Dealing with Red Bubble Algae in a 4g pico.

[SgtBhaji]

I'm looking for tips on how to deal with red bubble algea in my 4g pico.

 

I have had clumps grow over the last year that I have dealt with by either siphoning them out or removing the rocks and burning them or peroxiding them.

 

I can't continue the rock removal as the tank is quite established now and there are sponges and other critters close by many of the clumps that I don't want to damage if possible and siphoning them is quite though as they seem to be popping up all over the place recently.

 

I have read that an Emerald crab may chow down on them, but in the past I have found that an Emerald Crab can become a bit of a wrecking ball in such a small tank.

 

Is there anything else I can do to try stay on top of this or is trying to siphon them out my best hope?

 

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

[brandon429]

There are some infestations that are very bad so sorry! Can you post pics it helps

 

we couldn't wipe valonia out of my friend snakebyts tank in a similar problem glad to see you doing what you can to prevent spread. depending on invasion density perhaps some increased po4 export can help

[jacketherington]

I had the same problem in my 2g. I tried an emerald crab, he ate the green, but wouldn't touch red.

 

I ended up gluing frags, or rubble pieces over the patches I could see. So far so good.

[SgtBhaji]

Thanks for the responses. Kinda pointless posting pics as they are just very small right now but on all the rocks and spread out.

 

I'd forgot about glueing them in... I may take out the rocks and start glueing the suckers. Hopefully that will be less destructive to the surrounding areas than flame or peroxide.

[grmoore]

Thanks for the responses. Kinda pointless posting pics as they are just very small right now but on all the rocks and spread out.

 

I'd forgot about glueing them in... I may take out the rocks and start glueing the suckers. Hopefully that will be less destructive to the surrounding areas than flame or peroxide.

Pics will help identify the species and determine what the best method is to harvest the algae from the tank.

[SgtBhaji]

Gotcha... I figured bubble algae was just bubble algae. Didn't realize it had different flavors. I'll get a pic and upload it after dinner.

 

Thanks again.

[SgtBhaji]

Let's see if this works...

[grmoore]

Botryocladia skottsbergii. If you can remove the affected rock, do so and scrub it with a soft toothbrush, rinsing it afterwards with water change tank water, then put it back in the tank. If you can't remove the rock, gently pluck the sacks from the rock without breaking them and remove them by hand.

[brandon429]

Im curious about something, how is non assisted physical removal going to be an upgrade to chem use that is still getting grow back? not being challenging, just thinking it out. Im thinking each method will cause grow back so be prepared to repeat for a while.

 

regarding the different approaches, its different when trying something and getting a growback vs trying a guided method where sometimes unspoken variables are caught during the analysis

 

try all other methods first for removal without peroxide, then if they dont work let me have a run at it. we would simply do some different takes on the application, but with pics that show the death phase and then the regrowth phase, there are important details in the pics of those occurences that allow for better attack plans. so far we know nothing about the peroxide or chemically supported run in detail, but I do believe you tried it.

 

I have this specific variation of algae in pics at the reefcentral pico reef pest algae challenge thread, PatrickF and I cured it off a large c. jardeni coral with good pics etc.

 

during that pic process we were able to identify a couple of key reapplication times that did knock it out, which is different than 1x application and a full grow back, this stuff is invasive but beatable.

 

by all means hand remove it and toothbrush it, over and over, even if you dont use chemicals as mentioned. at least you are preventing the spread thats #1 important. if other methods do not work Ill take a good run at it w peroxide I bet it can be beat like the others.

 

you have a chance if you find lucky grazers

 

but I wouldnt try nutrient restriction to battle it, id do some form of direct approach, and sustain it. even if one method keeps growing back over and over, keep removing until you find one that wins. simply never allow a takeover

 

I would prefer this invader pictured above vs valonia, pics were important for distinction of the target, the more pics, the more unspoken variables can be addressed. another critical detail just off that 3inch area shown is I dont show destruction marks around the target, speaks about the timeframes and type of applications involved etc...if it was char black that would be another story, or bone white from peroxide over baking, the perimeter simply looks normal. to the contrary I see signs of nice benthic growth, there are delicate fanworms lining the perimeter which means we can attack harder than what was done for this spot, remove more etc

 

we need a whole tank shot to do this right

[grmoore]

Once this has sporulated, it will continue to propagate in the tank anywhere it can take hold. Since the OP stated they didn't want to risk the life in the tank with more chemical treatment, the options are few - extreme nutrient and phosphate reduction, drastic limiting of light (Botryocladia sp. do quite well in low light) or manual removal. Since there are no known predators of this species, short of hair algae epiphytes, manual removal is about all that remains. Yes, it will take time and diligence to remove the current spawn and any future generations, but it can be done.

[SgtBhaji]

Wow... that's a lot to digest. Thanks for such detailed responses.

 

In reply to peroxide use, this section hasn't been treated with peroxide, sections further up the rockwork have in the past though which resulted in bleaching of the rock and loss of coralline in those spots. I also used a soldering torch on certain areas which seemed effective. In fact, both seemed quite effective, but the problem has returned and I'd prefer to try tackle it without damaging the surrounding life.

 

I have been loosening it then siphoning from a couple of problem spots, but I think this has been contributing to it's spread as I have had some pop in the process.

[brandon429]

It took me simply a year of repeats to beat gelidium, not sure how long this will take it depends on the method. if other methods don't pan out after trying them holler back and we can do a focused peroxide run like what I did for this algaes cousin gelidium. While you are consulting options be sure and keep the tank free of it! At least it's currently manageable

B

[SgtBhaji]

Thanks a ton for the info. I'll try snap some more pics and post them here.

 

I think I'm going to remove the rocks tonight and do some manual removal and a full water change and see how things look from there.

 

I'm not really infested as of yet, but I am seeing it appear in new locations, so hopefully I can get a handle on this before it gets too bad.

[SgtBhaji]

Here are some more pics. Sorry for quality... taken on the phone. These are just a selection of the spots.

 

Bottom of tank. New growth.

 

Top of tank towards back. Has been problematic for a while.

 

Top of tank. New area of growth.

 

Top of tank. New growth.

 

Base, new growth.

[SgtBhaji]

So tonight we pulled all the rocks, manually removed all of the red bubble algae, scrubbed their locations and rinsed before putting back in the tank with fresh water.

 

In addition, I have glued in where the big patch was at the base as it was quite problematic to get everything out of the crevices.

 

I'll let you know how things look over the next few weeks and I'll try stay on top of any new growth.

 

If this fails, I'll be sure to hit you up over the peroxide method.

 

Thanks again for your advice! Much appreciated.

 

Edit:

Oh.. and I'll be sure to reduce lighting and nutrients in the tank too.

[SgtBhaji]

Here's the front bottom cleaned and sealed. I'll remove the seal in a few weeks. I do still see one red spot in there still.

[grmoore]

So tonight we pulled all the rocks, manually removed all of the red bubble algae, scrubbed their locations and rinsed before putting back in the tank with

 

Edit:

Oh.. and I'll be sure to reduce lighting and nutrients in the tank too.

Reducing the lighting will do little to affect Botryocladia.. it's very hardy in low light conditions.

[SgtBhaji]

Thanks for that info... I'll skip that part then.

 

If you can't tell, I'm fairly new at this game. I mostly fumble my way through.

[grmoore]

We all do. =)

[SgtBhaji]

We all do. =)

Glad I'm in good company.

[SgtBhaji]

Just wanted to update and say that pulling of rocks, careful manual removal, brushing and rinsing, combined with gluing in problem areas appears to have stemmed the issue so far. I'll be sure to update again.

 

Thanks for all the advice.