AEFW-Die suckers:) [Archive] - Reef Central Online Community

gflat65

03/27/2006, 10:35 PM

As some of you know, I have found AEFW on my tank. The movement for eradication has begun...

I removed every acro from my system tonight... The tank is very bare. I drained ~35 gallons on a water change to fill the 20L initially and not upset the acros. Did the treatment and did a 66%water change in the 20L with more of the water I pulled from the display earlier. I'll likely do another WC in a couple of days, before the next treatment (then again after the next treatment...). The post treatment WC's will likely all come from the display, with 25% NSW WC's between treatments.

I threw together a treatment tank and started the treatment tonight. 3.36g of levamisole HCl (90%) for 1 hour and ten minutes (started watching 24, so the hour got away from me...). One down, two more to go over the next week and a half.

Setup empty
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/AEFW-treatment-tank-empty.jpg

Acros in the tub
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-tub_03.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-tub_02.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-tub_01.jpg

Acros after treatment (no difference)
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-20L_03.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-20L_01.jpg
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-20L_02.jpg

Top down, just for fun (not a great shot...)
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Acros-20L-top.jpg

Dying flatworm:). There were at least thirty or forty of the nasty little buggers on th ebottom of the tank after the treatment (along with a few writhing pods and bristle worms)
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/Dying-AEFW.jpg

Dubbin1

03/27/2006, 10:49 PM

Well I hope you got them all cleaned up. Oh and that is one super getto canopy that you have going there :)

Bigred

03/28/2006, 12:59 AM

I'm about to do the same thing. I'm tired of treating my whole system without success.

drake66

03/28/2006, 01:41 AM

thats absolutely ghettolicious as one person said in another thread :D but congrats on the AEFW treatment :)

gflat65

03/28/2006, 07:01 AM

I slammed my Ghetto sled this morning to put the lights a little closer;). I was scrambling around Sunday night trying to figure out how to mount the lights and found and old PVC stand I made for plants. A few chops later, and viola. If this becomes a permanent fixture (i.e. frag tank that the wife has been beguiled into thinking was a treatment tank;)), I'll move it on up to the East side:D.

gflat65

03/28/2006, 10:07 PM

Um... There are flatworms crusing around the glass of the treatment tank... Should I be treating for more than an hour at 40ppm? I expected genocide...

otolith

03/28/2006, 10:41 PM

I thought the treatment was supposed to be for 5-6 hours??? You could always watch them and time when they die, then do the treatment for that period of time next time.

gflat65

03/29/2006, 12:41 AM

I thought I read that somewhere, but couldn't find it again... I read in the new volume of Reef Aquarium by Sprung something much lower in time, but that may have been a conservative estimate. Looks like tomorrow will get a nice long soak. Got enough Levamisole to last a while, so I may just have to dig in...

Sparkss

03/29/2006, 01:50 AM

going to be doing this soon ourselves on our prop tank. Planning to jsut dose the old tank with levamisole then just transfer the corals to the new tank and start up the pumps. Like BigRed I am tiring of trying to treat them in tank..... :(

gflat65

03/29/2006, 07:58 AM

Just found the thread I read several weeks ago... It mentions a 5 hour treatment at 40ppm for a 'dip'. I'm gonna hit the 20L hard again tonight and see if that makes these little nasties shrivel;).

gflat65

03/29/2006, 06:31 PM

Apparently, I should have treated for 5 hours instead of 1. I got some guidance from mjcarl:). The procedure is going to be a bit tougher, but if it gets rid of them, it'll be worth it. Nothing else goes in my tank without a dip in some Levamisole:).

I'm treating the 20L again with 3.36g for five hours. Then I plan to drain the water into a rubbermaid tub and some into a 3 gallon bucket. As the water level comes down, I will violently swish the colonies/frags in the 3 gallon bucket and place them in the water I will be pulling from the main display later this evening (around 10:30'ish). Then I will be pumping that water back into the 20L (after cleaning out the little nasties) and put the colonies/frags back into the 20L. Four treatments at about a week apart should get them all, according to anecdotal evidence... hurts to see the little pods writhing in agony, though. A tiny Eunicid worm has wondered out of the rock (only about 4" long and thin) and is not happy, too. Don't mind that one so much, though.

Emster

03/29/2006, 08:15 PM

gflat65, were can you get levamisole and what will be your procedure for new additions? I wonder if you can mix it with interceptor.

otolith

03/29/2006, 11:15 PM

gflat--be sure to post your progress and experiences along the way. It would be nice to have another person who's been successful with the process.

gflat65

03/30/2006, 01:17 AM

Googity... Just finished the first full treatment (just gave them a shot of some immunotherapy, apparently, Monday night).

I left the 'meds' in for 5 hours and 25 minutes (before starting to drain and swish). 3.36g again. I drained a little bit of water from the 20L (~5 gallons) into a 15 gallon tub for the swishing. After getting most of the larger pieces out, I started swishing in the 20L with the powerhead. It took 40 minutes to swish everything (violently...). I used a MJ 1200 to blow off everything I could from the frags and rock, then gave everything a nice violent swish and moved it into the WC water in a 37 gallon tub from the display from just before the swish. I then rinsed everything from the tank (equipmentwise) in hot water under the spray nozzle in the kitchen sink, including the 20L. A few fat FW's were still clinging to the sides of the tank. They melted away under the hot water. That took 25 minutes. The it took 35 minutes to put the corals back into the 20L with water from the main display WC.

Most of the acros were sliming out a little and it looks like there is some lightening, but that may be from the full assault from the powerhead. I may have a few casualties, but right now, they seem to be smaller pieces that can be replaced. The water after the swishing was pretty foul. They got a 100% water change. I'll inspect tomorrow to see if I have any roamers on the glass and to see how everything makes it through. Alot of them were showing polyps as soon as I put them in the 37 gallon tub.

My back is sore and I'm pretty tired. Fried my heater (water level in rubbermaid tub dropped too low and it got hot quick and cracked when it slipped further into the water). Fun night. Time for some beddie bye...

gflat65

03/30/2006, 06:08 PM

Emster,

I got the Levamisole at the local CO-OP. It is a pig wormer. I wonder if it wouldn't kill red bugs, too, since it kills other pods...

Update, looks like I'm loosing my efflo, granulosa, and a tenius frag. The efflo was pretty eaten up by the FW's, but it is rtn'ing, now... I was pretty harsh on the swishing and PH blasting last night. The granulosa was almost gone before I pulled it from the display initially (fell in the sand for a few days). I'm not sure about why the tenius is rtn'ing. It looked healthy before the treatment. Oh well, not the prettiest tenius, and most of my corals look fine. I'll miss the efflo most. I've got a little lightening of color on a stag frag, but it shows polyps tips. Polyp extension is not what it was last night before the treatment on any of them, but most of them are at least showing some sort of extension. Funny thing is that mille's are supposed to be very susceptible to AEFW and all of mine look great...

gflat65

03/31/2006, 04:06 PM

Well, problems... I came home from work with my ORA purple tip bottlebrush, Scripps Green tip, Chips Acro, cardus, and an orange mille rtn'ing...

Scripps Green tip
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/rtn-Scripps-green-tip.jpg
Was an Orange mille
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/rtn-orange-mille.jpg
ORA Purpletip bottlebrush
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/rtn-ORA-bottlebrush.jpg
Efflo
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/rtn-efflo.jpg
Chips
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/rtn-Chips-Acro.jpg

I fragged what I could.

No one looks extremely happy... I have some mild sliming (looks like mesenterial filaments) on a few and lightening on others, with reduced polyp extention across the board. To boot, I am leaving town for the night... Oh well, I guess you win some and lose most. It wouldn't be life without that simple fact...

Sparkss

04/01/2006, 11:24 PM

To waht do you attribute the RTNing ? From what you posted it sounds like you followed the typical Levamisole procedure. Is there something that you did different ? Thanks in advance.

gflat65

04/02/2006, 12:11 AM

So far, I think everything has been within the norm (if there is such a thing;)). Instead of dipping them in something different, I treated the whole 20L, drained some water into a rubbermaid to do the swishing and PH agitation, then immediately moved them into a rubbermaid with water from the main display. I'm wondering how many of the corals that are rtn'ing now were in the rubbermaid when I fried the heater. Just thought of that again... It wasn't in the water more than a split second, but maybe that was enough. It seems like the ORA purple tip bottlebrush was in the 20L when it happened, and I'm pretty sure my blue tort was, as it is on the larger rock (a new one I found rtn'ing today...). I'm going to do some tests tomorrow before changing out the water to see if I can find something out of whack. I had to go out of town this weekend, and work has been hectic... It may come down to a lapse in good husbandry. I'm hoping that's the case. I've been paying pretty close attention to the tank (an hour or so a night), but I haven't tested anything since I started the treatments (but the last 100% WC was Thursday, so...). I'll post if anything is out of whack in terms of water chemistry tomorrow.

fishdoc11

04/02/2006, 07:44 AM

Let me know what you loose that I have Gary. I will gladly replace them.
Chris

gflat65

04/02/2006, 12:36 PM

Thanks Chris. Every time I look, something else is going... My unidentified blue tort from Dave, my Bali tricolor (I don't think anyone in the area has this one), the MI purple bonsai (paid $35 for a 1/2" frag at the Chatt frag swap), the blue polyped austera from the AC meeting, that purple tipped stag... I guess if I lose them all, I can be assured I won't have any AEFW's. Sorry for the pessimistic attitude, but with the downpours at my house lately and the 12 day headache, it's hard to find the happy place. Even with the happy dance...

Purple Tipped stag
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/purple-tipped-stag.jpg
ORA bottlebrush
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/ORA-bottlebrush.jpg
MI purple bonsai (Bali tricolor is in front and has a small spot of rtn at the base of the encrustation)
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/MI-purple-bonsai.jpg
Indo stag
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/indo-stag.jpg
Green tabling acro
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/green-tabling-acro.jpg
Cardus
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/cardus.jpg
Blue polyped austera (from tips down)
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/blue-polyped-austera.jpg

The rtn has been from all directions (tip down, base up, middle out).

Just tested the water.

NH4-somewhere between 0 and .25
NO2-undetectable
NO3-less than .5
alk (dKH)-7.7

It looks like there might have been a small spike of something, but I wouldn't think it would be enough to do this damage. Time for the water change.

Znut Reefer

04/02/2006, 12:43 PM

Gary,

I'm thinking it may have been the med (Lev). I think the treatment is too long. Thats got to be what has caused all the damage to your sps.

gflat65

04/02/2006, 12:55 PM

On the plus side, I haven't seen a single AEFW anywhere since the treatment...

I will treat for a shorter period next treatment. I think that once they are paralyzed, that is all I'm looking for. then they can be shaken off, easily. Live and learn. Hopefully, my experiences will help bring this in a little. I did go a half hour longer than Mitch said he did, so maybe a slightly shorter treatment will be as effective. Just think, in a few more months, we may have this one down like the RB treatments. It has only been four months since I finished my RB treatments, but there were no signs of new ones, and it was a pretty harmless treatment. I do want to find a natural predator, though. Sounds like Hawaiian Christmas wrasses are working well for many. Since my cleaner wrasse and manadarin have always been fat, they may be munching too, until populations increase and they aren't able to keep up.

Reef55

04/03/2006, 01:06 PM

Just to double check your math...

3.36 grams Levamisole @ 90% = 3.024 grams levamisole HCL.

3.024 grams Levamisole HCL = 3024 mg

20 liters of water = 20 kg

ppm = mg / kg

ppm = 3024 / 20 = 151 PPM!!!

That would be why your corals are all RTN'ing... :(

gflat65

04/03/2006, 02:41 PM

20 gallons, not 20 liters... The 20L is for 20 long, sorry for the confusion.

I'm going to do the next treatment for three hours and see what happens. I still haven't seen a single monster roaming the glass walls. The WC last night seems to have slowed the rtn. I just need to frag what is showing signs and see what makes it. I've calmed down a little from the initial smacks across the face from the loses:). Live and learn...

Reef55

04/03/2006, 02:47 PM

Ahh 20Long :) ... 20 gallons!

20 gallons = 75.7 liters = 75.7 kg

PPM = 3024/75.7 = 40ppm, right where it should be.

Don't know why you are experiencing so many losses... I did the same treatment (pulled all, treated for 6 hours at 40ppm with levamisole, and had interceptor in there as well for the same 6 hours). Did over 50 corals so far like that, and the only loss has been an ORA purple pillow. My oregon tort frag was not pleased, but is doing alright now.

AeroD79

04/04/2006, 10:50 PM

Gflat how are your acros doing?

Ill be starting levi dips this week

gflat65

04/05/2006, 06:03 AM

The rtn has slowed down (had almost stopped), but started back up last night (slower than most on one particular bullet proof coral). I added new carbon and started mixing water (you'd think I'd keep 50 gallons or so mixed all the time, if I had half a brain...). I'm going to do another water change tonight, as that seemes to slow the rtn down, and treat tomorrow night again.

mrkrispy

04/05/2006, 10:26 AM

you think repeatedly moving the corals around to different containers may be the cause of the necrosis?

Have you checked the ammonia level recently on the holding tank?

gflat65

04/05/2006, 02:54 PM

I checked the NH4 on Saturday and it was somewhere between 0 and .25.

As far as moving them, I certainly moved them alot more in the initial removal from the display than during the treatment. They were in the treatment tank for five days before anything started rtn'ing. I treated once on Monday night at 40ppm for 1 hour and 10 minutes, but then again on Wednesday night for over 5 hours, so maybe hitting them twice with the meds in a short period? Still monitoring...

gflat65

04/07/2006, 11:33 PM

Just finished treatment #2. Didn't see a single AEFW trought the treatment or after the swishing...

I lost quite a few frags in week one, but I'm gonna go with bad placement (lower flow and light), and I need to do more water changes on the treatment tank. I'm going to start doing 5 gallons a night until I finish this, as WC's seem to have slowed the rtn drastically. I noticed some stn'ing (well, if stn is over the course of a few days) around the bottom and some receding around the bottom. Alk is a little low (dKH-7.7), but I think flow might have more to do with it. I got nearly everything elevated and have created some better flow patterns. Hopefully, the die off is over...
http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c131/gflat65/dead-acros.jpg

mrkrispy

04/08/2006, 12:23 AM

man i don't know, a coral wasting away in a few days isn't going to be from poor placement or light...it might be from your heater incident but you might wanna try the super glue trick before you loose more corals...it can't hurt to try (it has worked numerous times for me but my most recent blue tort i had no super-glue-luck-with)

Philwd

04/08/2006, 12:42 AM

Something I have had luck with to stop STN is using Lugol's around the edge of the recession. I took a Q tip, dipped in Lugols and then gently wiped around every recessing edge. Let sit out of water 30 sec or so. Rinse in small container of tank water and place back in tank. It has saved me 4 corals and a friends big colony. I got this tip from Frank Burr and it does work.

Kent E

04/08/2006, 06:33 AM

Thanks philwd thats a good tip. Where to get lugols?

poknsnok

04/08/2006, 06:45 AM

lugols shuld be at any LFS

reefrubble

04/08/2006, 06:56 AM

Poknsnok,you have a PM.

gflat65

04/08/2006, 01:42 PM

Signs of rtn on an ORA mille... I'm gonna start doing a 5 gallon water change daily...

LeftCoast

04/08/2006, 06:17 PM

Sorry to hear. Take that back really sorry. Just know that you'll always have the support of the MTRC and the ETRC. I can't think of a sungle person here who wouldn't give you a frag to help your tank out.

gflat65

04/13/2006, 12:03 PM

To give a small update since the last Levamisole treatment, I have had very little continued rtn. I lost three milles the day after the second treatment (ORA blue, Pink, and Tyree LE blue prostrata). I fragged them all and most don't look great, but still have tissue. I have my last treatment planned for tonight. daily water changes seem to have held the rtn at bay, so if you are trying the levi treatment, keep hitting the treatment tank with wc's. I expect to lose a few more tonight (if I can get the treatment in), but will be moving everything back to the display this weekend... My purple nasuta (and a good number of others) is really lightened up, so I am concerned... I have not seen an AEFW since the first treatment, though, so at least there is some reason for joy.

AeroD79

04/13/2006, 02:02 PM

I just started my first treatment for a 5 hour dip. No rtn but alot of sliming. I only seen less than 7-10 AEFWs.

Ive been doing a lugols dip every other week before starting a month ago and removed all LR to a new tank. Glued acro base that have eggs.

I hope this is a good thing since there isnt much left due to the lugols, LR removal and gluing eggs

Ill see when I do the Levi dip next Tuesday.

gflat65

04/13/2006, 04:17 PM

So far, at least two of us posting results saw rtn the second day after the treatment. It may be best to hit with water changes at least once a day just to try to reduce loses. Let us know how it goes for you. If increased water changes are the answer to saving corals in this treatment, we may be able to nail it down with a few more anecdotal recordings.

Travis

04/13/2006, 09:04 PM

Hey gflat, I hadn't seen this thread but just finished reading it. It sounds like you had the most RTN after your first treatment. I wonder if if it was the weaker corals that went first (some corals are weak even when we think they look healthy). And now the hardy corals are coping with the treatments. Could also be that you have "refined" your treatment procedures to be less stressful on the corals. I'm impatiently waiting to hear your results from your final treatment. BTW, why are you only doing 3 treatments instead of the recommended 4? So far my results have been right on par with yours after the first week or so. My RTN was similar. It hit in the middle on come, from the tips on others, and from the bottom on the rest. It was days 2 and 3 after the first treatment that the RTN struck and it hasn't shown its ugly face since.

What I have done is made sure the water parameters in the treatment tank are staying stable. This required moving my Ca reactor from my display and hooking it up on the treatment tank. Fortunately, it only took 48 hours to get it dialed in. I really didn't expect to need to do this as I figured the stressed corals would not be calcifying much. Boy was I wrong. My alkalinity in the treatment tank dropped from 11 dKH to 6.4 dKH in the first 24 hours after the first treatment. This could very well also explain the RTN episodes I experienced. One thing I know about sps is they like to RTN with a fast change in alkalinity. Once I got things stabilized, the RTN stopped, even on the few RTN'ing corals that I left in the tank.

One thing I'm going to be more careful on with subsequent treatments is making sure the water in all of the tubs that the corals are moved to/from is the same temp. That is one thing I overlooked during the first round and temp fluctuations are also very stressful on sps.

I have a buddy (LFS owner) that is also treating all of his acros and montis right now. His total number of corals treated is about the same as mine. His treatment tank is about the same also, but he has less flow and better skimming power. He did his treatment the same way as me also. He has not experienced any RTN yet.

I was going to toss the Levamisole and switch over to Seachem Reef Dip at 1 capful per 1 cup of water (15 caps per gallon) for 15 minutes as I feared it was the Levamisole killing the corals but maybe it isn't. This is the treatment that Tubs uses on his acros and has had success treating them for the AEFW's. I mean Mitch obviously has treated a lot of corals with this procedure and I don't think he is the kind of guy that would recommend this treatment if he had experienced the same types of problems that you and I have. So I may just give the Levamisole another chance. Not sure yet. Got a couple days to think as I will be doing the second treatment on Saturday.

gflat65

04/13/2006, 09:25 PM

I've been thinking of doing the fourth treatment. Really doesn't make sense to stop at three if four has been successful. Especially as invested as I am now. Keeping the water stable of probably something I've improved over the course of the treatments. I figured that with a decent skimmer (for the size tank), and carbon in a magnum 250, I'd be fine, but I think the medicine gets into the rocks (had a couple with multiple encrustations) and keeps coming out and pollutes the water. Just a theory. The skimmer hasn't done much since I began the treatment, but what it does pull is some nasty looking dark brown stuff. It only ever skimmed wet when I left it running during the second treatment...

I definitely didn't have as many rtn after the second treatment. I had a few that were showing signs, but stopped before the second treatment, only to continue afterwards. The three mille's were a surprise. I was able to frag most of them and save something, so they may grow back. That'll be the fun part. I'm putting of the treatment until tomorrow. I didn't get off work until late, so I decided I needed some sleep tonight (otherwise, I'd have been up until 1 or 2 again. I'll post progress again again after #3.

Travis

04/14/2006, 09:45 AM

I'm not sure if I would trust adding that rock back to a display tank with fish. I don't know if the rock would absorb any of the Levamisole and leech it out later or not but kind of risky, IMO. I also had several pieces that were well encrusted to rocks but I just snapped them off at the bases and then used a hammer and chisel/screwedriver to remove the bases from the rock and then returned the rock to the display. A lot of work and you throw away a lot of the coral but less risky.

I know Randy Holmes-Farley posted that the Levamisole could not be binded to the substrate. Dr. Ron posted that it could be absorbed into sand due to the biological activity. I suppose the same would go for the rock as there is also a lot of life and biological activity going on in there.

gflat65

04/14/2006, 03:19 PM

Hadn't even thought about damage to fish... I didn't realize there would be issues. I may let it all sit in the treatment tank for a few weeks after the treatment to leach out and do more daily water changes...

Started treatment #3 just before 4... Some of my bulletproof acros are pretty bleached... Oh well, a local friend is gonna help me out with some replacements before he moves away, so I won't be without acros for too long;). I got most of my stuff from him originally, anyway (but have a lot from sources I can't get again...). I should have better protected my tank...

Travis

04/14/2006, 06:45 PM

I don't know if the rock leaching the medicine would hurt fish or not, just throwing it out there.

That is good that you have a friend(s) who will help you rebuild. That is what this hobby is about, IMO.:)

gflat65

04/15/2006, 12:23 AM

I went ahead and cut all the encrustation off. I think the rock is leaching it back out, so it can't hurt. I threw the rock in with ~200# of cured rock that I'm just going to keep 'curing' until I get another big tank;). Everything was slimy and smelly after the treatment. I washed everything in vinegar and water, so I hope I got whatever resiude was on everything (equipmentwise, anyway). The rock felt slimy, too... It is much harder to stand them up without bases... More tomorrow, if anything changes.

gflat65

04/15/2006, 09:52 AM

Well, there may not be enough left for a fourth treatment... Out of the ~55 acros's I pulled, 5 show no recession or rtn as of right now... I guess that's a sure fire way to make sure I kill all the AEFW's... Where is the optimism, one might ask? The answer my friend is blowing in the wind...

Travis

04/15/2006, 11:25 AM

I hear you on the slimyness after the treatment. I just did round 2 last night and everything was very slimy. Use pvc fittings/risers to help support the pieces that don't want to stand by themselves.

Have you seen any clutches or live FW's since the first treatment? I found a bunch of large live ones again last night and some new clutches too.:( This time I saved them in clean tank water instead of levamisole water. So now I can do some experimenting with them.

gflat65

04/15/2006, 11:59 AM

I haven't seen a single AEFW since the first treatment. They were cruising around the glass after I moved everything into the treatment tank, but nothing since nuking them the first time... I never found any egg clutches, either.

Let us know what you find out on the isolation of the AEFW's in clean water. It may be worthwhile to study these guys and offer up some corals to see if we can find a life cycle/egg cycle, etc. It might be a long project, though... I'm looking around at wrasses again to see if I can find something natural 'just in case" in the future.

I hope no one has the issues I've had with this. This procesdure has obviously worked for some without the losses I've seen. I hope it can somehow be pointed back to what I'm doing (though I'm sure it's not a far stretch to assume that I've done something wrong somewhere along the line). I'm going to start a document with exactly what I've done and when to see if I can retrace anything... My acros aren't safe... My zoas aren't safe from the rabbitfish that's decided to make meals of everything I have over the last two weeks... At least I'm on track to have my chiller working again, soon (replaced the fan and capacitor). Seems like when it rains, it floods around here... I guess it happens to everyone at least once in a while.

gflat65

04/17/2006, 11:01 PM

Well, I hope someone else is having better luck than me. This has obviously worked for some, but the carnage continues in my tank. I have about four acros that have not rtn'd (but are at least stn'ing)... There may be no need for a fourth treatment. All of my 'bulletproof' corals went with the third treatment. The skimmer is still pulling some brownish gunk, which I assume is medicine, still. Like I've said before, at least it's a surefire way to make sure I don't have any more AEFW's. Too bad it came at such an expense... There has to be some difference between what I've done and what others have done, except that most that are trying it now seem to be having the same luck I am... Any updates from others?

Travis

04/17/2006, 11:19 PM

My last treatment went better, as far as acro health is concerned anyways. I have not had any recession whatsoever since the last treatment, which was 3 days ago (knock on wood). And I was a lot more aggressive with blasting them with the powerhead during the last treatment. But a couple things I did do was make sure the water in all of the tanks that the corals were moved to were the exact same temperature and I also used water from my display for the water change. I'm really sorry to hear about your continued losses gflat. If I have better luck I will send you a care package after my corals have stabilized in my display and start growing again.

AeroD79

04/18/2006, 08:06 AM

At my 2nd treatment at the 5th day after teh 1st. I only found one adult so and two clutches of eggs. (i glued the eggs with superglue)

Other wise the acros are fine on a 5-6 hour dip at 1.5x -2x strength in a 29gallon tank with 15gallons of water. After the dip I moved them back to the 55 qt tank where it sits on a dried up egg crate on a hob skimmer/t-5lights and maxi jetts on wavemaker.

Of course i occasionally blast them with turkey baster. Shook them hard in front of a pw when I transfered them back to the qt tank.
Only think I noticed is that few of them had lightned up and rest are browning up.

I think i will go for a fourth treatment at 1.5-2x strength. (I had put 3/4 tsp on a 15gallon sw)
I hope that my calculation is close.

founding two sets of eggs worry me. I hope it was from the the semi adults that I didnt see and perished.

gflat65

04/18/2006, 09:52 AM

Thanks Travis. I think I'm taken care of on the care package. A local reefer friend is moving soon and is hooking me up with a nice frag pack.

AeroD79,

What are you treating with? The 1.5 and 2X strength has thrown me for a little loop.

I'm glad to hear that not everyone is having the same issues. I think once I get everything back to normal, I may be done with collecting for a while;).

AeroD79

04/18/2006, 10:40 AM

I m treating it with Levisole Water soluble for Swine.
I just called them and asked how many grams in a tsp. Its 4.3gs at 1tsp (3.8gs active)

Well that reminds me that I only dosed .6x at the first treament (1/4tsp at 10gallons) and 1.5x (3/4 tsp at 13gallons) at the second treament.

This may answer why I found eggs toward the 2nd treatment. Ill continue with just 1.2x at the third and fourth.

gflat65

04/18/2006, 03:46 PM

I am actually overdosing. Maybe that can take some of the blame. I figured 3.36g for a 20 long, but only actually have about ~15 gallons of water in the tank. Has anyone else out there gone over the 40ppm and not had loses? I desperately want to be able to blame something (though I'm not opposed to blaming myself;)). I feel like i've done just about everythign right. I would move the heater from the treatment tank into the water they got transferred to after being blasted, so the water temp should have been the same (except for heat loss in the treatment tank while blasting). All 100% water changes after treatments have come from my display. It's just frustrating... I've got a big frag pack coming in the near to not to distant future, so I'm not as bummed as I was a few weeks ago. It still sucks to lose all that I've lost though. Most of them will be replaced in the frag pack (originally got alot of them from the same guy that is getting me the frag pack), and I'll be picking up a few I haven't had before but have wanted, so I haven't lost too much heart. Gotta start saving for the frag pack now:). I figure I've got a few months to make his fragging time worthwhile. Gotta love a local reef club;).

gflat65

04/18/2006, 03:50 PM

AeroD79,

By 1.5X, are you saying 1.5X of the 40 ppm, etc.? If so (I think my feeble brain just did the math correctly...), that blows my hopeful theory on overdosing out...

fishdoc11

04/18/2006, 04:43 PM

Gotta start saving for the frag pack now

No you don't;)

AeroD79

04/18/2006, 08:07 PM

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7201368#post7201368 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by gflat65
AeroD79,

By 1.5X, are you saying 1.5X of the 40 ppm, etc.? If so (I think my feeble brain just did the math correctly...), that blows my hopeful theory on overdosing out...

yes 1.5x so its 60ppm

Travis

04/18/2006, 11:26 PM

orion did 50 ppm treatments and only lost 1 coral. My buddy is treating about the same number of acros as me and he did a levamisole treatment last week that would have been 40ppm for 40 gallons of water but he added that amount to 35 gallons. He only lost 1 coral that was already RTN'ing before the treatment.

Are you really doing 100% water changes during the treatments? That is too much, IMO. The water parameters in your quarantine tank are probably quite a bit different than those in your display. Not sure though, just thinking out loud.