Peroxide saves my Tank! With pics to Prove It!

[Reef Miser]

It killed all of mine. I probably had about 10 stalks of the white pom-pom xenia. When I did the sysetemic treatment, it all got stressed out and closed up. Gradually it all died along with the algae.

 

A couple weeks ago I noticed the tiniest of remains on one of my rocks. It is < 1/4" across and still pulsing. If I wanted to, I'm sure I could kill it off with a quick direct squirt.

 

If you wanted to get rid of xenia, I think this would be a great option.

[brandon429]

I am going to try on my planted globe aquarium today, w post back. Wonder if it will hurt my wild type guppies

 

they are pure inbreeds x100 generations this should be interesting

[brandon429]

should be stickied, its too helpful not to.

Edited April 30, 2011 by brandon429

[lgreen]

absolutely this should be stickied, its too helpful not to.

 

I agree and disagree with that.

 

While this technique may be useful in some situations, I worry that if it is stickied, less experienced people will be mislead and/or mistake peroxide to be some kind of miracle algae cure.

 

The reality is peroxide is likely only going to be a temporary fix and doesn't address what caused the algae to grow in the first place. If you don't address what is actually causing the algae to grow, what is to stop it from growing back?

 

99.9% of the algae problems I see on here are due to stocking a new tank too fast, overstocking, overfeeding, not enough water changes, poor water circulation, and/or water that is contaminated with nutrients that support algae growth. Peroxide does not address any of those issues, therefore it's not really going to fix the problem.

 

To me, promoting peroxide as a solution to ridding your tank of algae is no better than buying those magical algae and tank clarifying elixirs found at most crappy fish stores. So rather than misleading people to think peroxide will solve all their problems, how about if we just promote and educate people on proper tank setup, planning, and husbandry.

[ezmoy]

I noticed the red algae took 3 days to begin to dieoff, but it did it would be good practice to wait three days before upping any dosage, and do some water changes of a few gallons in between. I say be careful with systemic additions, but all the outcomes Ive read so far have been positive when not pushing the dosage.

 

can you post pics now and then after the treatment? even if just a cell phone pic

 

I would give yourself a week to slowly up the dosage, no hurry. were you able to do a spot treatment by draining the tank to the level you need to get at the algae? it only feels safe to use the systemic addition way as a last resort it seems but it will be about the 20th time someone has reported success with it Ive read on this board.

I did two peroxide dips on my zoas, I actually took them out of the tank and dipped. The red algea is dead but fuzz is still sort of on them, but it is getting better. I chickened out on dosing the tank, did it three times but have since stopped since the guy at the LFS said DO NOT dose the whole tank! I lost my courage! I threw out the main rock that had most of the algae on it and have slowly been picking off the rest.

[Genj]

I agree and disagree with that.

 

While this technique may be useful in some situations, I worry that if it is stickied, less experienced people will be mislead and/or mistake peroxide to be some kind of miracle algae cure.

 

The reality is peroxide is likely only going to be a temporary fix and doesn't address what caused the algae to grow in the first place. If you don't address what is actually causing the algae to grow, what is to stop it from growing back?

 

99.9% of the algae problems I see on here are due to stocking a new tank too fast, overstocking, overfeeding, not enough water changes, poor water circulation, and/or water that is contaminated with nutrients that support algae growth. Peroxide does not address any of those issues, therefore it's not really going to fix the problem.

 

To me, promoting peroxide as a solution to ridding your tank of algae is no better than buying those magical algae and tank clarifying elixirs found at most crappy fish stores. So rather than misleading people to think peroxide will solve all their problems, how about if we just promote and educate people on proper tank setup, planning, and husbandry.

 

It is true that algae can use its own die off to feed itself from my understanding. So if you had a period in which your were not attentive to the tank, overfed and allowed for a nutrient bloom, then you may have to take drastic measures to stop the algae, even though you may have adjusted your feeding prior.

[brandon429]

I think this is a very typical response. I used to get as long ones when mentioning doing coral in a vase, about promoting unstable systems.

 

 

ive said in a few places it doesn't replace good tank care. I said its a cheat, don't use it if you don't like it.

 

this is an experimental thread, if thats not clear I don't mind.

3% is plenty diluted, many posts in here mention diluting it further, its not a mystery solution. its well known, but new to you Ibuzzkill

Edited April 30, 2011 by brandon429

[Mr.Nano]

Very helpful post thank you...If I ever have out of control issues with algae I will definetly look into this method.

[brandon429]

I was helped by the thread as well

 

 

 

probably the best thing about it, is that I have seen friends give up on reefs like the first picture. To think it could have been saved, that's not all bad Igreen.

chemically really its not that bad. its like adding tonic water to your reef, but its oxygen tonic water. people attribute way too many germicidal qualities to few mils 3% diluted a thousandfold in a tank

 

we are making a list of what works and what doesn't, its not taking long to build.

I thought that discussing it in public was better than seeing it in a bottle for sale and not knowing how simple the solution is.

people are free to investigate quickfixes, its really fun. everything we do in the boxes is an equal experiment.

Edited April 30, 2011 by brandon429

[lgreen]

You're misunderstanding me.

 

What I said only relates to whether or not this should be a sticky. My perspective comes from back when I spent 5 years of my life working at a fish store teaching people how to set up tanks and helping them trouble shoot problems. From that I quickly learned that new people read between the lines and only hear what they want to hear. If they see a sticky full of people saying "peroxide killed my algae!" guess what they are going to automatically assume? That peroxide is the magical cure for algae. Are they going to see all the disclaimers saying this is a cheat and not a replacement for good husbandry? No...of course not lol. They want a quick fix now.

 

Again, don't misunderstand what I am saying. I'm not saying that you or anyone else in this thread is purposefully trying to mislead anyone. I'm perfectly aware that peroxide has been used in this hobby for years...nothing new to me. And I'm not looking to argue whether or not the technique is effective. I haven't tried it myself, but don't have any reason to believe it doesn't work. I can also see some situations in which peroxide could be worth a shot. That is all irrelevant to my point though.

[brandon429]

thats cool all threads are open to free interpretation its good to have diverging views anyway to keep a balance.

 

 

I liked having the option of a fast recovery, from whatever started the algae outbreak. I think the most frustrating thing for anyone is to be caring for a tank very well as you would prefer, and still have it outbreak.

people appreciate knowing simple solutions and if the thread fell down and I missed it Id be at a loss of reef quality compared to now.

Edited April 30, 2011 by brandon429

[brandon429]

its no more controversial than the zo experiment thread right>

 

maybe this thread would answer that one lol

[dixiedog]

... I recommended someone try a very light, diluted application of peroxide across a patch of red cyanobacteria by spraying it from a hairspray bottle or something while the tank is drained. Id really like to know what systemic and direct applications do to cyanobacteria.

 

 

I had a frag of an unusual acan (or perhaps favia) in the frag tank, with a thick coating of cyano on the plug. I thought it would be a good test subject.

 

Yesterday I gave it a one-minute bath in a 50% solution, and then got scared (I had intended to go 5 minutes) when the coral REALLY reacted badly. It slimed, shriveled, bubbled ... it seemed as if the H202 was attacking the coral, but NOT the cyano. I pulled the plug, threw it back in the frag tank and left the house, hoping I hadn't killed the frag.

 

When I got home today (24 hrs later) the coral is totally fine, and all trace of the cyano is gone.

 

Sorry, I took no pictures. Take from this what you will.

[damage31]

I had been battling cyano + GHA in my 29, and the cyano is all gone at the moment.

 

The GHA is also in remission in several areas, but not all areas. I had been dosing 2.5ml of 3% in the morning and again later at night.

 

And as always...good wasn't good enough. While I was seeing some gha remission, i wasn't seeing it fast enough. So I upped the dose to 5ml.

 

yeah well.... I'm 99% sure I killed my cleaner shrimp with peroxide.

 

I cant say for certain, but it molted last night and this morning I saw the molt, but didn't see the shrimp. At some point after the molt it bit the dust, not sure exactly when though. It was almost 1yr old to me and was a pretty good size shrimp- lots of bright color and active.

 

So right after that I did a 5 gallon water change and will lay off the peroxide for a bit and see what happens.

 

I just beefed up my cleaner crew tonight as well by adding some addl snails.

[cchardwick]

Interesting thread. That first photo had the wost case of algae I've ever seen, but peroxide just seems to harsh to me. I think the best thing to start with would be large water changes, perhaps set up a continuous water change system and do 100% water changes every week, and reduce or elminate the light all together, perhaps just use a couple LED moon lights for a week or so and I bet that hair algae would melt away. You may also try changing your bulbs because the spectrum may be off from old lights, or change your lighting from what you have to metal halides. I've seen metal halides instantly melt away hair algae. Or at the very least reduce the time you light your tank to just a few hours a day along with large water changes and very light feeding. Peroxide should be a last ditch attempt and used with extreme caution.

[brandon429]

well written. I try to change that much water usually (maybe not as often) as a preventative so algae battles start from the ground up like you said. I think changing 100% of the water when doing a water change is a great idea compared to a partial change (stress to corals is not different, its a misnomer) but its not practical in larger tanks. To me thats why picos are easier than larger reefs, you can do total export and not have to rely on filters and machinery (skimmers) to do it for you.

 

Damage I can guarantee you that would not have happened with a spot treatment, its the systemic dosings that are dangerous but in small doses I have not seen them to be lethal in that way.

 

The dilution of the systemic treatment means that algae won't go away fast or you'll burn the others. With a drained tank approach, full strength 3% would have gone on it as a few drops, burned it savagely, then the refill of the tank with clean water is a big water change plus your total tank addition of peroxide is about 90% reduced. its a perfect solution...the only tradeoff is coralline will bleach whereas in systemic dosing if you take long enough with a diluted run you can get algae dieoff without pigment bleaching.

 

In a spot treatment only the area of the liquid bleaches the coralline, but mine's already begin spotting with purple re seeding and its only been a week, it'll come back.

 

Next time I'll probably lay a tiny square of paper towel over the substrate to be cleansed so the drip wont run off. Itll be a wet blanket fry for whatever is under it, this should stop the collateral coralline damage and localize the treatment only to the spot.

 

 

One thing to consider in using clean up crews for algae reduction is they do not remove the holdfasts of the algae very well, all physical removal is like pulling a weed out of your garden and not getting the root.

 

An unnatural means of algae reduction such as fire burning or in this case chemical burning via oxidation involving damage to the plant does prevent regrowth in that spot much better. There is no dishonor in going the all natural route to reefing I was the same way just a little while ago. I used to find different ways to sell myself that a little tank algae was natural because its natural on the reef, but the truth is I hated it with a passion. I wanted it all gone immediately because I thought algae looked bad and since this shortcut was shown its a fit. preventing the algae should be the main goal as you said.

Edited May 1, 2011 by brandon429

[Reef Miser]

Interesting thread. That first photo had the wost case of algae I've ever seen, but peroxide just seems to harsh to me. I think the best thing to start with would be large water changes, perhaps set up a continuous water change system and do 100% water changes every week, and reduce or elminate the light all together, perhaps just use a couple LED moon lights for a week or so and I bet that hair algae would melt away. You may also try changing your bulbs because the spectrum may be off from old lights, or change your lighting from what you have to metal halides. I've seen metal halides instantly melt away hair algae. Or at the very least reduce the time you light your tank to just a few hours a day along with large water changes and very light feeding. Peroxide should be a last ditch attempt and used with extreme caution.

Things had gotten really bad. I had tried everything in the book on this and still couldn't beat it. I tried water changes and new bulbs (along with many other things), but once this stuff had taken hold, I couldn't beat it.

 

As a little experiment, I had put a little bit of the algae in a cup of tank water in complete darkness for a week. At the end of the week, it was as green and strong as ever. I have also flipped rocks over to bury the algae in the sand and left it for several weeks. When I turn the rock over, there are still remnants after weeks of complete darkness. This stuff is tough.

 

H2O2 is the only thing that gave me a fighting chance.

 

I am not saying that this technique is a replacement for good husbandry, I am just sharing the info so others can use it before algae gets out of hand. I was extremely close to breaking down my tank and taking a break from the hobby. Now I know that I have a handle on things I am re-energized in the hobby.

[maxwell]

frickin algae is like the boobonic plague. I've got a 57 gallon with perfect parameters, water changes religiously, testing faithfully...and hair algae like crazy. My biocube to be completely honest...I've halfway kept up with water changes, don't hardly test the water, and have nitrates out the wazoo, and its as clean a tank as you'll ever see. I don't really think there's any rhyme or reason to it.

[brandon429]

I get pm's now of people that did it with no bad outcome. Yours may work on a systemic dose in the ml's seen on the thread but if you can spot it the before and after pics really would help others

[acropora1981]

I think in some circumstances drastic measures like this are perfectly warranted. I, like reef miser, have been stumped by algae for about a year. Valonia, feather caulerpa and pink cotton candy algae specifically. Regular water changes, extremely moderate feeding, RO/DOUBLE DI, no sand bed, oversized skimmer, GFO, etc etc has not eradicated my algae issues, though to be honest lately I've been winning the war This technique may offer the algae that final kick in the butt to get it DEAD not just dieing.

 

PS, most powerful tool against algae that I've discovered in 15 years - daily floss changes. Best. Technique. Ever.

[Reef Miser]

Acropora, did you try peroxide?

[acropora1981]

Acropora, did you try peroxide?

 

Haven't had a chance yet, but planning to try it to try to eradicate my remaining irritant; feather caulerpa. Not going to do the full tank dosing; just going to dip a few specific rocks.

 

Any tips on dosage and dip time?

Edited May 2, 2011 by acropora1981

[Reef Miser]

I agree with your decision to stay away from dosing the whole tank. There really doesn't seem to be any advantage to it, but a whole lot of risk.

 

I have done as little as ~1/2 cup in 5 gallons of water for larger rocks and as high as 50% HP/50% SW on small frag sized rocks. I usually dip for about 5 minutes. The more dilute solutions seem to kill what you can see, but it can still come back thin and slow. Repeated dips eventually eliminate it. The stronger concentrations seem to work faster by doing a more complete job the first time. When I was doing it, I was really just experimenting, since I didn't find any real formulas out there. The more people have been posting their experiences here on NR, the more comfortable I have become with more concentrated solutions. I would get a little nervous of going much beyond 50% with most sensitive corals, just for the sake of swings of salinity.

 

I don't have any experience with feather caulerpas, just the filamentous green algaes. Keep us posted on how it works on the macros though.

 

Oh yeah I forgot. If you need to go higher concentrations than 50%, you could try what Brandon429 has been talking about here and dripping H2O2 straight on the algae while it is out of the water, letting it sit for a few minutes, and then returning it to the system.

[brandon429]

I think its time someone up the ante and order some 50% peroxide vs the 3% all of us are using and diluting another 50%

 

 

8 hours is not fast enough thats yesterday I want same-interval death of the algae via spot treatment now. who's up for it

we know to stop when a drop bores a hole in rock.

[Reef Miser]

Maybe you want to give hydrochloric acid a try. it will probably kill algae too.

 

It's almost the same as table salt. Just trade in a Sodium for a Hydrogen. Shouldn't be that big of a deal