brcolli2 March 14, 2015 Share March 14, 2015 My tank is overrun with bubble algae. I have been fighting it for close to 2 years. I have tried emerald crabs, manual removal, and peroxide dosing. My nitrates are zero, and I have a uv sterilizer. About 3.5 months ago I pulled all of my live rock, manually cleaned it as best as I could, and I have been cooking it in a brute trash can. Now that the bubble algae doesn't have much live rock to grow on it has taken over my overflow and my sump (especially between the baffles). This is making it very difficult to remove. I am considering moving everything to a stock tank and filtering my tank with rodi and vinegar to clean out the tank. Does this seem like a reasonable answer to my bubble algae problem? Will vinegar be sufficient, or do I need to bleach the tank? Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wangspeed March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 Unfortunately, almost everyone, myself included, has bubble algae. I have a sharpened siphon device to suck them out every time I do a water change. Works reasonably well, and they don't multiply too quickly since I am running low on nutrients. -- Warren Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madweazl March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 Stuff can get nasty for sure. I've only had one encounter with bubble algae and I wasnt able to make any progress. We were at a stalemate; I clear it out manually and it would grow back by the end of the month. I probably could have got the upper hand if I was more diligent every week but we had quite the match going on. It is something you have to do on a weekly basis to manage I think. One thing I noted over the years was that it didnt seem to like cooler temps so if you can keep the tank around 76° you should be able to get the upper hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainRon March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 It can certainly be a long term process to remove that stuff. I think you just need to keep manually removing as much as you can, doing water changes and add whatever you can that might eat it. A rabbit fish did wonders for me in my system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brcolli2 March 15, 2015 Author Share March 15, 2015 Sounds like I just need to accept that I will have bubble algae. My concern is that my nutrients are so low that I am starving my corals, and still the bubble algae is out of control. I am trying to slowly raise my levels to improve the growth and color of my corals. I am not looking forward to seeing how fast the bubble algae will multiple now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 Fwiw, I've always had success with emerald crabs. I had a similar issue to yours in my 150, and 6 emerald crabs later, and about 2 months, they made quick work of it. It still existed in my overflows, but my display stayed nice. Don't stress over what you can't beat, I would investigate emeralds again, and just manual removal from the overflow. Just my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 I'm with Isaac... It seems ive had it without knowing it other than a few little spots in my DT....It got on 1 piece of rock in the sump.... I have about 4 emeralds at any given time and they grab the few tiny bits that make it into the tank... Haven't really had any huge outbreaks in the DT, but obviously can't eradicate it permanently... I've just started rotating the rock from my sump up into the tank having the crabs clean it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tpallas March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 +1 emerald crab cures what ails you Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angel not fish March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 Foxface keep your tank clean for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 Foxface keep your tank clean for sure. I had a foxface that ignored bubble algae. In fact, it's a pretty common experience based on what I've read from other hobbyists. Hair algae, that was a different story. Now I had a purple tang that enjoyed bubble algae, but maybe exception to the rule? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epleeds March 15, 2015 Share March 15, 2015 I just got a small magnificent foxface for my frag tank and all my bubble Algae is gone. Once he gets bigger he will go into the main tank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefer_Madness March 16, 2015 Share March 16, 2015 (edited) +1 on the emerald crabs. They always take care of business!! BUT at the moment I don't have any bubble algae and I do have a Foxface (one spot) with no emerald crabs.... Edited March 16, 2015 by Reefer_Madness Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2nhle March 16, 2015 Share March 16, 2015 My yellow tang ate bubble algae. I don't see them on my display tank but I have a lot inside my overflow and sump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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