Bryopsis Cure: My Battle With Bryopsis Using Fluconazole

[abecker]

If anyone is looking for a place to buy fluconozole I came across this today. https://premiumaquatics.com/products/reefhd-algae-buster.html

 

[ksanfranfan]

If anyone is looking for a place to buy fluconozole I came across this today. https://premiumaquatics.com/products/reefhd-algae-buster.html

Yeah, the person/vendor made his post here yesterday.
It's the same as the other vendors selling fish meds. His is 10 capsules per bottle. Other vendors discount theirs the more you order.

 

[Khalifa Alhaddad]

I have done the treatment and I feel Its the same I am in day 17 now and I see only 40% get rid of it, so I am going to dose again on day 21 but I will go for wc 1st and then I will dose it
so its the right way to dose again after 21 days after doing wc 10% ??

 

[ksanfranfan]

I have done the treatment and I feel Its the same I am in day 17 now and I see only 40% get rid of it, so I am going to dose again on day 21 but I will go for wc 1st and then I will dose it
so its the right way to dose again after 21 days after doing wc 10% ??

There isn't a specific procedure for doing a second dose. Some have waited until water parameters have gotten back in line and things begin to balance out again before dosing a second time.
You'll have to monitor your tank and inhabitants before deciding to dose again. No one knows how long the medication stays or lasts in our tanks.

 

[cchomistek]

I am looking to do this treatment. I am currently dosing vodka to bring my nitrates and phosphates down. Shoukd I be reducing the vodka dosing down to zero first as you need good skimming and you will be taking the skimmer offline during thus treatment. Just wondering if anyone has continued vodka dosing during the treatment.

 

[James Emory]

*******Important*******

Please read the Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs) located right after the pictures before you treat your tank.It should answer most of your questions and help you avoid some mistakes.

First, I want to say that I am in no way shape or form telling anyone that they should try this in their tank.(at least not until we see how this goes) Yes Fluconazole can be used as an anti-bacterial med for fish diseases and I haven't seen any adverse reactions from using it, but I just don't want anyone to come back and say that they killed their fish/corals or inverts and blame me. This was not my discovery as I am just following what some others have already done. If you try this it is at your own risk and don't shoot the messenger.


Okay so like I have said in another Fluconazole thread,I always inspect and QT everything before it goes into my tank. I had several frags in qt for a few weeks and all seamed fine. Before transferring them to my DT I brushed off what looked like regular green surface algae and thought nothing of it.Well after about a month all three frags had a healthy helping of Bryopsis growing on them.
I've had to deal with this years ago so I know what kind of a struggle it can be. I did not want to just sit around and hope this cleared itself up because I knew this could get really bad.I had a tank full of Bryopsis years ago and tried everything I could to get rid of it and it just kept spreading everywhere.
Finally after gallons and gallons (system was almost 400gls)of Kent Tech M I was able to melt the Bryopsis away but it was no picnic.

Now, after learning that Kent Tech M has changed and doesn't work anymore or is hit or miss now,I read about some people having success against Bryopsis using Vibrant.I tried Vibrant for a couple of months and it did damage the Bryopsis fern/fan leaves but it wouldn't kill it off completely. I know people say to just give it more time but let me show you what can happen when you give Bryopsis time in your tank.(BTW I'm not knocking Vibrant or @UWC I think he has been a stand up guy on this forum and some people have had great success using their products)

They did not call me the Bryopsis King for no reason........
Well I am on day 8 of the treatment and although I do see some results, I sure do not see quite the results you were getting on day 8 of treatment. If at the end of 14 days it still remains I will increase the dose. First dose was 200mg/10 gallons. Will try 300mg/10gallons if needed.

It was like this across the entire tank. Notice for you tang lovers out there that mine had no interest what so ever in eating any of the Bryopsis.If they would have kept the rocks picked clean this would not have reached being the forest that you see.I have more pics but it's ugly and I think you get the picture.As you can see,this would be my reason for NOT wanting to wait too long on this.

Anyway this brings me up to using Fluconazole. After searching the good ole web I found that some people(some over seas) were using Fluconazole in a one time dose to kill off Byropsis. At first I thought that this was too good to be true.I mean most people were saying that their tanks were Bryopsis free in about 10-15 days give or take a few days. Then they started posting before and after pics and also saying that they had not lost any fish or corals!! OMG sign me up! I thought. Well after doing a little more research I found out that Fluconazole can be used to treat infections/diseases in fish and that the dosage I would need to use was considered somewhat "safe" for the fish so I placed an order..

There were two different dosages that were being used. One was 9mg/L and the other was 150mg/30L which is 5mg/L. I have 200 gallons of total water volume in this system which is 757L. So 757L x 9mg/L would be a dose of 6813mg. 757L x 5mg/L would be a dose of 3785mg.
I went with 4000mg so it was 20mg per gallon.
Everyone was seeing their results when using the lower dose so I went with the lower dose.

*Also note that if I were using Fluconazole to treat my fish for infections I would need to dose this same amount every 24hrs for no less than 5 days but not more than 10 days.

This made me feel somewhat better about using it because this would be a one time dose and not building up 5-10 times as much in my aquarium over the course of 5-10 days.

So let the battle begin!!

Before I dosed the tank I turned off my actinic lighting,changed my filter socks from 200 micron to mesh filter socks,turned off the UV channels on my Radions,removed my GFO/GAC filters and removed my skimmer cup.

I emptied 20 of the 200mg capsule in a cup of tank water and stirred for a minute or two.(throw away the empty capsules) Not all of the medication dissolved but that's okay. I then poured the entire cup in my DT in front of a powerhead.
Cloudiness went away after about an hour. Fish,corals and inverts didn't seem to notice any change at all.

I apologize in advance for my blurry pics as photography is not my strong suit.

Edit: I know some people don't like reading through entire threads and just want to see the results so I'll keep this first post updated with all the pics.

Before the treatment started...

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Day 8

Day 9

Day 10

A big thank you to @stevo01 for writting the FAQ for this thread.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

****This treatment seems to work best in well lit areas of the tank. 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.
A sponsor here at R2R(Reef HD) has a prodict called "Algae Buster" that is Fluconazole.

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.

-Stevo




This treatment has been a huge success.For so many years we have had to deal with this terrible algae. Well now we can finally say that beating Bryopsis is a reality. No more tearing down your tanks. No more endless hours of pulling and picking at this mess. Fluconazole has made the eradication of Bryopsis from our tanks quick,easy and painless.Please let everyone you know in the reefing community about this treatment. The more people who know,the better.

Testing by @twilliard will be ongoing to determine a minimum effective dosing plan in the near future.
If you still have any questions about using Fluconazole,don't hesitate to ask.
Thank you to everyone who has been and continues to help and contribute in the thread. R2R has the best reefing community around!!!

NCreefguy

Just wanted to show that after 2 full days of treatment,my tanks inhabitants are still happy and doing their thing..

Corals still have good PE....

As best that I can tell I see no signs of stress on anything in the tank.

 

[cchomistek]

I did read that. It doesn't specifically state whether a vodka or carbon dosing regiment should be discontinued. Please let me know your thoughts. It says a carbon reactor should be taken offline but that is not carbon dosing

Thanks

 

[James Emory]

I can remember back when I ran PCs or homemade MH/T12 light fixtures,used IO salt,dripped pickling lime,topped off water by hand using an old milk jug,used some calcium chloride and baking soda here and there not really worrying about much as far as nutrients or parameters and my corals grew so fast they would fill up the tank. Now I try to use all the "top of the line" equipment and additives and play the "lets chase numbers game" and have nothing but issues and stress. Go figure

If this treatment doesn't kill my Bryopsis, I may need you to send me a bottle of your tanks secret Bryopsis killing elixir water.

I definitely hear you on that one. Back when I was into simple operation I had a specie of Elkhorn growing through the roof and on the glass. Maze coral never looked so good. Like you, using the best products doesn't produce much better results.

 

[ksanfranfan]

I did read that. It doesn't specifically state whether a vodka or carbon dosing regiment should be discontinued. Please let me know your thoughts. It says a carbon reactor should be taken offline but that is not carbon dosing

Thanks

You can still continue with dosing. The reason for taking the reactor offline was to not allow bryopsis or any spores have a place to regrow. Same as an algae turf scrubber, media bags, chaeto, etc.

 

[Shaun Sweeney]

great stuff, great web site ...

 

[NCreefguy]

Just so everyone's aware that I have NO affiliation with REEFHD or AlgaeBuster what so ever and I have not received any kickback/samples/payment of any kind from them or anyone else for that matter. They PMed me asking to list them in the faqs because they are a sponsor here at R2R and they want to make it easier for people to get fluconazole.I only mentioned them in the faqs. I didn't list a link to their site as I havent tried their products. There are plenty of places to get flucon on the web and I can only speak for the one place that I've ordered from. (i didnt get anything from that site either other than what i paid for).

This is just a heads up or FYI in case you use their products it is at your own risk. If people try their products and want to relay their findings back then that will be fine.

 

[DanielCervantes]

I know someone answered this but I can’t find the answer to it.
Can you keep Chaeto in the refugium while dosing with Fluconazole

 

[mcarroll]

I am battling what I thought was GHA.

What did you try before you started on the chemical solutions? Have you added any cleanup crew?

I don't see snails in any of your pics. With all the algae that seems strange.

 

[mcarroll]

@stevo01 Wasn't the purchase info purposefully left out of the FAQ before this?

I remember people used to have to ask where to buy if they skipped the FAQ and they skipped reading the thread.

 

[mcarroll]

From the FAQ....seems like this answer needs to be updated. Figured I'd at least post into the notes for anyone reading the thread....

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.

Folks in and out of this thread have cited everything from chaeto-loss to coral-loss as potential side-effects of this treatment. Seems like a fair point to include in the FAQ rather than emphatically claiming the opposite.

I think the claim on this FAQ seemed to be more universal back when the FAQ was written. Folks at least should know to be more careful since there is a potential for problems. (@stevo01 are you still doing updates?)

 

[mcarroll]

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.

Maybe a mention of the reported potential for chaeto death here too?

(@stevo01)

 

[James Emory]

Following along, been battling mine for almost a year. Sps heavy tank, so always nervous to try anything

I've got a few nice SPS pieces and it did not affect them at 200mg/10 gal.

 

[stevo01]

Risk losing the macro algae imo. I have both chaeto and calupera and both survived the treatment twice. If you remove the macro and reintroduce after treatment you risk putting bryopsis back into the system.

There could be a multitude of variables attributing to something dying in a tank. I see plenty of organisms survive in my system after 4 total treatments in 2 separate tanks. The algae can be reintroduced pretty easily after the med is removed. Stress on keeping a coral QT that maintains a treatable level of Fluconazole. We would need to study things on a higher level to be able to claim something died directly from the antifungal “med”. I would assume corals could be lost from No3 upswing, but numbers and studies need to be done.

Vibrant has also been mentioned in the OP, as well as kents Mg. I dont know of anyone getting any kickbacks for anything. This is a successful treatment in my opinion. There should be a source for the treatment mentioned because people want to know how to get it. Thats all it is.

I cant change the OP. It could be noted or reworded that there are some claims to side effects. At the time that the faqs were written there were no signs or valid reports. I personally would not vote “yes” to that it killed anything in my systems to date. I would be the first to stand up and say it killed something other than the obvious, if I thought it did.

 

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

What did you try before you started on the chemical solutions? Have you added any cleanup crew?

I don't see snails in any of your pics. With all the algae that seems strange.

I think I have a pretty good cleanup crew. I have about 30 asst hermits, 4 turbo snails. I have to replace the turbos every few months because they fall off the rocks in the back and can't right themselves. I have smaller snails in the sand bed(not sure which kind). I have 3 tangs, 1 yellow, sailfin, and hippo. Tailspot blenny, 4 wrasses, sand sifting diamond goby. We do weekly water changes and use the baster to clean off the rocks. I just received my flucon order yesterday. Going to do a water change tonight and take out carbon. Will dose after that.

 

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

I am about to do my 1 time dose of fluconazole. I want to make sure I am dosing correctly. 125 g = 2500 divided by 200 = 12.5 capsules?