Help ID this corals

Hugo Garcia · Aug 14, 2017

Hello guys,

I've started cycling a saltwater tank this weekend and added live rock today, and it came with some corals. Can you help me ID them and make sure there are no parasites on the tank?

Thanks a lot,

Hugo Garcia

GoVols · Aug 14, 2017

Hugo,
Welcome to Reef 2 Reef.

The top picture looks like a Majano but I could be wrong.

Regrads, GoVols

Highgrade · Aug 14, 2017

1st pic Majano = bad
2nd pic pineapple sponge = good

Hugo Garcia · Aug 14, 2017

Highgrade said:
1st pic Majano = bad
2nd pic pineapple sponge = good

So how should I get rid of it?

Highgrade · Aug 14, 2017

Hugo Garcia said:
So how should I get rid of it?

Kalk paste, Aptasia X, Joe's juice, boiling water applied directly on the Majano. If you have bone cutters you might be able to cut out a chunk of the rock where the Majano resides,then dispose of it.

GoVols · Aug 14, 2017

Highgrade said:
Kalk paste, Aptasia X, Joe's juice, boiling water applied directly on the Majano. If you have bone cutters you might be able to cut out a chunk of the rock where the Majano resides,then dispose of it.

+1
They make a Majano wand but never tried it.
I bet the Kalk paste will do that job for one.

Hugo Garcia · Aug 14, 2017

GoVols said:
+1
They make a Majano wand but never tried it.
I bet the Kalk paste will do that job for one.

So, I just removed the live rock from the tank real quick and used a hot knife to cauterize it off the rock. So I pretty much burned it out of the rock, not sure if the I should have done that but was getting pretty afraid of it spreading.

GoVols · Aug 14, 2017

Hugo Garcia said:
So, I just removed the live rock from the tank real quick and used a hot knife to cauterize it off the rock. So I pretty much burned it out of the rock, not sure if the I should have done that but was getting pretty afraid of it spreading.

Great Job!!!

Hugo Garcia · Aug 14, 2017

GoVols said:
Great Job!!!

Thanks! I'm very grateful for your help!

Highgrade · Aug 14, 2017

GoVols said:
+1
They make a Majano wand but never tried it.
I bet the Kalk paste will do that job for one.

Just ordered a Majano Wand. Can't wait to try it out.

Highgrade · Aug 14, 2017

Hugo Garcia said:
So, I just removed the live rock from the tank real quick and used a hot knife to cauterize it off the rock. So I pretty much burned it out of the rock, not sure if the I should have done that but was getting pretty afraid of it spreading.

That should have done it, but keep an eye out for more that may pop up. Where there is one there is most likely more.

Hugo Garcia · Aug 14, 2017

Highgrade said:
That should have done it, but keep an eye out for more that may pop up. Where there is one there is most likely more.

I removed the live rock from the tank and looked for more Majanos, couldn't find any. I'm hoping they don't show up again. Are there any other parasites common to new tanks that can com with live rock? I'm stating to think that I shouldn't have added the live rock.

How can I make sure the tank is safe for new fish? Free of parasites?

Highgrade · Aug 14, 2017

H

Hugo Garcia said:
I removed the live rock from the tank and looked for more Majanos, couldn't find any. I'm hoping they don't show up again. Are there any other parasites common to new tanks that can com with live rock? I'm stating to think that I shouldn't have added the live rock.

How can I make sure the tank is safe for new fish? Free of parasites?

Hopefully no more will pop up. I stopped using live rock a long time ago. It is a big gamble for other livestock since Ich, velvel, brook, flukes, etc... can be riding along on that live rock. Not to mention the other hitch hikers like Majano, Aiptasia, Crabs, nuisance algae, Mantis shrimp, etc.... Best is to let the tank go fishless for roughly 75-80 days to ensure no parasites/diseases stay alive with a host (fish) in the water. As for all the other hitch hikers they can be managed. Best of luck.

Hugo Garcia · Aug 15, 2017

Highgrade said:
H

Hopefully no more will pop up. I stopped using live rock a long time ago. It is a big gamble for other livestock since Ich, velvel, brook, flukes, etc... can be riding along on that live rock. Not to mention the other hitch hikers like Majano, Aiptasia, Crabs, nuisance algae, Mantis shrimp, etc.... Best is to let the tank go fishless for roughly 75-80 days to ensure no parasites/diseases stay alive with a host (fish) in the water. As for all the other hitch hikers they can be managed. Best of luck.

Thanks a lot for the advice. I'll try to keep the tank fish less for 80 days.

One last question, do you think if I lower the salinty of th water I might kill some parasites and still keep the bacteria alive?

Thanks

Highgrade · Aug 15, 2017

Hugo Garcia said:
Thanks a lot for the advice. I'll try to keep the tank fish less for 80 days.

One last question, do you think if I lower the salinty of th water I might kill some parasites and still keep the bacteria alive?

Thanks

That might be true for ich. I'm not sure about other parasites/diseases. If you lower your salinity to 1.018-1.021 the rate of survival for the ich theronts/tomites is lowered. As for temps I don't believe there is a specific temp that could help without compromising your beneficial bacteria. Studies have shown that the Marine Ich (cryptocayron) can thrive in temps 50-85 degrees. If you go fishless for 80 days make sure you QT all fish prior to adding them. Don't learn the hard way. It is a pain to deal with Ich, velvet, brook and flukes especially. If you add a fish that has one of these or something else the entire tank will be infected and usually doesn't end well (meaning death of livestock or starting the fishless cycle over again). Only reef safe treatment is Prazipro for flukes. Any other treatments will kill corals, inverts and beneficial bacteria. So best to take your time and QT.
Best of luck.