Fluconazole - Bryopsis Killer

[kjonulak]

I had 2 stubborn GHA spots in my 45 gallon which did not completely die after the first treatment. I did need a 2nd treatment, which did the trick. GHA is slower to die, so be patient.

 

[drtrash]

Any issues with sps mine just went pale

 

[kjonulak]

I dosed 2 mainly SPS tanks with no issues. In my nano tank during treatment I even added some SPS corals I got that really needed some TLC. Even those corals colored up nicely during the treatment.

 

[sensei]

Great information, thank you all.

I understand that you should not make water changes during treatment becuase you would be lowering the concentration of fluconazole in tank, but what about if you dose the water that you are using for water change?

I have read that sometimes 14 days is not enough and some people wait 21 days for bryopsis to be completelly erradicated, if this is the case I could still do the 10% weekly water change if I dose with fluconazole the water for the water change and keep treatment for 3 weeks in tank. In this way I can still be controlling nutrients through WC and treat with fluconazole at same time.

can you tell me if this sounds apropriate??

Thanks

 

[kjonulak]

I have an AWC on my 45 gallon. I dosed the fluconazole in my clean SW bucket and let the system run as normal. So I would think if you wanted to do water changes, as long as you add back in the amount of fluconazole removed.

 

[sensei]

Thanks a lot.

leaving the fluconazole in the tank for 21 days would be best?
I ask to be sure all bryopsis is totally killed?

or even with 21 days, it could reappear and you could need a second dose?

 

[kjonulak]

Thanks a lot.

leaving the fluconazole in the tank for 21 days would be best?
I ask to be sure all bryopsis is totally killed?

or even with 21 days, it could reappear and you could need a second dose?

Each tank is different. My nano tank which had a lot of Bryopsis took 14-16 days for the Bryopsis to die. My 45 gallon only had a couple of spots of Bryopsis, was Bryopsis free in 4 days. My GHA took 2 doses in both tanks.

 

[sensei]

Thanks for your answer,
how many days did you leave fluconazole in your 45 g for the first dose?
did you completely removed fluconazole form the water with Water changes before doing the 2nd dose?

 

[kjonulak]

Thanks for your answer,
how many days did you leave fluconazole in your 45 g for the first dose?
did you completely removed fluconazole form the water with Water changes before doing the 2nd dose?

My 45 gallon has an AWC system. So it continued to do daily changes during the treatment. The replacement water had fluconazole in it for the first 14 days. I waited to day 21 to do the 2nd dose so for 7 days the replacement water did not have fluconazole in it. During that time it would have done a 10% water change.

I then did the 2nd fluconazole treatment for another 14 days with the replacement water having fluconazole in it. After the 14 days I went back to just my plain SW in my fresh SW bucket and I have been running that way since.

 

[sensei]

how long has it been since you did this treatment?
you have not seen bryopsis in your tank since then?
what about GHA?

I ask because GHA can be a matter of nutrients and even if you kill I suppose it would come back if the underlying cause is still there.

 

[kjonulak]

I started treatment late December. Bryopsis and GHA are gone and I haven't seen any signs of it returning. I had very little Bryopsis and GHA in my 45 gallon. My nano had a lot of Bryopsis and very little GHA. I did the 2nd treatment just to see if the fluconazole would kill off the GHA, which it did.

 

[sensei]

Thanks a lot.
I will dose my frag tank today.

 

[Mael]

All algae in my tank is gone except for some turf/hair that is still clinging on. 2nd dose happens monday and I will be dosing the frag tank as more of a preventative measure and to clean up some algae in the sump.

 

[sensei]

will fluconazole also attack bubble algae?

 

[Mageau11]

Please read the information below before you began!!!
Remove Purigen, Phosgard, carbon and Chemipure!!!
You can continue to run Vibrant at the same time.
Take the cup off your skimmer for the first five days.
This is a single dose only treatment that stays in your tank for 14 days for Bryopsis and 21 days to kill all green Hair Algae.
Make at least a 25% water change after 14 days of all your algae is gone. I went an extra week with the same water to make sure all the roots were gone because my tank was showing no problems.
You would know all these answers if you had read the information on the treatment below.
Bryopsis Cure FAQ's Sheet

****This treatment seems to work best in well lit areas of the tank. Some people are noticing quicker results by adding light to the shaded areas of their tank.*****

Q: Will Fluconazole kill Bryopsis?
A: YES. As of 2/2/17 Fluconazole is completely killing all Bryopsis. There have been no reports of it NOT working.

Q: How does Fluconazole work?
A: Fluconazole blocks the enzymatic pathway for the production of ergosterol. Ergosterol is essential for maintaining the cell wall integrity of plants. Ergosterol (ergosta-5,7,22-trien-3β-ol) is a sterol found in cell membranes of fungi and protozoa, serving many of the same functions that cholesterol serves in animal cells.

Q: Will Fluconazole kill anything else in my system?
A: So far Fluconazole has not killed anything other than bryopsis and GHA. Everything and I mean EVERYTHING else is unaffected.

Q: Where do I get Fluconazole?
A: There are many sources online. The most popular/best choice is to purchase the medication in 200MG CAPSULE.

Q: How much Fluconazole do I use?
A: The suggested dose is one SINGLE dose in the amount of 20mg per gallon of water. There are reefers who are experimenting with using 10mg per gallon right now, but none with completing the 1st "round".

Q: Do I do a WC before treatment?
A: Yes. It would be a good idea as the treatment is for 14 days and expect an increase in NO3.

Q: How do I prepare the the medication?
A: I have noticed with the capsules it is very tough opening them without crushing the capsule. This is what I did. Use a razor blade and cut off the rounded end of the large outer half of the capsule. Then you can very easily pour the contents out into a glass of RODI water or tank water. The amount of water doesnt matter, but make it enough to be able to mix the med up. The med isnt very soluble, but mix it up best you can. Preferably dose at night when fish are asleep. Then pour the entire dose into the DT, or sump. Some have put it into their sump socks. I dosed directly into the DT.

Q: How long is the treatment?
A: 14 days.Maybe up to 21 days if you still have GHA present in the tank.

Q: Do I remove my carbon?
A: Yes.

Q: Do I remove my skimmer cup?
A: Its suggested for at least the first few days if not the entire treatment remove your cup. If you pull your cup you may continue to run the skimmer, or turn the skimmer down as to not allow the skim to enter the cup. You do not want to remove the med.

Q: Do I take my ATS offline?
A: Yes. Completely sanitize it, and reintroduce it after all the bryopsis is 100% gone.

Q: Do I take my bio reactor offline?
A: No.

Q: Do I take my GFO offline?
A: No GFO will not remove the meds.It will also help to remove the po4 from dying algae.

Q: Do I continue to dose H2O2?
A: Yes. It will not interact with this med.

Q: Do I continue to dose Vibrant?
A: Yes. This SHOULD not interact this med. It may help to dose Vibrant as it will assist in NO3 export.

Q: Do I continue to dose colors, alk, calcium, and magnesium?
A: Yes.

Q: Should I change my lighting?
A: No.

Q: If I take my carbon reactor, or any other equipment off line/out of the tank, do I just put them back into the system after treatment?
A: No. Do not reintroduce the algae. It would be best to sterilize any equipment and throw away old media for reactors.

Q: Is it ok to take out my chaeto, or other algae's then put back after treatment?
A: No. this may reintroduce the algae. Leave the macros in the tank.

Q: Do I take my carbon reactor offline?
A: Yes.

Q:Should I stop using Purigen during treatment?
A:Yes.

Q: Do I take my UV Sterilizer offline?
A: Yes.

Q: Do I do a WC during treatment?
A: No. Unless it cannot be avoided and a WC needs to be done to save life.

Q: Will Fluconazole kill my chaetomorpha or other beneficial maco's?
A: The treatment has not harmed any macro algae.

Q: Will Fluconazole kill the parasitic algae known to burrow through LPS corals?
A: This is currently being researched.

Q: What other nuisance algae's will be killed by Fluconazole?
A: Fluconazole kills the green algae Derbesia also known as GHA. It seems that GHA takes longer to kill than the bryopsis but it still dies. Bubble algae is unknown due to most reefers treating their tanks have been using Vibrant. Vibrant kills bubble algae very well.

Q: When do I do a WC?
A: At the end of the full 14 day treatment. After treatment has completed you will go back to your normal running system. Do a WC as your NO3/PO4 levels may be high from a lot of dead algae. Carbon goes back online to remove the medication. Skimmer cups back on.

-Stevo




This treatment has been a huge success.For so many years we have had to deal with this terrible algae. Well now we can finally say that beating Bryopsis is a reality. No more tearing down your tanks. No more endless hours of pulling and picking at this mess. Fluconazole has made the eradication of Bryopsis from our tanks quick,easy and painless.Please let everyone you know in the reefing community about this treatment. The more people who know,the better.

Testing by @twilliard will be ongoing to determine a minimum effective dosing plan in the near future.

Thank you for all the great information!

I did a 30% WC today, removed all my ChemiPure bags, Purigen, Phosguard, and Skimmer cup, and I just dosed my 54 gallon tonight with 1,000mg of Fluconazole over a 90 minute period with my AccuDrip acclimator.

Let the process begin!




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[kjonulak]

will fluconazole also attack bubble algae?

No.

 

[Mael]

side note: some people have seen their bubble algae disappear, without being able to directly relate it to the fluco, timing was about the same though. In my tank I had about a 50-65% reduction in bubble, but it could have been another factor.

 

[drtrash]

On day 10 hope to see rapid die off soon. Does anyone pull out the clumps of dieing gha?

 

[Mageau11]

I'm on Day 4 and I'm starting to see clumps break away floating around the tank. I've been using a net to scoop up those loose clumps, but based on previous posts in this thread, I'm not pulling any loose clumps. Just letting the meds do their work.


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[kjonulak]

On day 10 hope to see rapid die off soon. Does anyone pull out the clumps of dieing gha?

On another forum it appeared those that removed algae after treatment started took longer to rid tank of algae. GHA takes much longer vs Bryopsis to die off. Leave it along. My tanks required a 2nd dose for GHA.