Aiptasia killing made a bit easier: a cheap/ghetto kalk paste method

A month or two ago I wiped out all the visible aiptasias in my tank using this method, and I just did it again since the "target nuking" can't eliminate the entire tank, so they had spread back out. Took about a month for the to come back.

(fwiw the tank is only 25g and has a fuzzy dwarf lion so peppermint shrimp are out of the question, as are tangs that eat them).



Anyhow, I used kalk paste a long time ago but hated the mess. I figured out how to stop that, and also perhaps keep the kalk from spiking the pH of the tank too much (this mix tends to stay as a glob on the rock, not being whisped away when the pumps come back on).



First, take some tank water, perhaps 1/4 cup. Add a couple teaspoons of salt mix to saturate it (ie, make the water "heavy").

Add kalkwassar until the mix is about as thick as mayonnaise. Add two slices of ham, some provolone, and.. oh oops.. sorry......


Anyhow, mix this kalk and saltwater mix thick.



Now turn off all pumps. No water flow whatsoever.

Next take a medicine syringe (oral syringe) and plug some rigid airline tubing on the end (luckily mine fits perfect). The tubing only makes it easier to reach those in a crevice or the bottom of the tank.

Wick up some of this thick goop.


Now, find your first victim. Get close to him, directly over him. Gently squeeze out some of the thick paste. It should come out like a long white turd. Kinda creepy looking actually. Let the aiptasia "grab it" and it will often try to entangle it at eat it. As it retracts into it's hole, SMOTHER it and cake it with a good mound of kalk paste.


Hit as many as you feel safe doing this to, and leave the pumps off for the next 10 minutes or so.


In my experience the kalk paste will remain as a lump for the most part when the pumps come back on.


This almost always kills them off. Of course, not being a natural method where predators are constantly looking for them, there will always be the few you can't get in the rockwork that will repopulate. But, for 10 minutes of work, and a small amount of sadistic murderous tendencies being satisfied, it's quite effective

 

yup +1 ive been doing this for a while works great!

 

Have you been mixing the salt mix in with it? I had never heard of it and tried it on a whim to keep the stuff "fixed" in place when I dose it.

Glad to know someone else has tried this recipe; hopefully after a few battles I'll really beat them into total submission. Yeah right.

 

hahah yea i use the saltwater as well

 

wow

 

I'm writing a new movie, the Texas Pickling Lime Massacre. I'll be playing Leathercoral Face.

 

I simply use a syringe with said method. If you use a syringe, and inject the offenders internally you don't need to cut flow at all.

I have used this method for quite some time with great results.