Question about getting rid of Aptasia?

First, Terry you were right on with your answer. Those three, plus
Joe's Juice, are the best options.

Caution with the Copperband, it is hard (read-almost impossible) to get
this fish to feed on manufactured or cultivated non-living food.
Please don't use this fish unless you have the matured and lightly fish
loaded reef tank with refugium to support it. Most people don't.
Course, correct me if I'm wrong and there is a good way to feed this
butterfly.

The nudibranch
(http://www.seaslugforum.net/factshee...ase=bergverraq) Terry
mentioned is awesome! Except it won't eat the largest aiptasia and
will eat it's food source completely if given the chance. That being
said, I used it in a 54 corner so maybe with the larger tank you may
have a sustainable aiptasia crop. But that's what you're trying to
avoid right?


The peppermint shrimp. (Note the website at the end that will keep you
out of future trouble by making sure you know what this one looks like
and not the phony.) This is your best option. (I'm going to assume you
have only mushrooms, the afforementioned fish and approximately 1-1.5
lbs of liverock per gallon, also all the normal operating equipment)

First use Joe's Juice to knock all the aiptasia that you can see.

Now you want to limit the organics in your aquarium. This is going to
help the peppermint shrimp decide to eat your aiptasia. So, after a
few days blast your live rock with a powerhead or turkey baster to
suspend any detritus. Immediately perform a fairly significant water
change (30%-50%). (However with a water volume change like this you
must ensure that your replacement water matches the tank water (temp,
ph, sp. gravity)).

24 Hours or so later you're ready to introduce your peppermint shrimp
(remember to SLOWLY acclimate them to the water conditions). As far as
a number, I'm not sure there is an accepted answer, however you have
some nice advantages with these shrimp. They work well in colonies.
They are easy to feed. And they do a fairly good job of keeping the
live rock detritus free. I'm not going to give you a number. But I'll
tell you that I had 3 in my 54 corner and did the above process, the
aiptasia is now gone.

Some times Aiptasia can be an indication of a different tank problem,
namely dissolved organics. When was the last time you did a serious
full spectrum water test? (pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Alkalinity,
Phosphate, etc...) That being said... Aiptasia are very effective at
pulling nutrients from the water and are even used in filtration
systems similar to an algae scrubber...

Best of luck...

Russ

PS. Make sure you get the right shrimp...
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/in...epshrpfaqs.htm





On Oct 21, 8:33 pm, George Patterson wrote:
MarkW wrote:
For a 120 gallon tank how many Peppermint shrimp would I need?I would also be interested in an answer to this question, just in case. I think
I don't have any aiptasia yet, but I've had to deal with it in the past and
don't want to use a butterfly again.

George Patterson
All successes in conservation are temporary. All defeats are permanent.

Russ wrote on 10/26/2006 11:55 AM:

The nudibranch
(http://www.seaslugforum.net/factshee...ase=bergverraq) Terry
mentioned is awesome! Except it won't eat the largest aiptasia and
will eat it's food source completely if given the chance. That being
said, I used it in a 54 corner so maybe with the larger tank you may
have a sustainable aiptasia crop. But that's what you're trying to
avoid right?

Actually they will eat aiptasia of any size, but they tend
to get killed in the reef tank.

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets

Ok, Wayne, thanks for the correction.


Wayne Sallee wrote:
Russ wrote on 10/26/2006 11:55 AM:

The nudibranch
(http://www.seaslugforum.net/factshee...ase=bergverraq) Terry
mentioned is awesome! Except it won't eat the largest aiptasia and
will eat it's food source completely if given the chance. That being
said, I used it in a 54 corner so maybe with the larger tank you may
have a sustainable aiptasia crop. But that's what you're trying to
avoid right?

Actually they will eat aiptasia of any size, but they tend
to get killed in the reef tank.

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets

Russ wrote:
Caution with the Copperband, it is hard (read-almost impossible) to get
this fish to feed on manufactured or cultivated non-living food.
Please don't use this fish unless you have the matured and lightly fish
loaded reef tank with refugium to support it. Most people don't.
Course, correct me if I'm wrong and there is a good way to feed this
butterfly.

I'm pretty much a newb as far as this goes with only a few years
experience under my belt but I've had a copperband in my tank for a
couple of months now - purchased to rid the tank of Aiptasia which it
did over the course of a day - and it's still happy and healthy. It's
just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always
eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp.

100g display, 40g in the 'fuge and sump, DSB.

-K

and it's still happy and healthy. It's
just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always
eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp.


Kelsey...

Thank you for the encouraging words both for aiptasia control and
butterfly husbandry. It's nice to know that success is possible with
these delicates. I know it's a little off topic as far as the
aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start
feeding in captivity? Live food?

Well,, um aiptasia are a type of live food :-)

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets



Russ wrote on 10/27/2006 7:30 AM:
and it's still happy and healthy. It's
just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always
eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp.


Kelsey...

Thank you for the encouraging words both for aiptasia control and
butterfly husbandry. It's nice to know that success is possible with
these delicates. I know it's a little off topic as far as the
aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start
feeding in captivity? Live food?

LOL, guess I should have thought a little more on that one... I think
I was meaning after the aiptasia was gone, did you have to feed live or
did it take right to frozen? LOL

On Oct 27, 11:35 am, Wayne Sallee wrote:
Well,, um aiptasia are a type of live food :-)

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets


Russ wrote on 10/27/2006 7:30 AM:



and it's still happy and healthy. It's
just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always
eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp.

Kelsey...

Thank you for the encouraging words both for aiptasia control and
butterfly husbandry. It's nice to know that success is possible with
these delicates. I know it's a little off topic as far as the
aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start
feeding in captivity? Live food?- Hide quoted text -- Show quoted text -

Russ wrote:
and it's still happy and healthy. It's
just starting to nibble at things like grated prawns but has always
eaten its fill of frozen mysis and brine shrimp.


Kelsey...

Thank you for the encouraging words both for aiptasia control and
butterfly husbandry. It's nice to know that success is possible with
these delicates. I know it's a little off topic as far as the
aiptasia, but what did you do special to get the copperband to start
feeding in captivity? Live food?

Nope, he was perfectly happy to eat frozen mysis and brine shrimp right
after I got him. He did pretty much just hide for about a week, but
still obliterated the aiptasia. I don't know if this was the work of
the LFS or if I just got lucky.

I figure the worst case is you can end up 'renting' the fish and take
him back to the LFS once the aiptasia is cleaned up if he isn't eating well.

So, what about getting rid of majanos? Is chemical treatment the only
viable option. (joe's juice, kalk, etc?)

-K

Kelsey Cummings wrote on 10/27/2006 2:02 PM:

So, what about getting rid of majanos? Is chemical treatment the only
viable option. (joe's juice, kalk, etc?)

-K

They are easy to remove. They are not as tuf as aiptasia.

Wayne Sallee
Wayne's Pets