Peroxide saves my Tank! With pics to Prove It!

[motortrendz]

i have used h2o2 for a long time..it works great with softies and LPS.. you need to be very careful with dipping SPS some do fine but most dont.. the rule of thumb is to use 1mL per 10g of total water volume once a day. i have used it for algea blooms, or diatoms.. after tank has sucessfully rid itself of algea i use 1 capful(5mL) every 3 days as a maintenece dose.. my total system volume is abt 60g including sump.. hope this helps

[Reef Miser]

Stick with it Damage. I was fighting my algae for close to a year before H2O2 turned things around. Just remember, it didn't get out of hand overnight, it won't get fixed overnight. To breakdown your tank may be unnecessary. I think repeated dips and target treatments will get you underway.

 

Acropora, Sometimes even 50/50 doesn't knock everything out with one shot. I think if you keep at it though, you will weaken it until it can't come back. Some of this, I think, is due to the density of the algae we are erradicating. I think that the hold-fast is not getting exposed to the peroxide at high enough concentrations for a long enough time.

 

Also, because algae are simple single-celled organisms (that can associate with each other but not like higher order plants) I believe you might have to kill all of the algal cells on the rock to have success in complete extermination. I wouldn't be suprised if a single algae cell could just sprout right back up. This is where it is different than dealing with a higher-order plant. If you cut down a tree, it probably won't regrow, and if it does you cut off the sprouts and it is done. With this method we are selectively chemically burning down the tree, stump and all. The repeat treatments may be necessary to get all of it though.

[brandon429]

ReefMiser and crew, I also just found several threads (reefbuilders.com is one) where saltwater people were using peroxide for years in their tanks, some of them even the powerful food grade versions 100x stronger than what we are using! If you google it other articles will pop up, I didn't realize how far back it goes. Lol even on a few of them I had commented to the poster but never tried it in my tank and must have forgot even talking about it lol

 

the reason I am mentioning this is because in the early parts of this thread it seemed like something you guys had started here on NR and we weren't sure of the residual effects etc, well its really well known in marine circles too and there are no side effects other than the actual burning/contact with the solution when systemic treatments are taken. This made me feel better with the long term effects (lack thereof) on our tanks considering its been used so much already.

 

After googling, I found several reef tank use testimonials ranging back years on tanks that are still running.

 

Well it was new to me RM when you posted the thread I guess because I hadn't actually seen pics rendering the final benefits, it was always just written theory/ maybe that solidified it for me to actually try it when I saw all you guys' pics.

B

[B.C.]

Thanks for the reply Brandon,I took out a couple of small pieces and use a dropper to spot treat some areas.I think i rather use this method instead of dipping the whole rock if i dont have to.

[acropora1981]

Its definately not new, but I had never seen pics of it or anything...seeing is beleiving. Plus, its new to me This thread made me feel more comfortable giving it a try.

 

I wish that I could just lift out the rock in my tank in once peice, spray it down with H2O2, and then put it all back in corals and all

 

I have two tanks; one SPS and one Soft/LPS. I will not be using this technique, either dips, or otherwise, in my SPS tank. I'd rather keep fighting algae with lanthanum chloride and GFO. My softies and LPS however... game on

Edited May 16, 2011 by acropora1981

[brandon429]

I have no experience w lanthanum but remember reading about that too on larger reef setups. The amount of non natural substances we can add to these biosystems is really interesting, we will never know them all! every year something new!

[Reef Miser]

Though we strive to have natural behaving/looking reefs, our ecosystems are incomplete. Try as we may, we just can't always get all of the players into our reefs. Either they do things we don't like to things we do like, or they don't fit or we can't provide to their needs. I will take what I can to tip the advantage in my favor when need be, even if I have to use something unnatural...as long it doesn't have long term ill-effects to my tank.

[ggg111]

I've been battling green hair algae (the long, fern like type, not the super fuzzy). While I was hesitant to use H2O2, I wanted to help fellow reefers by trying it and posted my results. Please read my post for details, if you wish.

 

From my reading and experience I understood even if I got rid of the algae (by scrubbing with a toothbrush, let's say) it would still come back unless the root of the problem was cured. I tried plucking but that just spread it. I did a 3 day blackout but that just stressed out my fish. I could use a sea hare, but it would still grow back.

 

Cause of algae: I had a fish die and disentegrate a few months back and even though I did a large 50% water change back then I am pretty sure the water was pretty bad. Also, my bulbs were 7 months old. I also bought a frag that I think had 1 strand of algae on it, which then spread all over.

 

My multi-pronged solution to green hair algae was the following:

 

50% water change with siphoning of back on tank (I have a 14 gal biocube)

Put in new bulbs

Add some anti-phosphorus stuff I got online

I then THREW AWAY some rocks and frags that were covered in algae - yes thats right I just threw them away (I had 23 lbs in my tank but I only need about 18 lbs and always thought it was too much rock anyways so I didn't mind).

 

Actions: I took out each rock, scrubbed with a toothbrush, then ran it under water. Then, I place each rock one at a time in a large bowl of 50% hydrogen peroxide and 50% water for 3 minutes exactly. It bubbled a lot and then I took each rock, rinsed it with RO/DI and placed it back in the tank (this gave me a good opportunity to re-scape). My tank has about 9 rocks in it, and I only did about 6 of them because the bottom 3 were buried and never got light so they had no hair algae.

 

I also bought and put in a Sea Hare. These guys only eat hair algae. Cost is $10-$30 depending on where you buy them. Some people say they are ugly but I think they are fun to watch (called "hare" because they look like rabbits with their ears)

 

Then, after all the rocks were back in and I rescaped and the sea hare was in I shut the lights for 3 days. I did not "blackout", just turned off the actual tank lights. My fish were stressed from the new scape so I didn't want to stress them any more. I know there is a lot of room lighting but I figured out the lower the light is still better than having the main fish lights on.

 

As soon as I put some of the dipped rocks back in the tank I saw there was still some small patches of 3/8" long algae which was now brownish and had some bubbles on it, and within 24 hours I did not see anything there anymore. But, my filter floss was filled with brown gunk which I am guessing was dead hair algae. I also examined the tank and saw there were STILL some strands on some of the bottom rocks I missed and some on the frags, the sand, but it was just a little and I figured the sea hare would eat it all (that was after I panicked and thought "What did I just do to my tank!!!?"

 

H2O2 damage: I had one rock with zoas on it which only about 1/5th are open and the others are closed up and they look much lighter in color. One rock had 4 shrooms on it, only 2 are open and they don't look so hot, and are only about 1/3 the size that they usually are. Most of my coraline is fine but a few pieces on one rock are turning white-ish. Only time will tell if the shrooms, zoas, and coraline are OK.

 

Now, 6 days in I see no hair algae. While I won't know for sure if its gone, I figure I cleared 95% of it, and the sea hare will get the rest, or just by better lighting and water the algae will go away by itself.

 

Conclusion on H2O2: As of right now I am a big fan because it looks like it really did just "burn" off the algae within 3 minutes. I do think scrubbing first, THEN dipping was the way to go. If I could do it again I would dip the rocks with the zoas/shrooms on it at an angle so they didn't get fried also. Let me reiterate the coraline bleaching is only for about 10% of my blotches which isn't bad or any reason not to do it. If my corals come back 100% then I will be happy.

 

Well I hope that helps and maybe this will be the start of a hair algae revolution!!! My tank is looking better than ever now lets just hope (fingers corssed) that this works for good and doesn't severely mess up the chemistry/bacteria/whatever. But, so far so good. Oh and my fishies and inverts are all active and healthy.

 

Great idea whoever thought of it.

 

Have a great day!

[brandon429]

that was really helpful!! The way you treated the tank I can support, it was thought of a long time ago by ?? but ReefMiser is the one who brought it here lol

 

it has revolutionized how I deal with old tanks, I do think its the biggest deal we've come across in a long time. The reason its so shocking to me is because my years-old tank was teetering on the edge of red brush algae death for years, but now it is not, simply due to a couple drops peroxide!

 

thanks!

B

[Reef Miser]

Thanks for the post GGG111. I would keep an eye on the sea hare. He may not have enough to eat in the tank now that you don't have hair algae anymore. They are pretty voracious eaters. Not only that, but they are picky eaters. I believe they eat only derbesia ( the soft stuff) not bryopsis (the branched bristly stuff). I had one that would not eat the bryopsis in my tank and starved to death even though my tank looked like a grassy meadow. What made it worse is that it was a "community" sea hare. A lot of local reefers would share it as needed to keep HA in check.

 

I am glad the H2O2 worked for you. I hope your corals pull through. I am confident they will.

[brandon429]

Peroxide turned out to be amazing glass clarity management for me as well. for years I used various devices to scrape my glass free of the usual green haze + coralline during bi monthly maintenance

 

its nearly stopped because of peroxide but it took some creative application, again I don't just add it to my whole tank, its a preventative for me not an algae clean up...

when the tank is empty during a water change, I take a paper towel soaked in peroxide and wipe off the inside glass with it. Let sit one minute, then refill. Once a week, no more green haze. Stuff keeps my tank crystal clear, no more scratches from scraping, and it prevents all red algae death

 

I kinda like it.

It will bleach coralline so what I think is happening is that early seeding which would normally cover my viewing area in a month has been stopped by the gassing, as a preventative.

 

Its not running down in sheets on my rock coralline, so it burns only the area I apply it. To me this is the key tenet in peroxide application, don't put it on things you don't want burnt.

[jestep]

I have been battling bryopsis for several months. It has completely covered some of the rock in the tank. After diligent maintenance I have my NO3 and PO4 in spec, but the algae just won't go away. Not really growing but not gone either.

 

One good way to get it with H2O2, is to take the rock out. Scrub the crap out of the bryopsis, will work with hair or any turf type algae, probably caulerpa as well. I use a large electric SonicScrubber that I picked up at walmart for about $15. DFS has them as well - http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/prod...mp;pcatid=20409

 

Then get a cheap mini spray bottle, and fill it with 3% H2O2. The one I found that works best is a perfume spray bottle. You can use a bigger one but the perfume ones atomize the spray very small and they are very easy to control. You can spot treat with the spray bottle to get the last remnants of the bryopsis or whatever algae you are treating. Let it sit for a few and then a good rinse and back into the tank. This method allows much better control of where the H202 is applied and you use about 1/10 the amount compared to spot treating with a dropper or full dipping. You can also do it on rocks with coral on them if you are careful scrubbing and spraying.

[Reef Miser]

I really like the idea of a spray bottle. Nice!!

[brandon429]

heck yea thats great but all the ones i have are factory sealed im amazed you could get into it! maybe just need to pull the top off by force or something then wash it all out and fill back up...

 

this spray technique is just what I think would benefit the people with cyano covering a large portion of the rock surface. the least added to the tank the better.

 

Wanted to add this as well. The parameter measures that can cause plagues of algae are not necessarily poor parameters but we think of them in that manner when nutrient starvation is the main anti-algae control, corals (depending on genus) can be very hardy to a few ppm's nitrate or .xx measure of phosphate without inhibiting calcification. Its nice to be able to kill the algae in a quick swoop and not stress over a tank if it reads 8 or 10 ppm, those measures have not affected any coral Ive ever owned but I never had algae anyway because Im a former burner and can easily be converted over to spritzing lol

 

A common response to this after the fact treatment is that it will make the algae come back just as fast, and it doesn't. Im like 3+ weeks into my last h202 burning and there is no new algae. When it does pop up, its an easy kill.

 

If you can manage decent water params this is a perfect system because your aquascape will look as clean as the old schoolers who won't settle for anything less than zeros and will tell you thats the only legit way to have a tank free of algae.

B

[jestep]

Just to add, I had found one at walgreens or walmart, can't remember which one. It was empty and refillable. I probably wouldn't recommend actually trying to reuse a real perfume bottle. I think they're also called travel spray bottles.

[brandon429]

helpful update to our peroxide adventures thread, my friend Kathryn who dosed the peroxide experienced loss of her macroalgae stand that she had bought as a centerpiece, they ability of peroxide to seek and destroy plants should not be understated. She was using the paper towel wiping idea, plus a couple spot treatments during previous water changes, the accumulation thereof as a tiny systemic dosing was enough to kill her red titan macro...

 

so that made me think the next time we need spot treatments from a tank housing preferable macros, just remove the specimen, treat in another container, rinse and reinstall. Originally I had thought just the amount of h202 from wiping the front glass wouldn't have burned that nice red macro. Stuff hates plants

B

[Reef Miser]

Good to know. I have a new hitch hiker Halimeda that seeded itself on one of my rocks. I am kind of liking it. I will have to be careful when dealing with that rock and H2O2.

 

I know that 3% is way stronger than it needs to be to be an effective algaecide. I was getting decent results with about 1/2 cup in around 4 gallons when I was dipping whole rocks rather than targeting . So what is that? 16 cups per gallon X4 is 64 cups. 1/2 cup in 64 cups is 1/128 x 0.03. Works out to be about 0.02% if my math is right.

[brandon429]

That is really helpful, K may not have lost the red titans with a reduced dose.

 

One guess I have though is that even at 3% full it takes a couple days to burn through green haze on glass, so a diluted measure would almost be too slow.

 

Right now my tank looks a little dingy on the glass, yellowish or green as a faint haze due to some organics and algal film on the glass but its no worry, w do a water change right now, drain the tank, rub the walls with peroxide on a paper towel (never have to scrape my glass again) and refill it with clean water. By Sunday its 100% clear glass, the stuff is great but Im more careful to use it in non planted tanks thats for sure.

[captainbastard]

So my big question, and forgive me if it's been answered, but how does affect chaeto?

[Reef Miser]

When I was dosing, it didn't hurt my chaeto. But, I only did dosing for a couple of days. When I started seeing things (corals) respond negatively, I switched to dipping and target treatments. I would bet that it will take out chaeto though. It has taken out every other kind of algae tested....bubble, bryopsis, caulerpa, red titan, derbesia.

[acropora1981]

So I went ahead and tried this on my SPS tank; wasn't able to get a good response from caulerpa and valonia without irritating my sps...tried 1ml-1.5 per 10g for 7 days...no effect except for a little bit of a hole in one of my montipora capricornis

 

Gonna grab myself a sea-hare and a few emerald crabs.

 

For extra fun my ULNS(ultra low nutrient system) has lead to a breakout of Lyngbya; a type of cyano that thrives in very very nutrient poor conditions. Weeeooo.... I've begun dosing potassium nitrate to bring UP my nitrates! Also dosing Kent Tech M to kill the lyngbya directly.

Edited June 4, 2011 by acropora1981

[captainbastard]

I soaked a couple of rocks from my tank today in about 25% (maybe less) peroxide water during a water change. You could see the bubbles all coming off the rocks/algae like crazy. It turned all the hga a dark green/black color and a bunch came off. Another odd reaction is that it turned all my coralline hot pink lol. We'll see if it's all gone tomorrow...

Edited June 5, 2011 by captainbastard

[Steviebe]

Well...I tried it on a small rock with briopsis and some palys. I took a small bowl of tank water and added a couple of caps of Hydrogen Peroxide. I let the rock sit in the bath for maybe 10 minutes. Then I put the rock back. I didn't pick off any of the briopsis. The next day it looks like this!

 

http://steviebe.imgur.com/hydrogen_peroxide

 

During next weeks water change I'll try it on some rock with red algae. Hopefully I'll continue to have success with this method. I'm a little nervous about dosing the whole tank though. We'll see...

[captainbastard]

Yea I don't think I will does the whole tank. All the algae that I soaked turned white today and the hermits seem to be loving it. I would say if you can then soak the rocks individually for the best results.

[Reef Miser]

Nice pics Steviebe. I wouldn't recommend dosing the whole tank. Just stick with dipping rocks, or with targeting algae out of the tank with H2O2 and putting the rock back in after a couple of minutes. Several people have had negative effects from dosing the whole tank, nobody has had bad effects from the other 2 options.