Hints, tips, advice on using kalkpaste to control unwanteds?

[esmithiii]

I need to control some encroaching zooanthids, remove the remains of a fragged ricordea and stop the advance of xenia in certain areas of my tank. Anyone use kalk paste before? How did you do it? Did it work? Anything to worry about? Any precautions?

Ernie

 

[texman]

I have recently started using the stuff to kill aptaisia and brown button polyps and am very happy with the results. I took about 1 cup of water and added 5 tbsp of kalk powder and brought the stuff to a boil. I then used a large syringe and an NG tube (borrowed from the hospital). I think that a 10cc syringe and airline tubing would do. When the stuff comes out of the tube, it does form fairly viscous goo that pretty well goes where you direct the tubing. (all pumps must be off though) I then leave the stuff sitting on top of the target vermin for about 1 hr before turning the pumps back on. It completely kills button polyps (they eat the stuff and die over the next couple of days), aptaisia are killed instantly, as are anemonea. I did accidently spill some on some encrusting montipora which left a few small dead spots, but it did not affect some of the acros that got a few stray drops. The pH in the tank did go up a bit, and some of the stuff gets disbursed when the pumps are turned on, but I saw no ill effects on the tank. All in all, I think that this is a "miracle cure" for killing various unwanted polypy things in the tank. I have never had any real success with copperbanded butterflies, nudibranchs, shrimp etc to get rid of my growing aptasia population. Now, I have no visible evidence of aptasia. The button polyps are a little more difficult since they are very intertwined with my acros and clams, but I have killed at least 90% of what I had before starting the kalk fired eradication program about 6 weeks ago. By the way, due to laziness, I have only done 3 sessions (sounds like my wife talking about hair removal sessions, etc), but I think that it would be a good idea to let the tank params recover a bit after each session.

 

[esmithiii]

Thanks Tex- great information. Any other experience/recommendations?

 

[yellowboyviet]

you can just frag them and give them to me ernie :wink: haha just messing. whens the next meet? everytime we have one, i end up out of town.
donny

 

[SPC]

I use it all the time Ernie and have had great results. I just put some kalk powder in a bowl, add some hot water and mix up to a thick paste. I then use a syringe that has a pc of rigid air line tubing on it (about a 2' pc). Just place the kalk paste on the offender and don't even turn off the pump on my 180. Some of the powder will blow around a bit and even get on corals, but I don't think it is concentrated enough to harm them.
Steve

 

[Mac1]

LOL! OK, you qualified that statement with the use of the word "Some"

I joke, because I lost about half (at the time) of a very favored coral, to Kalk Paste that got to where it wasn't supposed to be...

I have a very nice pink Echnophyllia (or Echinophora, can't tell the diff.), that had some green button polyps encroaching on it... I thought if I was careful... well, Mustang got a frag out of the ordeal, and the coral has now regrown to bigger than what it was back then, but... I'd still be very careful. I've also noticed bare spots in the middle of some of my Cap's, that I attribute to bits and piece's of the stuff floating around in the tank after using it liberally. I'd recommend shutting down at least my main pumps for 10-20 min's while doing the deed. And if possible, try doing a small water change, and suck the excess out. You may find a lot of the offending corals will be removed from the tank at the same time.

Just my 2-cents (since you asked :p)

- Mac

 

[ChrisRD]

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Anyone use kalk paste before?

Yeah, I kill aptasia with it all the time.

How did you do it?

What Tex said. When I turn my closed loop back on some blows around, but I've never seen this hurt anything yet.

Did it work?

With one exception, so far it's worked on the first try every time (dozens of aptasia). The exception didn't survive the second try. :twisted:

Anything to worry about? Any precautions?

I just try to avoid squirting it directly on anything I don't want to kill.

Happy hunting... :wink:

 

[Reefcube]

I've just started using this kalk aproach...the recipie that I use is
1 tsp kalk
2 tblsp water
microwave for 45 seconds

apply and kill those buggars....

be careful though, mushrooms, button polyps and other corals don't care for the stuff...

 

[reefland]

I use kalk paste a lot and I have several critters that it does nothing to (red mushrooms mainly). I just started using NaOH injections and even that won't kill them but does tick them off for a bit.

 

[Anonymous]

I just did my first aiptasia control this weekend.

I have 6 or so aiptasia in my 5 gal FOWLR. I was worried about a pH spike in only 5 gal of water.
I made a paste from about 25 ml of hot tap water, and 2 or 3 tsp of kalk. One of the members in our local club got me 2plastic syringes from the dentist's office they work at. The syringes have no needles. They just have a very narrow, and curved tip on them. It's the kind of thing you'd use to squirt water into the pocket created after the dentist removed a tooth from your mouth.
Anyway, I tried to pierce the aiptasia with the syringe, but all it did was retreat. I tried to squirt kalk-paste in there as the aiptasia collapsed. Not sure if I got any in there. I did get a bunch of kalk on top of the retreated aiptasia.
It has been 3 days now and the one aiptasia I treated has not returned.

 

[Mac1]

Sometimes you have to suck the aip' out w/ a small water change the day after, otherwise I've had them come back, appear on the other side of the rock, or split into many baby's.

- Mac

 

[Carpentersreef]

There's a syringe that I got when I had my wisdom teeth out, and it had a curved tip on it, which came in very handy. Toothpaste consistancy Kalk. Injects right into the the larger aptasia. I added a butterfly fish to my tank, and he rips the little ones out like there's no tomorrow.
Very satisfying to watch. :twisted:
The butterfly loves all frozen food that I add, as well.

Mitch

 

[Mac1]

Very satisfying to watch. :twisted:

:x :x :x :x :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :idea: :roll: ...

- Mac

 

[leftovers]

I use kalk paste a lot and I have several critters that it does nothing to (red mushrooms mainly). I just started using NaOH injections and even that won't kill them but does tick them off for a bit.

It has for me killed any shroom green, red, blue, fuzzy etc.. thick paste shmear liberally kills all.....i do have to apply more than once as usually the base of the shrooms remains to try an grow back so 2 weeks later a second application kills 100%

I turn off all pumps during paste sessions then lettem rip after words and make sure that no large lumps remain on any healtly wanted animals ph isnt affected im tank due to the size of the tank and the limited amount of kalk used.

 

[Anonymous]

I cut the tip off of a 1ml pipette and fill it with a thick paste(sometimes hot, sometimes not) and just pile it on the offender. For a while I have white dots on my LR until some coralline grows over it.

 

[Anonymous]

I tried some kalk paste last night on some green mushrooms that were stinging the hell out of one of my acros. A tiny bit o' kalk got on the spreading base of my acro. I hope it'll be okay.

But the offending shrooms were right beneath the growing edge of the acro. The acro was trying to overgrow the area, but the shrooms were killing any tissue that touched them. Those shrooms pack a hell of a sting.

The pH went up just 0.02 points during and after the process. Hopefully the shrooms are dead, but after reading above, I see they might need a second application. :evil:

 

[esmithiii]

UP!

 

[Anonymous]

One treatment worked in my nano tank for the aiptasia. the one I treated did not come back. Tomorrow I'll get the other 3 in that tank.

In my 55, the kalk-paste seems to have worked on my shrooms pretty well. In a couple of spots a second application will be necessary.
The acro's tissue did die in spots where the kalk-paste was accidentally dropped. Gotta be more careful.