AlgaeFix Marine to control Hair Algae
- Thread starter HighlandReefer
- Start date
HighlandReefer
Team RC
It's good to know the puty about a 3 year expiration date on AF. 
You may have one of the siphoning algae like Derbesia which AF does not work on. Derbesia looks very similar to the regular hair algae that AF will kill.
You may have one of the siphoning algae like Derbesia which AF does not work on. Derbesia looks very similar to the regular hair algae that AF will kill.
HighlandReefer
Team RC
I dont' believe the vinegar will cause problems.
HighlandReefer
Team RC
You have so many things going on, I'm not sure what is causing problems for your coral. I would recommend that you remove as much algae as possible if you do decide to chance using AF again.
milkman55
New member
Another satisfied customer. I had a serious outbreak of HA that I originally thought was dinos. Tried all the usual solutions with several 3 day lights out, increase pH, etc. I started AF Marine about two months ago dosing 20 ml in my 200 gal system every three days. It took a full two weeks before I saw progress, but now I am almost algae free. Looking better every week. I just ordered two more bottles for maintenance dosing. I have not noticed any negative effect on fish or corals.
HighlandReefer
Team RC
:thumbsup:
Steve Wright2
New member
Not sure if you are still wanting people to post their experiences with this product?
but just in case
I started with my 1st dose of 8 mils API Algaefix marine Sunday , next dose Wednesday
situation
tank contains 80 US gallons of saltwater and is SPS dominant reef, sumpless - HOB Octopus skmmer, running Purigen and GFO
been carbon dosing, initially with Bio fuel for a couple of months
then moved gradually over to Vodka
currently dosing at 2 mils of Vodka per day - N and P undetectable on Salifert test kits
no GHA and no Cyno
I have introduced Algae fix into my system in the hope of dealing with 2 aesthetic issues
and I have no idea on the latin name of these 2 species of nuisance algae
1 - Dark green/ black turf type algae - sally lightfoot crabs of which I have 2 , will eat it, but they cant clean it down to bare rock
2 - red hair or beard type algae - both hermits and Saly lightfoots will browse on it but its been 8 months and its still there
the carbon dosing - mostly down to the Vodka seems to have stopped it, in its tracks as far as progressing , but as yet has not caused it to regress
it is my intention to
continue skimming
continue to run GFO
continue to dose Vodka - but not to increase the dosage of vodka during this Algaefix marine treatment
I will post images in a few weeks, if this product, does help eliminate these last 2 remaining nuisances
side on veiw of tank so that corals can be seen
Steve
but just in case
I started with my 1st dose of 8 mils API Algaefix marine Sunday , next dose Wednesday
situation
tank contains 80 US gallons of saltwater and is SPS dominant reef, sumpless - HOB Octopus skmmer, running Purigen and GFO
been carbon dosing, initially with Bio fuel for a couple of months
then moved gradually over to Vodka
currently dosing at 2 mils of Vodka per day - N and P undetectable on Salifert test kits
no GHA and no Cyno
I have introduced Algae fix into my system in the hope of dealing with 2 aesthetic issues
and I have no idea on the latin name of these 2 species of nuisance algae
1 - Dark green/ black turf type algae - sally lightfoot crabs of which I have 2 , will eat it, but they cant clean it down to bare rock
2 - red hair or beard type algae - both hermits and Saly lightfoots will browse on it but its been 8 months and its still there
the carbon dosing - mostly down to the Vodka seems to have stopped it, in its tracks as far as progressing , but as yet has not caused it to regress
it is my intention to
continue skimming
continue to run GFO
continue to dose Vodka - but not to increase the dosage of vodka during this Algaefix marine treatment
I will post images in a few weeks, if this product, does help eliminate these last 2 remaining nuisances
side on veiw of tank so that corals can be seen
Steve
HighlandReefer
Team RC
Steve,
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Nice pics, which always help other hobbyists interested in trying AF.
Thanks for sharing your experience.
Nice pics, which always help other hobbyists interested in trying AF.
kzooreefer
New member
I'm on my fourth dose, day 12, and whatever was covering my glass is now gone. I thought it was diatoms but now suspect cyanobacteria. I had to clean my glass daily and it was a brown powdery organism with air bubbles. I had a problem with golden brown diatoms on the sand bed about a year ago, identified through a microscope, and just assumed this was the same thing.
Dosing has done nothing to the algae growing in my protein skimmer, some kind of filamentous algea and a diatom, Triceratium formossium, a star shaped diatom from Hawaii. Triceratium is cool looking under the microscope and is easily recognizable. I can't identify the filamentous algae but its most likely some form of hair algae. I didn't take a scraping from the glass before I started and wish I had so I could have at least tried to identify it.
Edit: I read back a few pages and the filamentous algae I had in my skimmer does look like Derbesi under the microscope. Had to hunt for a picture to compare. So that makes sense that its not effected.
Dosing has done nothing to the algae growing in my protein skimmer, some kind of filamentous algea and a diatom, Triceratium formossium, a star shaped diatom from Hawaii. Triceratium is cool looking under the microscope and is easily recognizable. I can't identify the filamentous algae but its most likely some form of hair algae. I didn't take a scraping from the glass before I started and wish I had so I could have at least tried to identify it.
Edit: I read back a few pages and the filamentous algae I had in my skimmer does look like Derbesi under the microscope. Had to hunt for a picture to compare. So that makes sense that its not effected.
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Steve Wright2
New member
Thank you Highland Reefer
Hopefully a positive experience and for future only coraline or corals on the rockwork
Steve
Hopefully a positive experience and for future only coraline or corals on the rockwork
Steve
HighlandReefer
Team RC
kzooreefer,
Derbesia is a siphoing algae with very large branching cells, unlike most hair algae which have small cells with distinct breaks between cells which are normal size. IME, algae fix did not work on Derbesia.
Derbesia is a siphoing algae with very large branching cells, unlike most hair algae which have small cells with distinct breaks between cells which are normal size. IME, algae fix did not work on Derbesia.
Steve Wright2
New member
Not sure if you are still wanting people to post their experiences with this product?
but just in case
I started with my 1st dose of 8 mils API Algaefix marine Sunday , next dose Wednesday
situation
tank contains 80 US gallons of saltwater and is SPS dominant reef, sumpless - HOB Octopus skmmer, running Purigen and GFO
been carbon dosing, initially with Bio fuel for a couple of months
then moved gradually over to Vodka
currently dosing at 2 mils of Vodka per day - N and P undetectable on Salifert test kits
no GHA and no Cyno
I have introduced Algae fix into my system in the hope of dealing with 2 aesthetic issues
and I have no idea on the latin name of these 2 species of nuisance algae
1 - Dark green/ black turf type algae - sally lightfoot crabs of which I have 2 , will eat it, but they cant clean it down to bare rock
2 - red hair or beard type algae - both hermits and Saly lightfoots will browse on it but its been 8 months and its still there
the carbon dosing - mostly down to the Vodka seems to have stopped it, in its tracks as far as progressing , but as yet has not caused it to regress
it is my intention to
continue skimming
continue to run GFO
continue to dose Vodka - but not to increase the dosage of vodka during this Algaefix marine treatment
I will post images in a few weeks, if this product, does help eliminate these last 2 remaining nuisances
Steve
Update
here are the 2 locations above, after 5 doses of 8 mils Algaefix marine
definite signs of receding, lightening of general color of both species
no negatives as yet, no unexplained snail or other invert deaths - all seem present and correct (OK Im not so sad that I count my snails regularly, but there are no additional empty shells turning up so IMO no snail or crab loses due to algaefix)
all corals also seem OK, although I have noted my LPS corals do tend to close up slightly after introduction of the algaefix, but they are back fully open later same day
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HighlandReefer
Team RC
:thumbsup:
Glad to hear the AF is working for you. Wonderful pictures.
Glad to hear the AF is working for you. Wonderful pictures.
jimrawr
New member
So I am trying a second bottle of this product in hopes that I had a bad batch that didnt work. Upon opening the bottle and pouring it into the cap, right away I could notice the product had a different color than my original. The new bottle had a tint of yellow and the old bottle the liquid was completely clear. Luckily I still had some from the old bottle so I poured a bit of each into two seperate shot glass, and the color difference was clear as day.
Does your liquid have a yellowish tint or is it clear like water?
Does your liquid have a yellowish tint or is it clear like water?
HighlandReefer
Team RC
That's interesting. My AF was clear out of the bottle.
On my 4th dose of Algaefix. No green hazing on the glass anymore but not sure if the algae on the rocks is affected yet. It's not hair algae but a short brown "mung" that hangs on like it's deeply rooted ( my rock came from an old tank and surely has bound phosphate). Mexican turbos and cerith snails seem to eat it somewhat but are minimal in their effect. Not sure if the AF will nuke it or not. Softies like Devil's Claw close up when I treat but I realised after recalculating my volume that I was overdosing and have corrected on last treatment. Running GFO and skimming normally. Hope to see some positive results soon...
HighlandReefer
Team RC
Keep us posted.
I want to document my attempt with Marine algae fix.
I tried all of the conventional methods of beating hair algea:
Scrub, remove, Scrub, remove, scrub remove - fail
New bulb - fail
Add emerald crab - fail
Add urchins - fail
Add hermit crabs - fail
Add turbo snails - fail
Minimize feeding and maximize water changes - fail
Vodka dose to have 0 nitrates -fail
use GFO to have 0 phosphates - fail
While all of the above attemps helped reduce some types of hair algea in my tank, there seems to be a particular species that can grow in very low nutrient areas.
Here's the algea I'm dealing with.
Here's a pic at it's worst
I scrubed everything like crazy after that and here's one weeks growth. This is my starting point for starting Marine algea fix
Here are a couple of problem spots that I'll be watching carefully.
I've decided to follow the directions on the bottle for the amount to dose, but I also decided to depense the med by targeting particular patches of GHA, hopeing that a local concentration of the med will be more potent.
I have GHA in my sump/fuge as well as chaeto. I'm leaving the chaeto in to see how it fairs with the treatment. As an FYI here are some creatures in my tank who will hopefully survive the treatment. Tuxedo urchin, pin cushion urchin, peppermint shrimp, emerald crab, RBTA, & brittle star. I have a mixed reef w/ softies, LPS & SPS.
Start date 04/18/11. Wish me luck!!
I tried all of the conventional methods of beating hair algea:
Scrub, remove, Scrub, remove, scrub remove - fail
New bulb - fail
Add emerald crab - fail
Add urchins - fail
Add hermit crabs - fail
Add turbo snails - fail
Minimize feeding and maximize water changes - fail
Vodka dose to have 0 nitrates -fail
use GFO to have 0 phosphates - fail
While all of the above attemps helped reduce some types of hair algea in my tank, there seems to be a particular species that can grow in very low nutrient areas.
Here's the algea I'm dealing with.
Here's a pic at it's worst
I scrubed everything like crazy after that and here's one weeks growth. This is my starting point for starting Marine algea fix
Here are a couple of problem spots that I'll be watching carefully.
I've decided to follow the directions on the bottle for the amount to dose, but I also decided to depense the med by targeting particular patches of GHA, hopeing that a local concentration of the med will be more potent.
I have GHA in my sump/fuge as well as chaeto. I'm leaving the chaeto in to see how it fairs with the treatment. As an FYI here are some creatures in my tank who will hopefully survive the treatment. Tuxedo urchin, pin cushion urchin, peppermint shrimp, emerald crab, RBTA, & brittle star. I have a mixed reef w/ softies, LPS & SPS.
Start date 04/18/11. Wish me luck!!
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