AlgaeFix Marine to control Hair Algae

[HighlandReefer]

Vandal996,

Thanks for posting your experience.

Sorry to hear about your clam.

 

[rcoughtrey]

Just a quick question as I seen different answers on here and the general web.

Should I stop my skimmer and remove my carbon bag when adding algeafix to my tank, If so how do you leave it off and the carbon out for?

 

[rcoughtrey]

OK got home tonight and my skimmer seemed to have more algea like chunks than normal. It may have something else but the only item I have put into the tank was algeafix fingers crossed

 

[HighlandReefer]

The manufacturer of AF does not say to stop skimming and remove carbon. Most hobbyists here achieve control with skimming and carbon in place.

AF kills algae by producing a hole in the outer cell membrane which allows the cell's contents to spew out, leaving the cell dead. The skimmer will help remove the dead algae and debris before they start to decompose. The GAC will help remove the toxins & other dissolved carbons which may begin to build-up as the algae die.

 

[moliken]

about clams, just my experience, but ive done the af twice and am now on my 3rd dose of it at present and have had no clam issues at all. never lost one during or shortly after af. i have lost clams for no reason at other times. i suspect that the clam had other issues, like fat elvis.

 

[moliken]

progress after 3 doses
earlier, red and nearly impossible to toothbrush off

today, much less alive looking and easy to scrub off, also less of it all over.

i figure 3-5 more doses

 

[rcoughtrey]

On my 2nd dose for brown hair and when I did a water change today the syphon tube was dominating it. Coming up with no pressure at all.

So far so good

 

[spollock818]

So, after reading all 63 pages in three days, I would like to share my experience with AFM. I originally started about six months ago on 1 65 gallon tank that is very lightly stocked. 2 inch DSB, 70 lbs of LR, 1 frogspawn, 1 green tip anemone, 1 Cole tang, 1 tomato clown, 1 electric blue damsel, 1 lawnmower blenny, plenty of CUC. I run 2 media reactors (1Seachem Denitrate and BRS GAC & 1 BRS GFO), with a moded Superskimmer 220). Lighting is 4 T5's, and params all check out.

Back to AFM, when I started dosing six months ago, I quite after approx 4 weeks because I didn’t see any change. Not that I had a huge HA problem, but I wanted to nip it before it got out of hand.

Hope #2, was to use a UV sterilizer, in hopes that I could brush off what spots I had and hopefully it would be zapped. This worked great for water clarity and I have to say that during the 5 months I was running it, I did not have to clean the walls once!! But still, the HA grew and was always present.

Hope #3, was to start dosing VSV. I started four weeks ago and all is well. No complaints there. Fish look good, water is looking great, params are all in check, frogspawn and my green tip are all looking fine. I ran my UV sterilizer for the first week of dosing, and after reading several long posts, and learning alot about the bacteria populations in our tanks, I decide to take my UV off line as I think it may have been killing off what my VSV was trying to attempt. At this point I started dosing 2 caps of AFM again, every three days.

Results: I am close to eradicating all my algae. With the scrubbing of the algae by hand in tank, wet skimming, very wet skimming, AFM, VSV, constant water changes, media changes on time, it is almost over.

What I would like to say to anyone reading this is that AFM is not the cure all for algae. It is a powerful tool that in conjunction with hard work and good husbandry, will help you out. It’s really a matter of how bad do you want it gone.

I would also want to thank you all for contributing to this thread. Best wishes and good luck.

 

[jimrawr]

I also recently started using AFM. My first dose was on November 26th, and Ive dosed 4 times now. I havent noticed a change in my GHA at all, but I do see the buildup on the glass is much slower than it was in the past.

TBH my GHA doesnt even seem as if its dying off. I will continue to dose for a few more weeks and if I dont see results try to find another answer. This is frustrating to say the least.

 

[moliken]

jim, have you taken a toothbrush to the sht? mine was much easier to remove after 2 doses than before any dosing.

 

[jimrawr]

Yes I did try to toothbrush it off, and it really didnt work at all. I may try again after a dose or two, but it was quite unsuccessful the first time

 

[hhaase]

After 6 or 7 doses with the AFM, I'm really not getting the results I hoped for. The algae is growing back slower, but the stuff that's on the rocks is still hard to remove and not dying back at all.

I started dosing Special Blend today, but will keep the 3-day dosing going on the AFM until the end of the year at least.

Glad I took the advice and opened up that Special Blend bottle outside. Bad enough of a smell with sub-freezing temperatures and 10mph winds. I can only imagine what that would have been like in the house.

-Hans

 

[spollock818]

My cole tang died today

 

[SimonSKL]

My cole tang died today

So sorry to hear that. How long did you have it? Do you think it is related to MAF?

 

[Runfrumu]

I started using this a week ago in my Red sea max to get rid of a bad outbreak of a fuzzy red brilo-pad feeling algae that nothing seemed to get rid of.

The Algaefix had eliminated a good portion of it in a week, it looks as though the algaefix has made it dry-out. When I scrub it it comes off the rocks very easily and instead of clumps it just disintegrates and gives the water a slightly purple tent.

The only negative I've seen is that it seems to be killing my pulsing Xenia. All other Softies, my zoas, and my frogspawn are all fine.

 

[bdbyace28]

I also had a hair algae problem a while back. I found my magnesium was low and was told by a friend that hair algae growth was related to mag levels. I cant remember what the exact reasoning behind it was but after performing 2 tasks I havent had any in my tank since. I first cleaned out as much as possible with tweezers and toothbrush (this part was tedious). Once there was very little left, I began raising my mag 25ppm a day until it reached 1500ppm (started at 1180). Almost a year later the hair algae cant be found. I dont like using chemicals until its a last resort because there isnt a whole lot of concise consensus on affects with other parameters.

 

[SimonSKL]

I also had a hair algae problem a while back. I found my magnesium was low and was told by a friend that hair algae growth was related to mag levels. I cant remember what the exact reasoning behind it was but after performing 2 tasks I havent had any in my tank since. I first cleaned out as much as possible with tweezers and toothbrush (this part was tedious). Once there was very little left, I began raising my mag 25ppm a day until it reached 1500ppm (started at 1180). Almost a year later the hair algae cant be found. I dont like using chemicals until its a last resort because there isnt a whole lot of concise consensus on affects with other parameters.

Can you tell us what product that you used to raise your magnesium?

 

[spollock818]

Simon, I had the tang for about 4 months. All was good. Swinming circles around the tank, eating, flakes, seawood and shrimp. Don't know what he went. Woke up the other morning after the 7th dose, to see my snails and crabs eating him up. Sucks.

 

[bertoni]

I'm sorry to hear about the tang.

It might have had an internal parasite or disease of some sort, or maybe was damaged by chemicals when captured. There are a lot of possible causes of death.

 

[spollock818]

yes I understand. I was just putting it out there in regards to the dosing is all