocks in their tanks and see how long them cloves last or what fish eat them?? Maybe a more natural approach