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bryopsis:hair algae that won't go away
- Thread starter swreef103
- Start date
NateHanson
Non-member
Doliatus Rabbitfish is the only one I've heard of that sometimes takes a liking to it. I believe Bec (reefnroll) defeated it by picking out each patch, and scrubbing the roots with a stiff toothbrush. Repeat a few times a week for six months. 
Bryopsis is difficult to deal with. Nutrient control is indeed important. If you just have a few patches sometimes you can cover the patches with something and snuff it out. If you have any large patches you seriously may want to remove the rock. IME it can come and go, but if you allow it to grow and really get established in a tank it can be nearly impossible to control. The Lettuce nudi;s will suck on it, but IME they are not a practical control at all.
Sometimes when you first start up a tank it can grow really fast, then suddenly die back.
Sometimes when you first start up a tank it can grow really fast, then suddenly die back.
I'm not sure what kind they are, but I have a couple of the normal-length spine black urchins that came from the gulf of mexico. They will eat anything and I mean anything that is unlucky enough to happen to be where their mouth ends up. My rocks were barren until I banished them to another tank. They were knocking things over too much. I've been battling algae ever since I removed them.
I delt with a nasty out brake of bryopsis several years ago that overtook much of my tank. I had gone way too long between water changes. Life sometimes gets in the way of the tank.
I removed as much as possible with a tooth brush in a tub of water. For the rock in the tank that couldnt be moved, I again cleaned the rock with a tooth brush and removed the algae from the tank with a small fish net.
I found the key to controling this algae, at least in my tank, was removing the phospates. I started with using phosGuard in a HOT wisper and am now using phosban in a reactor. Within a week of adding the phosphate memoving material, the algae lost its dark green color and started to die off. It took a good six months, but I did get rid of the algae without braking down the tank.
I removed as much as possible with a tooth brush in a tub of water. For the rock in the tank that couldnt be moved, I again cleaned the rock with a tooth brush and removed the algae from the tank with a small fish net.
I found the key to controling this algae, at least in my tank, was removing the phospates. I started with using phosGuard in a HOT wisper and am now using phosban in a reactor. Within a week of adding the phosphate memoving material, the algae lost its dark green color and started to die off. It took a good six months, but I did get rid of the algae without braking down the tank.
Have you checked phosphates? You need to check it with a colorimeter, not the typical reagent test. The reagent tests (like Salifert) don't always show the true phosphate level. I know when my phosphates are climbing when I start to see patches of hair algae. I replace my phosphate media and the hair algae melts away.
