Boy did I burn my own @$$.
Last Sunday I received some frags from a friend. As I'm dipping (TMCC), and inspecting with magnifying glass I see red bugs. I briefly consider throwing the frags in the garbage, but then consider that my friend has put time, effort, and money into growing, fragging, and shipping these frags to me. So I go hunting through my fish room knowing I have an Interceptor pill hiding somewhere...20 minutes later I find the stupid thing.
I grind up a 23 mg pill and add 1/2 of a level Salifert spoonful to 2 gallons of water from the display tank. I put the frags into the Interceptor treatment for 1 hour, drain it off, and put them in fresh tank water in a plastic food container floating in my sump so I can check on them the next day for red bugs.
Next day I look in sump and the water is murky in the container and smells like dead frags. Oh, and the container is lop sided with the water contaminating my tank!!
So I take the frags out, inspect...all dead. Ok, that's weird (I've done that same Interceptor dip like 50 times, but whatever I'm more concerned about the possibility of red bug contaminated water getting into my tank!
That was Monday morning. Today I'm looking into my tank, and notice some of my Acros are slimed up. Look closer...yup, red bugs got in there.
They are absolutely PLASTERED all over one of my favorite Acros...of course it is one that is super encrusted and no way for me to remove it for a dip. I see them on three other Acros as well.
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Having never treated an entire reef with Interceptor, I would greatly appreciate those who are experienced with this to help me with my plan of attack.
Alright so here's the plan of attack...
For inverts I have; 1 Black brittle starfish, 2 Emerald Crabs, 7 snails, 2 Conchs, 1 Seahare (experiment against red turf algae), 1 Tuxedo Urchin. I will be able to catch everyone except the starfish, and I may or may not be able to catch the crabs. I believe the only critters that would succumb to the Interceptor are the emerald crabs. I know the snails will be ok, but not totally sure about the others. I have a 20g tank I can move these guys into as well as some cured live rock I can put in with them.
My tank is 90 gallons, plus about 15 gallons of water in the sump for a total of 105 gallons. Minus the live rock and sand, there is about 80-85 gallons net water volume. Each Salifert measuring spoon of Interceptor (32 mg pill) will treat 32 gallons. I plan to use 3 level spoonfuls for each treatment, and I will put a filter sock on the overflow drain for the length of the treatment.
Day 1 - Remove inverts and carbon. Turn the air intake off on the skimmer. Add Interceptor. Wait 6 hours. Do 25% water change. Add fresh carbon, turn skimmer air back on.
Day 5 - Remove carbon, turn skimmer air off. Add 2nd dose. Wait 6 hours. Do 25% water change. Add fresh carbon, turn skimmer air back on.
[I will be out of province starting May 2nd, so I will not be able to do a 3rd dose on Day 21, and my 2nd dose will be early on Day 5 instead of recommended Day 7. I know many people have success doing just one dose, and others fail miserably by just dosing once.]
Day 6 - Remove carbon, do 25% water change, add fresh carbon. Wait 6 hours. Put inverts back into tank.
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Questions:
- How much carbon would be required to remove the Interceptor dose?
- Will the brittle starfish survive the Interceptor? (my reading says he will probably survive)
- Will the conchs, Seahare, and urchin be ok?
- Will my RBTAs, clams, and Gorgonians be ok with the Interceptor? (my reading says yes)
- Is this the same dosage everyone else has had success with?
- Am I missing anything?
