Softie Jar— hydrogen peroxide

[NatureGuy]

The algae still seems to be unaffected. I may try a more aggressive amount of H2O2 next week

[NatureGuy]

Just noticed a small striped snail

[mcarroll]

I don't normally comment on Journal threads since you can never tell when someone really wants suggestions, so apologies in advance if they are called for....

 

Having at least one [astrea|trochus|turbo] along with at least a few more small herbivores such as Ceriths, is a good idea.  Otherwise algae eventually moves in like this.

 

Even though you'll be adding snails now, once the algae is in the condition where you have it now, it's beyond snails...they can't eat algae that has grown big enough to see.  It's tricky to do in such a small tank, but you need to remove as much of that algae by hand (tweezer-fingers!) as possible.....THEN spot treat the remainder (if any).

 

FYI, I haven't really seen many (any?) folks have luck with grocery store peroxide....the concentration is LOW, in addition to the preservatives it needs (technically just a stabilizer, but it's not very reefy).   Without preservatives, you're just dosing a bottle of water....H2O2 really wants to be H2O.   This is also why health food store peroxide tends to be 30% concentration....that's the concentration at bottling time....it won't still be 30% when it gets used.  BUT....get it fresh, and it seems to work WAY BETTER for the folks who've used it.  Use it directly on the algae, no paper towels or anything.  If you can do it outside the tank, even better, but that's not strictly necessary....just advantageous in such a small tank.   Work in small areas at a time, just like you will do for finger-tweezer-ing!  😉 

[NatureGuy]

The peroxide has taken effect. The algae to which it was applied has whitened. There does still seem to be a bit of green at the base of the stalks though, so I will attempt applying it with a heavier hand next time. If that doesn't work, I'll consider food grade 35% peroxide. This is a late update, the photos are from yesterday.   

[NatureGuy]

2 hours ago, mcarroll said:

I don't normally comment on Journal threads since you can never tell when someone really wants suggestions, so apologies in advance if they are called for....

 

Having at least one [astrea|trochus|turbo] along with at least a few more small herbivores such as Ceriths, is a good idea.  Otherwise algae eventually moves in like this.

 

Even though you'll be adding snails now, once the algae is in the condition where you have it now, it's beyond snails...they can't eat algae that has grown big enough to see.  It's tricky to do in such a small tank, but you need to remove as much of that algae by hand (tweezer-fingers!) as possible.....THEN spot treat the remainder (if any).

 

FYI, I haven't really seen many (any?) folks have luck with grocery store peroxide....the concentration is LOW, in addition to the preservatives it needs (technically just a stabilizer, but it's not very reefy).   Without preservatives, you're just dosing a bottle of water....H2O2 really wants to be H2O.   This is also why health food store peroxide tends to be 30% concentration....that's the concentration at bottling time....it won't still be 30% when it gets used.  BUT....get it fresh, and it seems to work WAY BETTER for the folks who've used it.  Use it directly on the algae, no paper towels or anything.  If you can do it outside the tank, even better, but that's not strictly necessary....just advantageous in such a small tank.   Work in small areas at a time, just like you will do for finger-tweezer-ing!  😉 

I appreciate the advice! I do make use of manual removal but not with bear hands/tweezers. The algae is attached to the rock such that it takes the rock with it when I attepet to rip it off. Because of this, I've been used aquascaping scissors to cut it off. Due to the texture of the rock, I've not been able to get a very close cut, but I will try next time. 

 

I'll try the food grade peroxide if it comes to that, but I'm going to give 3% peroxide another chance first. When you say to apply directly, do you mean to drip/quirt it on? 

[NatureGuy]

I’ve just repeated my previous steps. I still used the paper towel, but this time I made sure it was entirely saturated with peroxide such that it could be “wrung out” against the rock. I accidentally knocked down the coral skeleton and couldn’t get it to stay up, so I took it out. I’ll probably put it back it eventually. 

[mcarroll]

17 hours ago, NatureGuy said:

The algae is attached to the rock such that it takes the rock with it when I attepet to rip it off.

This is pretty typical – it basically has roots.  

 

Depending on the rock, you might have to brace it with something (a pencil?) while you pull, but also make sure you're only grabbing one (or very few) strands of algae on each "pinch" to minimize the amount of "pull" the algae can have on the rock.  This is also why it's important to work in small areas about 1 or 2 sq in until each area is TOTALLY clean.  It can be tedious, but you CAN make progress if you hit it every day.  (And add CUC to prevent regrowth.)

 

Honestly, in this case I'd save up 5 gallons of used water change water (or make 5 gallons fresh, to be sacrificed) and move each rock over and work on the cleaning in a 5 gallon bucket (or similar) where you can easily use two hands and see what you're doing.  Not ideal since you're disturbing the rock and any attached corals (again)...but the time exposed to air can be minimized (maybe even eliminated) with some clever handling in between the tank and the bucket....and importantly you get a much more legitimate shot at defeating this algae vs attempting to handling it in that tiny jar, without using anything (eg peroxide) that will further disturb the rock.  We don't like the algae, but we DO like the rest of the microbial life around them (periphyton). 😉 (Yes, you can still ALSO use peroxide....just saying you might not *have to* in the scenario I outlined above.)

[NatureGuy]

I’m trying to fix my hair cuticles rn and it’s reminding me of reefing. Chemistry I guess -|_(.-.)_|-

 

 

[Elizabeth94]

Back when I used peroxide I would do it during a water change. Drain the tank to whatever level you want, use a pipette put a few drops in the algae. Let it sit for a few mins and then refill tank with new water. I wonder if doing it with drops would let it get into the pores of the rock/roots of the algae. 
 

Peroxide is relatively safe however your water volume is so much lower I am not sure how much peroxide would be considered too much. 

[NatureGuy]

On 9/27/2023 at 12:21 PM, Elizabeth94 said:

Back when I used peroxide I would do it during a water change. Drain the tank to whatever level you want, use a pipette put a few drops in the algae. Let it sit for a few mins and then refill tank with new water. I wonder if doing it with drops would let it get into the pores of the rock/roots of the algae. 
 

Peroxide is relatively safe however your water volume is so much lower I am not sure how much peroxide would be considered too much. 

I'll have to try that. I'm definitely scared of putting in to much. So far it seems harmless enough though

[NatureGuy]

I think the peroxide may have taken the planaria with it. Either that or the population is just naturally fluctuating. First pic is now and second is an old one. There's definitely still a few though 

[NatureGuy]

The great divide 

[mcarroll]

Looks like h2o2 had an impact there?

[NatureGuy]

2 hours ago, mcarroll said:

Looks like h2o2 had an impact there?

It has! I mean to update after the second use of it, looks like I forgot though… I’ll take some pics later 

[NatureGuy]

Um… did this mushroom just vomit up its organs? 
 

Edit: looks like it was just something that fell atop the coral