Help ID green algae, seems to be gha but a beginner.

[jeepsehawk]

Tank is 1.5 month old, still trying to id algae. Best photos I could get. Thanks

 

[brandon429]

in our pest algae challenge thread in this forum, before and after pics exist to show that being beaten in about 3 days. other common methods are gfo starving, adding grazers then experimenting with them to see if they work, but in the challenge thread, 3 days which is why im partial there lol. the reason I do not recommend stripping nutrients from the water to try and starve it is because of the coralline and the zos/corals who are doing well and like the current nutrients. this algae w grow wherever non grazing allows it, in natural reefs, its not a sign of poor water at all.

if you do choose to be free of it in a few days ill link your thread to the other larger challenge threads too.

 

[jeepsehawk]

Thank you and please post link.

 

[brandon429]

Linked within this thread to two other forums, over 500 before and after pics

http://reef2reef.com/threads/reef2reef-pest-algae-challenge-thread-hydrogen-peroxide.187042/page-4

 

[brandon429]

Quick summary

Lift out any test rock outside the tank

Open a brand new bottle of peroxide not a used one

Pour it across a test area with the algae, outside the tank, let sit cooking for 2 mins. Rinse off put back in and don't hand remove the algae place rock back. Reevaluate in three days off that single test before proceeding

To really press the test, apply twice and let it cook 4 mins. This doesn't harm or recycle anything peroxide isn't killing bacteria but it usually does algae.

That wiry species you have responds in 3-4 days and if not, we only tested one spot. Page one of my linked thread covers all questions about peroxide

B

 

[jeepsehawk]

Ok Brandon, been researching, can I just take big rock out that has algae, spray with peroxide and wait several minutes, pouring seems extreme? Do I need to rinse with saltwater or can I just rinse in distilled water, don't have ro/di yet. If not, I can rinse at my next water change this week with discarded water from tank. Thanks

 

[brandon429]

Since we are just doing a test rock and evaluating in three days--if you can believe it you don't even have to rinse it, you can just put it back in tank. The only animal we keep that would stress from that is a lysmata cleaner shrimp, if you don't have one then no form of rinse/no rinse or pour/spray will affect anything badly

Many people like to spray as long as the algae gets a good zap it should work nicely. If a test rock pans out clean and then we do the rest same way and zap all this out I'll link you up to the big peroxide threads as before and afters help others head off a takeover. For me personally I'd opt for no rinse over using freshwater, and for any type of saltwater if a rinse was wanted. Peroxide will lighten out the coralline in treated areas but it will come back and the algae will die. Whether one treatment permanently cures the tank doesn't matter, it's the fresh start that allows any number of algae prevention modes to hopefully take over. If they don't work, zap again.

This method is literally a chemical cheat to start fresh with the goal of a more legitimate method taking over if you can find one that works as well lol

The best part of the threads is the hundreds of tanks not losing anything by trying. If you have an algae that won't respond , the test rock will show. The zoanthids would tolerate any form of peroxide dosing you might try, #1 of toughest corals to peroxide but the first test is for no coral contact, just algae watching

It wouldn't hurt a thing to do the whole rock structure at once, but people like the test rock better to save work if the algae happens to not respond.

 

[dnyceli]

Raising you Magnesium level to around 1600 and holding it there until algae turns brown and manually pull off will be a safer bet since your tank is fairly new. This method has always worked well for me. I also peroxide does my tank 1ml per 10G. The peroxide will kill some bacteria and copepods. Zoas will also close right away as soon as you add it, but will open back up.

 

[jeepsehawk]

I did the main rock to test, took out, sprayed peroxide on whole rock. It only had one little zoa growth (maybe 4 polyps) and a fanworm, hopefully he survives. Left out for about 3 minutes and put back, crossing fingers Brandon. Thanks for links, wanted to kill this stuff before it got worst.

 

[brandon429]

Can't wait to see pics! Also regarding the above post, magnesium also makes a fine external application just like we did here with p

Not dosing the whole tank is always 1st go, unless the tank is so large rocks can't be removed, because full tank dosing contacts the non targets in the system. Peroxide is nice because it has a short activity span before it degrades

pouring it gets a little deeper into the holdfasts if the spray doesn't zap it all initially, but pretty much any direct contact kills 98% of green algae of any species in our tanks.

 

[jeepsehawk]

Thanks Brandon, came home to this tonight. None left in 1 day, everything survived. No traces of dead algae in spot rock. Will do other rocks this weekend.

 

[brandon429]

That little tenet that says nothing good in reefing happens fast


Myth busted

The next part is grow back. Peroxide has the lone expectation among treatments, to which it rises to the occasion occasionally, of being a one off treatment or its called a fail...but I think other details exist. When a grazer turtle or parrotfish or tang eats a tuft of algae in the wild, that algae comes back later or all the grazers would die off/leave elsewhere. Algae will clearly make use of excess waste in the aquarium, but algae presence alone isn't indicative of a waste problem it's a lack of grazing problem, algae in the wild and in our tanks can thrive on nutrients so low many tanks will never starve them totally

All we've done here is press reset button, and you have ten thousand presses avail for the future. Future dealings against algae can be chosen wisely when the palette is free of algae, then preventing can be accurately weighed

Whether or not you algae grows back tomorrow, next month or never doesn't impact the clean fresh start above, we provide simply a safe reset and then preventatives actually have a great chance now. Some prefer to never change course and just spot treat occasionally, having the choice and not a wrecked tank is the entire reason to consider peroxide cheating thanks for posting soon I'll link this nice set of pics up to our p thread examples

B