pico reef pest algae problem challenge

Yes I would do the wc and a few more this week just to begin nice export, they aren't harmful if you pour slowly to avoid kicking up waste. I remembered a few threads where pep shrimp did ok but I dont recall enough to make predictions about them so I'll keep this one in mind for future reference too, thanks!
 
WC done, fish and inverts all accounted for. Algae is beginning to discolor (bryopsis is nearly transparent), gha is beginning to whiten at the root. Realized I missed some major stuff on the back wall. Might have to use another method there, potentially a half-drain and paper towel soaking.

Pics tomorrow. I'd call this pretty successful this far. If you are hesitating, GO FOR IT ( with proper precautions of course)! I'm glad I did even without seeing the full results.
 
In the hopes of adding to peroxide's list of victories I am currently testing this on colonial hydroids. I'll keep you informed as to its success or failure. The two rocks I am testing on at the moment have definitely shed a lot of algae though.

I did mine a little higher strength than your recommended amount (at least from what I read in the first few pages). I pulled the rocks out and poured an entire bottle of peroxide on them and let them bubble for a few minutes then rinsed in tank water and returned. If it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing, right? If the hydroids do not return I will do this on the other rock with some pictures and a slightly more normal strength.
 
Time

thanks for posting!! my most appreciated bump this month thanks Sir. I can't wait to see how hydroids will fare, I have no data about them in any of these threads. being mostly nonphotosynthetic/heterotrophic (if Im not mistaken) it will be interesting to see how their machinery holds up to a little of the fizz.


really though I hope you snapped some pics TimeConsumer just to see how it goes down. if not I'll gladly take a verbal update thanks again
B
 
I didn't take any pictures this round, this was just a test. The rock that has the serious hydroid problem hasn't been touched yet. If they don't reappear in a day or two I'll do some before and after pictures with that rock.
 
Tank problems

Tank problems

Hey mate, I have been going through your post and after reading a few pages (out of 52) I decided it might be best to ask you to see if you can help me out cause I was quite overwhelmed with all the information!

I have some algae problems with GHA and just recently found some purple bubble algae

I got some pics that I can send

I have approx 150L marine tank that has been running for over 2 years now. Only 4 fish in it at the moment and some coral and mushrooms

your help would be much appreciated!
 
oh that sounds easy and nice to meet you!! thanks for making us your first stop you will like this place, it grew on me a decade ago.

quick overview:

if you dont have lysmata cleaner shrimp there isnt much that could go wrong

green hair algae is very susceptible to this treatment, it melts within 72 hours. whether or not it regrows depends, but you can bet this will clean it and cheat you clean then you can either repeat as needed and do nothing specially different to your tank, which is what I do, or design all these crazy detailed algae prevention systems once its all clean. the initial kill is what we do great here.

try to post us some pics even if just cell pics!!

lastly, even before then if you want to get started on a quick test with results by thursday this week, just lift out an easy rock you can get to that has bad growth on it.

set it on a towel in the sink

pour 3% peroxide from a -new- unopened bottle right on the target areas, avoid the non target areas. let sit wet for 2 mins

set the whole rock back in the tank, leave the algae, watch it die in three days. if you like it, do the rest this way.

in tank treatments can be done where you dont remove rocks, but removal is fastest result. plus it gives you the chance to clean under the rocks
B
 
Some ask why use peroxide when there are other methods? we dont have to, there are indeed other methods. the reason I use it is simply because its fast and I can get to my problem areas as needed to retreat. spot treating my tank with peroxide every few mos takes 10 mins and has cheated me to a perfect system with zero testing for any water nutrients that normally drive people crazy trying to contol.

I dont care if my phosphate reads 1.14, my tank is algae free and corals grow too fast, so who cares. thats why I use it.

others have a nice intial kill, and then decide the regrowth isn't worth it and move on. there is no harm in trying as long as we are working off a custom approach with pics so we can see what's up. I can guarantee you no harm in trying off that approach.
 
Sounds too easy - definitely going to give it a shot just got to get some peroxide over the next few days! Most of the rocks are easy to take out so I will try the smallest first! and send some progress pics

I've done toothbrush scrubbing too many times - should have taken a pic of it before hand a few months ago....almost completely covered in GHA. I did it with a decent water change pulling out all the rocks - few days later lost my Koran....

Here are the latest pics.
2013-06-17%2022.42.07.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.42.13.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.42.21.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.42.32.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.42.40.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.42.46.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.43.17.jpg


2013-06-17%2022.43.25.jpg



I think the biggest challenge will be the glass wall which annoys me the most.
 
 
yes I see those pics now.

the anemone in the back precludes and in tank dosing. they haven't died from peroxide, but tend to shrivel up for a while and the keepers dont like watching them stress. that being said, feel free to externally treat any rock you can lift out for the concerning spots. that rock appears to be truly live rock from the ocean, is that right>? its exceptionally covered in benthic growth, beyond average aquarium live rock from a pet store.

the cyano or diatom blanket on the substrate can be taken care of in many ways, my way would be simply siphoning out those pockets, cleaning the sand of it, and putting it back in as many times as needed. a non chemical approach.

as the tank matures that problem will go away, provided you keep up with average nutrient management in the mean time.

the algae film on the back wall I would razor blade scrape clean. a tankwide dose of peroxide might temporarily clean it but for long term use I prescribe external treatments only for this tank. the exceptional live rock warrants no in tank application

slightly boosting the phosphate binding is a great long term solution for the back glass but dont overdo it and strip the tank of nutrients. your live rock isn't used to being in that condition and it can be overdone to the detriment of corals as well. starting small should be ok.

additionally, a UV sterilizer that is heavily oversized can reduce back glass growth which I do enjoy on other tanks, but some dont like using them, there are many ways to tackle it.
 
All live rock was actually purchased from an aquarium shop? the rock slightly to the right from the bottom middle was added about a year after I started the tank as my tank looked bare without it. (prob not the best idea to just put it straight in at the time but seemed to be ok)

thanks for the tip about the cyano! This has only recently developed in the past few weeks.

I am running a UV sterlizer on the outlet side of the filter, been a while since I changed the globe though...?
 
That or the sterilizer might be a little undersized which is more common. When I ran a uv on my planted 75 it was meant for a 5,000 gallon pond. Needless to say water looked dang great for the life of the tank
 
Hi Brandon
My tank has been diagnosed with Bryopsis,, its only 3 weeks old my tank.
Size 5x2x2
All parameters are stable:
Salinity 1.025 (Refractometer) ASW.
pH 8.5
Temp 24.5C
Calcium : 445ppm
Mg:1400 ppm
DkH: 8.5
NH3/NH4:0.00
Nitrite"0.00
Nitrate: .1.00 ppm ? if that,
Phosphates: 0.03 (If that)
All tests carried out by red sea test kits.
Tank has been set up with rocks that I had "cooked/Purged" from my old setup for 6 weeks,,, Fresh new sand was purchased as substrate.

2 weeks after I had put my old Corals and pair of clowns in the tank,, I noticed green feathery Snow crystal looking things growing on the glass,,, Upon further investigation and rapid increase in their population, they had started covering the substrate,, and a few if not most of my rock pieces have been all covered with this culprit.

I have been reading your thread on H2O2,,, you mention spot targeting the algae on the rocks out of the tank ,,, can I submerge the entire piece of rock in H2O2 3% for a few minutes then return in to the Display tank,, Or it has to be Spot targeted??? since most the rocks are covered,,, I don't think spot targeting will work for me. what happens if the unaffected area of the rock is targeted with H2O2, would it harm the Biological life on the rock ?

Also the Continuous regrowth on the glass,,, every 2 days after I scrape and syphon them of the glass,,, they start growing back again ,, how can I deal with the glass ? I am not introducing any phosphate in to the tank and feed my pair of clowns once every 3 days (Rinsed shrimp). And the regrowth on the Sand? after targeting the rocks should I replace the sand all together ?

Any help is greatly appreciated,

I will post before and after pictures,,, will take some tonight form the horror show.

Also you mentioned possible problems with full submersion dips with H2O2,, What ratio should I dilute the 3% H2O2 solution if I want to go with the full submersion method of the live rocks rather than spot targeting the affected areas?

Cheers
 
Hi nice to meet you! Cant wait for pics, maybe we can get an idea for the glass areas it will help to get a scope of the tank in a couple good detailed pics. A mixture of half 3% peroxide from a new bottle and half saltwater as a full dip has been common. Dip for a couple mins, rinse off and place back in tank. The pics will show us if there are corals that don't want to be dipped in this low salinity bath. If there are no issues there, the dip will help clear the rocks.

The dip will not cause your rocks to become sterile. Too many tales exist now from dippers and whole tank dosers to keep concern with peroxide functioning as a wipe out antibiotic, its just not that powerful and our rock is just too porous. Loss of coralline and the aging details is the risk, but that grows back fast and its worth it to beat the invader
 
brandon429 said:
Hi nice to meet you! Cant wait for pics, maybe we can get an idea for the glass areas it will help to get a scope of the tank in a couple good detailed pics. A mixture of half 3% peroxide from a new bottle and half saltwater as a full dip has been common. Dip for a couple mins, rinse off and place back in tank. The pics will show us if there are corals that don't want to be dipped in this low salinity bath. If there are no issues there, the dip will help clear the rocks.

The dip will not cause your rocks to become sterile. Too many tales exist now from dippers and whole tank dosers to keep concern with peroxide functioning as a wipe out antibiotic, its just not that powerful and our rock is just too porous. Loss of coralline and the aging details is the risk, but that grows back fast and its worth it to beat the invader
Click to expand...

Nice to meet you too Brendan,
I am still reading this thread on page 6 currently,,, im reading to avoid asking the same questions that was asked before.

My live stock contains :
3 Hammer corals and 1 Torch coral,
pair of clowns
1 Copperband shrimp
2 Trochus snails and 2 nassarius snails.

So far I have picked up the 50:50 Dilution method for the complete rock dip, However I thought it was 50 Peroxide and 50 RO/DI ?? But you mentioned 50 Peroxide and 50 Salt water ? can you clear that up please.

Also picked up draining the tank as much as possible and wiping the glass and corners down with damp Peroxide tissue. ( I like this one since I couldn't get to the corners of my tank with the scrubbing and syphoning).

Now just the Substrate infestation ,, what would be the best way dealing with that ?
I can manage to take all the rocks out and dip them one by one rinse them off and place them back in,, I can wipe down the glass as well , just now the dilemma of the substrate .

Thanks again,, this is by far the best and one of the most useful threads I have read.

Cheers
 
thank you! the substrate I dont know anything better than just targeted and repeated siphoning, clean and reinstall. over and over till you beat it.


how many repeat follow ups will be needed to keep it at bay ranges between tanks. I just did whatever was needed on my tank and substrate, and it worked out to be a re treatment once every few months as Im already changing the water.

the dip I prefer in saltwater to lessen osmotic shock. as you can see others did freshwater. peroxide isn't particularly requiring of a precise method we just need to check your animals against the list of known sensitives. and that shrimp you mentioned may be one, I dont have data on that kind of shrimp in the presence of peroxide trace levels as in post-rinse etc
 
Screenshot_2013-06-17-09-58-16_zps8366efd8.png
[/URL][/IMG]thanks for your reply,

the rocks will be lifted out one by one and sprayed with 3% H2O2, left for 4 minutes, rinsed with Salt water and placed back in.

I think I have it all sorted,, except for the wiping of the glass method.

the upper parts of the glass I can drain the tank half way,, and wipe with the damp Peroxide cloth (50:50 solution or even straight 3%). however I have a lot of outbreak of Bryopsis at the very bottom of the glass,,, which would mean I have to drain the entire tank to get to and spot targeting wouldn't be practical since there's a lot of them. I have already established that I don't have any live stock or corals that are sensitive to H2O2. So do you think I can use the damp H2O2 cloth and wipe the lower areas of the glass with the remaining water in the tank (all pumps and power heads off). I will probably use the 50:50 solution for the lower areas since it will get in the water.

Also with the upper areas of the glass,,, since the tank is drained to that level,,, after wiping with the damp H2O2 cloth,,, do I need to go over it with just a damp RO/DI cloth or just leave it ???

Here is a link to what I have growing, in the thousands they are:


Cheers
 
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