Most effective coral dips

jcdeng · Dec 13, 2021

Gtinnel said:
I'm not the person that you posed this question to, but I'm sure they were not kidding. Bayer insecticide is very commonly used as a coral dip.
I use Bayer on every coral that goes into my tank and it has never caused an issue. I too thought using an insecticide for a coral dip seemed extreme but from my understanding it only effects organisms with a central nervous system which corals do not have. So on a coral it is not harmful at all.

yep, just get the dilution ratio right and wear a pair of gloves. I have lost zero corals to bayer dip.

Jase4224 · Dec 13, 2021

Gtinnel said:
I'm not the person that you posed this question to, but I'm sure they were not kidding. Bayer insecticide is very commonly used as a coral dip.
I use Bayer on every coral that goes into my tank and it has never caused an issue. I too thought using an insecticide for a coral dip seemed extreme but from my understanding it only effects organisms with a central nervous system which corals do not have. So on a coral it is not harmful at all.

Interesting, but given fish have a central nervous system I would definitely rinse after. Is it used diluted or straight?

jcdeng · Dec 13, 2021

Jase4224 said:
Interesting, but given fish have a central nervous system I would definitely rinse after. Is it used diluted or straight?

Bayer insecticide as a coral dip

These are the steps I take before adding a frag. I picked this up from another forum from two reefers in particular, Whisperer and Flamron. The first step is to start with a close visual inspection of your frag. Here is the frag in the bag: Darth Maul Porites Wild Colony Frag on...

www.reef2reef.com

Gtinnel · Dec 13, 2021

Jase4224 said:
Interesting, but given fish have a central nervous system I would definitely rinse after. Is it used diluted or straight?

Diluted. Yes I rinse my corals 4 times where I let them soak in tank water before putting them in the tank.

HiImSean · Dec 13, 2021

I get a cup or so of tank water and pour a good bit of the Bayers in till it’s a milky color. I leave it for 5-15 minutes then rinse the frag off in another container of tank water for a minute or so. I’ve never had adverse affects on a coral from using it and the cup afterwards will have bristleworms, pods, I’ve seen flatworms, and red bugs after the dip.

i_am_mclovin · Dec 13, 2021

Potassium chloride. 1 teaspoon per every 2 cups of water, dip for 5 minutes.

ShadowMan · Dec 14, 2021

I always double dip... 5-10 mins in CoralRX, saltwater rinse, 5-10 mins in NTLabs Coral dip and then a saltwater rinse

PandorasChalk · Dec 14, 2021

New to the hobby but CoralRX has been the most effective dip I have tried so far. I started doing a double dip on things for a bit to make sure things were pest free and every time CoralRX would get things off while Seachem would not.

The Bayer dip is interesting, I do that for freshwater plants, makes sense it would work for corals...

nichthyes · Dec 14, 2021

ScottB said:
Bayer is a pain in the backside to use but very gentle on any coral. It is pretty good.

Any of the tea-tree (melaleuca) solutions are good for all but acropora.

For acropora, the best dip is potassium chloride without any doubt. 1 tblsp per gallon. But ONLY for acropora. Nothing else. It does not stun AEFW; it dissolves them.

Id like to know your basis for claiming maleleuca-based products are good for “anything but acropora”.

homer1475 · Dec 14, 2021

+whatever number now for bayer.

Been using bayer for about 5 years now, and not a single issue with any coral I've put in it. I have seen red bugs, flatworms, and many pods, and bristle worms.

I also deplug any coral I receive, and put them on new plugs. You never know what's hiding between the plug and the coral. Most times things can hide in there where the dip cannot get them.

LeftyReefer · Dec 14, 2021

I've been using Revive and Melafix (pond) lately and haven't had any bug/pest issues yet. Melafix is similar to Expel, but much easier to get and much cheaper. There are three versions of Melafix.... regular, marine, and pond. They all differ in the concentration of the active ingredient, so you need to mix them at different rates. Melafix pond is the strongest concentration, so it's what I use.

I mix 6 ML Melafix Pond with 1/2 Gal saltwater. (12ML per Gal)
and dip for 10 minutes, but have gone longer without issue.
Then I dip in Revive (2 caps per 1/2 gal) for 15 minutes. (per bottle instructions)

For dipping frags, I usually float the frags upside down, over an air-stone, in a narrow cylindrical container, ie a skinny bucket. The skinnier the bucket the better, uses less dip and it keeps the frag floating directly over the air-stone for best agitation. or you can go to town with a turkey baster. I just use a little Styrofoam block, stick the frag in and float it upside down. The air stone keeps it all circulating.

For the Melafix, you have three versions, with varying concentration of the active ingredient.
Melafix @1%, Melafix Marine @1.25%, and Melafix Pond @5%.

For a coral dip, below are the recommended mixing rates for each version.
- Regular (1%) 62.5mL/Gallon
- Marine (1.25%) 50mL/Gallon
- Pond (5%) 12.5mL/Gallon

I dip every frag in these.

Duffer · Dec 14, 2021

Has anyone tried the new Redsea DipX?

ScottB · Dec 14, 2021

nichthyes said:
Id like to know your basis for claiming maleleuca-based products are good for “anything but acropora”.

For acropora, nothing beats potassium chloride. It is very gentle on acropora (almost like Bayer) and far more gentle than the tea-tree oil dips. It does not stun AEFW, it melts them dead. Ann added plus: it mixes pretty clear so you can what is coming off.

I DO NOT find potassium chloride all that suitable to montipora dipping. My reverse sunset monti and Seasons greetings hate the stuff, and monti eating nudis don't seem to mind KCl.

HiImSean · Dec 14, 2021

homer1475 said:
+whatever number now for bayer.

Been using bayer for about 5 years now, and not a single issue with any coral I've put in it. I have seen red bugs, flatworms, and many pods, and bristle worms.

I also deplug any coral I receive, and put them on new plugs. You never know what's hiding between the plug and the coral. Most times things can hide in there where the dip cannot get them.

I feel like that's where FW like to lay their eggs when I find them on frags

ShadowMan · Dec 15, 2021

LeftyReefer said:
I've been using Revive and Melafix (pond) lately and haven't had any bug/pest issues yet. Melafix is similar to Expel, but much easier to get and much cheaper. There are three versions of Melafix.... regular, marine, and pond. They all differ in the concentration of the active ingredient, so you need to mix them at different rates. Melafix pond is the strongest concentration, so it's what I use.

I mix 6 ML Melafix Pond with 1/2 Gal saltwater. (12ML per Gal)
and dip for 10 minutes, but have gone longer without issue.
Then I dip in Revive (2 caps per 1/2 gal) for 15 minutes. (per bottle instructions)

For dipping frags, I usually float the frags upside down, over an air-stone, in a narrow cylindrical container, ie a skinny bucket. The skinnier the bucket the better, uses less dip and it keeps the frag floating directly over the air-stone for best agitation. or you can go to town with a turkey baster. I just use a little Styrofoam block, stick the frag in and float it upside down. The air stone keeps it all circulating.

For the Melafix, you have three versions, with varying concentration of the active ingredient.
Melafix @1%, Melafix Marine @1.25%, and Melafix Pond @5%.

For a coral dip, below are the recommended mixing rates for each version.
- Regular (1%) 62.5mL/Gallon
- Marine (1.25%) 50mL/Gallon
- Pond (5%) 12.5mL/Gallon

I dip every frag in these.

I've used Melafix in the past, purely because it's also quite effective at destressing and repairing - figured 3 dips was overkill though

Tuan’s Reef · Nov 4, 2022

what is the concentration of 3% H2O2 to safely dip for the corals? and for how long? This is to kill algae

Jase4224 · Nov 5, 2022

Tuan’s Reef said:
what is the concentration of 3% H2O2 to safely dip for the corals? and for how long? This is to kill algae

It depends what you are dipping, but it can be used without diluting for up to a minute. To be safe I would use 1 part H2O2 to 2 parts tank water for 3 mins. This is my experience with LPS, shrooms and leathers. Have not dipped SPS. I wouldn’t use on freshly cut corals.