125 Gallon Reef Bryopsis Battle using Peroxide

[Scream311]

Description of Tank :

Standard 72"L 125 Gallon Glass Tank
2) Metal Halides 250 watt 14k
1) VHO Actinic 48"
3" Sand Bed
180lbs Live Rock

48"L Sump with Cheato, Prolifera, DSB
Nautilus Skimmer w/t Mag 7
PM Carbon Reactor w/t Mag 2

Zoas, Palys, Mushrooms, Leathers, Brains, Anenomes, and Fish

Background on Tank :

Tank has been setup since October 2010. Started off PEST FREE ! "have the PICS to Prove It"

Purchased a few pcs of Live Rock with Hair algae as well as some coral with Aiptasia.
Used Peppermint Shrimp to Rid Off Aiptasia as well as a syringe with Lime Juice seemed to have worked for a Little while untill the Smaller ones started to come out of the nooks and crannys of Rock, will be introducing some more Peps for that.

Purchased a Blue Spot Sea Hair for Algae control, wiped out Hair Algae but left Bryopsis which started to feed off Rich Nutrients in Tank Water (IMO). Nitrate has always been a Steady 20ppm so that should not have been an issue also tried an Abalone that did not work.

Read an Article about trying Peroxide http://www.maast.org/showthread.php?66061-Bryopsis-has-met-its-match! and thats where this Thread comes into play.

This will be my Documentation of the Sucess in the use of Peroxide dosing to kill Off Bryopsis and Safely keep the Coral in the Reef

Close up of Large Zoa Colony before Bryopsis Attack
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0443.jpg
FTS of COLONY in my First Reef 20 gallon, Happy as can Be
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0054.jpg

FTS in October
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0060.jpg
FTS in January
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0467.jpg

Sea Hare Munching on some Hair Algae
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0474.jpg

March 2011 FTS (bryopsis taking over)
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0349.jpg

Close Up of Same Colony from first Pic as of 4-29-11
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0424.jpg
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0425.jpg

So after reading a few articles on Peroxide i did some expermenting of my own.
used a cap full of "home peroxide" per gallon of Saltwater and submerged infected coral for 5 minutes then reintroduced to reef.
next day polyps were open and signs of white roots on bryopsis are visible.

Will Post Pics of the Colony tommorrow with My Findings !

[Roo&Lis]

Awesome! Bryopsis is going down like Bin Laden!!!

[Scream311]

LOL no doubt

ok Got a Few Pics Added to Post, but youll have to Wait till i can Take some Pics of the Colony after its DIP !

[justahobby]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4ITUzifk_4&feature=player_embedded

[Scream311]

Wow Nice Justin !

Insanley cool !

Guess I should have made a crazy video and picked out a frag that looked like it was smiling with bubble algae for eyes !

You put my thread to shame with this Vid haha

[justahobby]

LOL! Not my video. Justin Credabel is a coral guy that has lots of fragging videos and makes music videos that are fun/ funny like the one I posted.

[Scream311]

Yea I've seen this guy beforfe. He set a record in FL by chopping up a coral colony into a dozen frags in less then a minute.

[justahobby]

Sounds like a great MAAST meeting contest :D

[Scream311]

Photos from Last nite !

i am soooo Impressed with the Fast Action of the Peroxide, nothing else in the Tank seems to be Harmed ! even the Polyps have Re Opened ! ! !
http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0472.jpg

http://i261.photobucket.com/albums/ii77/scream311/IMAG0475.jpg

Now the Next Experiment is to determine was in the Reef system is Triggering the Bryopsis and what remains to FEED It.

as of 4-25-2011 i have Stopped my Usual feeding of Phytho, Rotis, Fuel, Coral Frenzy and Raw Shrimp.
the tank is now getting a regular feeding of ONLY Flake Food. gonna try this for a Month and see what happens after Bryopsis has been COMPLETELY Eliminated from System

[justahobby]

IMO, feeding small - microscopic foods requires serious husbandry to the LR. So much gets trapped and I would bet that's why established tanks seem to catch the bryopsis more readily.

[Scream311]

That is a Great Point you make Justin.

I've noticed debri as it falls in section in the tank and have made corrections to this by adding power heads in dead zones and by adding a Green Brittle Star that does a Magnificent Job collecting and eating any un wanted leftovers.

I am sure as well that there will be microscopic pcs left on LR and would love a suggestion to aid in improving the system from allowing this

[justahobby]

In my biocube 14g I have 700gph via a K1 and MJ1200. It even keeps spectrum pellets floating! I also turkey bast the heck out of the rocks constantly and have 3 sponges to catch detritus that gets into the rear chambers. It's a new experiment, but I am confident we under estimate the need for good LR husbandry.

The way I see it:
Lots of strategic flow ensures no dead spots during feeding, pooping and keeps sand clean between thorough syphonings at WC's
Regularly clean your mechanical filtration and perform weekly WC's
That leaves only your rocks to trap and release phosphates and nitrates. And if we are religious about keeping the rock pores clean it's a double win because the anaerobic bacteria has more locations to populate and eat phosphates and nitrates.

[Roo&Lis]

That was one weird video....but kind of cool at the same time.

I'm glad to see you are getting results. Watching bryopsis and other nuisance algaes die leaves a warm feeling in my heart.

As for flow or basting to clear the rocks, for a big tank try using a small under powered powerhead to kind of sweep the live rock with your hand. It works pretty good imo.

Keep up the good work!

[Scream311]

Justin I need to get back on the ball with Husbandry as far as replacing the mesh in my overflow box with a Clean pc. I'm sure that would catch a lot of debri before entering the sump.

Thanks Roo&Lis So am I. That feeling is great every time I come home to my reef and see a little improvement here and there.

And I'm also glad you mentioned using a power head to brush off debri. I usually only use one in the sump while doin a WC but need to for sure try this inside the tank.


Thanks for the suggestions you both

[ErikH]

THE FUTURE IS NOW.