So as some of you know, I'm in an EPIC battle with bryopsis and have been since the beginning of the year. It's so bad that twice now over the last few months, I have seriously considered getting out. My first attempts were to do what I knew worked. Kent Tech-M. However, not being able to find Kent Tech-M, I was told that Continuum by Kent was "the exact same formula" and will "knock it out". Yeah, no dice…
So after spending a month + with my MG around 1800 with Continuum (and dumping +$100 into that), I finally found some tech M. I used the Tech-M to take my MG to around 2200 and it's been there for another 2 months with zero results.
Removing the rock and using peroxide or bleaching them is not really an option based on the corals, structure, etc. Any treatment that is getting done, has to be done IN TANK.
Moving through the chemical realm, I tried Algae-Fix which I used about 1 1/2 yrs ago to rid my tank of a horrible case of geledium (much prettier than bryopsis, but equally difficult to eradicate). I ended up using Algae-Fix for my geledium for about 2 1/2 months. FAR longer than manufacturer recommendations. Doing so, I killed off most of my CUC. My ornamental shrimp went first, followed by my snails. And of course my macro algaes.
I ran Algae-Fix for about a month, but after reading post after post that it does NOT work for bryopsis, I sought out something different.
Welcome Fauna Marin Ultra AlgaeX.
I read a lot about it and that is my current route. I'm going to use this thread to document my experience.
According to Fauna Marin, you cannot use filtering reactors with AlgaeX (gfo/carbon), nor can you do a water change during treatment. Just skim heavily, measure EXACTLY and dose after the lights are off for best results.
I am keeping my Calcium reactor and my Matrix reactor online as neither will filter out the AlgaeX.
Treatment is 5ml per 100l of water. My tank +sump & reactor = 150g (on the safe side) so I'm treating 28ml of Ultra AlgaeX. Treatment is every other day for 21 days (11 treatments).
Others have had issues with losing shrimp, snails & clams, but those who claim to follow the measurements & directions EXACTLY, have reported no losses and good results.
So here I am…
Here's what a massive bryopsis infestation looks like:
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Step 1 = manual removal of as much algae as possible. I did so by taking a 10' long, 1/2" diameter hose, and running a continuous siphon from the DT into a filter sock in the sump. I would suck up algae and then put my finger over the hose to grab it and rip it out. I spent about 1 1/2 hours getting as much as I could out of the tank. Then I did my last water change for the next 3 weeks.
Here's the "after" manual removal, and the start of my Ultra Algae X experiment.
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I did my first dose last night, and everything is still alive this morning so that's a good sign. Stay tuned as I continue to update!
So after spending a month + with my MG around 1800 with Continuum (and dumping +$100 into that), I finally found some tech M. I used the Tech-M to take my MG to around 2200 and it's been there for another 2 months with zero results.
Removing the rock and using peroxide or bleaching them is not really an option based on the corals, structure, etc. Any treatment that is getting done, has to be done IN TANK.
Moving through the chemical realm, I tried Algae-Fix which I used about 1 1/2 yrs ago to rid my tank of a horrible case of geledium (much prettier than bryopsis, but equally difficult to eradicate). I ended up using Algae-Fix for my geledium for about 2 1/2 months. FAR longer than manufacturer recommendations. Doing so, I killed off most of my CUC. My ornamental shrimp went first, followed by my snails. And of course my macro algaes.
I ran Algae-Fix for about a month, but after reading post after post that it does NOT work for bryopsis, I sought out something different.
Welcome Fauna Marin Ultra AlgaeX.
I read a lot about it and that is my current route. I'm going to use this thread to document my experience.
According to Fauna Marin, you cannot use filtering reactors with AlgaeX (gfo/carbon), nor can you do a water change during treatment. Just skim heavily, measure EXACTLY and dose after the lights are off for best results.
I am keeping my Calcium reactor and my Matrix reactor online as neither will filter out the AlgaeX.
Treatment is 5ml per 100l of water. My tank +sump & reactor = 150g (on the safe side) so I'm treating 28ml of Ultra AlgaeX. Treatment is every other day for 21 days (11 treatments).
Others have had issues with losing shrimp, snails & clams, but those who claim to follow the measurements & directions EXACTLY, have reported no losses and good results.
So here I am…
Here's what a massive bryopsis infestation looks like:
Step 1 = manual removal of as much algae as possible. I did so by taking a 10' long, 1/2" diameter hose, and running a continuous siphon from the DT into a filter sock in the sump. I would suck up algae and then put my finger over the hose to grab it and rip it out. I spent about 1 1/2 hours getting as much as I could out of the tank. Then I did my last water change for the next 3 weeks.
Here's the "after" manual removal, and the start of my Ultra Algae X experiment.
I did my first dose last night, and everything is still alive this morning so that's a good sign. Stay tuned as I continue to update!
