Dosing an all SPS tank with hydrogen peroxide

[Charterreefer]

Does anyone have any experience with dosing their system that has mostly sps corals? Does H2O2 dosing affect any water parameters? i.e pH, PO4 levels? I can live with the little cyano in my tank as opposed to wiping everything out.

 

[ncaldwell]

I have a 120 that's about 1/3 full of mixed frags and colonies of sps and have have no I'll effects with it other than my dinoflagellets. Up to 15 mils in the morn and at night. No negative effects yet

 

[Charterreefer]

I have a 120 that's about 1/3 full of mixed frags and colonies of sps and have have no I'll effects with it other than my dinoflagellets. Up to 15 mils in the morn and at night. No negative effects yet

Thanks for the reply. How long have you been dosing for?

 

[ncaldwell]

About 2 weeks now morning and night, not one casualty

 

[O'l Salty]

I have a 40 breeder with really bad hair algae. I dose 10ml directly on the algae in the morning and dose the tank with another 10ml in the evening. It doesn't seem to affect sps at all. Slowly I'm winning the battle with the algae.

 

[Neil Fox]

It shouldnt harm them. It may briefly irritate your fish at higher levels. The H2O2 only lasts a matter of minutes in the tank before it turns to water and oxygen. It will increase the pH and REDOX potential. Pretty much like using Ozone, some may remember when that was very popular.

 

[Neil Fox]

I should probably add that that is only if you are using 3% store bought H2O2.

 

[Charterreefer]

Thanks everyone for your input.

 

[atoll]

IMO there is only really one safe way to use Hydrogen peroxide in a reef tank and that is with an Oxydator.

 

[Charterreefer]

How should I dose it without the Oxydator in the meantime? Do they make one for 300 gallons?

 

[Charterreefer]

IMO there is only really one safe way to use Hydrogen peroxide in a reef tank and that is with an Oxydator.

How should I dose it without the Oxydator in the meantime? Do they make one for 300 gallons? How long have you been dosing H2O2? Do you have sps corals? Did it affect any parameters or your copepods?

 

[atoll]

How should I dose it without the Oxydator in the meantime? Do they make one for 300 gallons?

Yes, the "W" version designed for small ponds but I know a number here in theUK using them in large
reef tanks. I don't advocate dosing H2O2 directly into the reef tank.

My reef Tank.

 

[Charterreefer]

Yes, the "W" version designed for small ponds but I know a number here in theUK using them in large
reef tanks. I don't advocate dosing H2O2 directly into the reef tank.

My reef Tank.

Would it be ok to drip it into my 75 gallon sump? How do you think other people are dosing it if they don't have that device?

 

[atoll]

Would it be ok to drip it into my 75 gallon sump? How do you think other people are dosing it if they don't have that device?

People do drip it but I don't advocate it so I will leave it to others to advise you. IMO there is a real risk if you drip it.

 

[brandon429]

An oxydator cannot help with dinos, brush algae, bryopsis, and thick hair algae infestations which is why few cure threads (none on the American post boards I know of) don't use oxydators. $$ too

They meter out the o2 in safe levels but it's so low they don't help with certain invasions, they do help with cyano in that regard, and very low level invasions. You will get good data from tank dosers on tolerable levels, but the real way to use peroxide is external

You lift out a test rock, and use a knife tip to score off all the algae like this was a dental/plaque procedure. Once the anchor site is forced clean, use peroxide on the clean area to kill off leftovers, this is the best known method and it touches zero peroxide to your corals. In instances where this can't be done, you have the dosage and outcomes from people who've done it before. Adding it usually causes no harm in the prescribed doses and factoring the five or six known sensitive organisms.

 

[Charterreefer]

People do drip it but I don't advocate it so I will leave it to others to advise you. IMO there is a real risk if you drip it.

Thanks for your advice.

 

[atoll]

I believe the question was about cyno and H2O2.

(none on the American post boards I know of) don't use oxydators. $$ too

Many people are using Oxydators look and you will find. Reff Central, Nano Reef Aquariums and even on R2R

They meter out the o2 in safe levels but it's so low they don't help with certain invasions,

That depends on the % of peroxide used along with the number of catalysts used.

Oxydators have been used in the UK and Europe for many years just not in the USA as until recently they were not available in the USA. I know of many in the USA who imported them from the UK. Oxydator's help clean up the water increasing O2 and ORP amongst other things. People have been reporting positive effects using Oxydators for many years. Lots of thigs have been used to good effect in Europe well before the USA heard of them nothing new there.

 

[Waters]

Why not just use Chemi-Clean if it is just Cyano you are having issues with? I have used it multiple times in the past in SPS dominated tanks without any problems.

 

[Charterreefer]

An oxydator cannot help with dinos, brush algae, bryopsis, and thick hair algae infestations which is why few cure threads (none on the American post boards I know of) don't use oxydators. $$ too

They meter out the o2 in safe levels but it's so low they don't help with certain invasions, they do help with cyano in that regard, and very low level invasions. You will get good data from tank dosers on tolerable levels, but the real way to use peroxide is external

You lift out a test rock, and use a knife tip to score off all the algae like this was a dental/plaque procedure. Once the anchor site is forced clean, use peroxide on the clean area to kill off leftovers, this is the best known method and it touches zero peroxide to your corals. In instances where this can't be done, you have the dosage and outcomes from people who've done it before. Adding it usually causes no harm in the prescribed doses and factoring the five or six known sensitive organisms.

What are the sensitive organisms you mention?

 

[brandon429]

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/reef2reef-pest-algae-challenge-thread-hydrogen-peroxide.187042/

what that shows (linked out to other forum examples too in the thread) is the before and after effects on targets and non targets alike, quick summary


sensitives:
lysmata cleaners #1, not sensitive when using oxydators (no known sensitives since its weaker but steady output)
anemones, so use a non contact method such as external work when poss
coralline bleaches often with it
macros for obvious reasons
xenia gets mad with it

non sensitives, per our threads:
-bacteria. peroxide is a terrible sterilizer of non steel surfaces even at stronger percentages well above 3%. no form of peroxide use, even overdoses within reason, will kill your filter bac we show.
-nearly all corals. of course there are reports of peroxide killed my zos, but what did 150~ pages of peroxide work show in the linked threads to reefcentral and nano reef? most corals are tolerant if they were healthy before.
-clean up crews we find no patterns of loss. pods included, to the contrary of what a lot of people claim about it. we have around 150 pages of work to show all linked above.
-reduce your lighting intensity if you are going to do whole tank dosing, no high alk either, peroxide is an oxidant and high alk and high lighting + extra liquid free radicals is stressful... we get safer mileage with normal alk and low light, as if you are ramping up corals to a new lighting system.

-things I wouldn't recommend peroxide dumped straight in tank-not due to harm but due to target noneffect high percentage:
valonia
cyano. it comes back after peroxide use because a dirty sandbed is the cause of cyano in about 90% of cases.

for cyano, an oxydator is really a legit approach im not against them at all. Id probably choose powerful UV for your issue if a hands off correction is needed. certainly no meds for cyano, either burn it with an oxydator or a huge UV unit, or clean up any sandbed issues that may be there. too white lighting also def selects for cyano/spirulina too.

There are reports of peroxide curing cyano we can see on google, they're just not as likely so cyano and valonia are listed as unideal for dumping peroxide in the tank. TWilliard has a huge peroxide and cyano thread, its about 140 pages by itself here.

an oxydator is no joke for sure, not bunk science. breeders of highly sensitive freshwater shrimp use them we can see in youtube vids especially German planted tank ones. reefs too, they're fine preventatives. I could hide a uv unit better than the bulk of a OD but anyone with a sump wont mind either way.