Poll: Aiptasia Removal - What Has Worked for You?

[dbl]

It's an often asked question so let's see what you've tried and has worked. Multiple choices are allowed. Somehow we all end up with them so let's see which has worked the best for folks.

 

[madweazl]

I started the 75g to avoid some pests but did grab about five pounds of live rock for some seeding and bio-diversity. Naturally, one of the rocks had some aiptasia on it that I didnt see prior to introduction to the tank. They quickly migrated to one of the base rocks toward the back of the tank, making them hard to see (smart little punks). I'd used Aiptasia X in the past and found it useless in a healthy tank as they'd rebound quickly (knocked them down but never seemed to kill them). I'd read about the boiling water in a syringe and gave it a shot (no pun intended). I wasnt successful on the first attempt but about a week later, I used a much larger syringe for injecting turkeys and finished them off (three of them that I could see). I've been aiptasia free for 18 months now They were in very close proximity to some mushrooms but they were unaffected by the hot water as it dissipated rapidly apparently.

 

[Brian W]

Other - Aiptasia X

 

[4FordFamily]

Matted filefish but I’ve also had luck with 1/3 pearlscale butterflies with both majanos and aiptasia. But better luck with the hardier matted filefish. Another huge benefit of the matted filefish is that you can EASILY remove them should they start munching coral. They hang out at the top of the tank and are very slow moving/stupid. A simple net gets the job done!

 

[ChiCity]

Berghia, gram for gram they’re worth their weight in gold!

 

[4FordFamily]

Berghia, gram for gram they’re worth their weight in gold!

Something must always eat the berghia I buy! Wrasse I suspect!

 

[boozeman27]

Other-Aptaisia-X. Works like a charm

 

[dbl]

...I'd used Aiptasia X in the past..

Other - Aiptasia X

Other-Aptaisia-X. Works like a charm

I can't believe I forgot to include Aiptasia-X as an option. I've used it before but didn't have any success with it. I've updated the poll to include it.

 

[happyhourhero]

Black blenny I caught in the gulf. Ate aiptasia and hydroids...among other things lol.

 

[Crabs McJones]

Knock on wood, i've been lucky to not get aptasia in my tank.........yet!

 

[Nburg's Reef]

It's an often asked question so let's see what you've tried and has worked. Multiple choices are allowed. Somehow we all end up with them so let's see which has worked the best for folks.

I had a few small anemones years ago that i injected with lime juice. Used a 1ml syringe with small needle. Worked like a charm. May not be feasible with large populations, but 3 small anrmones was no match.

 

[ChiCity]

Knock on wood, i've been lucky to not get aptasia in my tank.........yet!

Oh eventually... you will

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

I've never had a serious aiptasia outbreak (thankfully) which I attribute to starting with dry rock and being very careful about the frags I buy and such. That being said I still get at least one aiptasia every 6-7 months. If I can't get ahold of a peppermint shrimp or two, my go to method has always been to simply bury that sucker in epoxy stick. Sure you get a white (or purple if you use the purple colored stuff) spot on your rock that may look unsightly until coralline covers it up, but it's worked every time for me

 

[Crabs McJones]

Oh eventually... you will

My days are numbered lol

 

[Motts]

My personal experience is that every single aptasia i eliminate ( minimum of 6 treatments ) with Aptasia X another 12 appear. after 6 months of this circus i am in the process of purchasing Bergia nudibranchs.

 

[HiddenUser]

Ripping everything out, running FW through my system for a few days, and then starting over with new sand, dry rocks, etc...Seriously...My Aiptasia outbreak in my 90G pretty much 'FORCED' me to upgrade.

I've tried Aiptasia-X, Joes Juice, a Kalk Slurry, Boiling RO Water, etc...This helps manage things, but there's always Aiptasia that you can never reach, or if you don't get them good enough they come back with vengeance.

I've tried Copperbands, Peppermint Shrimp, etc...I think I just feed to much so they never really took interest in eating Aiptasia and my last Copperband found the Acans to be MUCH more tasty.

Trying Beghia Nudibranchs right now and maybe like everything else in this hobby, good things will come with patience.

 

[Kayvon]

My personal experience is that every single aptasia i eliminate ( minimum of 6 treatments ) with Aptasia X another 12 appear. after 6 months of this circus i am in the process of purchasing Bergia nudibranchs.

This was also my experience with AX. I felt like I'd never win and let them live. One day I got a copperband (not for aiptasia) and it happened to eat the little things. They're all gone now. I think it's best to get something that actively eats them since they release spores to reproduce constantly

 

[estebanb450]

I've never had a serious aiptasia outbreak (thankfully) which I attribute to starting with dry rock and being very careful about the frags I buy and such. That being said I still get at least one aiptasia every 6-7 months. If I can't get ahold of a peppermint shrimp or two, my go to method has always been to simply bury that sucker in epoxy stick. Sure you get a white (or purple if you use the purple colored stuff) spot on your rock that may look unsightly until coralline covers it up, but it's worked every time for me

Might give this epoxy a shot never thought of doing that.

 

[DracoKat]

I had aiptasia in my sump, from some LR I got from a fellow reefer. I didn't see them. So I borrowed a pair of file fish and they took care of the problem and I returned them. I think I'll buy myself one to have.

The aiptasia made its way into my DT. Wasn't a lot, I used Aiptasia X on those I can see, then I got a pair of peppermint shrimps. I haven't seen any aiptasia in a while.

 

[botheboss]

Copper band is the only thing that worked for me