Battling Aptasia

[Sean Norman]

Wondering if people have opinions on Aptasia control. I tried Faptasia.. worked but I could not get to all of it.. and now it has exploded. I have a Bird Wrasse.. so I am concerned that NB would become snacks. Next options.. Aptasia eating File Fish or Copperband. I love CB.. but the tank is high flow so not sure best for a CB. Experiences with File Fish?.
Not sure what else to do.. it has taken over and I am losing the water.

 

[hardcorn77]

I’m sure your wrasse would gobble up a peppermint shrimp but those guys worked for me. I didn’t even get to see it happen but over night they ate it all.

 

[Sean Norman]

I put three in.. have not seen them.. most likely expensive snacks..

 

[Naekuh]

I put three in.. have not seen them.. most likely expensive snacks..

Meh... i am having this problem too, because i got really lazy the past month due to being sick.
But i bought about 20 Behrugia... i purposely did not keep any wrasse because of this reason.
But even dropping that many, i have not seen a single one, and im still using aptasia X along with small water changes where i try to scrape / siphon what aptasia i see into a bucket.

As for file fish.. i have learned the hard way... NEVER and NEVER get an animal to take care of that problem, unless your at your last end, and your prepared to shift the problem somewhere else to something more managable.

Meaning while a filefish maybe a solution, it also introduces a WHOLE lot of other issues while taking care of that one issue you could not fix. (shifting problem from one to another)
So read up on all the uglies of file fishes, and well if he really ticks you off, they taste really good dried and then roasted over fire. :X

(this is a joke.. please dont roast a file fish as its poisonous, and needs special preparation like that korean snack)

That will give you some satisfaction after it eats your prized coral once its done with aptasia.

 

[Gtinnel]

I tried chemical treatments in my tank and it just made the problem worse. I have a melanurus wrasse that ate three peppermint shrimp. I didnt even try nudibranchs because of the wrasse.
I ended up going with a copperband which took a while to start eating them but once he did they were all gone quickly. As I'm sure you know copperbands come with their own set of problems getting them eating though.
Ive never had a file fish, but if the flow is too strong for a butterfly I'd think it would be too strong for the filefish also.

 

[Reef Jedi]

Peppermint shrimp are my go to for this. But that wrasse will most likely be a problem. Personally if it were me, I’d loose the wrasse and get the shrimp. So many other fish that could replace it and play well with the shrimp.

 

[Naekuh]

Peppermint shrimp are my go to for this. But that wrasse will most likely be a problem. Personally if it were me, I’d loose the wrasse and get the shrimp. So many other fish that could replace it and play well with the shrimp.

problem is i have a euphilya heavy tank, and the ones that sit at the top are HG's and rainbow hammers even, so i don't think i can trust peppermint shirmps or any fish which have a known history of taking off on my corals.

I have always had a hit or miss with shrimps.

OP do you have any corals or anything you wouldn't have a heart break if u found half eatten, in time to get rid of the shrimps / fish?

 

[vetteguy53081]

For Aptasia- You cant beat a Kleini Butterfly BUT must be the bluehead- NOT the yellow version. The yellow will go after coral too but bluehead as pictured will eat aptasia like candy, then eat all dry and frozen food offered, colorful, friendly and stays small. I will note that a couple of persons who got the blue had their kleini nip zoa. if so- easy sell, or place in sump as aptasia have likely made it down there already

 

[Reef Jedi]

problem is i have a euphilya heavy tank, and the ones that sit at the top are HG's and rainbow hammers even, so i don't think i can trust peppermint shirmps or any fish which have a known history of taking off on my corals.

I have always had a hit or miss with shrimps.

OP do you have any corals or anything you wouldn't have a heart break if u found half eatten, in time to get rid of the shrimps / fish?

I also have the ladder and with 4 peppermint shrimp in my 105g they don’t touch them at all. Honestly they spend most of their day together and at night attack the aptasia. All my hammers, Duncan’s ect are very healthy looking with no signs of picking.

 

[Naekuh]

I wish i had that kind of luck with shrimps really...

The last one i had i had to kill, because i could not get it out of my tank, and it was a known Acan eatter.
And that Acan never fully recovered again.

 

[Sean Norman]

Ordered two Molly Miller Blenny’s, seemed like a good beginning point with the fewest potential downsides.. I will report once they get through QT and are in the tank.

 

[atoll]

Had an issue with these pests. Introduced a copperband, no more Aps.

 

[areefer01]

For Aptasia- You cant beat a Kleini Butterfly BUT must be the bluehead- NOT the yellow version. The yellow will go after coral too but bluehead as pictured will eat aptasia like candy, then eat all dry and frozen food offered, colorful, friendly and stays small. I will note that a couple of persons who got the blue had their kleini nip zoa. if so- easy sell, or place in sump as aptasia have likely made it down there already

Little hidden secret in our community is that butterflyfish in the Chaetodon genus are a good option to eat Aiptasia. Of course size of tank and corals will play a roll on the final choice.

Milletseed Butterflyfish are also a good alternative to the Kleini. Everyone I know who has them swear by it. Myself included. Captive bred to boot.

Matted Filefish (Acreichthys tomentosus), is another good choice. Captive bred. Some, myself included, will say small lps frags may be at risk but if one has larger colonies not a concern. Often with these guys hobbyist mistake their sleeping habits as destructive nipping. They will bite down on something at night to sleep to prevent the current from carrying them away. Mine has done it on a Corky Sea Finger and Green Star Polyps.

Berghi - expensive. Snacks for some wrasses and peppermint shrimp.

Australian stripey (Microcanthus joycae) are popular these days to help with Aiptasia. I've read both good and bad in reefs with some saying they are ugly. No idea, never tried it.

TL; DR - don't go with Berghia - too expensive and the hobby behind them drives the price up for no reason other than fear in my opinin. Kleini is a pretty fish - so is the Milletseed. Both will work - only buy them if you want them. Same with the Matted. Peppermints, well, opportunistic feeders so I don't keep them.

 

[petcellar]

I went with a cbb and my aiptasia problem vanished.... At least in the DT. There is not a one left.

Like most of the other biological control options I'm sure it varies from fish to fish....

 

[CHSUB]

Berghia took about six months, purchased 2 then 4 a few weeks later. Never saw any at about 4 to 5 months, then one day noticed a few aptasia in one area where gone. A month later had to search for aptasia and started seeing Berghia around and some big ones, even found one in sump. Now not a single aptasia anywhere for a few months. Tried giving Berghia away but no takers, removed about 12. One of the most amazing things in a reef tank I have ever seen. Give them time, they are awesome!

When small victories seem huge!!!

Notice the differences? However, some guilt with the thought of my B. Nudibranches impending starvation…from hundreds to barely noticeable in about 6 months.

www.reef2reef.com

 

[BryanM]

Wondering if people have opinions on Aptasia control. I tried Faptasia.. worked but I could not get to all of it.. and now it has exploded. I have a Bird Wrasse.. so I am concerned that NB would become snacks. Next options.. Aptasia eating File Fish or Copperband. I love CB.. but the tank is high flow so not sure best for a CB. Experiences with File Fish?.
Not sure what else to do.. it has taken over and I am losing the water.

I've been using Joe's Juice quite successfully.

 

[Naekuh]

Berghia took about six months, purchased 2 then 4 a few weeks later. Never saw any at about 4 to 5 months, then one day noticed a few aptasia in one area where gone. A month later had to search for aptasia and started seeing Berghia around and some big ones, even found one in sump. Now not a single aptasia anywhere for a few months. Tried giving Berghia away but no takers, removed about 12. One of the most amazing things in a reef tank I have ever seen. Give them time, they are awesome!

When small victories seem huge!!!

Notice the differences? However, some guilt with the thought of my B. Nudibranches impending starvation…from hundreds to barely noticeable in about 6 months.

www.reef2reef.com

this post makes me still have hope my 20 are somewhere inside the tank.

But as i said my tank is a NSA aquascape, so those NB's really have no nook an cranny to hide as my joints are all motared with NSA sand and fine sand to create those gravity defying arches and bends.

But i am hoping those 20 turn into like 100.

 

[Texas_Aquaman]

I’ve have had good luck with Red Sea Aiptasia-X. It seems to be about 80% effective. Once a month I schedule 15 minutes to treat all visible aiptasia. Now I have to work hard to find more than 4-5 in my 100 gallon DT.

I have managed to kill 2 CBBs…..so no plans to go that route ever again.