Bubble Algae starting to POP up..

Hey guys, so last night coming back from vacation i noticed bubbles poping up in some places, its not multiple bubbles but only 1 bubble. I believe its Ventricaria ventricosa but i could be wrong. i dont want to pop it but i also do want to remove it before it gets outta hand.

this is the site i read
'Bubble' Alage: Selected Descriptions, Controls and Comments by Horge Cortes-Jorge, Jr. - Reefkeeping.com

i dont even know how this even popped up because my po4 is .03 and nitrates is undetechable.


so should i leave it and let it grow or try to remove it and if it pops it will spread?

how did i get this bubble algae!!!!!

 

I had some come in on a frag. I threw an emerald in and it took care of it within a few days.

 

Personally I have never had it spread from removing it by popping it, but many other hobbyist have, so I would error on the side of caution.

Sometimes you can just grab the little bubble and twist it off carefully without popping it.

In my experience bubble algae does not need elevated phos or nitrates to thrive.

In the past I have manually removed it, turned off the pumps and then siphoned it off the bottom. You have only one bubble so I would try to just remove it.

If it continues to pop up try an emerald. I have had good luck with them, others report problems with them eating corals such as sps, this has never been an issue with me.

 

Thank you cheryl, you always have a great input! ill try that right now!

 

You're welcome.

 

So i tried removing it.. popped 1 and successfully removed another one from the rock and my clown thought it would be good idea and ate it. fail... so i guess ill have the thought of a bubble outbreak in the back of my head for a long time!

 

Far worse thing could happen.

If it's any help, the urban myth about bubble algae says they have to be the large bubbles to release spores. I have had giant marble sized ones and never had a huge out break.

 

you are right Cheryl, couldve been worse, the bubble algae was approx. 1/8 in diameter. soo.... i might be good.. it just sucks getting this bubble algae because i used dead rock and have never gotten a frag with one!

 

I have a small zoanthid frag that had no visible bubbles on it when I got it and now has about 5 small ones. I will be removing the frag and then cleaning off the bubble algae.

As with most algae it's insidious stuff.

 

I have used emerald crabs with no problems and when I need to get the bubbles out I used a ridged tube with flexible tube on one end big enough for the bubble algae to get suck up with while busting it of the rock or hard to reach places. Kinda limits the chance of spores if any to travel around the tank. So far so good I have almost completely won the battle with bubble algae this way. Good luck.