Using Bleach (NaClO) in a reef tank
- Thread starter edosan
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While I appreciate the experiment, dosing bleach is crazy! Dont they sell dechlorinators for a reason?
One important thing to keep in mind is some of you having success with bleach, may be using carbon, which can remove bleach, potentially removing any major risk associated with it. So be cautious if you try this. I wouldnt.
If the goal is to erradicate ich, check your water parameters professionally like triton and fix it. Feed the fish, they will be fine. However if you want to kill diseases or parasites, uv sterolizers are proven, and so is a diatom filter at removing ich. Down to 1 micron, most ich viruses are 2-3microns.
If its algae your trying to kill in any form, you can try much safer things too. First get a clean up crew. If its dinos, try something else like change your salt, or h202. Imo h202 is less likely to be a concern than bleach. Good luck.
One important thing to keep in mind is some of you having success with bleach, may be using carbon, which can remove bleach, potentially removing any major risk associated with it. So be cautious if you try this. I wouldnt.
If the goal is to erradicate ich, check your water parameters professionally like triton and fix it. Feed the fish, they will be fine. However if you want to kill diseases or parasites, uv sterolizers are proven, and so is a diatom filter at removing ich. Down to 1 micron, most ich viruses are 2-3microns.
If its algae your trying to kill in any form, you can try much safer things too. First get a clean up crew. If its dinos, try something else like change your salt, or h202. Imo h202 is less likely to be a concern than bleach. Good luck.
OP
OP
edosan
Well-Known Member
Thanks for your opinion, most of what you say is well known in theory but in practice is a bit different. Anyway this post is not intended to be a debate. Just sharing the experience (with cero problems)
Again is all in the dosage and you are wrong about the use of carbon. (I mean me using it)
Curious about how a triton test or any test, or fixing water parameters, will help with ich!? Can you explain?
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Activated carbon will remove bleach. No? Ich can usually get a hold of your fish when water quality is off. Especially alkalinity. Ive seen it happen in my tank many times. If i let my alkalinity drop to say 5dkh, some fish will begin to scratch. Meanwhile my tank has been ich free for years, but suddenly it appears, and I haven't added anything new to introduce it. Now, it might not even be ich, but something is definitely irritating the fish. Once i correct the alk, a few days later the fish dont scratch. And there is no outbreak. So about the triton test or other icp test, it will show you sometimes things are off, when your test kit said everything was fine. So the icp test is to verify your test kits are telling the truth. Of course this is just my opinion. What would happen to your health in a nitrogen depleted environment? What about 30% instead of 80%?
You can also verify your alk test is correct by making a standard. 1.135g of sodium bicarbonate in 1 gallon of distilled water = 10dkh. Ive got 2 liters of it and every new test kit gets "tested".
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edosan
Well-Known Member
Yes it will help, I mean that you are wrong assuming that I use activated carbon. I have test both, with and without, not seen much diference. Probably the amount I use change too fast, but corals definetly shows slime after dosing.
I have about 6 tanks with over 1000g in total, so my experience is not based only in 1 tank.
Sorry but KH will do absolutly nothing to ich, your experience (IMO) is anecdotical. Low KH usually means low PH, and low PH will FOR SURE afect fishes (even kill them IME).
Triton Test will not show KH, for sure too. You are right tho that is a double check. But again, nothing related to ich.
I do not encourage the use my methods (just sharing) to others or saying that are 100% safe. I only can tell you this so far:
- No corals with problems (or any livig thing that I can see with my eyes), and I have sensitive corals like Milleporas, Spatulatas, and others.
- Water clarity is a bit better
- I have demostrated that bleach in small amounts is safe in my tanks, so the scary about bleach itself is out of my mind (and the use of declorinators)
- For ich, is just a relive, fishes in good shape will not die from ich (IME) people usually call ich to any white dot problem.
- I have 1 tank with dinno, and I am bleaching that tank...it has shrimps, snails, corals (sps mainly), and fishes...is a 150g tank and I am dosing 8ml, 4 in the morning and 4 in the evening, 1 week and everything looks good, and dinnos are freeze so far. (My first experience with dinnos tho)
cheers!
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saltwaterpicaso
Valuable Member
I also am fighting dino and am on 3rd day of bleach 5ml in morning 5ml in evening so far so good does look to be impacting the dino a bit dino x did a good number but did not kill it off
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OP
edosan
Well-Known Member
Well, after treating the frag tank for dinnos @ 1ml x 100 liter twice a day, dinno is off, frags (sps mainly) all growing and glowing. Shrimp (peppermint) good, salaria perfect, gramma loreto check, and tang is perfect.
Wow [emoji15]
Wow [emoji15]
marinelife
SaltGeek
So the other thread says we can dose .003 x percent of bleach x gallon of tank. for me that is over 10ml but the way listed in this thread I would only add 3ml. how safe is 10ml in a 375?
marinelife
SaltGeek
Did any shrimp or anything else seem to be affected by that much does?
marinelife
SaltGeek
ok thanks, I have some red algae that will just not go away!
Cabinetman
Well-Known Member
So is this effective at controlling ich at all?
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OP
edosan
Well-Known Member
Ok, so I will let you know my discoverys so far
Dosing
Max Dosing, that I consider safe in my tank (Chemistry my be different in other tanks and interactions can change) is 1ml per 100 liters (arround 25g) twice a day
Dosing should be made slowly, not all at once. Arround 1ml per minute is ok.
START HALF DOSE ALWAYS!, and check it from there.
I use Traditional Clorox, 5% (Important 5% others have more)
Reactions: SPS will contract and then slime on those with slime
LPS: Small contraction, funny tho that Bubble Coral seems to like it! it start to open more.
Soft: Contraction
Fishes: They hide but normal conduct. If you overdose, fishes start to act strange, even belly up but the will recover (IME). If not, they will die (never lost a fish for this).
After 30 minutes, all come to normal, and polyp extention on SPS goes better
When to dose: Ideal when lights come on and off (acording to some readings the max activity on swimming stage of parasites are when lights come on and off, so morning and bed time)
Problems: None so far (safe for shrimps, snails, fishes and corals, including delicate SPS like milleporas and others)
Solutions: Dinnos out after 1 or 2 weeks treating, Ich and Velvet controlled, I have one tank with velvet, and velvet still there but to my surprice it has no kill any fish (I start treating after 1 fish died). I had have velvet before and this is quite new. I Will keep dosing for 1 month.
WARNINGS:
Please, if you have doubts, DO NOT DO THIS, IS VERY DANGEROUS AND YOU CAN WIPE OUT ALL YOUR TANK
REMEBER THIS IS EXPERIMENTAL ONLY, I DO NOT RECOMMED THAT YOU SHOULD DO IT
I am posting my experience only, is not over, and it could (or not) end in a catastrofe.
Dosing
Max Dosing, that I consider safe in my tank (Chemistry my be different in other tanks and interactions can change) is 1ml per 100 liters (arround 25g) twice a day
Dosing should be made slowly, not all at once. Arround 1ml per minute is ok.
START HALF DOSE ALWAYS!, and check it from there.
I use Traditional Clorox, 5% (Important 5% others have more)
Reactions: SPS will contract and then slime on those with slime
LPS: Small contraction, funny tho that Bubble Coral seems to like it! it start to open more.
Soft: Contraction
Fishes: They hide but normal conduct. If you overdose, fishes start to act strange, even belly up but the will recover (IME). If not, they will die (never lost a fish for this).
After 30 minutes, all come to normal, and polyp extention on SPS goes better
When to dose: Ideal when lights come on and off (acording to some readings the max activity on swimming stage of parasites are when lights come on and off, so morning and bed time)
Problems: None so far (safe for shrimps, snails, fishes and corals, including delicate SPS like milleporas and others)
Solutions: Dinnos out after 1 or 2 weeks treating, Ich and Velvet controlled, I have one tank with velvet, and velvet still there but to my surprice it has no kill any fish (I start treating after 1 fish died). I had have velvet before and this is quite new. I Will keep dosing for 1 month.
WARNINGS:
Please, if you have doubts, DO NOT DO THIS, IS VERY DANGEROUS AND YOU CAN WIPE OUT ALL YOUR TANK
REMEBER THIS IS EXPERIMENTAL ONLY, I DO NOT RECOMMED THAT YOU SHOULD DO IT
I am posting my experience only, is not over, and it could (or not) end in a catastrofe.
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Cabinetman
Well-Known Member
So your basically using Clorox or something similar. I've got a 560 gallon reef that's full of tangs that are going through a bad outbreak. There's no way I can tear it down I'm just looking for a way to let them build immunity. I picked up a bottle of Clorox bleach but it doesn't have a percent on if. What kind are you guys using. I'd like to give this a try. I know it's risky but I know my reef and I'll go easy.
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