Holy_makerel
Well-Known Member
Hi folks,
This has been covered I'm sure but i thought i'd add my experience so far with getting rid of these little turds.
If you're not familiar with what these guys look like here is a video i shot before treatment. they are TINY! this video is shot with a macro lens and extension tubes. the frame shows about 1/2" of this acro frag.
Treatment for redbugs is done with a dog heartworm medication called interceptor, now called interceptor plus. I went to my vet and they had no problem selling me a single pill of it so i could treat my tank.
After researching i decided on a dosage of 0.025g per 10 gal, which in my small 32 gal tank i measured out 0.09g of material.
The major drawback of this treatment is it will kill all your crustaceans. Thats hermits, crabs, shrimp, and pods.
I removed my hermits to go live in a friend of mines tank, i've got no crabs or shrimp since i dont trust them so that wasnt an issue.
First treatment was a total of about 9 hours. it took around 8 for the redbugs to appear to all be dead. there were a few that were attached by a filament to the the coral body but appeared to be dead.
After 9 hours i performed a 25% wc and put in a healthy amount of carbon to help get the residual medication out. i noticed no negative effects on coral or fish during the treatment.
I took video and still shots between 30 and 60 minutes apart during treatment. here is the footage.
The next week i did another treatment which i left in for over 12 hours with no negative effects on inhabitants. one more treatment to go then i will reintroduce hermits and pods back into the system.
The only downside that i have run into with this treatment is algae growth, which i assume is because of pod die off and possibly slightly overfeeding due to my CUC not being complete right now. i've cut feeding amouts to 50%, doing a midweek 25% wc, and replacing phosguard to help beat the nutrient levels down.
Hopefully this helps someone who is wanting to eradicate these little guys from your tank.
Thanks and happy reefing!
This has been covered I'm sure but i thought i'd add my experience so far with getting rid of these little turds.
If you're not familiar with what these guys look like here is a video i shot before treatment. they are TINY! this video is shot with a macro lens and extension tubes. the frame shows about 1/2" of this acro frag.
Treatment for redbugs is done with a dog heartworm medication called interceptor, now called interceptor plus. I went to my vet and they had no problem selling me a single pill of it so i could treat my tank.
After researching i decided on a dosage of 0.025g per 10 gal, which in my small 32 gal tank i measured out 0.09g of material.
The major drawback of this treatment is it will kill all your crustaceans. Thats hermits, crabs, shrimp, and pods.
I removed my hermits to go live in a friend of mines tank, i've got no crabs or shrimp since i dont trust them so that wasnt an issue.
First treatment was a total of about 9 hours. it took around 8 for the redbugs to appear to all be dead. there were a few that were attached by a filament to the the coral body but appeared to be dead.
After 9 hours i performed a 25% wc and put in a healthy amount of carbon to help get the residual medication out. i noticed no negative effects on coral or fish during the treatment.
I took video and still shots between 30 and 60 minutes apart during treatment. here is the footage.
The next week i did another treatment which i left in for over 12 hours with no negative effects on inhabitants. one more treatment to go then i will reintroduce hermits and pods back into the system.
The only downside that i have run into with this treatment is algae growth, which i assume is because of pod die off and possibly slightly overfeeding due to my CUC not being complete right now. i've cut feeding amouts to 50%, doing a midweek 25% wc, and replacing phosguard to help beat the nutrient levels down.
Hopefully this helps someone who is wanting to eradicate these little guys from your tank.
Thanks and happy reefing!
