Bryopsis

[ellebelle]

Somewhere, somehow, I got bryopsis in my tank. :arg: I've been trying to stay on top of in, plucking it out when I can, but it keeps spreading. Any suggestions of how I can get rid of it permanently? When I rip it out, it seem to just grow back.

- I don't have enough of it to sustain a lettuce nudi.
- my tank is too small for a tang
- yes, I know my phosphates are not zero. I am doing 5g water changes every two days, I'm running Phosban and PhosZorb (an iron based product that absorbs phosphates and silicates) and I have plenty of flow. But no matter how much I try to bring them down, the stuff keeps growing. Salifert reads zeroish, but its hard to tell.

Now, suggestions?

 

[Killerdrgn]

pull out the rock it's growing on and let it dry out. or dip it in some hot water.

 

[nanoreefer22]

Lissa,

Can you take a picture of the stuff?

 

[ellebelle]

I don't have many small rocks in my tank. The worst patches are growing between some zoanthids on three different rocks. There is some growing around the edge of a rock with acans on it. And I just saw some take root on a huge rock that has three minicolonies of SPS. So taking them out is not an option.

I've already taken them out, rinsed them in some discard water-change water, and pulled out what I could find with tweezers and my fingers.

 

[ming]

I found bryopsis is directly related to phosphates. The source is probably the food. Try to cut down on feeding and get some hermits. Only if the hermits are starving will they pick on it. If they're not starving.. they'll prefer fish food.
Also, rinse the food before you feed it

 

[ellebelle]

Lissa,

Can you take a picture of the stuff?

Lights are off. Will do tomorrow.

 

[jhale]

it's not a phosphate thing. once it takes hold in your tank the best you can do is continue to pick it out. emerald crabs might eat it. tangs don't like it.

I've seen some people use a kalk paste over it. if you have a small amount that might work to get rid of it.

 

[ellebelle]

That is so unfair.

 

[ming]

I was just speaking from my experience.
I had the bryopsis overtake my entire tank before, and all I did was feed a lot less and added hermits and I would see them picking on the bryopsis because they were hungry. They actually looked like they worked in groups to take down a patch at a time.
Here it is in Aug 05 when it first started

Took over the whole tank about Oct 05

And then when after I cut down on feeding a lot and added i think about 50 hermits in end of Nov 05

 

[grknyer]

it's not a phosphate thing. once it takes hold in your tank the best you can do is continue to pick it out. emerald crabs might eat it. tangs don't like it.

I've seen some people use a kalk paste over it. if you have a small amount that might work to get rid of it.

Lisa what Jonathan said might work and reason I'm saying this is because I had a small patch awhile back and I remember reading in a thread that someone put some aiptasia product over it and it worked.I put Blue Vet rx's "aiptasia control" and it killed it. I haven't seen it grow back in that spot yet! Hope that helps

 

[grknyer]

Hey Ming I freaked out when I saw the first pic because I said to myself "that's not the tank I saw when I was over !!" I jumped the gun there. The rest of the pics look like the beautiful tank I saw. :biglaugh:

I was just speaking from my experience.
I had the bryopsis overtake my entire tank before, and all I did was feed a lot less and added hermits and I would see them picking on the bryopsis because they were hungry. They actually looked like they worked in groups to take down a patch at a time.
Here it is in Aug 05 when it first started

Took over the whole tank about Oct 05

And then when after I cut down on feeding a lot and added i think about 50 hermits in end of Nov 05

 

[ZANYMASTER]

Having the same issue here.Even my seahare does not eat it.Driving me crazy over here.Phosphate read zero too.I have the stop hair algae thing but lost the syringe.Not sure if I should stop the flow in my tank for a long period of time for it to work.Maybe I'll get the crabs even though I have some and I'm not sure what they're eating.

 

[jhale]

ming good to see you won the fight. I think it was the hermits being hungry that did it for you.

Lissa after you try the kalk you might want to add an army of algae eating critters.
life's not fair btw

 

[JHOV2324]

I had that stoopid bryopsis.....keep pruning it...i ran phosban, added hermits and just kept pulling it out and it will go away.....i still have a lil bit left but it only grows on the overflow box...maybe a seahare might help as well...

 

[DevIouS]

Lissa:

It probably hitchhiked on a new frag or a new piece of LR.
IME no critter or fish will touch it. If they do, they won't even put a dent to compete with the growth.
WC's, scrubbing & plucking is what worked for me....but it will take time.

This is something I've read wayyyy after I had my battle so I didn't get to try it.
But it sounds promising.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1113109

 

[ZANYMASTER]

I've read that here on another thread about red slime algae and to raise the Mag levels.Going to give it a shot myself.

 

[qy7400]

I've had great success with magnesium, followed this thread and withing a week the bryopsis was gone.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=1113109
http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25498

 

[jhale]

be careful with elevated MG levels, it can kill corals.

 

[Deanos]

be careful with elevated MG levels, it can kill corals.

What's considered elevated?

 

[aaron]

Its funny you mention using Kalk Paste directly on the bryopsis. I have had a medium bad case myself while i was away and my ro membrae gave out. Once i got home and fixed the membrane I started elevating the calcium levels using Kalk and Super buffer it seemed to slow down the algae growth enough for it to be controllable. This situation has happened twice in my tanks. There is probably a chemical reason for it but i dont know it.