Zoa Peroxide dipping for GHA (results w/ pictures)

[Cytosol]

Hey all,

 

This is a bit of a spin-off from another thread I started (http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=252066). I have been struggling with GHA and other algae for the last couple months; some of my frags have been all but covered in the stuff. After a helpful suggestion from Marinoob and doing some research, i've decided to dip my prized Watermellon zoa frag in peroxide to try to save it from the tangles of GSP. I've tried scrubbing this frag probably a dozen times, meticulously removing as much algae as possible. It always comes back, since it seems to be rooted in the actual polyp stalks themselves.

 

As suggested, I dipped this frag in a mixture of 1:1 3% Hydrodgen Peroxide (Regular OTC strength) and fresh saltwater for 1 minute. After doing this, I rinsed it off in another container of fresh SW then returned it to the tank. And now for the pictures!

 

Here is the frag a few months before my GHA outbreak:

 

 

 

 

And this was the frag right before I dipped it, after being taken over by GHA:

 

 

 

 

This is the bubbling that occurred when dipping it:

 

 

 

 

And here is the frag directly after being returned to the tank. Take note that more then 50% of the GHA is now gone:

 

 

 

 

1 Day after dip:

 

 

 

 

2 days after dip:

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like the best results are seen immediately after dipping, and continued recession of the algae is seen 2 days after. I will continue to take daily pictures of the progress, but from what i've seen, this is a very effective dipping method. I have not yet seen any negative effects on the polyps other than the fact that they were spitting up bubbles a few hours after the dip. The polyps are still closed (as they have been for the last couple months) but I am hoping that they open in the near future.

 

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

*Update 30-Dec-10*

 

I was planning to do a daily update on the progress of this frag, but christmas and all that took up too much time!

 

Anyway, here is an 8-day picture. This is pretty much how the frag has looked for the last couple days; it appears that 95% of the gha is gone and doesn't seem to be coming back. Unfortunately, most of the polyps are closed and i'm not sure if they will make it through. However, they look better than they did when they were covered in the GHA:

 

 

 

 

I also have a Birdsnest SPS frag that was covered in gha, bubble algae and some other sort of green branching stuff (the name slipped my mind). I forgot to take a before picture, but I dipped just the bottom of the frag in peroxide for about 2 minutes. This is a picture the day after:

 

 

I'm sure you will notice that part of the frag is bleached, but I still see a bit of polyp extension there. I am hoping that this comes back, but it isn't a huge loss if it doesn't.

 

The peroxide killed all the GHA instantly, and the bubble algae is also slowly starting to melt away. The green branching algae was turned a really cool orange/hot pink color. I noticed this happening on another zoa frag I dipped; the algae stayed this color for a couple days, then completely fell off.

 

I also dipped my Sun coral for about 2 minutes in peroxide. The 'shells' on the coral turned a little white, but they returned to normal and it didn't seem to harm them at all.

 

In closing, I have tried this dip on 5 species of zoas, sun coral, and some sps frags. 4 out of 5 zoas were unharmed by the dip, the 5th one lost about 10% of the polyps. The rest of the colony was fine, and re-growing.

 

All the SPS frags I dipped were bleached. The polyps still appear to be there, but i'll have to keep an eye on them to see how they do. I would not recommend this method on SPS frags, unless you can ensure that the peroxide is only touching the frag plug and none gets on the actual frag itself. However, this may be effective in treating frag tips that are covered in gha, since the tips are usually in pretty bad condition anyway.

 

Sun coral was unaffected, and all GHA was killed!

 

 

I'm going to continue experimenting with this, but I am liking these results!

[kthehun89]

I've been using H2O2 as a algal control for a while...both dipping and dosing. It is one of the most effective controls! One thing tho is that some individual corals may respond poorly too the h202, but most are resilient. Great for algae on SPS tips!

[lohitha]

Hope the dip doesnt kill Zooxanthellae algae.

[Markushka]

I've seen quite a bit on peroxide lately. There was a thread on my local forum as well. i may experiment with this a bit myself.

[marinoob]

i have been using it on my zoas also it does great. usually it dies and releases form the rock after a day or 2. i usually dip 50/50 for 5 minutes. rinse, put back in tank and 2 days later pick it up and spin the frag around in my fingers and the remaining algae usually falls off. and the zoas are usually opened a day or 2 later. dont think i have lost a single zoa doing this. havent tried it with other corals though.

[chumcrazy]

Great thread keep us posted!

[BLoCkCliMbeR]

ive played this game before. i tried it against bubble algae, bryo and some other pest algae. my results were meh... mediocre. i think i killed more micro stars, pods and coraline that anything else.

 

works great on hair algae (gh and bb) in freshwater

 

http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/aquai...e_peroxide.html

http://www.theaquariumwiki.com/H2O2

http://www.gpodio.com/h2o2.asp

[Cytosol]

See my first post for updates on this dip method.

[marinoob]

works great on bubble algae as far as i can tell. im noticing this on my frags too. all the bubble algae on the frags turns white/clear instead of green and doesnt spread anymore. i assume its dead but it doesnt fall off.

[Cytosol]

Yeah, thats exactly what i'm seeing. It seems to just melt, but it is still attached to the frag. I can't confirm that this isn't just spreading the spores, but I seriously doubt that's whats happening. This method is extremely effective, and it removes all the different types of algae I have tested it on. I hear it's actually most effective on Bryopsis, but I (thankfully) don't have any of that in my tank.

[davidncbrown]

If you have any algae on any of your powerheads or koralia's or frag racks... a quick dip in vinegar, warm water, and a touch of bleach will kill all the algae and it won't ever come back. The only thing is you need to remove any metal (motor shafts, etc.) so it wont corrode them. My koralia's get bryopsis from time to time because my tang picks on it and it floats around in the water until it gets stuck in the koralia... Always kills the bryopsis within a minute. Just make sure you rinse well before putting back, and DONT dip your corals or anything living.

[JTIV]

Thought I would add a lil new flavor to this post.

 

Had a zoa frag that I had gotten from a fellow reefer end up growing GHA I do not have it anywhere else in my tank. Water conditions are all in check. I have plucked it, put it in a qt tank with my emrald crab, done about everything I could think of. my cuc will pick on the outside of it but noting seamed to really take care of the problem. It jsut kept coming back. The zoas were healthy and open but an eye sore. So after a lil reaserch I did a 70% tank water 30% 3% hydrogen perxoide dip for 5 min today. Here are some pics.

 

My eye sore

 

Durring the dip

 

After the dip (day 1)

 

DAY 2

The results are in. I woke up this morning with my emerald crab sitting on top of the frag muncing on the remaning GHA. he had not touched it since it started to grow. I am guessing that the peroxide killed the GHA and for some reason it made it irristable to him. all but one of the pollops has opened fully and things look great. I was a lil skepital about doing this but the results are phenomonial.

 

A little less than 24 hours later

 

 

[Spiderguardnano]

wow thats so awesome

i wondering if doing a peroxide with every new frag you get will be a good idea

 

the results are literally the best you can ask for

[JTIV]

wow thats so awesome

i wondering if doing a peroxide with every new frag you get will be a good idea

 

the results are literally the best you can ask for

I would say that it will still be a last resort for me. The results are awesome. I do know that my emerald crab did the majority of the cleaning of the GHA after the dip, he never touched it prior IDK. I am very happy with my results. With the reading I have done their are a lot of people that have lost their zoas after attempting. I will say that most of the articles I read sd to mix it 50% 50%and I only did 70% 30%. I hope I never have to do this again but I would not be hesitant if needed.

[JTIV]

Just an update. It has been 36 hours and still no sign of GHA. Zoas are doing great no neg. signs from being dipped.

[SquishyFishy]

Will this work on my Clove polyps which are covered with the dang stuff? They also have red bubble on them. The emerald crab has been amongst them but he can't remove it all. I'm thinking about this method or the Peroxide/baking soda paste method.

[JTIV]

Will this work on my Clove polyps which are covered with the dang stuff? They also have red bubble on them. The emerald crab has been amongst them but he can't remove it all. I'm thinking about this method or the Peroxide/baking soda paste method.

Im not sure... I would do some reaserch and see if anyone else has tried it. I know it worked on my zoas there is still no gha and they are doing fine. If you do it decide to dip them I would highly recomend the 30% peroxide, 70% tank water mix I believe most ppl that have tried a 50, 50 mix have lost some livestock from what I was able to find. I wish I was able to help more I do know know what the diff in their hardiness would be, if all else fails I wouldnt hesitate to try.

[Mr. Microscope]

H2O2 is great for GHA. Unfortunately, bryopsis is a different story. It will kill it on the surface, but that stuff has roots and will quickly grow back after a H2O2 treatment.

[uscgbeachbum]

Any thoughts on waiting for the lights to go out so the polyps will close prior to dipping? How about including flatworm exit?

[JTIV]

Any thoughts on waiting for the lights to go out so the polyps will close prior to dipping? How about including flatworm exit?

That would work I disturbed mine and made them close prior to dipping. Didnt think about waiteing on the lights to go out and having them close on their own may be a lil less stressful.