Aiptasia...LOTS

[carey]

Some things are too good to be true. The 55g setup I bought came with LR that is infested with aiptasia things.
I know the trick with kalkwasser and I can get different chemicals to get them but I thought there was a shrimp or fish that ate them. They are literally all over the rocks. Some are bigger than my fish. LOL

Thanks for reading

 

[Krypt]

Peppermint shrimp might eat some of the smaller ones, but they won't touch the big ones. I think it's time to start mixing up the Kalk and prepare for battle!

 

[carey]

I would almost rather throw out the LR than deal with that many. lol

 

[hackteck]

Wow that's no good but atleast their not in your main tank and you can kill them

Sent from my HTC ANDROID INCREDIBLE using Aquarium

 

[carey]

True but i was hoping for a smooth transition into the 55g. Now I gotta mess with these things for who knows how long. I know i dont have enough kalkwasser for them all. grrr...

 

[mdaniel2882]

I have always had great luck with pepermint shrimp eating aptasia but it is hit or miss. some do and some don't. I put 5 in my 120 that had aptasia in it and it is gone. I would try more than one if you are going to go with this method. Just remember the won't eat the big ones.

Copperbanded Butterflies will eat them but I would consider that an expert only fish. It is difficult to get them to eat after the aptasia are gone.

 

[carey]

Ok so its peppermint shrimp. Do they eat anything else after the aiptasia is gone? I dont want them to starve.

 

[mdaniel2882]

Ok so its peppermint shrimp. Do they eat anything else after the aiptasia is gone? I dont want them to starve.

I still have all 10....I think. they eat ditritus.

 

[carey]

cool. thanks a bunch. off to find peppermint shrimp tomorrow. I've never had shrimp, might be kinda cool. They dont mess with fish or corals do they?

 

[Firemedic1081]

Mine don't mess with anything but the aptasia. I bought 5 of them about 2 weeks ago. They have really gone to town. They even ate a few that were about 2 inches tall.

 

[mdaniel2882]

Mine don't mess with anything but the aptasia. I bought 5 of them about 2 weeks ago. They have really gone to town. They even ate a few that were about 2 inches tall.

A little story for you....my first tank (55 gal) was infested with them. I got 5 pepermints and they took them all down except for the largest one that was about 1.5 inches. if you looked at the tank at night you could see all five around the large aptasia. they would eat the tenticles off and them leave it to grow back. this took place for about 3 months before they ate the whole thing. That is what makes SW Aquaria cool.

 

[carey]

I'm hoping they will get the real big ones too. I'll try to pick out big shrimp. lol

There's absolutely nothing in the tank now but five rocks. Isn't there a way to nuke the whole tank with something? Like an aiptasia bomb?

 

[mdaniel2882]

yes....drain your tank of all water and let it sit for a week or so. boom!!!! no more aptasia.

IMO it is easier to cycle the tank than get rid of a heavy aptasia growth.

 

[carey]

Oh, I forgot to ask. How many shrimp? I have a 55g.

 

[carey]

Won't the LR not be live anymore if I do that?

 

[mdaniel2882]

Won't the LR not be live anymore if I do that?

yes but it is easier than getting rid of the aptasia. you can put the rock in your other tank and it will become live quickly.

 

[joy13]

This is just me personally I would go with the shrimp, I have yet to be able to kill off all the aiptasia in a tank with chemicals. I get the biggest ones and let the shrimp have at the rest. For a 55 get at least 3 but it is better to have more. Lemon juice I find works better than aiptasia x, I have also used hot fresh water and hot extra salty water to get them. When getting shrimp make sure they are the peppermint shrimp that sway back and forth they seem to be the ones that get the job done.

 

[MrPeon99]

I bought three to deal with my aiptasia issue when I had a few that came a long with the macro algae I bought. So far I haven't seen anymore pop up in the DT, but I did find a new one in my sump tonight. They'll eat everything even after the aiptasia is gone. Sometimes I throw a small piece of a silver side in and watch them gang up on it and devour it. And if I have to stick my hand in the tank for whatever reason they like to crawl on it and try to eat me too

 

[PrettyFishies]

Take a close look at peppermint VS camel shrimp. Camel = BAD. They have very different stripe patterns and hump, like a camel.

The LFS may mislabel so you have to be careful and check each one.

 

[C.J. Nich]

You can try Hermit Crabs, that should take care of it. Or so I've heard, they say you only need 2. And they are pretty much a safe bet for any tank good luck