Bryopsis-How Concerned Should I Be?

[Samhain]

Well, my tiny tank seems to be overrun with the stuff. There's only so much i can do without sacrificing my corals, which i really don't want to do if i can avoid it. So how worried should i be about the stuff? I know it's unsightly, and i am manually removing what i can as well as increasing the frequency of water changes. But will it actually harm anything? All my corals are really healthy looking and growing like crazy.

P.S. i know technically this sort of question belongs in the "algae" section of the forum, but i thought it might get more views and replies here in the newbie section.....

 

[FishyReef]

I have no advice for you since I've never dealt with this stuff before... but I know ChiChimom has dealt with it and you might want to PM her directly to see what she can share with you. I'm sorry you're dealing with tiny tank issues too :(

 

[Bifferwine]

You should deal with it the same way you'd deal with other green algaes (like hair algae). It won't hurt anything -- just if it overgrows or if the nutrients in your water get out of whack. Turbo snails will usually eat that stuff. In a 10 gallon, you can probably get way with a turbo snail and then move it to your 90 or take it back to the store when it's finished (hopefully when, not if ;)).

 

[yote]

I'd rather fight hair algae then bryopsis any day.
I'd about rent a sea hare just to get rid of the stuff. Matter of fact, if I remember right, that's how I finally got rid of it in my old 75.

 

[Smitty]

I've been fighting this stuff for about a year now...and it truly sucks. I've tried multiple water changes, the hydrogen peroxide trick, various snails and crabs, a lettuce nudibranch, a blackout for a few days and its still here. I manually pick it out every few days by hand to keep it contained. Now, my current plan is dosing with Kent m magnesium to get my mag level above 1800 ppm to kill it. I can see the bryopsis turning white and thinning out. So good luck and stay on top of it. I also have 2 emerald crabs that seem to pick at it also.

 

[Old_Moe]

I had it very early on in my tank. absolutely crazy how fast it was growing.

I didnt really have anything in my tank at the time. I dosed it with Kent M, it worked great. I picked up a test kit and gradually increased it over the span of maybe a week or so ( dont remember how long ), I forget how long I kept it at elevated levels. Anyway, been Bryopsis free since then.

I googled it at the time and found some good discussions about it ( sorry, I didnt save the links )

Good Luck!

 

[Samhain]

So elevated mag won't harm my corals?

 

[Smitty]

So elevated mag won't harm my corals?

Nope...just don't raise it more than 100ppm per day. My mag is around 1700ppm and my corals are happy as can be.

 

[Samhain]

Excellent. I'll have to get the stuff today and start fixing the problem!

 

[Smitty]

Good luck. Make sure it's Kent m magnesium, any other type won't work.

 

[Bifferwine]

+1 Smitty. Raising magnesium is a common approach to dealing with bryopsis.

 

[Samhain]

So I found the Kent Tech M on Marine Depot, but in looking for a test kit, I'm not finding one that reads above 1500 ppm. If I'm looking to keep the mag around 1700, what test should I use?

 

[Smitty]

None of the Kits go over 1500 ppm, so when testing the mag, you know the first syringe into the tube will automatically be 1500, then just refill the syringe again and start adding drops. When the solution turns colors, add the results to the 1500.

 

[Samhain]

Ok. Thanks! That will help out.