Bubble Algae

[downonthereef]

Hello! I have quite a large problem with green bubble algae at the moment, what is the best way to get rid of it naturally? I have seen emerald crabs, but I have also seen emerald crabs eat/annoy corals, I have a few high end torches and mushrooms that I don't want to be damaged. Is there any fishes that eat bubble algae? Or any critter/cuc that will do the job?

 

[Fish Think Pink]

Hello! I have quite a large problem with green bubble algae at the moment, what is the best way to get rid of it naturally? I have seen emerald crabs, but I have also seen emerald crabs eat/annoy corals, I have a few high end torches and mushrooms that I don't want to be damaged. Is there any fishes that eat bubble algae? Or any critter/cuc that will do the job?

I have emerald crabs because I also wanted to get rid of bubble algae. Now I want to get rid of emerald crabs... and their popping while eating bubble algae is releasing spores, so think they made problem WORSE before Vibrant made it better.

Bubble algae... best way to deal with it is never get it, so work on your dip/QT processes going forward. Emerald crabs will also eat other things once algae is controlled including (my last week experience) small fish if you have to leave town for funeral and family decides 2x daily feeding of tank is too much bother... After 2 days n 2 lost fish, my family resumed feeding my tank 2x daily

Vibrant is bacteria, so also "natural" - ish... but wiped out my macroalgae in refugium sump. Those that say, save some to reintroduce are just waiting to also reintroduce the bad algae along with good...

I had a fun (NOT!!) 3 months clearing up bubble and other algae types and never want to add another thing to our tank to chance re-introduction of other bad algaes. Along the way phosphates sky high from algae releasing phosphates as they die... Nuisance algae is 4 letter word here. My refugium just restocked with Red Ogo this week. I'm sure I'll relax no new adds in future, but plan no new coral (BF & I have had 'words' over this!) & future fish purchases from TSM:

TSM Aquatics - The Largest Saltwaterfish Store In The Country!

Welcome to the new TSM Aquatics forum on Reef2Reef. We were formerly known as TSM Corals founded by Ray Casper. TSM Aquatics is located at 1 Enterprise Court Sewell, NJ 08080 and is the largest retail store open to the public that sells saltwaterfish and corals in the country! TSM operates...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[downonthereef]

I have emerald crabs because I also wanted to get rid of bubble algae. Now I want to get rid of emerald crabs... and their popping while eating bubble algae is releasing spores, so think they made problem WORSE before Vibrant made it better.

Bubble algae... best way to deal with it is never get it, so work on your dip/QT processes going forward. Emerald crabs will also eat other things once algae is controlled including (my last week experience) small fish if you have to leave town for funeral and family decides 2x daily feeding of tank is too much bother... After 2 days n 2 lost fish, my family resumed feeding my tank 2x daily

Vibrant is bacteria, so also "natural" - ish... but wiped out my macroalgae in refugium sump. Those that say, save some to reintroduce are just waiting to also reintroduce the bad algae along with good...

I had a fun (NOT!!) 3 months clearing up bubble and other algae types and never want to add another thing to our tank to chance re-introduction of other bad algaes. Along the way phosphates sky high from algae releasing phosphates as they die... Nuisance algae is 4 letter word here. My refugium just restocked with Red Ogo this week. I'm sure I'll relax no new adds in future, but plan no new coral (BF & I have had 'words' over this!) & future fish purchases from TSM:

TSM Aquatics - The Largest Saltwaterfish Store In The Country!

Welcome to the new TSM Aquatics forum on Reef2Reef. We were formerly known as TSM Corals founded by Ray Casper. TSM Aquatics is located at 1 Enterprise Court Sewell, NJ 08080 and is the largest retail store open to the public that sells saltwaterfish and corals in the country! TSM operates...

www.reef2reef.com

Thank you for your input, much appreciated. So vibrant is a fairly natural approach? I'll just need larger water changes weekly to control that algae dying? I also have spots of long hair algae, it all came along with a rock of mushrooms I had purchased. Also, how does vibrant work may I ask?

 

[Fish Think Pink]

Thank you for your input, much appreciated. So vibrant is a fairly natural approach? I'll just need larger water changes weekly to control that algae dying? I also have spots of long hair algae, it all came along with a rock of mushrooms I had purchased. Also, how does vibrant work may I ask?

With Vibrant, you add it weekly amount based on tank size.

More frequent water changes, focused on dying algae areas and not larger water changes. For instance, I would add after weekend water change, then would do a Tuesday or Wednesday night water change after work, then usual weekend water change, add Vibrant, supplemental Tues/Wed water change... repeat, repeat... Some will say take out rocks and scrub with maybe toothbrush, rinse with RO or saltwater and place back in tank, but most of my rock has coral encrusted so I didn't do that. With hair algae get in there with your hands to pull out manually to help speed its eradication. There is a lot of good online info, some will say Vibrant doesn't work, some will say Vibrant works fast, my experience like most: it took a couple of weeks to make any impact, so seemed like things getting even worse, but from start to finish for me and my tank was 3 months. It didn't get bad overnight, it didn't go away overnight, so even though that felt maddening to me - for reef tank it was probably all for the best... Now I'm back to "normal" but scared to introduce nuisance algae again with any new corals esp as it was a long 3 months. I've got additional dip types arriving today, but they'll sit unused until I see something I just can't have. Whatever it is will be dipped my new dip method: 1) peroxide on plug/rock or plug/rock removal, 2) iodine type dip and 3) new to me dip type (coming, natural, watch BSR video). Good luck to you!

 

[Uncle99]

Vibrant
Destroyed 100% bubble and 90% GHA.
Took 16 weeks at normal dose.

 

[downonthereef]

With Vibrant, you add it weekly amount based on tank size.

More frequent water changes, focused on dying algae areas and not larger water changes. For instance, I would add after weekend water change, then would do a Tuesday or Wednesday night water change after work, then usual weekend water change, add Vibrant, supplemental Tues/Wed water change... repeat, repeat... Some will say take out rocks and scrub with maybe toothbrush, rinse with RO or saltwater and place back in tank, but most of my rock has coral encrusted so I didn't do that. With hair algae get in there with your hands to pull out manually to help speed its eradication. There is a lot of good online info, some will say Vibrant doesn't work, some will say Vibrant works fast, my experience like most: it took a couple of weeks to make any impact, so seemed like things getting even worse, but from start to finish for me and my tank was 3 months. It didn't get bad overnight, it didn't go away overnight, so even though that felt maddening to me - for reef tank it was probably all for the best... Now I'm back to "normal" but scared to introduce nuisance algae again with any new corals esp as it was a long 3 months. I've got additional dip types arriving today, but they'll sit unused until I see something I just can't have. Whatever it is will be dipped my new dip method: 1) peroxide on plug/rock or plug/rock removal, 2) iodine type dip and 3) new to me dip type (coming, natural, watch BSR video). Good luck to you!

Thank you, super helpful info. Should I leave in my Carbon? And should I take out my refugium? Will that increase the longevity of the process?

 

[downonthereef]

Vibrant
Destroyed 100% bubble and 90% GHA.
Took 16 weeks at normal dose.

Sounds great! I dosed my first 8ml last night

 

[msjboy]

I also heard xenia does not like vibrant from several reefer who had either a die out or slow growth

 

[Fish Think Pink]

I also heard xenia does not like vibrant from several reefer who had either a die out or slow growth

I *wish* my xenia didn't like Vibrant... mine was totally fine and grew substantially ...

Thank you, super helpful info. Should I leave in my Carbon? And should I take out my refugium? Will that increase the longevity of the process?

Leave your refugium. It needs cleaned up of nuisance algae too. Some report their macroalgae pulls thru it and only nuisance dies, so just see how it goes for your tank. Mine: once I was down to ghost remains of macro did I empty and toss the last of my macroalgae (then battled high phosphates as my macroalgae was gone and was trying to eradicate nuisance algae). Got thru it. You will too.

Have patience.

 

[bolson]

For those that went the Vibrant route, did you order off Amazon? Not sure if I should trust it off Amazon or not

 

[Sebastiancrab]

I had a huge bubble outbreak due to spores being released. I took my rocks out one by one and manually removed the bubbles and then rinsed with RODI water. No chemicals and my tank is free of them today.