Removing live rock to kill Aiptasia?

[Kasey]

I’ve got a fist sized piece of live rock with a visible Aiptasia, can I pull that and do the lemon juice injection, fill hole with superglue, and then freshwater soak to kill it?

 

[Peace River]

I’ve got a fist sized piece of live rock with a visible Aiptasia, can I pull that and do the lemon juice injection, fill hole with superglue, and then freshwater soak to kill it?

You could, that would be one possibility. I have had mixed results with lemon juice - sometimes it annoys them and they multiply. I would recommend @Frank's Tanks F-Aiptasia for the best results. Good luck!

 

[Kasey]

You could, that would be one possibility. I have had mixed results with lemon juice - sometimes it annoys them and they multiply. I would recommend @Frank's Tanks F-Aiptasia for the best results. Good luck!

Would it be able to multiply still if the rock is outta of water? I would think by injecting it and supergluing before dipping in fresh RODI would mostly eliminate the chances of it spreading?

 

[lapin]

Aiptasia.
Its my belief after years of messing with them they can live out of water for weeks. They drink Aiptaisa_x with lemon juice for breakfast. Eat superglue like it was candy. *-*

 

[Peace River]

Would it be able to multiply still if the rock is outta of water? I would think by injecting it and supergluing before dipping in fresh RODI would mostly eliminate the chances of it spreading?

It could work and you can certainly try it - let us know if it works (please know that I am truly being genuine and not at all sarcastic). Having fought with aiptasia over the years and then finding F-Aiptasia, it is the first product that I have found that consistently kills aiptasia on the first try every time. Even if you want to try other options first just know that F-Aiptasia exists when you need it. Good luck!

 

[Kasey]

It could work and you can certainly try it - let us know if it works (please know that I am truly being genuine and not at all sarcastic). Having fought with aiptasia over the years and then finding F-Aiptasia, it is the first product that I have found that consistently kills aiptasia on the first try every time. Even if you want to try other options first just know that F-Aiptasia exists when you need it. Good luck!

Is that a newer product? I’ve heard of Aiptasia X, using vinegar, boiling water, Kalk, various sludges, I’m just hearing about this product tonight!

 

[Peace River]

Is that a newer product? I’ve heard of Aiptasia X, using vinegar, boiling water, Kalk, various sludges, I’m just hearing about this product tonight!

Yep, sounds about right! I've tried all of those plus other branded products, lasers, and more with limited to mixed success. Aiptasia X seems to blow away as soon as you turn the pumps back on, whereas F-Aiptasia is much thicker and sticks to the aiptasia.

In addition to have a great product, Frank also has unbelievable customer service and is a regular here on R2R. @Frank's Tanks - when did you introduce F-Aiptasia?

 

[Sashaka]

I’ve got a fist sized piece of live rock with a visible Aiptasia, can I pull that and do the lemon juice injection, fill hole with superglue, and then freshwater soak to kill it?

Yes, you could do all that but seems like a lot of work. Personally, if I planned on nuking the rock in freshwater anyway, I wouldn't go to all that trouble. Get a bucket, add some water and a cup of bleach and let the rock sit the beach water until all uglies on the rock are eaten away, then rinse well, and let the rock completely dry before putting it back in the tank. I dry my rock out in the sun on the deck. It seems to cook the rock better. Bleach, btw, is non toxic once completely dry.

 

[MTBake]

Aiptasia.
Its my belief after years of messing with them they can live out of water for weeks. They drink Aiptaisa_x with lemon juice for breakfast. Eat superglue like it was candy. *-*

This has been my experience as well.

Burn em with fire!!!

 

[Mariette]

I had a mini outbreak years ago. Had maybe 4 or 5 of em. Aptasia-X took care of them after 1 use. Never came back. Good luck

 

[Scotty Buttons]

Personally I would just throw the rock away and get a new one. Not worth the risk IMO.

 

[Kasey]

I ended up pulling the rock for a freshwater soak, injected lemon juice, injected hydrogen peroxide, took a blow torch to his hole, and filled it with superglue. It’s back in freshwater now and I’m tossing around letting it air dry in the sun. My peppermint shrimp won’t eat them and my tank is too small for a copperband, I’ve tossed around adding in a filefish but it’s not something I would want to keep longterm

 

[Firemanreefkeeper]

I know this post is late as I see you've already pulled the rock and killed it but maybe it can help somebody in the future. You can win the battle but you have to be committed and diligent in the fight. I had some rocks and frags I wanted to keep but they had aiptasia on them. I have them separated in a QT tank. I sit in front of the tank and inspect all the surfaces looking for their ugly little heads poking out from any nook, cranny, holes, creases, ECT. If I see them I pull the rock or plug and take it to "the lab". I have a 4 watt laser that I use to burn them off. If for some reason I can't get them with the laser I'll just glue over the spot it's growing from. Once I've finished attacking them the rock goes back in. The next day I repeat the process again. I've been doing this for a month now. The first 2 weeks I killed aiptasia almost everyday. Now it's about once every 3 to 4 days and I'm only finding one here and there. I don't know how aiptasia works, but I want to say that some spores remain dormant until things are "ok" before they sprout up which is why I am still finding them here and there.
I've had to do this process before on my zoes that I put into my frag tank. That was pretty straightforward though as there were only so many places they could hide on a frag plug. Rocks are more difficult as they have, depending on the size, multiple places to hide.
It's a lot of work and it's not over yet but I know it's working when I only see one every couple of days. Before it was 5 everyday.

 

[Sashaka]

I don't know how aiptasia works, but I want to say that some spores remain dormant until things are "ok" before they sprout up which is why I am still finding them here and there.

Like you, Firemanreefkeeper, I also think the spores remain dormant for long periods of time until conditions are optimal. I bought a few coral skeletons and a few live rocks for my nano tank where I cultivate pods. Nothing else goes in this tank from my other tanks. Everything used in the tank, nets, buckets, etc., are for this tank exclusively, so there is little to no chance that aiptasia transferred into the tank from my 29 gal BioCube, the only tank with aiptasia. I currently have 4 saltwater and one freshwater tank going. Six to eight months after setting up the nano tank, aiptasia appeared. I'll bet this stuff could survive the next ice-age. When all the worlds coral reefs are frozen over, aiptasia will thrive-waving their ugly little heads in the icy waters!

 

[Firemanreefkeeper]

Six to eight months after setting up the nano tank, aiptasia appeared.

Well, that's the stuff nightmares are made of! I had to decommission my 75 gallon tank because there were a number of pests, aiptasia included, and transfer what I wanted into a frag/ observation tank. I haven't seen any aiptasia in a week, knock on wood, but based on this information I'll have to keep a diligent and watchful eye on not only the plugs themselves but the rocks I put in there from the sump that appeared clean. I guess I need a cup of coffee and my flashlight.

 

[Cnidoblast]

Take the rock out, fill a bucket with enough dollar-store unscented bleach to cover the rock - wait a day and then let it bake out in the sun for 48 hours

 

[Drewbacca]

I’ve got a fist sized piece of live rock with a visible Aiptasia, can I pull that and do the lemon juice injection, fill hole with superglue, and then freshwater soak to kill it?

Just in case anyone looks here for best method when the rock is removable.. it's always best to take a pic of the rock for its placement and where the aptasia is. Once it's out of your tank you can see the little shiny jelly dots where they were now that they are drawn in and protected themselves from air with slime.
( This protective coat also makes for less chances of an applied removal treatment working )
For this reason, the best method for aptasiacsnd mojo anemone removal when the rock is out of your tank, is to put on medical gloves and eye protection ( they can spit juice toward your face & eyes and you don't know what may be just inside any crevis ready to irritate or sting you as you handle the rock.)
And use the tip of angled wire cutters and dig in and twist to scoop out around it. And/or open and bite down on the rock with the tip of the cutters around each side of the aptasia and then a final twisting scoop so a little crater is formed. (Just scraping with dental tools could leave rooted pieces on the rock which it can regrow from)

 

[acropora4u]

take the rock out, scrub off with brush , rinse with salt water and good to go!

 

[hlaalu]

A few methods I've tried that have worked:

Inside the tank: Aptasia X. It really works well. Turn all your pumps and wavemakers off.

Outside the tank: Let the rock sit in the sun for a few days.

Or, if you don't have time to wait, put the rock in a large pot with some water and steam it for 30 minutes. Basically a little autoclave for your rock.

 

[Cell]

If pulling the rock out, I'd get a tweezers or forceps and manually remove as much as possible, tilting the rock up and spot rinsing with RODI in a squirt bottle, then scrape the area real good with more rinsing to remove any remaining tissue. Maybe hit it with some H202.

I would never recommend boiling a live rock.