Timing of dips to remove AEFW?

[LobsterOfJustice]

What is the proper number of dips and time between dips to ensure no AEFW get through? I want to space the dips apart with enough time to let the eggs hatch but not enough time for them to lay more.

 

[Reefiness]

When I battled mine, I was dipping everything weekly for about a month and it seemed to do the trick.

 

[crusso1993]

Here is a very good article on AEFW from Marc @melev. Not easy to get rid of but it is doable with time and patience.

Good luck!

http://www.melevsreef.com/articles/acropora-eating-flat-worms-aefw

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

Thanks. I do not have a known infestation, but discovered what might be bite marks on the underside of a new coral I got over the weekend, so this one is going into QT to get multiple dips.

 

[rlman41299]

I have been in that situation and it is very difficult but doable. Unfortunately I lost the battle after a few months. Lost all my sps and started from scratch. No matter how much I wanted to add sps from other reefers I only acquired my new stock from only 3 reefers I know and trust that don't have infestation. Hard lesson learned.

 

[KidA]

Recommend checking out the Vibrant option to dose your tank.

 

[Graffiti Spot]

6-7 days apart from each dip and 4-5 dips total will do it but most people add an extra dip to make sure. Some even dip for up to 7-8 times because of heavy infestations. I would suggest Melafix for ASR’s dips so you can see them in the dip, plus it’s really strong and kills them or knocks them off the coral quick.

 

[jda]

In QT, weekly is fine, but be sure and remove the rack and let it dry out when you dip. Having two racks is good. The worms will lay eggs sometimes on the plugs and racks if they cannot find dead skeleton on the coral. I have used bayer before and left the coral in there for like 20 minutes... no worms survive this. It is hard to see in Bayer, but that is Ok with me since I can see all that I need to see before I dip them.

I would never use Purge on any tank unless you are at the final straw. While it has worked for some, there are WAY too many losses and failures to ignore. You can treat AEFW in tank safely, but it is expensive and takes about 5-6 moths.

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

In QT, weekly is fine, but be sure and remove the rack and let it dry out when you dip. Having two racks is good. The worms will lay eggs sometimes on the plugs and racks if they cannot find dead skeleton on the coral. I have used bayer before and left the coral in there for like 20 minutes... no worms survive this. It is hard to see in Bayer, but that is Ok with me since I can see all that I need to see before I dip them.

I would never use Purge on any tank unless you are at the final straw. While it has worked for some, there are WAY too many losses and failures to ignore. You can treat AEFW in tank safely, but it is expensive and takes about 5-6 moths.

Thanks. I will plan on weekly dips and placing the coral into a completely new QT setup post-dip (the setup is just a 10g tank, heater, and powerhead, all of which I have spares of). There is some dead skeleton on the coral, I scrubbed what I could with a toothbrush pre and post dip which I will continue to do. This is a large colony that barely fits into a 5g bucket and I paid $65 for it so I was willing to overlook some old dead branches, etc. I am using Bayer but usually keep the time to 10 minutes, I will extend to 20.

For clarity, the coral was never placed into my tank, so there are no AEFW in my system. Just trying to keep it that way.

 

[jda]

10 minutes is fine. Just follow your normal routine. Baste the corals in the bucket or use a powerhead, though. These things are not hard to kill outside of the tank.