Hi everyone sadly my tank has gotten AEFW and I’ve been battling them. I have ripped every acro off my rocks and dipped them and checked them for eggs. There’s only two I can’t get off the rock because they’re so encrusted and on base rock. Any I eggs I find I cut off with the frag saw and lightly re glue all the pieces. I just want to know can I beat this. I have spent 2 hours just now dipping every coral inspecting trimming and re glueing. It feels like I’m fighting a losing battle in a way. I know I’m going to have to do this for a few weeks which won’t be too bad since I’m currently laid off due to corona. But how long will it take for my acros to heal from the bite marks? Is it worth all this stress for acros? At this point I have a fairly nice collection and starting to get some colonies but it just feels like one step forward two steps back. I’ve thought about just getting rid of them all just so I wouldn’t have to deal with it. I don’t think I ever will but it’s crossed my mind. Any way just wanted a place to vent my frustrations, thanks reef2reef.
Need a morale boost while dealing with AEFW :/
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ndrwater
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This is a hobby.. good and bad times both... Hang in there.. you'll beat the dreaded aefw as long as you are diligent. Sounds like you are...
As far as is it worth it, ai would say probably.. but depends on the corals you have and why you have them... Think about that for a second...
If it's easier to cut em and Chuck em, would you? I know for me that would be a hard decision to make...
Keep us posted on your progress. You aren't the 1st and won't be the last.. documenting your trials and tribulations will be cathartic and well as helpful to others...
As far as is it worth it, ai would say probably.. but depends on the corals you have and why you have them... Think about that for a second...
If it's easier to cut em and Chuck em, would you? I know for me that would be a hard decision to make...
Keep us posted on your progress. You aren't the 1st and won't be the last.. documenting your trials and tribulations will be cathartic and well as helpful to others...
Backreefing
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I have herd good things about the springer demsel. I got one just incase or aefw . He’s a good fish doesn’t bully anything. Maybe get a few and watch to see if they eat them.
One member here said once the fish realized that they can eat them, it was over for the flat worms overnight. good luck
One member here said once the fish realized that they can eat them, it was over for the flat worms overnight. good luck
Macdaddynick1
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If you wish to get rid of them completely, those, hard to/impossible to take off of the rock acros have to get out of the tank for the dip. If you want to manage flatworms with an occasional dip the colonies can stay in. I’ve had over 100 acros in my system when I first found out that I’ve had flat worms, my acros survived and grew for over a year with flatworms and occasional dipping until I killed my entire tank by letting my nutrients drop way too low. The best way to deal with flatworms is to put all of your corals on plastic pegs to allow you to dip them, here’s a little diy. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/a-little-diy-for-those-of-you-with-packed-tanks.297120/ this Shortens your dipping procedure tremendously and allows you to put the corals back in the exact spot after every dip, which reduces the stress on the coral.
Backreefing
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The springer demsel is what you want , others may ear them . But the springer demsel is well known for eating aefw . The won’t get the eggs but anything helps . Mine is nice without bullying. They are straight blue . Not the blue devil Damselfishes.
If your want to get rid of them completely, take ALL acropora out every 7 days for 6 weeks and dip each colony. If you can put them back in the same place in the tank it should help. Melafix is best for this dipping process. Make two large dipping containers or tanks so you can do a lot at once. Make one a dip and the other tank water for a rinse where you can move them over and inspect them before putting them back in the tank. The encrusted colony has to come out and off the rock. Hammer and chisel works good for bigger stuff so you can break the rock up slowly.
I got rid of them by dipping like this a long time ago and it was a pain but things were much better after the aefw were gone. If you are patient and want to try an in tank treatment lots have had success with try using flatworm stop at a double dose and baste the corals to keep the flatworms from sitting on any given colony for too long. I have used this method in a tank before and got rid of them.
Lots of fish will eat the aefw once you baste them off the rocks so you don’t have to buy specific fish to get them to eat the aefw. I have seen lots of tangs and other fish in my old tank eat the floating worms. Might need to stop feeding for a day or two to get their attention focused on new things floating in the water though.
Good luck it’s possible and can be done just take your time and don’t rush anything. Also be prepared to look for red bugs after the aefw are gone. Seems a lot of people get both at the same time and notice once one is gone the other suddenly can take hold of the corals easier and they are then noticed.
I got rid of them by dipping like this a long time ago and it was a pain but things were much better after the aefw were gone. If you are patient and want to try an in tank treatment lots have had success with try using flatworm stop at a double dose and baste the corals to keep the flatworms from sitting on any given colony for too long. I have used this method in a tank before and got rid of them.
Lots of fish will eat the aefw once you baste them off the rocks so you don’t have to buy specific fish to get them to eat the aefw. I have seen lots of tangs and other fish in my old tank eat the floating worms. Might need to stop feeding for a day or two to get their attention focused on new things floating in the water though.
Good luck it’s possible and can be done just take your time and don’t rush anything. Also be prepared to look for red bugs after the aefw are gone. Seems a lot of people get both at the same time and notice once one is gone the other suddenly can take hold of the corals easier and they are then noticed.
Melafix is indeed the best option in the game that doesn’t get enough credit imo. It takes work on your behalf staying on top of dipping. Watch the smooth skinned deep water corals. They can tolerate ~6 mins of dipping. Other than that I have left most acros in 10+ mins with no ill effects whatsoever.
Also remember you just need to dip long enough to have the worms fall off or have them stunned enough to where you can shake them off. I do not like to use powerheads in the dip bucket either, some people try that and it’s a bad idea because it can hurt the corals close to the powerhead and it’s easier to see when the worms start to fall off the corals with no flow.
There are a lot of good tips for dipping, I will try to remember more of how I went about it and post if I remember some stuff.
There are a lot of good tips for dipping, I will try to remember more of how I went about it and post if I remember some stuff.
Sean Duggan
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I’ve never heard of that. After some research they seem to be very peaceful so I’ll probably get one or two. Thanks for the information.
Sean Duggan
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Okay I didn’t know about the melafix so I’ll use that next time I dip. How much do I add for a gallon of water? I was going to start dosing flatworm stop at a double dose and basting. And will definitely keep an eye out for red bugs after.
Sean Duggan
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That’s a really cool idea. I’ll definitely do this on my next tank. This ones only going to be up for another year or so until I move then I’m starting everything over new and getting a bigger system. Thanks for the link!
Sean Duggan
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Just wanted to say thanks to everyone. I dipped half of my acros that I skipped last night, since it was getting late, just now. Had a much better attitude about it today. Got a good amount of worms off and cut off some eggs. Made some frags while I was at it. Really liked the melafix dip. The worms seemed to just fall off without me even having to hit them with the turkey blaster. Thanks again everyone 
Sean Duggan
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Just a little update, so far the corals are looking better. Have some better polyp extension and color in them. I will be dipping again tomorrow so I will make another update post after, letting you guys know how its all going.
Sean Duggan
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After dipping all my acros again I only found 3 AEFW. And one little spot of eggs that i think I missed on a milli. So I’d say I’m winning the fight. Placed all my acros back in the tank but didn’t glue any of them. Just have them wedged in rocks and in between rock work and it looks like butt lol. But this should make it easier for me to pick them out and continue to dip them. I think if I get 0 AEFW next week I’ll dip for 2-3 more weeks to be safe.
Sean Duggan
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Okay latest update. Earlier today I refilled all my acros and only 1 AEFW. Looked at all the bases with a magnifying glass and found no more eggs. I feel like I’m so close to beating this. Hopefully next week I get 0
Great news! Keep it up, I did an extra week of dips to make sure back when I got them and it really eased my mind. I almost got to lazy to do it but glad I it did now.
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