Bubble Algae on New Shipment from Unique Corals

[bgoldb]

I received my shipment today from Unique Corals and my zoa frag has bubble algae on it. Is this normal? Will coral dip kill this? Do I actually need to pick each bubble off of this frag. This is very disappointing to say the least and I am very surprised that they would sell frags with an aggressive nuisance algae.

 

[sfin52]

Dips won't work. If the bubble algae is only on the plug pop coral off the plug and glue back on new plug.
If not than carefully scrape off. Rinse in container of water reinspect. Right before it goes into the tank rinse in another container of water. Always worked for me

 

[bgoldb]

Thank you for the quick response. It is not on the plug but rather on the rock that was attached to the plug. I appreciate and will follow your recommendation. Should I worry about palytoxins while performing this scraping? Do I need to wear a mask? I find it ridiculous that I spent $100 on this frag and now I'm scraping bubble algae off of it. @uniquecorals you can do better than that.

 

[jurgenph]

get some tweezers, pull the bubbles off.

dip the frag in a little cup of tank water, with a nice shot of hydrogen peroxide. that should take care of whatever algae is left on it.


J.

 

[VB313]

get some tweezers, pull the bubbles off.

dip the frag in a little cup of tank water, with a nice shot of hydrogen peroxide. that should take care of whatever algae is left on it.


J.

I just watched a billy pipes video on using 3%peroxide dips for algae on frags very interesting have you tried it??

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thank you for the quick response. It is not on the plug but rather on the rock that was attached to the plug. I appreciate and will follow your recommendation. Should I worry about palytoxins while performing this scraping? Do I need to wear a mask? I find it ridiculous that I spent $100 on this frag and now I'm scraping bubble algae off of it. @uniquecorals you can do better than that.

Handle zoa carefully and no need to be worried. Do Not pop the bubbles as they will release spores for population increase.
Rabbitfish and emerald crabs eat bubble algae.
For removal, if careful with a paring knife, you can get under base of bubble and pop it off then place it in the garbage

 

[jurgenph]

I just watched a billy pipes video on using 3%peroxide dips for algae on frags very interesting have you tried it??

yeah, when i get frags that look like they will grow a green wig... i dip em in 1:1 tank water and H2O2
you can dilute it more if you don't feel comfortable with that strength.

i have put some, 3% straight from the bottle in a pray bottle and prayed it straight onto frags without any problems.

J.

 

[VB313]

yeah, when i get frags that look like they will grow a green wig... i dip em in 1:1 tank water and H2O2
you can dilute it more if you don't feel comfortable with that strength.

i have put some, 3% straight from the bottle in a pray bottle and prayed it straight onto frags without any problems.

J.

Interesting may have to try thanks

 

[bgoldb]

As this is my first time buying frags online, is this common? Are some online coral retailers better than others when it comes to the cleanliness of the frags (free of pests and algae)?

 

[erk]

As this is my first time buying frags online, is this common? Are some online coral retailers better than others when it comes to the cleanliness of the frags (free of pests and algae)?

It is very common. I consider UC to be one of the better online sales locations. I've bought from many different online sellers and they all come with some level of pests. It isn't really possible to go over each frag with a fine tooth comb and move the amount of product they do. This is why it is up to you, the hobbyist, to do due diligence and check each frag. If you are not satisfied, then you should contact the seller and state as such. Considering the small amount of bubble algae on your frag that is easily hidden by the polyps, I'd say what you got is a pretty good deal.

 

[uniquecorals]

I received my shipment today from Unique Corals and my zoa frag has bubble algae on it. Is this normal? Will coral dip kill this? Do I actually need to pick each bubble off of this frag. This is very disappointing to say the least and I am very surprised that they would sell frags with an aggressive nuisance algae.

Hi,
sorry to hear your frag had some bubble algae on it. It looks like it is hiding in the the bouquet of open palys. We do our best to prevent things such as this from happening but there are times they get by. Please feel free to send us an email with update on how it went and any of your concerns. Many thanks to the community for all the great replies and helping out a fellow reefer.

 

[xiholdtruex]

I just watched a billy pipes video on using 3%peroxide dips for algae on frags very interesting have you tried it??

I have performed his exact instruction a ton of times for any algae on plugs with great results

 

[cFloor]

I've received frags with nuisance algae from many of the top vendors. It doesn't bother me. I'm more concerned with coral pests but even that isn't a huge deal. Another reason I quarantine. I find UC to be one of the best online vendors.