# Bryopsis, mat and bubble algae treatment double check



## Midland (Jan 26, 2015)

Hi All,

It has been a long while since I have been on this website, but my little tank has been doing very well for a number of years now, with considerable growth in my coral (Torch, mushrooms, Acan, and blastomussa). They were all just single growth frags when I got them and they have all increased by about 20 fold or more. (Except for the blastomussa which has gone from one growth to about 4 or 5 but they are small). The fish are also happy.

However, I have been putting up with an absolute infestation of bryopsis algae and some form of mat algae and a fair bit of bubble algae as well. I decided to try get rid of it this summer. I started by seeing if I could starve it by increasing water changes (20%) to twice per week. I do not over feed fish or coral. I had read here on line that this would probably not work on the bryopsis, but thought it would be good place to start. The mat algae did die off, but not surprisingly, no luck with bryopsis which seems to be spreading to where the matt algae was. The bubble algae is unchanged.

So, I am now looking at more invasive measures and thought I would try the Fluconazole that has been mentioned here. (Hat tip to Crayon and Poy for their threads on this, very helpful.) I was also going to use Vibrant to get rid of the bubble algae.

So, my questions are,

Does anyone know of a Canadian source for Fluconazole or should I just use the online source imported from the U.S? (see link below) And secondly, does anyone know of problems with this product or Vibrant? I try to avoid adding chemicals to my tank but my patience with algae is pretty much up!

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Fluconazole source: https://www.fishlifeantibiotics.com/collections/frontpage/products/fluconazole-200mg


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## Rookie2013 (Jan 17, 2013)

Following up I have recently seen a bit of Bubble algae in my tank 


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## Crayon (Apr 13, 2014)

Talk to Big Show. I think they have fluconazole. Read the US forums Reef Central, about using Fluconazole and Vibrant cause I think they say no. But I don't remember. Best to read up.


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## Midland (Jan 26, 2015)

Crayon said:


> Talk to Big Show. I think they have fluconazole. Read the US forums Reef Central, about using Fluconazole and Vibrant cause I think they say no. But I don't remember. Best to read up.


Thanks for the prompt reply from both of you. Crayon, when you say Reef Central says "no", did you mean they have no problems with it or no to using it? And yes I will continue to read up on it. I will post if I find anything of interest or use.


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## Crayon (Apr 13, 2014)

Midland said:


> Thanks for the prompt reply from both of you. Crayon, when you say Reef Central says "no", did you mean they have no problems with it or no to using it? And yes I will continue to read up on it. I will post if I find anything of interest or use.


I'm going by memory. There is a very concise intro on a thread on reef central that gives you a quick run down of how to use fluconazole. It said either don't use Vibrant at the same time as fluconazole or don't bother using it at all if you are using fluconazole . Or it might have been something else entirely that wasn't supposed to be used with fluconazole.

I don't want to steer you wrong, so this is just a heads up to check the thread.


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## Midland (Jan 26, 2015)

Thanks Crayon! I am checking Reef Central now.


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## Midland (Jan 26, 2015)

I will continue to research in reef central but so far I have found a contradiction about using Vibrant and Fluconazole simultaneously. Some people are saying not to because combining both results in an outbreak of cyano. Others are saying that running them together is fine and that the cyano is due to the vibrant's impact on bubble algae and has nothing to do with fluconazole. So far I have not read any proof that fluconazole treats bubble algae. I will read up on that, but if necessary will treat with just the fluconazole and see if it kills both.

The following is what I believe to be the most reliable info I have found so far.

_Some people are noticing quicker results by adding light to the shaded areas of their tank.*****

Q: Will Fluconazole kill Bryopsis?
A: YES. As of 2/2/17 Fluconazole is completely killing all Bryopsis. There have been no reports of it NOT working.

Q: How does Fluconazole work?
A: Fluconazole blocks the enzymatic pathway for the production of ergosterol. Ergosterol is essential for maintaining the cell wall integrity of plants. Ergosterol (ergosta-5,7,22-trien-3β-ol) is a sterol found in cell membranes of fungi and protozoa, serving many of the same functions that cholesterol serves in animal cells.

Q: Will Fluconazole kill anything else in my system? 
A: So far Fluconazole has not killed anything other than bryopsis and GHA. Everything and I mean EVERYTHING else is unaffected.

Q: Where do I get Fluconazole?
A: There are many sources online. The most popular/best choice is to purchase the medication in 200MG CAPSULE.

Q: How much Fluconazole do I use?
A: The suggested dose is one SINGLE dose in the amount of 20mg per gallon of water. There are reefers who are experimenting with using 10mg per gallon right now, but none with completing the 1st "round".

Q: Do I do a WC before treatment?
A: Yes. It would be a good idea as the treatment is for 14 days and expect an increase in NO3.

Q: How do I prepare the the medication?
A: I have noticed with the capsules it is very tough opening them without crushing the capsule. This is what I did. Use a razor blade and cut off the rounded end of the large outer half of the capsule. Then you can very easily pour the contents out into a glass of RODI water or tank water. The amount of water doesnt matter, but make it enough to be able to mix the med up. The med isnt very soluble, but mix it up best you can. Preferably dose at night when fish are asleep. Then pour the entire dose into the DT, or sump. Some have put it into their sump socks. I dosed directly into the DT.

Q: How long is the treatment?
A: 14 days.Maybe up to 21 days if you still have GHA present in the tank.

Q: Do I remove my carbon?
A: Yes.

Q: Do I remove my skimmer cup?
A: Its suggested for at least the first few days if not the entire treatment remove your cup. If you pull your cup you may continue to run the skimmer, or turn the skimmer down as to not allow the skim to enter the cup. You do not want to remove the med.

Q: Do I take my ATS offline?
A: Yes. Completely sanitize it, and reintroduce it after all the bryopsis is 100% gone.

Q: Do I take my bio reactor offline?
A: No.

Q: Do I take my GFO offline?
A: No GFO will not remove the meds.It will also help to remove the po4 from dying algae.

Q: Do I continue to dose H2O2?
A: Yes. It will not interact with this med.

Q: Do I continue to dose Vibrant?
A: Yes. This SHOULD not interact this med. It may help to dose Vibrant as it will assist in NO3 export.

Q: Do I continue to dose colors, alk, calcium, and magnesium?
A: Yes.

Q: Should I change my lighting?
A: No.

Q: If I take my carbon reactor, or any other equipment off line/out of the tank, do I just put them back into the system after treatment?
A: No. Do not reintroduce the algae. It would be best to sterilize any equipment and throw away old media for reactors.

Q: Is it ok to take out my chaeto, or other algae's then put back after treatment?
A: No. this may reintroduce the algae. Leave the macros in the tank.

Q: Do I take my carbon reactor offline?
A: Yes.

Q:Should I stop using Purigen during treatment?
A:Yes.

Q: Do I take my UV Sterilizer offline?
A: Yes.

Q: Do I do a WC during treatment?
A: No. Unless it cannot be avoided and a WC needs to be done to save life.

Q: Will Fluconazole kill my chaetomorpha or other beneficial maco's?
A: The treatment has not harmed any macro algae.

Q: Will Fluconazole kill the parasitic algae known to burrow through LPS corals?
A: This is currently being researched.

Q: What other nuisance algae's will be killed by Fluconazole?
A: Fluconazole kills the green algae Derbesia also known as GHA. It seems that GHA takes longer to kill than the bryopsis but it still dies. Bubble algae is unknown due to most reefers treating their tanks have been using Vibrant. Vibrant kills bubble algae very well.

Q: When do I do a WC?
A: At the end of the full 14 day treatment. After treatment has completed you will go back to your normal running system. Do a WC as your NO3/PO4 levels may be high from a lot of dead algae. Carbon goes back online to remove the medication. Skimmer cups back on.

-Ste_vo


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## poy (Jan 14, 2015)

Brilliant post OP, I've used it in my 20G nano and it works beautifully. However I see spots of GHA that were missed and will go for it again. As for me I went with 14 days at 20mg per gallon, by days 7 noticeable die off (every system varies, just my observation). I also went with the posted link for Fluconazole. They shipped to Toronto, Canada without hassle. Locally available by bigshowfrags in bulk form


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## zico (Aug 18, 2017)

Worked great for me, I have around 10 pills in stock for any emergency.


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## Midland (Jan 26, 2015)

I thought I would give an update on my algae issue and how Fluconazole worked for me. Overall there has definitely been progress with I believe to be hair algae and bryopsis. However, it took longer than for most other people who have used it. I dosed the tank and then removed my skimmer cup for two weeks and the algae had begun to slowly die off. I replaced my skimmer cup at that time and did a water change. The algae continued to die off with the hair algae almost all gone and what I think is bryopsis looking dead and slowly disappearing. However, it took 21 days to get to this point and it is by no means gone completely. The corals are all fine as are the fish. No impact on them at all.

I am going to dose a second time however, this time I am going to add vibrant as well since I still have bubble algae to deal with.

Can anyone recommend a Canadian online store where I can get Vibrant and tell me the exact name of the product I am looking for to treat bubble algae? Is it called Vibrant for Reef Aquariums or Vibrant Liquid Aquarium Cleaner for Reef Aquariums or are they the same product and I am just seeing different names online?

Thanks for the help.


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