Guide to the most commonly used treatments, dips, methods, etc. in one spot

  • Thread starter Thread starter DD
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DD

DD

"Rambo"
Hey everyone,

Just thought it would be handy to have all of the various things we commonly use on our reefs in one list.

Please feel free to contribute to this list with what you do. I think it'll be a great source of wealth for people that are looking for solutions to problems. May as well use the "hive mind" to share our knowledge and tricks we've accumulated over the years.

I'll start a list that I think would be beneficial. If you have other suggestions, please feel free to update the list with your tip. I think we can have a good thread with these sorts of tips we've all accumulated.

1. Live rock cooking

  • Dont.

    there were couple of reports of people ending up in hospitals after cooking LR because they were not aware that some zoas or palys were growing on the LR which released poisonous gas while cooking the rock. You never know what can be inside the LR to gamble...I'd choose other methods rather than cooking....maybe bleach wash. My personal method was to do several vinegar bath then let it sit out on my balcony over the whole winter season (3-4 months)

  • See this thread for a DIY method of cooking live rock: http://www.chicagoreefs.com/forums/showthread.php?16144-cooking-live-rock

2. Bayer dips

  • Bayer insecticide method - for redbugs and AEFW - DIP ONLY!

    http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1965880

    Bayer Advanced Home pest and Germ Killer - 4ml / 2.1cups (500ml) water, 15 min dip
    Bayer Advanced Complete Insect killer - 10ml / .5cup (120ml) water, 5 min dip

    (Be carful to rinse corals and hands well after being in dip before going back into tank)
    (will kill fish and inverts)
    (suggested to not exceed dip times)
    (shake corals under water to dislodge RB/AEFW after the dip)

3. Treatment methods for QT'ing fish

4. Vinegar baths for equipment

  • Vinegar bath for equipment: 1:10 or even higher ratios of cheap white vinegar in warm tap water can remove coraline and other nasty buildup on just about any reef equipment or tank. Running a pump or skimmer in a bath like this and then using a soft brush can make almost anything look completely new again. Simply rinse any residule vinegar before putting back into a tank. Small amounts of vinegar are reef safe and are often used as a "carbon dosing" source.

5. Cleaning filter socks

  • Take a filter sock, turn it inside out, then rinse it under your sink. Once you've cleaned it sufficiently, take a bucket with hot water and a bit of bleach, toss the sock in. Let that sit for a bit, at least until the water cools, stirring it occasionally. Remove the socks and squeeze out as much water as you can, then rinse it under some water. Fill another bucket with cold water and let the sock sit in there for a few hours. Remove and wring out the sock, then allow to dry. Once dry, make sure it doesn't smell of bleach and you're ready to use it again.
  • Alternative method is to turn the sock inside out and wash it in the washing machine with some bleach. Don't use fabric softener or detergent. Just bleach. Remove it from the washing machine, then rinse it in cold water until you can't smell bleach any longer.
  • See post #29 for another way to clean filter socks
6. Securing live rock during aquascaping

  • One method of securing live rock during scaping is to use JB water weld. Cut a piece of the epoxy stick then knead it between your fingers until both parts have been mixed thoroughly together. Set the epoxy between two rocks, push them together, then use your fingers to push the epoxy around where it's just squeezed out. One way to camoflage the epoxy is to also stick small pieces of rock to the epoxy so that you can't see it.
  • Next method involves drilling the rock with a masonry bit, inserting either acrylic rods or fiberglass driveway markers (the type with the red reflector on top), cut the piece to length and insert it into your drilled holes, then stack the rock. Once you have drilled and stacked rocks up, you can either leave it as is, or for further reinforcement, you can also use some epoxy to make sure it's secure.
  • The method I used for my scape is to take the epoxy from the first method, but then add some frag glue to both sides of the epoxy, right where both rocks will touch. This will form so strong of a bond it'll be tough to remove. So basically you're making a frag glue sandwich with epoxy in the center. I use this method to attach frags to my scape, and it is incredibly difficult to remove.

7. DIY two part

8. Trapping pests and fish

  • To trap fish, the easiest but most costly method is to purchase an aquamedic fish trap. It's pretty slick. You set it in your tank, there is a tube that you can put frozen food into, then you insert that tube in the hole on the top of the trap. There is a glass sliding door that's held by a release mechanism attached to some fishing line. Once the trap is baited, you crack open a beer, and wait for the fish to swim in. Some fish are harder to catch than others, but give them some time, and they will eventually swim in. Some other ways of baiting the trap are to take a mirror and set it in the back of the trap. The other is to take a photo of the fish and set that behind the trap. The two last methods will work on more aggressive fish.
  • If you have any pest crabs that you want to get out of your reef, take a shot glass, or a small glass that you can bury in the sand. Bury the shot glass up to the rim, wait until the lights go out and your fish are sleeping, then add some bait into the cup. The trick is that once the crabs enter the trap, they are unable to climb out themselves.
  • Please refer to posts 9 and 10 for additional trapping methods.

9. Algae control (bryopsis, hair, cyano, etc)

  • Bryopsis-Kent Tech M (not magnesium in general) seems to break down this invasive algae to a point where CUC members have a chance of helping with it. Dosing MAG to slightly higher levels than normal can be an effective tool. 1:10 hydrogen peroxide/tank water dips can also be effective and have been proven relatively safe for some corals. Further research is suggested before implementing either since over dosing can cause serious problems in a tank.
  • I did the Peroxide Dip on some of my rocks and frag plugs that started to grow some Bryopsis. a couple of my frag plugs I had to do the dip a couple times. My rock that didn't have it that bad once was enough. 3% Peroxide I dipped zoa frags and once Green Slimer frag... The Zoas closed up over night but opened up the next morning. Green Slimer did bleach out a bit at the base where it was dipped but color returned in a couple days. Bryopsis completely gone.
  • See post #18 for another tip

10. Zoa pox treatments

11. Killing flatworms

  • While Flat Worm Exit and other products are extremely effective and relatively reef safe it is far bettter to first identify and eliminate the source of the flatworm population explosion (generally overfeeding and/or poor water quality). Once that is eliminated, commercial products can be an excellent way to get a handle on eliminating the population. Siphon out as many live worms as possible before dosing and be ready with an approximately 25% water change after you see the FWs respond to the toxin. Each dead FW releases a tiny bit of toxin that is dangerous mostly to fish and o2 levels so it is best to continue siphoning as many of the dead worms as possible as the concurrent WC is performed. A second dose may be required, but give plenty of time in between for the tank to balance and be sure to check your skimmer for an overflow reaction.

12. Killing red bugs

  • Please see post #6 for details.

13. Aiptasia and other pest anemones

  • Lemon juice in a syringe injected directly into the aiptasia has worked for many.
  • Joe's juice, aiptasia X, etc. works to some extent. The trick is getting the aiptasia to eat it.
  • Kalkwasser and hot water mixed into a watery paste. Suck up the mixture into a syringe and you can either inject it right into the aiptasia, feed it to it with the syringe, or just make the mixture thicker and cover right over the aiptasia.
  • Two natural methods are to use peppermint shrimp, as well as berghia nudibranch's. Peppermints can be hit or miss, the berghias only feed on aiptasia's so when you're tank has been eradicated, you will need to find a home for it.
  • Fish that eat aiptasia to varying degrees are copperband butterflies, as well as aiptasia eating filefish.

14. Hydrogen peroxide use for power outages

  • See post #15 for details

15. Treating for ich/crypt and/or other parasites in the entire DT

  • See post #16 for details

16. List of treatments and contraindications for fish

  • See post #17 for links and details

17. Diseases and Illnesses you can catch from your reef/fish

  • See post #27 for Mycobacterium Marinum: the fish disease you can catch
  • See post #(placeholder for palytoxin) Palytoxin poisoning

18. Carbon Dosing

  • See post #31 for links and details
If you have a proven method that you've used and continue to use, please post that method and I will update the first post.

If you have a different method than what someone else has posted, throw it up here. I'll list several methods under each. Always good to have options since what works for one person, may not work for others.

Thanks in advance for any tips you share. I think this will help many new reefers.

I've left some open so if you have any please share and I will add them.
 
4. Vinegar bath for equipment: 1:10 or even higher ratios of cheap white vinegar in warm tap water can remove coraline and other nasty buildup on just about any reef equipment or tank. Running a pump or skimmer in a bath like this and then using a soft brush can make almost anything look completely new again. Simply rinse any residule vinegar before putting back into a tank. Small amounts of vinegar are reef safe and are often used as a "carbon dosing" source.


9. (A) Bryopsis-Kent Tech M (not magnesium in general) seems to break down this invasive algae to a point where CUC members have a chance of helping with it. Dosing MAG to slightly higher levels than normal can be an effective tool. 1:10 hydrogen peroxide/tank water dips can also be effective and have been proven relatively safe for some corals. Further research is suggested before implementing either since over dosing can cause serious problems in a tank.

11- Killing Flatworms- While Flat Worm Exit and other products are extremely effective and relatively reef safe it is far bettter to first identify and eliminate the source of the flatworm population explosion (generally overfeeding and/or poor water quality). Once that is eliminated, commercial products can be an excellent way to get a handle on eliminating the population. Siphon out as many live worms as possible before dosing and be ready with an approximately 25% water change after you see the FWs respond to the toxin. Each dead FW releases a tiny bit of toxin that is dangerous mostly to fish and o2 levels so it is best to continue siphoning as many of the dead worms as possible as the concurrent WC is performed. A second dose may be required, but give plenty of time in between for the tank to balance and be sure to check your skimmer for an overflow reaction.
 
Herbie said:
4. Vinegar bath for equipment: 1:10 or even higher ratios of cheap white vinegar in warm tap water can remove coraline and other nasty buildup on just about any reef equipment or tank. Running a pump or skimmer in a bath like this and then using a soft brush can make almost anything look completely new again. Simply rinse any residule vinegar before putting back into a tank. Small amounts of vinegar are reef safe and are often used as a "carbon dosing" source.


9. (A) Bryopsis-Kent Tech M (not magnesium in general) seems to break down this invasive algae to a point where CUC members have a chance of helping with it. Dosing MAG to slightly higher levels than normal can be an effective tool. 1:10 hydrogen peroxide/tank water dips can also be effective and have been proven relatively safe for some corals. Further research is suggested before implementing either since over dosing can cause serious problems in a tank.

11- Killing Flatworms- While Flat Worm Exit and other products are extremely effective and relatively reef safe it is far bettter to first identify and eliminate the source of the flatworm population explosion (generally overfeeding and/or poor water quality). Once that is eliminated, commercial products can be an excellent way to get a handle on eliminating the population. Siphon out as many live worms as possible before dosing and be ready with an approximately 25% water change after you see the FWs respond to the toxin. Each dead FW releases a tiny bit of toxin that is dangerous mostly to fish and o2 levels so it is best to continue siphoning as many of the dead worms as possible as the concurrent WC is performed. A second dose may be required, but give plenty of time in between for the tank to balance and be sure to check your skimmer for an overflow reaction.
Click to expand...

Sweet thanks Nate! Updated the list!
 
2. Bayer insecticide method - for redbugs and AEFW - DIP ONLY!

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1965880

Bayer Advanced Home pest and Germ Killer - 4ml / 2.1cups (500ml) water, 15 min dip
Bayer Advanced Complete Insect killer - 10ml / .5cup (120ml) water, 5 min dip

(Be carful to rinse corals and hands well after being in dip before going back into tank)
(will kill fish and inverts)
(suggested to not exceed dip times)
(shake corals under water to dislodge RB/AEFW after the dip)
 
jrpark22000 said:
2. Bayer insecticide method - for redbugs and AEFW - DIP ONLY!

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1965880

Bayer Advanced Home pest and Germ Killer - 4ml / 2.1cups (500ml) water, 15 min dip
Bayer Advanced Complete Insect killer - 10ml / .5cup (120ml) water, 5 min dip

(Be carful to rinse corals and hands well after being in dip before going back into tank)
(will kill fish and inverts)
(suggested to not exceed dip times)
(shake corals under water to dislodge RB/AEFW after the dip)
Click to expand...

Thanks Josh! List updated.
 
12. Killing red bugs

Novatris Interceptor method - for redbugs - intank or Dip

http://www.reefs.org/forums/viewtopic.php?p=439155




The Red Bug Treatment

*******Disclaimer*******
If you use this medication it is at your own risk. No one but yourself is responsible for your actions with this medication. Please read carefully and follow the directions. This medication will most likely kill off all crustaceans in your aquarium.


This medication was first tested in multiple sterile hospital tanks. The dosage and its effect on corals and other typical aquarium animals was determined at this stage. The second stage took place in 7 reef aquariums owned and/or operated by 7 different people. It took 2 –3 months to get to this point. The third stage is taking place right now. The medication name has been released and the treatment protocol posted. I would assume people will be treating their tanks on their own before the end of February.

As you can see this medication has gone through a rather small amount of testing and not much time has gone by. All of the results have been positive so far. However, only time will tell if the red bugs will return to treated systems. Time will also tell if there is some sort of sort of side effect that will pop up a year or more from now. I need to make this point clear.

If you use this medication it is at your own risk. No one but yourself is responsible for your actions with this medication.

------------------


Ok, here is the moment many of you have been waiting for. We (myself and the volunteers) feel this medication is effective against red bugs, and probably safe enough to use in a home aquarium.

The medication is a DOG heartworm medication called Interceptor, it is only available from a veterinarian with a prescription. The tablets used in the initial treatments were for large dogs, 51-100lbs. These tablets are just under 1 gram each and contain 23mg of Milbemycin Oxime, the rest of it is a lovely smelling beef flavor. This chemical is active against Nematodes (Heartworms in dogs) and select arthropods (some types of Mange in dogs). Luckily, our red bugs are one of those select arthropods. The tablets come 6 to a box.

Here is the official information from Novartis on the medication.
http://www.ah.novartis.com/products/en/cab/interceptor.shtml

Refer to this thread and read the whole thing before you begin the treatment.
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=43945




The dosage used in an aquarium to kill redbugs is 25mg (0.025 grams) per 10 gallons of actual tank water . That is 25mg of the entire tablet. Each tablet in the pack of 6 will treat about 380 gallons. The tablets are ground with a mortar and pestle into a fine powder.

Do your very best to calculate your actual water volume. Take into consideration your sump, oversized plumbing and things like that. All of the initial tests were done with the estimated volume of live rock and live sand subtracted from the total gallons. You need to make sure that every part of the system that’s capable of holding water is treated. This means your refugium, the water inside your calcium reactor, the water inside your skimmer while it is not foaming.

Measure out the Interceptor on a very accurate scale that is capable of reading down to 0.001 grams. Remember, the dosage
is 0.025grams per 10 gallons. For safety’s sake get as close as you possibly can. It has been pointed out that it may not
be necessary to get down to the 1/1000th of a gram point when we are guessing on the actual water volume. This is an
excellent point, however, since we are pretty much guessing our water volume, we should do our very best to make sure that we treat that guess accurately. We don’t want to over treat an over estimate.

Before adding the medication to your tank, turn off your skimmer (water needs to run through it, but you do not want it
producing any bubbles. Remove any mechanical filtration if present. Remove any carbon if present. Turn off UV sterilizers
and ozone generators.

Remove any shrimp or crabs that you want to save. They will have to stay out of the system for the duration of the treatment.
Remember, that when you add them back to your tank, there is a slight chance that you will re-introduce the red bugs to your
tank.

The medication is dissolved into some aquarium water (it is not easily soluble, you will have to stir for a while) and spread
evenly across the surface of the water. Your tank should remain perfectly clear and look very normal the entire time. The bugs
hang on well into the 4th and 5th hour of the treatment, dont be alarmed. Many of the bugs will hang on for days even after
they are dead.

If anything goes wrong during treatment perform a water change ASAP and add a large amount of carbon to your system.

After 6 hours, a 25% MINIMUM water change is performed and as much activated carbon as you can fit should be added to the
tank. In the initial tests, crustaceans that were reintroduced to a tank after a 25% water change and carbon were unaffected
by the medication. 24 hours later the water should be changed again and the carbon replaced. There is no maximum for the water changes or carbon, the more you do the better.

The treatment needs to be peformed a MINIMUM of 3 times. We know it kills the bugs, but we don’t know enough about their
lifecycle to determine if it kills them at every stage of their life. We have to assume that all of the most of the adults
are killed in the first treatment. The goal of the second treatment is to clean up any left over adults, and any juveniles
that have hatched out of eggs that might have been unaffected. The third treatment is a “just in case” treatment, its goal
is to get any bugs that could have possibly survived the first two. I know that three treatments sounds scary, after the first
one you will feel much more comfortable with it though.

The frequency of the treatments has yet to be fully determined. Some of the volunteers in the testing did the first two
treatments 7 days apart with the 3rd treatment 14 days after the second. Some did 3 treatments 7 days apart. Personally, I have been doing 2 treatments 24 hours apart every 7 days. I will repeat this 4 times for a total of 8 treatments.

The medication seems to be fairly safe, since we dont know the life cycle of the bug its best to err on the side of caution and
treat several times. Pretend its an antibiotic, if your going to use it once, make sure you do the whole treatment process at
least 3 times!!!


Refer to this thread and read the whole thing before you begin the treatment.
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=43945


Some things to remember.

1. The ENTIRE system has to be treated. There could be bugs or bug larvae anywhere in your system. Do not take your refugium offline. Do not turn any part of your filtration off that will trap water. For example, if your skimmer is shut off, but has
1/2 gallon of water in it, that water needs to be treated!
2. You will probably kill off a lot of your pods, shrimps and crabs.
3. This medication has not been tested for very long. The bugs might come back. Like anything you put in your tank it could be
toxic a year down the road.
4. The pills are for Large dogs, 50-100lbs. The dose is 25mg/10gal/6hrs.
5. If the treatment is not successful and you still have bugs visible after the 1st treatment, make a slight adjustment to
your dose and start over again. This was only necessary in 1 out of 7 systems tested. It was a very old, large and intricate
system.
6. I am sure, someone, somewhere will overdose or do something wrong. I am sure that someone will blame a tank crash 6 months down the road on this medication. Remember, no one but yourself is responsible for that!!!!!


Quarantine

I have not been able to come up with an effective, quick kill dipping strength. Even at 100x strength, the bugs lasted over
30 minutes. The best way to keep them from getting back in your tank is to treat the coral for the full 6 hours, an increased
dose seems to be safe for corals. You are only going to be treating your new coral once. If the bug lays its eggs on the
corals (no one knows) they could hatch off a week later in your aquarium.
 
1. LR cooking - Dont.

there were couple of reports of people ending up in hospitals after cooking LR because they were not aware that some zoas or palys were growing on the LR which released poisonous gas while cooking the rock. You never know what can be inside the LR to gamble...I'd choose other methods rather than cooking....maybe bleach wash. My personal method was to do several vinegar bath then let it sit out on my balcony over the whole winter season (3-4 months)
 
9. Algae control (bryopsis, hair, cyano, etc)

I did the Peroxide Dip on some of my rocks and frag plugs that started to grow some Bryopsis. a couple of my frag plugs I had to do the dip a couple times. My rock that didn't have it that bad once was enough. 3% Peroxide I dipped zoa frags and once Green Slimer frag... The Zoas closed up over night but opened up the next morning. Green Slimer did bleach out a bit at the base where it was dipped but color returned in a couple days. Bryopsis completely gone.
 
8. Trapping pests and fish

The DRAIN METHOD:

Prompted by a query in another thread, I thought it might be useful to remind folks that need to remove fishes or motile invertebrates from established tanks that it is not effective or helpful to relentlessly chase the animal around the tank with a single net until exhaustion. Thats not good for anyone... especially a sick fish that needs to be pulled for QT.

And... there is not need to tear down the rockscape in part or whole just to make the same above attempt in what will be muddy/turbid water

No...if you need to trap this or any such fish... DO NOT tear down the tank, but instead set up some water holding vessels/clean garbage cans (well worth the $8 at Walmart if you have to buy new)... and use one of your powerheads/pumps or just a length or large bore tubing (1-1.5" from Home Depot) to drain the tank fast. Even a small powerhead of say 400ghp will pump a typical tank dry in mere minutes.

Thus... when the fishes are in low water (scoop a low spot in the sand if substrate is in the tank to force them into a really tight spot) you can effortlessly catch the targeted creature without stressing it or other fishes badly.

Then... simply pump that water right back in. You can drain and fisll even large aquarium in less time than it takes to eat lunch

As for the exposed rock/coral... I promise you that the 2 week dry import of live rock and the daily exposure of most reef corals to equatorial sun at low tide is far more stressful than the 15-20 minutes in a climate controlled house that it takes for you to drain and refill your tank

Ah, but what of anemones? Well.. the anemones would be better than most any other creature with this imposed "low tide." Wholesaler's ship and import most all of them without water to improve shipping survivability (they cannot pass waste in their own shipping bag water and pollute/kill themselves).



The JAR METHOD:

For rogue crabs in particular... this is a fab, cheap and easy way to grab the critters.
They generally have very pointy "toes." This aspect of their legs makes them very well adapted to hold onto rocks, corals and other hard substrates in particularly heavy water flow on the reef. They can exploit places to hunt for food or graze algae, etc well by this adaptation.

But they cannot climb glass. Have you every seen a hermit crab hanging front and center in the middle of your aquarium pane? Ahhh... no.

And they cannot climb the glass walls of a pickle jar, or the like, either.

But they CAN scurry down to the bottom of the jar after some favorite stinky, smelly meaty foods And they will be waiting for you to pull them out later

If you have other creatures in the tank that will also go for this bait... deal with it. Finesse the "trap" or the hunt as needed. Bury a smaller jar in the sand, lean it against the rosk, narrow the mouth or opening to reduce the number of tankmates that are small enough to enter... hunt at night for an hour or two after the lights go out so you can watch, learn, adapt, etc.




The BAG in a BAG METHOD:

This is my favorite way of catching realy shy or elusive fishes from the reef tank. Dwarf angels, basslets and the like can be had this way with little disturbance to the tank as long as you have a little bit of patience

Take a fairly large plastic bag (new and sturdy 3-4mil preferably). Size relative to the fish being caught... but typically a 10X22" catches most home reef aquarium fishes.

Fold the top of the bag down about 2" to make a sturdy collar and sink this bag into the aquarium while removing all air from in and under it (the collar).

Place the bag expanded (fluff it out so it is a bit spacious) in the aquarium... but MOST IMPORTANTLY lean it against the rockscape so that shy fishes are more likely to slip by or in it (security) as opposed to waiting with it in open water. duh!

The Bait: take a tiny golf-ball sized plastic bag of concentrated live bring shrimp... tie it off, then throw it into the back of the large sunken bag trap.

Then... with a bowl of additional live brine shrimp in a slurry, you sit near the tank (lights off in the room) and occasionally squirt
(turkey baster) just a little bit of brine shrimp into the mouth of the bag every few minutes as needed.

The obvious ploy here is to lure fishes to the mouth of the bag and tease them with the "motherload" in the back! (the small tied off bag of concentrated live food)

Now of course... every other fish and its brother that you do not want to catch will enter the bag first But eventually the shy fish will too... and when it does, you are sitting several feet away from the tank with a piece of fishing string that was tied around the neck of the bag, under the collar... and pull!

You'd be amazed how well this works for really elusive fishes. It takes time though... and patience.





The GONE FISHING METHOD:

I'm not kidding.... I've hooked my own fishes before... and I'll do it again if it is the best or needed solution.

Three words here: Barbless Trout Hook

Relative to relentlessly chasing a fish unskilled (you, not the fish) with a net until it's exhausted, scraped and otherwise brutalized... you could just tease and jig the until the right fish bites the hook.

I promise you the short catch and release is far less stressful than the run down with a net. Literally less abrasive too (nets are rough on skin/eyes, mucous).

And the hook is so tiny that it barely damages the lip... can be cut away and left if swallowed (extreme, yes... but usually dissolves in time).

This is NOT a first choice strategy... but really does work for many folks (ahhh... not to mention the millions of fish that are caught and released in the wild by sport fisherman!)

I practice what I preach BTW... caught my Australian tuskfish ($200) and yellow-belly hepatus tang, etc this way from a big display (too large to drain).



HOMEMADE TUBE TRAP

Fish can be captured with a baited trp easily made at home, especially gobies and other bottom dwellers.

Take a plastic bottle, such as a water bottle, and cut off the top. Invert the top back in the bottle. Bait trap and wait. This may take several days. The fish will be sufficiently confused when trying to get out, that you should have enough time to pull the trap out before the fish discovers the exit.

Fair warning: I've had fish learn to avoid the trap by watching their mates go in and get taken.

Dragonettes don't like to go over the lip for some reason, IME. For them , you can leave one end open and slightly submerge the trap in the sand. In order to trap them once they go in, you must devise a trap cover on the end of a stick. Some premade algae cleaners will do nicely.




SUCTION METHOD


I took note of which hole he was hiding in at the moment, then I used some 3/4" spa flex hose to siphon him right out of the hole into a waiting bucket, fast and easy

or

After identifying which live rock hole the fish is in, put the net over him and blasted him out with the turkey baster right into the net.




THE NIGHTTIME KIDNAPPING

For fish who sleep in a regular spot that is relatively open (like clowns), the easiest time to catch them is at night when they are sleeping.

The scene: well after lights out, using a moonlight LED as a guide and eyes well adjusted to the dark.

The victim: your blissfully sleeping fish

The weapon: a clear specimen container, "convalescent home" or similar.

Slowly submerse the weapon and move it close to the fish. Scoop the ifsh up and quickly cover the top of the container. Remove the fish to it's new home, acclimating as necessary, but be kind and don't flip the lights on.



CATCHING SPIKY/PRICKLY CRITTERS

Prodded by Jeff's inquiry above... I add this entry for spiney creatures like bristle/fireworms and some shrimp & stomatopods (mantis).

For these various opportunistic omnivores with spiney aspects to their bodies, we can use it to our advantage to snare them.

With or without the various traps you will hear about in this thread and beyond, you can often snag one of these creatures by using a bit of (boiled to sterilize) ladies nylon stocking or the like.

Tie a small satchel of fragrant food like shrimp in the baggie of nylon (coin sized portion at most). Then tie a bit of string to the bag leading out of the aquarium (the string... not the bag of food - that stays in the aquarium ). Remember to clean oil off of fishing string if used (fishing line may be lubricated for reels in advance)

With this nylon satchel of stinky food inside a trap or not, the omnivorous scavengers are attracted to it overnight and often get snared in the nylon with their spiney aspects.

For the shrimp that will drag or pull the bait into a cave or crevice by daylight... you have the string to lead you there/where.
 
and continued....

LIGHTS ON, WAKE AND BLIND

OPTION1
it's a bit cruel in my opinion but i was having problem trying to rid my tank of a yellow tail damsel, i found the method that works best for me...would be to turn the lights on early morning preferably before the sun is up or whenever you feel that the fish in question is already sleeping...and scoop him up with a cup. i'm not sure about other fishes, but the damsel seems to wander out "blindly" when the lights are turned on in the morning.

OPTION2
In the middle of the darkest night when all the fishies are sound asleep, turn all the halides on full blast. After a few minutes all the fish will come out of the rocks, but will be blinded or at least unresponsive to visual stimuli for about 5 minutes, and can be easily netted out.




FEED FROM SPECIMIN CONTAINER

One of the things I do for all my fish is to train them to feed out of a plastic specimen container. All I do is defrost their food in tank water in the box and then submerge it into the tank. It usually takes a week or so before a new fish will swim right in but after that, I can grab any fish I want right out of the reef with this method. Once they are 'trained', all I have to do is put the cup in once a week or so to keep them going in it. They will usually go into the cup empty once I have been doing it for a while. Probably the lowest stress way to catch up your fishes IMO.




MIRROR IN A JAR

For an aggressive, territorial fish, an alternative bait to use in a trap is a small mirror. I just happened to have a 1" diameter mirror laying around one day when I was trying to catch some damsels. I held the mirror up to the tank to see if it had any affect on the fish, and there was an immediate aggressive reaction from the dominant damsel. I propped the mirror up in the back of a mason jar laying on it's side and was able to catch him with just my hand as the trap door. The mirror didn't work quite as well for the rest of the damsels but it did work. A really aggressive fish can't keep it's fight-or-flight priorities straight when it's staring down an identical fish that's matching him, move for move!




SARAN WRAPPED FISHES


Where the capture of fishes are concerned, try Saran Wrap. Simply drape a large sheet over the opening in your rockwork that the offending fish(es) will be chased through. Provided they are the type that darts through rocks when frightened (and lets face it, most of them are, fresh or salt) and voila! Ensnared in plastic sheeting. Easy, and effective.




TRIGGER IN A VASE

I don't know if this works as well for other fish, but it will work for Triggerfish.

A trigger's instinct is to lock himself into a hole when threatened.

Provide a nice attractive, dark hole by sinking a small ceramic vase to sleep in. Wait for the trigger to adopt this as a sleeping spot. If you have to, alter their existing sleeping spot so they seek a new one. They will adopt the vase, and as soon as lights go out, take a small lid...cover the opening and lift the vase out.

I had one today actually remain "locked" in the vase even when the vase was inverted and drained. Absolutely refused to leave.
 
Awesome stuff so far everyone!

Some posts are too long so I'll just cite the post number/s for reference.

I think that this would have been invaluable to me when I first started out.

As far as the original list goes, skies the limit. Feel free to include other topics as well and I will make sure they're inserted into the list.
 
jrpark22000 said:
Sorry for the lengthy replies. These are my personal notes for each, collected over several years of reading.
Click to expand...

They're awesome Josh!

I just couldn't get them into the original post due to too many characters. I always wondered how many one could put in a post. Very helpful though!
 
I didn't know the limit existed until today as well :) (10,000 characters)
I'll toss in a few more as the day goes on.
 
13. Hydrogen Peroxide for Power Outages


Taken from a few sources (never personally verified)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Q. Since Hurricane Ike is headed my way and my city's power seems to go out if someone sneezes too hard,
I'm preparing in advance to make sure that my reef tank doesn't run out of air (UPS, battery powered air pumps). I also read in
Goemans and Ichinotsubo's book that 5ml of hydrogen peroxide in 50 gal. of water every six to eight hours can help keep oxygen at safe levels. Is there any potential negative consequence of this? I understand that if overdosed it can act as an antibiotic, so I plan on underdosing a bit anyway, but I just wanted to see if anyone knew anything more about it and had tried this before with success. TIA!

A. Hydrogen peroxide may irritate organisms that it contacts, but then so will low O2. I don't really have and useful data on how beneficial it is or what happens that may be a negative. But I do think it is a good emergency plan.



Q. 5 ml of what % H2O2 ? The kind you get at the drugstore @ 3% peroxide ?

A. Typically 0.05 times your tank volume in liters assuming 3% solution. So a 60L (16 gal) tank would need 0.05 × 60L = 3ml per 12 hours or 10ml /50 gal or 1 teaspoon / 25 gal. This would be safer doing it as a 12 hr drip. The issue will always be what is the O2 in the tank when added. You may want to buy an inexpensive O2 kit to be safe.

In general 1 ml added per 30 Liters (8 gal) will increase total peroxide levels by 1 mg/l

I forgot, 5 ml / 50 gal should be fine with no issues, just add it slowly




Q. Hey, just wondering what kind of oxygen increase should we expect on 5 ml for 50 gallons?

A. There are to many variables. You are best off testing it with a O2 test kit so you know where you are. But you should get something like a 1-2 ppm increase.
 
14. Treat for Ich or other external paratise to the entire DT.

http://www.chicagoreefs.com/forums/...at-s-the-ratio&p=115307&viewfull=1#post115307
http://www.f3images.com/IMD/UserManuals/SC4811.pdf

What you will need:
Frozen Food (i use rods)
Seachem Metronidazole
Seachem Focus (acts as a binder)
Amino Acids
Vitimin C
Garlic

Selcon is aminos and vit C together, Seachem Garlic includes Vit C so you just need an amino such as brightwell aquatics, or similar.

Mix 1 scoop of Focus and 1 scoop of Metro into a bowl
add 1 tablespoon of frozen food
mix till disoved
fortify food with amino acid, garlic, and vit C
(you may prep as much as you need and refreeze)

Feed once a day for 30 days. Stop and observe for at least 30 days. If Ich return begin another 30 day cycle.

When the Ich trophonts bites the fish with metro in it's system it kills the trophonts hence stopping the life cycle. This is why you may have to repeat dose depending where in life cycle you catch the ich. I believe I had to do 2 cycles before it was gone.

The focus is used as a binder for the metro medicine to be digested by the fish and help aid in any open wounds cause by the trophonts.
 
ddiomede said:
Bryopsis-Kent Tech M (not magnesium in general) seems to break down this invasive algae to a point where CUC members have a chance of helping with it. Dosing MAG to slightly higher levels than normal can be an effective tool. 1:10 hydrogen peroxide/tank water dips can also be effective and have been proven relatively safe for some corals. Further research is suggested before implementing either since over dosing can cause serious problems in a tank.
I did the Peroxide Dip on some of my rocks and frag plugs that started to grow some Bryopsis. a couple of my frag plugs I had to do the dip a couple times. My rock that didn't have it that bad once was enough. 3% Peroxide I dipped zoa frags and once Green Slimer frag... The Zoas closed up over night but opened up the next morning. Green Slimer did bleach out a bit at the base where it was dipped but color returned in a couple days. Bryopsis completely gone.
Click to expand...


I'd like to modify that you need to solve whatever is feeding it first, usually a sandbed which is a detritus heaven. Just dosing Tech M into a dirty tank will not work long term, I've done it to 2k+ levels.
 
I'm going to have to rework the original post.

I'm running out of room on post one so I'll have to rearrange some stuff and quote post numbers.
 
jrpark22000 said:
14. Treat for Ich or other external paratise to the entire DT.

http://www.chicagoreefs.com/forums/...at-s-the-ratio&p=115307&viewfull=1#post115307
http://www.f3images.com/IMD/UserManuals/SC4811.pdf

What you will need:
Frozen Food (i use rods)
Seachem Metronidazole
Seachem Focus (acts as a binder)
Amino Acids
Vitimin C
Garlic

Selcon is aminos and vit C together, Seachem Garlic includes Vit C so you just need an amino such as brightwell aquatics, or similar.

Mix 1 scoop of Focus and 1 scoop of Metro into a bowl
add 1 tablespoon of frozen food
mix till disoved
fortify food with amino acid, garlic, and vit C
(you may prep as much as you need and refreeze)

Feed once a day for 30 days. Stop and observe for at least 30 days. If Ich return begin another 30 day cycle.

When the Ich trophonts bites the fish with metro in it's system it kills the trophonts hence stopping the life cycle. This is why you may have to repeat dose depending where in life cycle you catch the ich. I believe I had to do 2 cycles before it was gone.

The focus is used as a binder for the metro medicine to be digested by the fish and help aid in any open wounds cause by the trophonts.
Click to expand...

This is unlikely to work. There are standard methods that have proven to consistently work, metro isn't in that list.
 
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