[Imaexpat2]

This is a very persistent algae that I am frequently seeing more and more in tanks, frag tanks and dealer tanks. I would like to hear how you deal with this per chance there is something out there I havent herd. So whats your solution?

 

[JIM]

Somthing you havent heard of would probably be hard to come by however its seems there are only a handful of effective ways to rid your self of this algae.
One is the lawnmower blenny, another the diadema urchin, or pincushin urchin.
Another is a naso tang,or bi-color blenny, if you dont want to add more fish to your tank you can raise your magnesium levels to 1500-1600 ppm which stops the photosynthetic process in the plant. This process though (could be) risky to certain inverts.
Lastly, remove the affected pieces of rock, and put them in the freezer for 48 hours or so, which will freeze and burst the cellular structure of the plants and kill them.

 

[drhank]

I have heard all of these except for the freezer thing. That would certainly kill anything that had water in it's cellular structure. I've personally had success increasing Magnesium. Another option which I've heard works (but don't know for sure) is adding a Turf Scrubber to the sump.

Fortunately I don't have a Bryopsis problem but it sounds like it could be superior to the conventional fuge in reduction of nitrates and phosphates.

 

[JIM]

Not sure about the phosphate thing Doc, in the system i told you about in another thread, i know they have problems with phosphates, although they use R/O water in their makeup, the city water system, injects Phosphate to coat, old rusty pipes on the inside to prevent costly repairs for them, which gives me a headache, and causes havoc in swimming pool water as well.

 

[AZDesertRat]

The best method I found was Lettuce Nudibranchs, they devor it like crazy so you need someone you can pass them on to when it is gone or they soon starve.
Another is raising magnesium to higher than normal levels. I have not done this personally but have heard of positive results from fellow reefers.

 

[salth2o]

The best method I found was Lettuce Nudibranchs, they devor it like crazy so you need someone you can pass them on to when it is gone or they soon starve.
Another is raising magnesium to higher than normal levels. I have not done this personally but have heard of positive results from fellow reefers.

I have had great results Nudibranchs as well! I have never heard of the freezer method before. Really interesting.... I suppose the risk is killing everything on the rock, some of which might be good?

 

[Imaexpat2]

I must have to admit I havent herd of the freezing thing...not sure why I havent also thought of that as I routinely freeze harvested Macro for a couple of days before disposing of it. That one should have been a no brainer.

 

[mikey]

freezer..... hey honey whats for dinner? i accidentally grabbed the live rock to defrost!... i can hear the wife now.... lol!!!

i have used sea hares in the past. like the nudis you will have to pass him along when the algae is gone.

 

[dustponds10]

Well I am unsure if it has been mentioned but I had some serious bryopsis for the longest time and I couldnt get rid of it for nothing. I pretty soon just learned to live with it. Then one day I decided to change salts so I didnt have to dose as much and that was the key. I was dosing calcium and mag, quite frequently with my other salt then I decided to switch to coralife salt and that was the trick. It has a higher calcium and mag level and soon after using this salt I was seeing the bryopsis thin out. i didnt really do this on purpose but it worked for me and it was amazing and I feel alot better about others coming and looking at my tank and not feeling guilty if I send something home with some one. Just my tid bit.