Please.... I need major help - hydroid colony

[TopClamSkoo]

Hey All,

I really need some help...

9gallon nano. Mixed reef tank. Mostly zoas and lps. Everything is doing very well! Even my sps sticks.

I have a major case of hydroid colonies growing everywhere in my tank... I started to see them within the 1st 9 months of my tank's life. I used to scrape them away, but they will always grow back in the same area I scraped. I even used putty to cover them up and they would always end up growing around the putty after a week or so... After a while, I just let it be. I read they will usually just die away esp. in young tanks.

It's been 2 years now... And they have not gone away..in fact... They have grown everywhere in my tank! They seem to be photosynthetic as they only grow around areas where there is light. I've been reefing since 2005 and I have never... NEVER DEALT WITH A PEsT LIKE THIS!! It's driving me crazy. I'm so close to selling everything off and just shutting down.

I finally decided to try glue and my live rock looks like crap right now... One week later... I see these little jerk offs growing around the area that I glued...

Need help. I'm about to give up. I've dealt with all sorts of pests over the years and there was always a remedy for them... But this time... Im out of options. Again... I've already tried putty, glue, aptesianX (doesn't work at all), scraping them off... Nothing works.

I heard from my lfs that trying bumblebee cowries, file fish, or boxer shrimp may work.
Unfortunately, I have a indigo dottyback as my only fish... so not sure about using fish or a shrimp will work out... But at this point I may just try that. . dewormer medication was even suggested per.... But I want to avoid using chemicals ...

any thoughts? Please help... I'm about to give up...

attached a pic of what I got. I smothered all of them so taking pics on my own will not be useful. I only see one or two already growing around the glued areas..

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Unfortunately, colonial hydroids are difficult to get rid of once they spread. The only reason I ever broke down a tank (aside from an upgrade) was because of them.
You might need to do a complete reboot - new rocks and everything. Remove as many corals as you can from the current rocks and relocate them to the new ones... At least then, even if a few end up in the "new" tank, you should be able to isolate that rock and remove the hydroids.

I'm sorry you're going through this.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I had to literally chisel off the parts of the rocks where the hydroids were...

 

[TopClamSkoo]

Yeah I did that too .. but they just keep coming back...

 

[BOYERZ]

I think i have a few of those, brownish,green?

i thought they were tube worms. I'll just let mine be.

I had a bryopsis outbreak, it was localized to one rock. I split the rock into many parts and let the affected areas dry out for a period of a few months. Put them back in, all is well bryopsis free.

If you can break the rock apart in sections, put back clean rock. If you don't want to break apart the rock maybe super glue?

 

[TopClamSkoo]

Thanks for the reply.

As I mentioned. I tried glue. .. they just grow back.. breaking up my rock is a big no no. I have coral growing around soo... Wanna try to avoid that.

 

[TopClamSkoo]

I read this thread

Hydroids: a reference to some strategies

Just a quick update as I was going through the same problem. I added a generic sea hare (Dolabella auricularia) and so far about 90% of them are gone. Actually watched it eating them. There are still some on some of the rockwork where I know it hasn't been as I have a small amount of algae on...

www.reef2reef.com

Sounds good but has anyone try emerald crabs and work? I have only snails right now... But I'm ready to try crabs even if it puts my snails in danger

 

[SFREEF3R]

Probably silly question - but why do you want to eliminate them?

Are they bothering your corals or just don’t like the aesthetic?

I have a few small patches in my tank that don’t appear to be bothering my corals so I just let them be.

 

[TopClamSkoo]

Probably silly question - but why do you want to eliminate them?

Are they bothering your corals or just don’t like the aesthetic?

I have a few small patches in my tank that don’t appear to be bothering my corals so I just let them be.

Hey thanks for replying.

No that's not a silly question at all. As stated.. I glued most of them down so even if I took a pic to show you how bad it got... All you'll see is a bunch of white crust everywhere in my tank hahahaha. What ticks me off is that they are now peeping through the outer edges of the glue!!!

They actually irritate my zoas. Other corals they have not reached yet .. but I heard these guys sting corals and if left unchecked.. will take over the entire tank. I don't have a natural predator in my tank... So that's why I'm thinking of crabs since the thread I shared mentioned success using them.

I'll also switch to mysis for feedings instead of pellets. Hikari pellets break up and spread all around my rock so maybe that's what is helping them to thrive... We'll see..

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

You've already read through one of the links below, but:

I've heard smothering the hydroids with kalk paste may work, but here are some other threads with suggestions that might be helpful:

Hydroids: a reference to some strategies

Like many of us, I have had problems on and off over the years with Hydroids. The ones that have always given me the most problems are the common ones that almost look like a smaller and darker version of the beginner coral called Yellow Polyps. But the colonial Hydroid is much smaller than...

www.reef2reef.com

Hydroids - How do I eliminate- They have taken over my tank

So I have this stuff that has pretty much taken over my tank and I can't get rid of it. I'm looking for an ID and an eradication plan that is anything short of a total teardown.

www.reef2reef.com

Fenbendazole dip for blue clove polyp/hydroids.

FYI So I had more than few blue clove and what i believe are hydroids pop up on a few frags and start spreading in the frag system. I didn't want to start out treating the whole system so I picked the most populated frags to treat. I mixed 1/4 gram of Fenbendazole with 1 cup of saltwater as a...

www.reef2reef.com

Edit: A relevant link in post 7 of the link above:

Here it is! Fenbendazole use against hydroids

Hi all! Well after getting a lot of questions about the use of fenbendazol I figured I would write this up. This is for informational purposes and I will not be held liable for improper use. Fenbendazol must be used exactly as I instruct or run the risk of a tank crash. Now lets get to it! So...

www.reef2reef.com

I've also heard that (at least in some cases) urchins may eat/eliminate hydroids.

 

[Reefer Matt]

I have a bunch in my 36 gallon as well. I noticed they are in low flow areas. I recently put four emeralds in the tank for valonia, and also noticed one of them picking at the hydroids. I’m not saying that they will eat them, just offering an anecdote from a casual observation. The hydroids I have, only seem to annoy some zoas, but do not appear to cause any major harm. More of a visual nuisance. But your case may be different. If I notice a major improvement, I’ll let you know though! Good luck!

 

[TopClamSkoo]

You've already read through one of the links below, but:


I've also heard that (at least in some cases) urchins may eat/eliminate hydroids.

Hmmm............urchins huh?? Would a pin cushion urchin ever run into an lps and pierce the polyp?
It's a 9gallon nano.. so... Kinda scared using them. Are there other urchins that are smaller?
Anyone else have experience with urchins? How do they fair with clams?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Are there other urchins that are smaller?

I think tuxedos are about the smallest urchins in the hobby (along with some pin cushion species), and they'd be pretty big for 9 gallon.

Keep in mind that the evidence of urchins eating hydroids is anecdotal, and it may depend on the species as well. For a 9 gallon, I'd personally explore other options first.