bubble algae - grrr!

G

g8rorchid

Member
I have bubble algae in my reef tank. I bought the tank used and it already had the bubble algae, so I can't comment as to the cause of it. How do I get rid of it though?!?! I bought a couple of emerald crabs about 3 weeks ago and I haven't seen a difference...do I just need a bunch more? I've heard that increasing magnesium helps, but if possible I really want to take care of this as naturally as possible.

Thanks in advance.
 
Emeralds are and reef safeish crab.And with 3 then keep an eye on your zoos. In my experiance just maintane proper water conditions and it should disappear.If it grows it could be a sign of improper readings ,flow,stocking ,ect..
 
Heh, no wonder my zoos are closed up! I had bought 3 emeralds to get rid of my bubble algae.

Looks like I'll be giving them back to the pet shop!
 
Yup,blame the big green crab.
I've have a huge emerald crab and it's never touched any corals.
Zoas can close for weeks without even a reason.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11629077#post11629077 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stingythingy45
Yup,blame the big green crab.
I've have a huge emerald crab and it's never touched any corals.
Zoas can close for weeks without even a reason.
Click to expand...

So... zoas can close up for no reason?

Mine seem healthy. No discharge or anything. One night I was walking by the tank and saw the crab near the zoos and quickly retreated when it hear/saw me...
 
My emerald doesn't touch my zoa's and I have quite a few. Emeralds are I would think a crap shoot but u can either give them time to finally take care of it or while doing ur water change suck them up but make sure none of the spores get loose.
 
The emerald was probably picking at stuff in between the polyps.
I did the same thing rbtwo4 suggested.
I scraped the bubble algae with the end of the siphon hose and sucked most of it out.The emerald crab got the rest.
 
I've delt with bubble aglae befor. Emerald crabs are you best bet. It is true you never know what those things are going to do. But I had to go thruogh about 3 different batches of crabs to fine the right ones that will actually eat the bubble algea. IME they will only eat the small stuff and work great as a preventitive. Another thing I had to do was remove the live rock with the b.a. and scrub it clean with a brush then rinse it in a bucket of salt water. For the other rock I could not remove, I tried my best to pick off as much as I could with a pair if tweezers. Then, even though every told me not to, I scrubed it clean while it was in the tank. Then did a big water change. Trying to minimize the spread of the spores. But after doing this and with the help of about 8 emerald crabs it never came back. All in all it was a major pain in the *** but it worked.
 
The crabs haven't touched any of my zoas, which seems that its a 50/50 shot judging by what others are saying. What kind of brush would you suggest? Don't want to get one that is too abrasive nor do I want to get one that is too soft.
 
Ok, I was looking at these crabs for the same reason. Do these crabs normally go after fish?

As for the what type of brush, I was told to use a soft bristled toothbrush. I haven't tried it, so I'm not sure if that's good advice or not.
 
Siphon the bubble algae out with air-line tubing. Also scrubing rocks is a good idea. I never had any luck with emerald crabs eating it.
 
I wasn't aware that there was enough suction for that to work! I'll definitely give it a try! Thanks robin!
 
I added emerald crabs to reduce bubble algae and they had no impact on it. As for them eating zoas, I just have not experienced this at all.
Check out my photos in gallery. My zoanthids are growing out of control. I wish the emerald crabs would eat some.
 
Bubble algae plucks right off. Just be careful not to break it.

I don't have it in my tank, but every time I've gotten a frag from a fellow reefer, it's shown up on the frags eventually. I don't have any bubble algae predators, they probably do, which is why it usually takes a little while for it to show. :)

The best cure is prevention. Pluck it off when you see it.

As for getting rid of it, I think manual removal is probably the best bet.

Tracy
 
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