I am sure the op has all the answers, please pm for all your questions to him...

Selling dirty frags is no different than a heroin dealer spreading death.

I always buy fresh cuts or if they're mounted chop off the frag plug. Can never be too safe these days since everyone is suspect.even if they are not you can't just trust it dip everything and qt if possible. Some of the larger coral retailers have a 5 step qt system before the coral makes it into the main display. Wish we all had the money and space to do that.

Chris you need more light on your tank

Infact I do, you got a spare 36" ati with bulbs kicking around?

FWIW, as someone that owns a microscope and inspects everything ever purchased, I have bought frags WITH AEFW more times than not, via private or online vendors. At one point I guessed that 80% of SPS tanks in the country likely had them, known or unknown to the hobbyist.
As a "best practices" measure, EVERY frag you buy should be considered "at risk" and treated accordingly.
If you have regularly bought acro frags and not treated, you probably have them

Like most threads in this forum, the main point started to drift after a while. I think one of the main point of the original post was that someone out there, "knowingly, intentionally, callously sell their frags" infested with AEFW.

Sure, that's dirty. Then many people also commented that it would be silly to assume you're buying "clean" frags regardless where you buy them from, so in the end, buying known "dirty" frags might be better than buying assumed "clean" frags because you'll be much more thorough. :lol:

Assuming you're buying clean frags is a far cry from knowingly selling infested frags.

Been awhile since the 'ol Bradbo posted but he's nailed it

This is all I need to read ...

Here's a fine example. Read post #61.

https://www.reef2reef.com/index.php?posts/3644481

This is someone who is VERY diligent with his system. He had AEFW unknowingly lurking in his tank for at least a year and a half!

Fwiw. It has always been buyers beware. Education to make people aware is the only way to keep this infestation at bay. People have no right to sell knowingly to other unless they disclose. This post should've been a public warning instead of a witch hunt. If there is anything people can get out of this thread is to raise awareness on how to deal with incoming corals than that might not be a bad thing.

I don't point fingers at no one and the only person Who is to blame is the person putting that tinted frag into their tank naive enough to think it will be okay. Local fish stores are the first one who are responsible to teach their clients but on the contrary they are probably the worse offenders of selling aefw and other pest infested corals but unfortunately this is the way it is.

Anyways, if it ain't you then don't worry about it. why all this fuss for no reason. Bottom line is if it goes in your tank the owner is ultimately responsible.

Myka, being an expert, can you give some examples of how people can identify and avoid buying from potentially affected tanks. I have always looked at the general health of the sps for signs of bite marks and it's underbelly. Corals that are pale and have dead spots on the base are likely been prayed upon. Fresh cuts and cutting off the bases of incoming coral is vital to keep your system safe along with dipping methods I suggested on my previous post are all preventitive measure to aid you with success of keeping sps.

Agreed here, good write up bro. Fresh cuts, dips and a keen eye is what we all need in this hobby....

Quick visuals.

bite marks, can be hard to see.
egg clusters at base of coral, easier to see, looks like masses of frog eggs
no polyp extension, particularly seen on milliporas, a favorite target.
Faded colors on pieces in an otherwise vibrant tank.

worms are not visible on wet frag, but if you blow on it slightly to dry it, you may see "wet" circular patterns, this warrants closer inspection with magnifying glass. Even under a microscope, they are tough to see unless they move. Don't trust your eyes.

Frog eggs lol when you setting the tank back up?

Unrelated to MY frogs lol

If I had a tank, I'd have to tear it down, doing some big renos now. :)

For the record, I don't have letters after my name. I am not an expert. :)

I do the same as Brad. Look at Milles in particular. Look for browned out colonies and bite marks.

I read your expert advices on bay sides news letter all the time....don't be so modest!

Thank you for your kind words. Still, I'm a reef professional with many years of experience in many areas of reef keeping, and I am not an expert. :p

Expert by experience! Do they make letters for that? :lol:

I made a new POSITIVE thread Preventative Protocol for New SPS Coral Purchases. Go check it out, and post your own protocols! Please don't reference this thread or "recent happenings".

Cool, thanks.

Bump.

my issue was different

I had got infected by red flatworms from purchasing corals in span of 4 months from various sellers. It's not as bad as AEFW but I wasnt sure who I contracted it from, but hopefully managed to defeat it as I havent seen them on my rocks lately after a chemical regimen

I see now why no one wants to admit they any kind of infestation on their tank. mine is mostly LPS and softies but the red flatworm blanket on rocks was horrible

unfortanately I had bought LR with corals attached and havent been removing any corals off plugs. (how do you remove zoas of plugs or rocks?)

I have dipped in Revive and Coral Rx the items i have bought but I guess they are not as effective.

Share the name of the source so we can help ourselves and the source.

Too much concern for cognitive dissonance these days and not enough for transparency.

Data is important :p

This data is almost 3 years old. Research is also important.

The known offender has been clean for a couple years now, as far as I'm aware.

Due diligence in inspecting, dipping and quarantining your newly aquired frags is on you.

Ahhh yes, dates are important! :p

Due diligence for sure... on both parties.