Spot-killing aiptasia?

[Anonymous]

How do ya do it? I have five in my tank, all located on one piece of zoanthid rock. One large, four small. I'd like to take them out without damaging any of the zoanthids, if possible.

Thanks in advance.

Peace,

Chip

 

[Tybond]

depending on the size of your piece of rock, meaning if its small enough to remove, Put the rock in a quarantine tank and add a few peppermint shrimp. They will eat the aptasia for you. Others use a needle and inject straight kalkwasser into the aptaisia though this is difficult as @#$^ because they pull in so fast. I had 3 on a med size rock and since I didn't have a quarantine tank, I placed the rock in a plastic spagetti strainer and lowered it into the tank leaving the top of the strainer out of water. I then put in a couple of the peppermint shrimp and the next evening, all three were gone. Problem solved, just don't tell my wife!
HTH
ty

 

[kangol99]

I've use this method effectively when killing just a few. Mix a 90% Kalwasser mix and put it in a syringe, take that syringe and slowly point it over the aiptasia waiting for it to show it's ugly head and then let it have a nice squirt, that thing will vanish.

Sounds evil but it worked for me.

 

[Minh Nguyen]

What ever you do, take care of them fast or you will be sorry.
I just tanke the rock out and manually remove them(scrape them off)

 

[FFE-DUDE]

Try using an Elagance Coral, sweep it across the Aiptasia, kiss those bad boy's good bye! Fight fire w/ fire, thats what I say!

 

[Lynn]

What exactly is or are aiptasia? What do they look like? What do they do?
thanks Lynn

 

[joeyipsc]

I had always used the straight Kalk injection technique and it works. Just get a turkey baster,
fill it with Kalk and slowly release it in front of the Apitasia

 

[HARRISON]

You can also use boiling water in a turkey baster or syringe. I use kalk for the Aptasia B.

the B is for Barry!!! (the donator)

 

[danmhippo]

I concur calk with syringe injection. I call it lethal injection. If one dosage didn't quite take it out, repeat 2 days later, and another 2 days later, and another 2 days later. The repeated try is not because the calk injection doesn't work, instead, its mostly because I didn't aim the syringe at the right place and missed it by a few milimeters.

Don't use the peppermint shrimp if you have zoanthids. Peppermint shrimp may eat up the zoanthids as well as the aipts.

 

[EmilyB]

I have been fortunate enough to have only had the odd aptaisia. A pinch of salt mix directly applied has been effective.

 

[Anonymous]

If you have the luxury of removing the rock,stick pins or toothpicks in the same holes as the aiptasia. Remove the rock and inject boilng kalkwater,carefully,into the holes,removing the pins as you go.

 

[AnotherGoldenTeapot]

Kalk is 100% effective and usually only requires a single dose.

Mix the Kalk to a toothpaste consistency - say 75% calc and 25% water.

Using a syringe, spray a good amount on the aptasia - creating a small mound as it retreats into its hole. You might want to turn off the tank circulation during the first few minutes of treatment to help prevent the excess Kalk from being washed away.

 

[Rich-n-poor]

emily......

well I had to rearrange to place new corals so we will see if that "pinch of salt" treatment works for me

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[ReeferAl]

I've gotten a few (maybe a dozen over all) on some rocks with corals a couple years ago. I tried kalkwasser, boiling water and even boiling kw with mediocre results. I then got some lye and mixed a bit up. I injected about 1cc with a needle and syringe into the hole the aiptasia retracted into. It was 100% successful. The key is to get the aiptasia when it is in a confined space (a hole)so it takes very little lye and to do only 2 or 3 a day to minimize the effects on alkalinity and pH. Also, be very careful with lye-always wear gloves and keep well away from children. I don't know if I would try this method first, but if other methods fail, this is "guaranteed".
Allen
(Now go ahead and flame me if you are so inclined.)

 

[Rich-n-poor]

wow....the pinch of salt method worked great

just lifted the rock to the water surface placed a lump of salt directly on the apistia and the little sucker melted like the witch in the wizard of Oz

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[Lynn]

I've found 4 aiptasia so far. Very very small ones, the largest is no more then a quarter of a inch. I mixed the kalk and water into a paste yesterday and syringed it on the things and into their holes. When injected the kalk paste covered the aiptasia and their holes. It hardened and now I have 4 pea size white hard kalk balls??? This morning I have one dead snail?? My water is 100% still.