bryopsis battles

[extreme_tooth_decay]

I've seen 2 different hippo tangs (tiny) decimate it in 2 different tanks.

 

I've also known turbo snails to eat it.

[Sharkey18]

I have been target dosing Mg on my bryopsis patches.

 

So far I have focused on two patches and am seeing good results. One patch is thin and almost gone. The other patch is also thin and I can pull the threads of algae off with a grab tool. Something that can't be done to healthy byyopsis. I have started on two other patches as well.

 

I have been using Two Little Fishies Mg because that is what I had in my house. My starting Mg was 900 and I am dosing about 10 to 20ml per application. Before the holidays my Mg went up to 950, but it is back down to 900 since I was away for a few days. The patches that are disappearing have been dosed at least 5 or 6 times.

 

I am going to continue to target dose until either the bryopsis is gone or my Mg gets to a decent level....

 

Laura

[kngfisher]

Wow 900 is very low....how is your coral growth...slow i would imagine. I too am battling bryopsis by my Mg is at 1450 and am seeing no change in the health (deep green color) due to the high Mg level. I am using the BRS Magnesium pack for their 2-part setup (mix of 5c Mag Chloride and 3c Mag Sulfate). I used that to bring Mg from 1250 to 1450 then got some kent Tech-M to target the bryopsis clumps with 5-10ml of Mg directly onto the foliage. This seems to have slowed the spread but has yet to really kill it off. I am judging the health of the bryposis by it's color. Thick Green being healthy, light green/gray/white and thinning meaning death/dying. Been running at 1450 for about a week with no harm done to SPS or LPS. The only change to the SPS is that some of the SPS colonies are extending their polyps more then usual especially on my red table that I got from Ric well over a year ago (mine never really tabled however, only conformed to the rock but that is another story).

 

I did have great luck removing bryopsis from one of my rocks by removing it from the tank and leaving it outside in the snow. Upon close inspection, there is no bryopsis on this rock. :-)

[sen5241b]

I've had bryopsis for a long time but it has never gotten out of control. I have lots of chaeto in my fuge and nitrates and phosphates are at zero. The only way the stuff grows at all is because there is crud in the crevices of the rock that the stuff can grow out of. I would say keeping 'trates at zero is the best way (but not the only way) to battle Bryopsis.

[zygote2k]

I've had bryopsis for a long time but it has never gotten out of control. I have lots of chaeto in my fuge and nitrates and phosphates are at zero. The only way the stuff grows at all is because there is crud in the crevices of the rock that the stuff can grow out of. I would say keeping 'trates at zero is the best way (but not the only way) to battle Bryopsis.

this statement makes no sense. Bryopsis is algae just like chaeto. I have zero nitrates and phosphates, but bryopsis still grows. It even grows on the eductor where there are no crevices with crap in them.

[epleeds]

i have about 5 spots in my tank where this stuff grows too. today, I took two of the rock pieces out and broke the majority of the rock that had the algae and threw it in the trash. hopefully those pieces won't find their way back into my tank. I even have a huge tomini tang, but he won't touch it. I just rip it off at water changes and within a few weeks, its back. Its strange, It only grows in certain areas, and doesn't spread through out the tank..

[dandy7200]

I am using the BRS Magnesium pack for their 2-part setup (mix of 5c Mag Chloride and 3c Mag Sulfate). I used that to bring Mg from 1250 to 1450 then got some kent Tech-M to target the bryopsis clumps with 5-10ml of Mg directly onto the foliage. This seems to have slowed the spread but has yet to really kill it off.

 

I turn off all my pumps and pour 6-8 cups of kent down a 1" pvc pipe onto a patch of green and in 6-8 hours it is gone. I can confirm that kent is the only mag that works to control this evil weed. I have used up to a gallon in a single treatment and never had a problem. I have also used as much as 3 gallons in a month. Divide this by 4 and you will have a closer dosage that will likely solve your problem. It will still probably take monthly doses over the course of 8-12 months if it is as bad as you say.

[zygote2k]

The bryopsis seems to be melting away in the sps tank. We finally got the Mg to 2000ppm and it seems to be dying. The starfish and zoas have started melting too. I wonder if they are affected by high concentrations of Mg? One more week of high Mg and then we'll let it drift down to normal levels.

[Coral Hind]

That is good news. Do you have any anemones in that tank? I am wondering how they take the high mag levels.

[zygote2k]

I actually have an enormous RBTA and 2) GBTA's that seem to be doing fine. The sps and lps are ok as well. FWIW, I used Home Depot brand Magnesium Chloride and CVS brand Magnesium Sulfate. 200 ml per day to get it to 2000ppm.

[Chris-]

Oragami is right. There is a big thread on it over at RC and the only tuff cases that were sucsessful were the ones using Kent Tech M .

 

Give this a try http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1113109&highlight=bryopsis

[zygote2k]

Oragami is right. There is a big thread on it over at RC and the only tuff cases that were sucsessful were the ones using Kent Tech M .

 

Give this a try http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1113109&highlight=bryopsis

Chris- you're a little behind on this. As you can see, I didn't use Kent M but the generic brand instead since it's about a hundred times cheaper. To get the Mg this high, I've used 30# of M. Chloride and 20# of M. Sulfate over the course of 6 months or so. To buy that much Kent M would've cost a fortune. Maybe you'd like to note that this method was successful as well.

[El Camaron]

there is something in tech m recepy that works for killing bryopsis, i have used it with great results. Now for the BRS MG, that will get your MG to great readings but will not do anything for your algae problems. Rob may be on to something though, maybe using more of one and less of the other is how they come up with it and is cheaper but till its decoded we wont know. So to be sure, just get some cheap MG and dose it at the same time you dose some Kent MG that way it lasts way longer and you win the battle with bryopsis. I have been doing it like this for a month now and the little bryopsis i had is pretty much gone.

[treesprite]

The yellow tang is supposedly the only tang that will eat it.... I used to have a very small yellow tang that cleared my tank of it completely within a few weeks. In recent months there has been some bryopsis growing, but since I put in the yellow tang from Guy, the stuff is almost gone again.

[Chris-]

Not behind at all. There are many a case where basic mag treatments like your recipe work. In the case where they DONT work (like your delima), it seems Kent M picks up where the others just do not do it. I have spent hours reading the threads on algae and everyone agrees that there must me something in the Kent they are not stating. No one has an idea, even after contacting the manufacturer and trying to beat it out of them.

 

Yes, I know Kent M costs an arm and a leg, I cant help you with that.

[zygote2k]

do you have first hand experience with bryopsis?

[Chris-]

No, but i have the eyes ears and trials of others to go on. I did not sit and read just one post. I spent hours/weeks reading on this fascinating thing that could not be killed. Unless they are lying to me, I see no other reason not to believe them. Hey, it could be a conspiracy by Kent themselves!? Who knows?

[El Camaron]

It is no lie and yes i do have experience with killing bryopsis using kent where others did nothing. As for it being a conspiracy from ketn lol i dont know about that but what they do have a is a winning recepy that works for us and it really does not cost that much unless your buying it in tiny bottles.

[zygote2k]

I would have been happy to use Tech M, but it really is cost prohibitive to use it. I probably used nearly 10 gallons of Magnesium mix to achieve the 2000 level over the course of 6 months. I know everyone says you can just pour vast quantities of Mg into the system, but I'd rather take it slow and easy in the SPS tank. I can get a gallon of Tech M for $16, whereas I can buy a 50# bag of M. Chloride for $17 and a 50# bag of M. Sulfate for $20.

I think some people probably have had luck using both products and it really depends on the tank itself. In my case, I was pulling out about a cup of bryopsis strands every Friday. It had turned a real pretty blue from all the Mg. I bought 3 lettuce slugs and they seemed to work on a small area, but to combat all of the tank I would've needed 20 of them. It grew so prolifically that I thought a tear down was in order.

A vile weed indeed.

[Chris-]

No body knows what they use in Kent and EVERYONE is scratching and digging trying to find out what it is. Personally, i would not be suprised if all it was was a few drops of chemiclean or something!?

 

I am scared of the stuff. If it gets into my tank and I have to use Kent

Edited April 16, 2010 by Chris-

[Coral Hind]

I used seachem reef advantage magnesium and I had positive effects just like Z2K. I do not think it is something only in Kent's products. I did not dose it directly onto the bryopsis but added it to the sump. Once I hit about 1700 the bryopsis started to go away. Some of the bryopsis had been in the tank for over a year with nothing touching the stuff.

[Chris-]

Coral hind said you had sucsess and I had to backup and re-read. I see

 

"The bryopsis seems to be melting away in the sps tank. We finally got the Mg to 2000ppm and it seems to be dying. The starfish and zoas have started melting too. I wonder if they are affected by high concentrations of Mg? One more week of high Mg and then we'll let it drift down to normal levels. "

 

How did I miss that??? I am behind!

 

Okay, so, your saying that it is gone now?

Edited April 16, 2010 by Chris-

[jaesun]

I've been so embarrassed about my bryopsis problem that I haven't posted any updated pics of my 5.5g. Once I got the Mg kit, I realized that adding 5 mL a day of Kent Marine Tech M along with a 10% weekly water change (Reef Crystals) is the ideal amount for me. I don't know if this amount will scale up for the rest of you but I've been keeping the Mg level now higher than 1700. Any higher, I notice problems with my zoanthids turning a ghostish white.

 

I had lots of initial die off, but it's been about 6 weeks and I still see a few small patches that are about half a centimeter in length. But most of these patches have black tips, so they're definitely dying. Nothing like the lush forests I had growing on my rocks previously. I'll continue for until my small bottle of Kent's Tech M runs out. About 6 months or so? In the meantime, I'll try to post an updated pic of my tank.

[Sharkey18]

I used two different types of Mag, neither were Kent and my bryopsis died off as well. I also spot dosed it with Mg and picked off what I could regularly.

 

Laura

[Coral Hind]

Thanks for sharing Laura. Well that is three people that didn't use Kent. What levels were you keeping it at?