hate to kill it

[Tami]

well its been a while--life as an ER nurse flies by

My new tank (6 months old) is one my highlights
just getting the new lights up and will proceed to corals after the light learning curve however I have two little problems--an aptasia and a dividing anemonia majano--what is a girl to do
I will be getting a green bubble coral, some mushroon coral, frog spawn to start and I just don't know if I can kill the aptasia
The best part of my tank is watching how things move in it--the aptasia is beautiful to watch

any down to earth tried and true advice apreciated

Tami

 

[Toirtis]

I have two little problems--an aptasia and a dividing anemonia majano--what is a girl to do--the aptasia is beautiful to watch

They will not be so beautiful in a couple of months when your tank and rock are covered in them....nail them with some Joe's Juice now and save a lot of headaches and loss later.

 

[plecoperson]

I know, I hate to kill things, too, no matter how "evil"...I set up a tank for pest pond snails, for heaven's sake.

I think your only option though is to kill the aptasia (or give it its own NanoCube-you think I'm kidding!)

 

[Devilishturtles]

I'd have to agree. When I got my tank up and running I noticed ONE aipstasia anemone. Just one. And for a a couple weeks there was only one. By the end of my cycle and setup, maybe 2 month later (I had a little delay) there were probably more than 200.

I know it sucks, but if you value the lives of your other corals (aipstasia can sting and kill them) I'd Juice it now. Joes Juice is a great product.

HTH

 

[Jermz79]

It really depends on where your rock is from ... Pacific Aptaisia will reproduce like crazy, Atlantic Aptaisia will not. I have had a few in my tank near the bottom of some rocks and they have not moved or reproduced at all.

 

[Johnny Cakes]

Get a Peppermint shrimp. I had 5 spots with Aptasia, put a Peppermint in there, and viola, week later, no Aptasia.

Same thing as killing them, but at least it is part of the food chain rather than just juicing them.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Atlantic Aptaisia will not

Boy, mine sure did!

 

[SeeDemTails]

Will the juice kill other inhabitants?

Should you turn off all PH's and flow before juicing them?

 

[xkenneth]

I'd avoid juicing. Depending on the size of the tank, probably one per thirty gallons, I'd get a peppermint shrimp. You have to keep in mind that the peppermints won't eat aptasia bigger than they are, so you're best bet is to just pull the aptasia off by hand, and let it reproduce. That way the shrimp will get them when they're small. Good Luck.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Why not use Joes Juice? Its completely safe for other corals and is easy to use. Pulling the anemone off is difficult, and will cause little ones to pop up. And not all peppermint shrimp eat aipstasia. IMO, you're best to kill them right out, safely, with Joes Juice, then to take your chances on peppermint shrimp.

 

[Scoot]

I've been adding a lot of rock from the LFS lately, and there's always aiptasia's on them.

What I've found works miracles is concentrated lemon juice. Nail them in the stem with a couple CC's of that stuff, and they'll retract and never come back out.

I've killed a dozen or so in the last month with lemon juice, and never seen them come back or new ones appear (except on new rocks).

 

[seaham358]

Use the JJ and nuke those SOB before its too late, this method is 100% effective. using the Pep shrimp method is not 100%, some eat them and some don't. JJ will not hurt the tank, I use it all the time in my 125 to nuke Majano anemonies, I kill off 20-30 at a time with no effects. You don't want to directly get it in any corals or anwmonies because it could hurt them. It some gets on a coral just brush it off and it should be fine. Again aptasia are a PEST and if left in a tank can take over and sting corals.
Pulling off the aptasia IMO is not good either, I have read that doing this can help spread them? Not sure how true it is but why try it.

 

[melosu58]

I agree that Joe`s juice is the way to go. I know when Brenden was here he would use boiling water with good results. What ever you do you need to get rid of them or you`ll be in trouble.

 

[Fluff]

I agree with everyone who is telling you to use the Joe's Juice. Aptasia really has no place in a reef tank if you want it to thrive. Sad as it may be, they really are as terrible as they say. Joe's Juice is a tried and true method that is completely safe when used correctly. Peppermint shrimp are a crap shoot and may or may not eat the aptasia. The only true consumer of them are specific butterfly fish and a small nudibranch called Berghia Verrucicornis (if you can find them). The butterfly fish are somewhat large (not sure on your tank size) and some are hard to get eating other foods. They will eat the aptasia and your feather duster worms, then may starve once the aptasia is gone. The nudibranch will eat nothing but the aptasia and will starve once they are gone.