Most of us can all agree that the use of electricity for killing the nuisance Aiptasia anemones is somewhat gratifying. After all, who doesn’t want to inflict a little pain on those anemones that give us so much grief? The anemones find their way into our established aquariums through a number of ways, often going unnoticed until the population is quite sizable and hard to eradicate. Many hobbyists use various chemicals to inject into the anemones hoping they will dissolve, but those methods aren’t always effective and can actually alter water parameters depending on how much is used. The Aiptasia Zapper, on the other hand, uses no chemicals. Instead, it shoots low voltage electricity into the anemone, causing it to shrivel up and wither away in a matter of minutes. The bubbles emanating from the death dealing electrical wand seen in the video above are just the product of electrolysis, and are just harmless hydrogen gas.
The Aiptasia Zapper is a device rooted in the do-it-yourself realm of the aquarium hobby. There are reports that the device was first built and patented by Paul Baldassano, but the Zapper has founds its way into several companies such as Saltwater Connection (SWC). Though this situation is still up in the air, the Zapper continues to be sold and has started to show up in local fish stores. We took this video at Fish Gallery here in Houston, and actually had a blast with the device. It offers a precision kill to rid your tank of Aiptasia and Majano anemones, but can also be used to target other pests such as nudibranchs or flatworms. The device retails for roughly $80-100 depending on the source, and is quite effective at what it’s marketed to do.
