AlgaeFix Marine to control Hair Algae

Skimmer ? while dosing

Skimmer ? while dosing

How long should I turn the skimmer off while dosing? I am thinking 24 hours then back on and then off again for 24 hours while you dose the second dose and so on. I started dosing today and want to be certain on the skimmer. My new skimmer will be here tomorrow and dont want to have to start over with the dosing. Also I am using the non-marine Algeafix. Do I need to do a water change after every dose or just one at the end of the dosing cycle.
 
the longer the skimmer is left off the better as they instruct you to turn it off . i usually skim the third day and then dose that night myself .
 
im sure im already at the 10th dose or past it, but i still have a lot of hair algae that hasnt come lose. some did though. i didnt want to try vodka again because it was the same thing, plus zoanthids were dying off from carbon dosing
 
I'm not sure what you do at this point (after 10 doses). Several hobbyists reported that AF killed their macroalgae after 10-12 doses. My chaeto died around that point. Most hobbyists that found themselves dosing to around 10 doses had achieved close to 100% control. It is possible that the specie of algae you have is not affected by AF enough to control it. I would watch your coral......etc closely if you decide to continue.
 
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One other possibility that comes to mind would be to try elevating your magnesium level 300-400 ppm using Tech M. Some hobbyists have reported success with various species of algae using this method.
 
Just wanted to make a post of my experience. I treated my 180g tank with Algae Fix Marine at the recommended dose for about a month. During the first week, my midnight blenny disappeared. I have had this healthy blenny for well over a year. I also noticed that my pair of engineer gobies were nowhere to be found either. I thought maybe the blenny jumped or something but I could not find him anywhere. I continued to dose the tank and after a month of nothing much happening, I stopped dosing. I bought a BRS Reactor and set that up. Within 24 hours of running, my blenny was out sitting on the rocks. He was very weak and very skinny. His entire body was all sunken in. Put him in the refugium but he ended up dying that night. Same night, I noticed how my engineer gobies starting spitting sand out from under the rocks again. Fortunately, the two gobies started eating and have been healthy ever since. The ONLY thing that I did was add the Algae Fix Marine. I just find it very strange that they all disappeared after I started the Algae Fix Treatment and as soon as I started up the reactor to remove the Algae fix, they all came back out. I have heard other stories of it killing blennies and such but I also read all of the positive stories. Just be careful if you have any blennies because they seem to really affect them for some reason.
 
FreakSRT,

Thanks for posting your results. Sorry to hear you lost your fish. :(

Is it possible to post a picture of your tank?

listing your tank water parameters would be helpful too: salinity, alk, calcium, nitrate, ammonia, phoshpate & magnesium. :)
 
I've tried 2 separate treatments per the directions, hair algae laughed. I was pulling out clumps every w/c, all params good. Then I got a seahare - problem solved.
 
wow it really worked miracles for me but i do understand that it is somewhat specific on the types of algae that it kills off . i also got a new ro/di unit from the filter guys and after a couple of weeks that seemed to make a huge difference .clean topoff water is also a key as i think i just stumbled on my cause for my HA .
 
i also like the sea hair for maintenance of the tank along with a tang and that combination seem to help once you get it under control .
 
I hear many hobbyists have luck with seahares. One caution is when the seahare runs out of algae to eat. Many will starve at that point & die, unless you subsidize their diet. Some hobbyists trade their seahare back to the lfs after the algae is gone. :)
 
Will be adding my 3rd dose tomorrow. I'm not sure if it's working, but I see some HA floating in the water that I never saw before. Doing a water change tomorrow before the 3rd dose to see if anything comes loose.
 
newsalt,

Hopefully AF works for you. I would remove as much algae as you can now. If you allow the algae to die & brakedown this will allow more nutrients back into your water column which continues to provide more food source for the algae. ;)

EDIT: One needs to keep in mind that decaying algae can also increase ammonia levels in your system (This is my understanding). Also the decaying algae can lead to lack of oxygen in your water and cause fish kills if too much decaying algae is present.
 
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I dose Seachem Flourish Excel in a freshwater tank and it kills hair algae very well. It is also a source of organic carbon for plants. The chemistry is polycycloglutaracetal.

Has this ever been dosed in saltwater? Would it kill marine hair algae and could it be used as an alternative to other carbon dosing additives?
 
I would defer to Randy regarding this product. The only information I could find was from this freshwater planted aquarium site (I don't know how accurate this post was):

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/general-planted-tank-discussion/23867-flourish-excel-fish.html

From it:

"That's an understatement. Gluteraldehyde is a strong BIOCIDE, related to formaldehyde. At sufficient concentration, it kills darn near anything, which makes it useful for sterilizing medical instruments, labware that has been exposed to infectious agents, etc. I know someone who uses it at their job. They affectionately refer to it as "Ethyl Methyl Death".

At lower concentrations, it's still not pleasant stuff. Gluteraldehyde crosslinks proteins, is a mutagen and carcinogen, is known to cause allergic chemical sensitization, and exposure is a known occupational hazard:

"The 1999 Code of Practice for Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Chemical Agents) Regulations, 1994, reduces the occupational exposure limit for glutaraldehyde from 0.2ppm to 0.1ppm."

Dosing 1ml gluteraldehyde per 100g water exceeds this limit by a factor of 26.

From the MSDS:

---
Acute Effects:
May be fatal if inhaled.
Toxic if swallowed.
Harmful if absorbed through skin.
Causes severe eye irratation.
Causes skin irritation.
Material may be irritating to mucous membranes and upper respiratory tract.
May cause allergic skin reaction.

Chronic Effects:
Laboratory experiments have shown mutagenic effects.
Target organs: central nervous system, heart.
---

If Flourish Excel really contains this, I will never use it. "
 
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