How to do a hypo salinity dip on live rock

[fishywishy]

Just got some Kp live rock and im wondering How to do a hypo salinity dip on the live rock to get rid of the hitchhikers?

 

[fishywishy]

It is not a bobbit worm. It may be some other species of eunicid, which you would probably want to remove, but I guarantee that's not a bobbit.

What type of light can I use to see the little critters?

 

[Tired]

A regular flashlight with red tissue paper over the lens will spook them least, but you can go at it with a regular flashlight. Have a cup of tank water, some tweezers/tongs, and a turkey baster ready, sneak up, put the light over the bucket, and grab anything you want a better look at. Photograph it in the cup to get an ID, and you can then either put it in your tank or humanely euthanize it, depending on what it is.

 

[fishywishy]

A regular flashlight with red tissue paper over the lens will spook them least, but you can go at it with a regular flashlight. Have a cup of tank water, some tweezers/tongs, and a turkey baster ready, sneak up, put the light over the bucket, and grab anything you want a better look at. Photograph it in the cup to get an ID, and you can then either put it in your tank or humanely euthanize it, depending on what it is.

I tried for a week to try to find it but I couldn’t find it, so I’m assuming it died. So I just put the rock in my tank, if that worm got in my tank am I screwed?

 

[ReefGeezer]

I tried for a week to try to find it but I couldn’t find it, so I’m assuming it died. So I just put the rock in my tank, if that worm got in my tank am I screwed?

You are not screwed. You'll find pests from time to time. You can: 1) Get fish or inverts that eat them; sneak up on them at night and kill or remove them; or trap them. This is a normal part of starting with live rock. It is still waaaaaaay better starting with dry rock... IMO.

A Hypersalinity dip (.043 ish) for the rest of the rock will make many of the inhabitants, but not all, evacuate the rock. You can then separate them between good and bad and place the rock and the good critters in the tank. You get the rest as above.

 

[Spare time]

Maybe next time don't buy live rock lol

 

[Tired]

If the eunicid got into your tank, it might chew on corals that are next to its burrow, or it might eat algae/detritus/etc and nothing else. They're not a very big deal, really.

 

[fishywishy]

If the eunicid got into your tank, it might chew on corals that are next to its burrow, or it might eat algae/detritus/etc and nothing else. They're not a very big deal, really.

Any animal that can eat them?

 

[fishywishy]

You are not screwed. You'll find pests from time to time. You can: 1) Get fish or inverts that eat them; sneak up on them at night and kill or remove them; or trap them. This is a normal part of starting with live rock. It is still waaaaaaay better starting with dry rock... IMO.

A Hypersalinity dip (.043 ish) for the rest of the rock will make many of the inhabitants, but not all, evacuate the rock. You can then separate them between good and bad and place the rock and the good critters in the tank. You get the rest as above.

I did a hypo dip at 1.040-1.045 twice for around 5-10 minutes but all that came out was one bristle star and like three good worms, so the dip didn't really work for some reason.

 

[ReefGeezer]

I did a hypo dip at 1.040-1.045 twice for around 5-10 minutes but all that came out was one bristle star and like three good worms, so the dip didn't really work for some reason.

Like all things in reefing, your mileage may vary. Just press on. Everything is fine. Remember, reefing is a process.

 

[Tired]

That's what hypo dips do; they dislodge any mobile critters that are near the surface of the rock, good or bad. They don't get to anything deep.

Nothing you'd want in a reef will eat a large eunicid. Not a live large eunicid, at least.

 

[fishywishy]

That's what hypo dips do; they dislodge any mobile critters that are near the surface of the rock, good or bad. They don't get to anything deep.

Nothing you'd want in a reef will eat a large eunicid. Not a live large eunicid, at least.

Any trap or anything I can’t catch it with

 

[Tired]

A bottle trap might have some small chance of getting it, but they're a critter you get by spotting it at night and grabbing it, not by trapping it.

 

[fishywishy]

A bottle trap might have some small chance of getting it, but they're a critter you get by spotting it at night and grabbing it, not by trapping it.

What should I use as bait to make it come out of the rock so I can grab it if it’s still around?

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Maybe next time don't buy live rock lol

Even with the pests, it's still leagues ahead of the next best option in my opinion.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Any trap or anything I can’t catch it with

Arrow crabs should hunt them until they get to large.

 

[Spare time]

Even with the pests, it's still leagues ahead of the next best option in my opinion.

There are other options to introduce ocean microbes to the tank without the pests. Also, stony corals and shells are essentially live rock. Vast amounts of microbes likely come via corals, fish, snails, crabs, etc., so no matter what, someone gets "live rock." Also, "beneficial bacteria" is more of a superstition in the hobby rather than anything concrete. Its just something that people guess is doing something but no one really knows whether they make a difference or not and what that difference would be.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

There are other options to introduce ocean microbes to the tank without the pests. Also, stony corals and shells are essentially live rock. Vast amounts of microbes likely come via corals, fish, snails, crabs, etc., so no matter what, someone gets "live rock."

There absolutely are, and companies like microbiom are doing great work to show what that actual diversity looks like.

Also, "beneficial bacteria" is more of a superstition in the hobby rather than anything concrete. Its just something that people guess is doing something but no one really knows whether they make a difference or not and what that difference would be.

Just because you and I can't Explain it, because we don't understand it, doesn't mean it is irrelevant. Anecdotally, we have all seem how coral grow (and often dont) in a sterile microbiome.

We can see that different algae and bacterias are likely to take over, in the absence of. T happens All the time. I'd say dry rock starts are the #1 thing for the 12 month wash out in this hobby we love.

Im nowhere smart enough to make the argument of causation. The correlation is enough for me, to care.

 

[Tired]

What should I use as bait to make it come out of the rock so I can grab it if it’s still around?

It may come out for a chunk of dead shrimp left near its hole at night. People usually catch these by checking with a flashlight and happening to spot it, or by theirs getting bold and starting to come out during the day.

 

[KrisReef]

What should I use as bait to make it come out of the rock so I can grab it if it’s still around?

You put the honey worm in the bottle, when the bobbit comes out to mate with the honey you yank the bottle and the worms out asap!

If you didn't see the worm again you may never see it, or any other possible pest again. Creatures that live and hide in liverock are not necessarily going to harm your reef creatures. Stay calm, keep an eye out and don't worry about what you can't see.

 

[Double monti 61]

Why spend so much for live rock and then kill the living creatures that reside on it?