AlgaeFix Marine to control Hair Algae

This is everybody's forum. We are all posting here to share each others experience and hopefully learn from the information gathered so that interested hobbyists can make their own decisions. :)

As I stated earlier, I am very interested in the changes you have made to the label. Lowering the dose to 1/4 what is recommended, but dosing every day instead of every three days, is an interesting concept which may prove useful, particularly to hobbyists with very large systems; who have reported problems when dosing AF. I look forward to the results you find after dosing for a period of time. One has to be careful when one deviates from the label, as public concept may not completely understand what you are doing and may possibly misuse it. My goal is to make the hobbyists aware of all the different intricacies involved in adding a substance like AF to their reef system as best as I can.

There are still hobbyists who are very skeptical of using AF in a reef system and Randy happens to be one of them. Personally, I do not take Randy's statements lightly from a previous thread. ;)
 
cliff you will never make everyone happy thats life . like i said i did not have a huge problem to start with .i went for three days then i cut back to twice a week for one week then once a fortnight ever since and tank has never been better all a at 1/4 rates its been about ten weeks now .tank has never been better .
 
like i said I've sprayed chems for 20 years ,my job hangs on them ,I've done a course same as a fire fighter just to learn about chem spills etc ,i do no my stuff ,I'm not really a email or blog type person so i don't want to start with all the in s and out s it would take to long .i might cut and past some info to help guide the punters on chem use and that is what this product is now thats a fact .
 
HOW IT WORKS "“ IN GENERAL
The principle behind PondRelief is that of bio-augmentation. Bio-augmentation is the controlled addition of selected microorganisms into a specific environment to carry out a defined objective. Biotechnology can be described as the application of both biological science and engineering principles to the solution for everyday problems. Therefore bio-augmentation, or bacterial supplementation, is considered biotechnology, even though its history is as old as its first users in the fermenting of alcoholic beverages.

Bacteria are isolated from soil and water samples and tested in the laboratory for their ability to degrade complex organic compounds. Useful strains are grown and blended in a commercial scale for application to specific degradation problems. The formulations of bacteria will typically contain a number of species, which have been selected and combined to degrade organic compounds of interest. These organisms work in concert, each strain possessing the enzyme systems necessary to degrade specific components of the waste, yielding breakdown intermediates that are further degraded by other species in the blend. In this manner, complex compounds can be systematically reduced to ever more simple and ultimately non-harmful compounds such as water and carbon dioxide
Whether in the small confines of the hobbyist's aquarium, in commercial fish and shrimp aquaculture farms or in golf course ponds, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate must be removed or kept at very low levels to avoid toxicity to fish and control algae blooms. By adding PondRelief to the water phase, a living system of biologically active seed culture, enzymes, activators and accelerators, developed specifically for ponds and aquaculture is introduced. The PondRelief microbial cells populate the entire system, multiply and produce large quantities of digestive enzymes on a regular basis.

The bacterial cultures will oxidize ammonia to form nitrite and nitrate, and then reduce the nitrite and nitrate to nitrogen gas. These reactions give the bacteria both the energy and nutrients they require to grow and reproduce. Algae also require nitrogen as the critical element for growth. Algae blooms are controlled through competition because the bacteria in PondRelief removes nitrogen compounds from the water column faster than the algae, thus the algae will be starved out of existence or will not bloom at all.

PondRelief also degrades accumulated organic waste, top scum and bottom sludge for use as carbon sources. The overall result is a pond with clean, clear water, free from algae, odours and sludge.

The organisms selected for inclusion in PondRelief have been chosen for their ability to stabilize the conversion of nitrite to nitrate and to tolerate conditions that would totally inhibit Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter. Reduction of organics and the lowered BOD (Biochemical Organic Demand) achieved by PondRelief help these nitrogen-cycle bacterial organisms to thrive.

Is PondRelief safe for fish?
Yes. By removing ammonia and nitrite from the water, PondRelief enhances the aquatic environment for fish and other wildlife. PondRelief formula is used to enhance production in commercial fish, alligator and shrimp farms in Japan, Thailand, France, Canada and the United States
.................................................this is a product i have used in the past and is not a algaecide cliff but just ex of what products we use on a golf course .sorry it does go on and i hate to bore and this post does hehe
 
I am happy that someone with your experience is joining in. :thumbsup:

I too have been in the field of using chemicals for over 30 years, including working for EPA. This was during the time when they had some nasty chemicals being used like TEPP, Dieldrin, Aldrin and Endrin which have a LD50 of around 0.25-1.0. The chemical application industries have come a long way. :)

Paraquat is a very dangerous chemical which many farmers are still using. Shows you how strong the farmer's lobby group is. :lol:

"Pure paraquat ingested is highly toxic to mammals and humans potentially leading to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and there are no specific antidotes. However, fuller's earth or activated charcoal is an effective treatment, if taken in time. Death may occur up to 30 days after ingestion. Diluted paraquat used for spraying is less so, thus the greatest risk of accidental poisoning is during mixing and loading Paraquat for use.[13]

In acute toxicity studies using laboratory animals, Paraquat has been shown to be highly toxic by the inhalation route and has been placed in Toxicity Category I (the highest of four levels) for acute inhalation effects. However, the EPA has determined that particles used in agricultural practices (400 to 800 ìm) are well beyond the respirable range and therefore inhalation toxicity is not a toxicological endpoint of concern. Paraquat is toxic (Category II) by the oral route and moderately toxic (Category III) by the dermal route. Paraquat will cause moderate to severe eye irritation and minimal dermal irritation, and has been placed in Toxicity Categories II and IV (slightly toxic) for these effects.[14]"
 
Material Safety Data Sheets i was about to post on this topic but you would know all about it already great place to steer people into great info you just need to know how to reed the sheets .that's why i try to keep things simple
 
Does Algaefix also take care of byropsis? I think someone asked the same question in this thread but I did not see any answer? Thanks
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15739786#post15739786 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jamirlima
Does Algaefix also take care of byropsis? I think someone asked the same question in this thread but I did not see any answer? Thanks
Click to expand...


I have heard numerous times, elevating your Magnesium does the trick. If I remember correctly, somewhere around 1600-1700 was the approximate number.

If interested, you would need to search this section (the chemistry section) for additional info.


I don't have the problem, however it has been asked before.
 
Well i did bump my mag to 1600 and same day i used Flatworm exit to kill zoanthid eating nudis and some of my zoos started to close up or not fully open as it used to be and they are still not happy.
 
You do not want to bump to 1600 all in one day. Follow the instructions on what ever additive you are using and raise slowly over period of time. I am in the process of doing it myself.
 
Just an update, my tank is looking great. 9 days after the last algaefix treatment, and so far no GHA or other pests. I've added no "maintenance" doses... I wanted to get my tank off AF marine entirely, and see if my corals respond positively.

My frogspawn is looking better. The green stripe mushrooms are still hurting and are the size of nickels, and I'm not sure if they'll ever go back to their former 4 inch diameters. All other LPS, zoas, GSP, are looking great. :)
 
Will this work for turf algae as well? I might actually feel kind of bad for my inverts if it actually works and they run out of food. :lmao:
 
I think it would, if your turf algae is all micro algae. If it's macro, it may die as well if you dose heavily. All my chaeto (not a lot) eventually died and was eaten by emerald crabs
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15739786#post15739786 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jamirlima
Does Algaefix also take care of byropsis? I think someone asked the same question in this thread but I did not see any answer? Thanks
Click to expand...

There have been several hobbyists in this thread who have tried AF on bryopsis without success.

Many hobbyists have reported success killing bryopsis using Tech M to elevate their tank magnesium level to around 1600. I suspect that the contaminates (heavy metals such as copper and lead) are responsible for actually killing the algae. I have read several studies which indicated that the combination of some heavy metals, particularly copper and lead act synergistically together to kill algae. Tech M lists these heavy metals on the label.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15740696#post15740696 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by thebanker
I think it would, if your turf algae is all micro algae. If it's macro, it may die as well if you dose heavily. All my chaeto (not a lot) eventually died and was eaten by emerald crabs
Click to expand...

Well isn't hair algae considered to be macro?
 
The definition of macroalgae is rather vague. Personally, I would not consider hair algae in the same category as Halimeda or other macroalgae grown in refugiums and planted aquariums. Hair algae is a chain of microscopic algae. Many macroalgae consist of just a few giant cells. An example would be kelp which is a true macroalgae.

This article makes an attempt to define the difference between micro and macro algae but is somewhat vague also:

http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/algaemarineplantcare/a/macromicroalgae.htm
 
I tried this stuff for 3 weeks and even increased the recommended dosage. After the first few days the hair algae went for green to a grayish color but never died off. After the initial progress the product stopped working for me.
 
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