how do you nano guys deal with buble alage?

[devaji108]

so I just noticed some bubble algae growing in my 20L macro tank.

was/am fighting GHA almost won the battle in a month or so...but in the process of manual removal I think must have poped some bubble algae as it starting to pop up on a few rocks..

 

I know emerald crags can eat them. it hit or miss I hear. also it kind of dont make since as they would pop it causing more spores to spread.

 

anyone try the boiling water with a needle in to it?

 

permas are with in reason. but I hear bubble can grow even with perfect water.

 

so the question is how do you nano guys and gals beat the bubble algae?

 

 

[NYfishies]

I pluck it off the rock with tweezers and then catch in my hand or a net. I only ever see it here and there in my smaller tank and never in my bigger tank. I would imagine if the infestation was more vast that the emerald crab would be my choice.

[BulkRate]

I've got both kinds - the red and the green, but neither at plague proportions. The green bubbles pop up on one chunk of "live rock" (a red worm cluster) every now and then - like NYfishies I just pluck them off in an outside vat of used tank water at water change time.

 

The red? I kinda like it so have let it grow. Funny thing is I'm seeing less and less of the green stuff and the red seems to prefer shaded areas so it's kinda just working itself out.

[devaji108]

^ glad its working out for you.

its only a few here and there but one cluster has about 6 small bubbles...i'll see what i can do.

[Pjanssen]

emerald crab worked for me. Rocks that I could physically remove from tank i took a razor and scraped off bubbles. Now I have to feed my emerald seaweed so he doesn't starve to death

[calrissian]

I used a turkey baster that I drilled out to fit over the bubbles. I get it ready to suck, place it over the bubble, scrape it loose and let the baster suck it up. Squirt it out in my water change bucket. I bought a couple emeralds and they are taking care of it now. Haven't seen any in a couple months.

[Clown79]

I remove it by hand, kinda roll it till it falls off or I use tweezers.

 

You don't want them popping in the tank, they release spores and spread that way- sticking a needle in them will pop them.

[Buercky]

If you can remove the rocks easily take them out, pop off the bubble algae and 3% peroxide them for 4 minutes. Wipes out the GHA also. I just did this to my tank that I inherited. Good luck

[holy carp]

+1 for peroxide. I take the rocks out and pick the bubbles off with tweezers, scraping the surface where they were rooted. Then I dab 35% h2o2 on the spot. I leave it out for a minute or so and then pour some tank water over it to rinse excess h2o2 and put it back in the tank.

 

When it's just a small bubble or two, I have a rigid airline tube bent at a 90° angle and filed to a sharp point for scraping and sucking them off. The other end is attached to a flexible airline tube siphoning into a waste bucket. This works well, but only if you spot the bubbles when they are small. Obviously, the bigger ones won't fit through the tubing, but I don't worry about popping them with the siphon removing any spores.

 

All that said, they seem to come back eventually, even if after months of not seeing any.

[devaji108]

hmmm got a few options here. thanks everyone!

 

the rock is pretty easy to take out. there are some macros growing on it but not that much so I should be ok.

with h2o2 is it 3% or 35%? big difference there.

[HarryPotter]

Reset sadly

[holy carp]

You can use either version of h2o2.

 

3% is pharmacy grade, is less pure, will require longer application time (I recommend 3-5 minutes minimum) but safer to handle. More time out of water will irritate your corals a bit more.

 

35% is food grade, more pure, faster acting (I don't think you need more than a minute), but should be handled with caution as it can permanently damage your corneas - wear protective glasses. This is way more effective, but it is expensive stuff that isn't easy to get if you don't have a good health food / nutrition store nearby.

 

Give the 3% a shot first. It's cheaper and easier. For me, I had too much recurrence of valonia so stepped it up to 35%. Both work, but the higher concentration seems more effective IME.

[devaji108]

^ ok cool thanks

there only a few so if I start now and stay on top of it I am hopefull I can beat it.