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Algae on sand

Sun, 18 Jun 2006 03:57:42 +0000

My sand has developed a thin layer of algae on it. I think it is from the lights but I don't want to cut down on the time the light is on. What is the solution to keeping it clean and algae free? I was thinking something that constantly turns it over. My little Xenos churned some of the sand up last night but I don't think they will be doing it regularly enough to keep it clean. What about some kind of catfish? A featherfin cat or a S. Multi? What about clown loaches?

Bruce

Blue-green Algae Remedy - 1

Sat, 28 May 2005 01:20:21 +0000

Blue-green Algae Remedy?

Author: CThompson

In a planted tank in the past, I remedied blue-green algae by increasing the amount of nitrate in my plant fertiliser. In the past I have also used the antibiotic Furan-2 with a successful outcome.

I have blue-green algae in my Tropheus tank, and don?t want to put nitrate in there for obvious reasons, and though I have some Furan-2 on hand, would seek and alternative method of removal.

I am wondering if anyone has had any other successful eradication methods to remove blue green algae?

Craig

Replies »

Author: jaz1986

Try adding some freshwater mussles to your tank... they suck out algae pretty damn well... I had 2 in a 300L tank that was like pea soup... and they sucked it clean within a week... Although... be warned... they will dig into the gravel... and are strong enough to re-arrange features

thanks

jared

Author: CThompson

Blue-green algae or, cyaneobacteria, is a bacteria and not plant life as with algae. It is also fixed to surfaces, and not free floating as with green water, where the filtering action of mussels would have impact. You can?t get ride of blue-green algae by increasing the nitrate or adding Furan-2, which is an antibiotic.

Thanks for your suggestion Jared, but the mussels will have no impact.

Craig

Author: MagicaDiSpell

Hmm, blu-green algae doesn't sound to good, Craig. Are you sure your filter is running ok? Oh, and adding Furan is not really a good idea. Anti-biotic agents should only be used to cure diseases (not to disinfect kitchen surfaces or to get rid of a nuisance in the tank). Overuse of antibiotics creates resistant strains (and I do word this intentionally, apparently these mutations are not quite as random as the older school of evolutionary teaching would have led us to believe), resistant strains create great trouble later on.

I only ever encountered blue-green algae problems in tanks, where the filter was crashing. I would suggest treating the cause, rather than the symptom, and your fish will thank you as well.

Author: CThompson

G?day Sabine,

It is my understanding that BG algae is found in association with tanks that are either poorly maintained (hinting at your suggestion of cleaning out my filters), or with low/zero nitrates. When my planted tank was up and running, as now with my Tropheus, poor maintenance is not an issue. My planted tank problem was solved as mentioned above by increasing the amount of nitrate I put into my fertiliser (PMDD).

filters. The tank is 400 L and there are only 15 fish in there. Even though Tropheus are messy buggers, I feel confident that my filters are not an issue.

My understanding is that when one has a BG algae problem, one has an infection, and not an imbalance in the tank that algae itself would indicate. I also agree, one shouldn?t reach straight for the ?antibiotic?, and that is the reason I posted looking for an alternative to Furan-2. Resistant strains of bacteria will come about through misuse of antibiotics. To me, ?misuse? implies not eradicating all of the bacteria you are targeting, leaving individuals that begin to build up resistance to antibiotics. If one uses antibiotics and destroys all of what you are targeting, you are not creating a resistance build-up in the bacteria.

It is my thinking that my ?cause? as you put it, is zero nitrates. My tank gets regular 1/3 ? 2/3 water changes, and the change water has Tanganyikan salts, KH generator added to it, water ager, pre-heated, pre-filtered, and aged by one to two weeks. I think you?ll agree that the lack of maintenance side of things is not the issue.

I appreciate your response Sabine and you have given me food for thought in regards to my filters needing changing, and I will see to that this weekend. You are a very cluey person, so further thoughts on blue-green algae from you would be welcome. Please feel free (as I?m sure you will) to contradict anything I may be erroneous about written above.

Craig

Author: CThompson

Okay, I cleaned both filters on the weekend, and apart from the propellers and magnet area that I obviously missed last time I cleaned them, they were both clean (clean enough).

Any more suggestions Sabine.

Craig

Author: Willy wombat

Craig - isnt it generally an excess of phosphates in your tank that is the problem? The cyanobacteria can use the phosphate as a food source in the absence of nitrogen, unlike normal algae?

What are you feeding the fish? - there are some low phosphate foods available on the market - but these are probably not suitable for your tropheus.

Tricky problem mate - i cant think of any good ways to control phophates in your tank? Do you know anyone that can test the amount of phosphates in your tap water - these can be quite high in some regions.

I know that green keepers on golf courses have big problems keeping cyanobacteria off their greens (which form crusty mats - not good for putting you see.) They use a combination of some fungicides and phosphate controls to overcome the problems, but you dont really want to be putting fungicides into your tank.

Im stumped - never has that problem. Best of luck with it

Willy

Author: MagicaDiSpell

If I remember my plant physiology correctly, cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) are able to live on forms of nitrogen other than nitrates. That was the reason why I suspected a filter crash. If the nitrogen cycle is somehow not quite working, then the likely symptom is a blue-green algae outbreak.

Even though blue-green algae have been lumped in with bacteria (because of the absence of a nucleus), I would not regard them as an infection. They are unsightly, I agree, but I doubt that they would harm your fish. They are not a pathogen and therefore I would not recommend the use of antibiotic agents. By the by, if you use an antibiotic on the tank, you will also harm the bacterial flora elsewhere in the tank (the filter and the fish), so think about if that is really what you want to do.

Hmmm, is there any chance that you might have been tooo fastidious in cleaning the filter. Maybe the nitrogen cycle has been interrupted by the loss of some (or sufficient) bacteria in your filter.

) and brightens up the tank (what more can I say?). I know you used to add nitrates, but considering that you are keeping Tropheus, maybe a cutdown version of your previous planted tank would be a good idea. I.e. add your plant supplements without the CO2 (or even with some) and without nitrate.

Just food for thought.

Author: CThompson

Willy and Sabine,

a total pleasure to read your considered responses.

I feed my Tropheus Sera Flora, I don't know how it goes with phosphate levels, but I do have a test kit for this, and will test it due to your suggestion. I am not sure if phosphate has any bearing on blue-green algae however. With my water changes (I usually do a 1/3 water change weekly for a month to five or so weeks, then do a 2/3 water change), I doubt that phosphate would get to any levels that would have detrimental effects, and with the algae I have growing in there (it gets a hard time from the Tropheus), I expect it would soak up what ever phosphate is there anyway that is left behind after water changes. I feed my fish 3-4 times a day, all food is eaten, and it is fed sparingly, which would also reduce the amount of phosphate I am adding.

Sabine, I don't understand your explanation of your not regarding them as a bacteria because of the absence of a nucleus. I learned that stuff back in high school, which is too many years ago for me. I take your point though. However, I have read that when one has blue-green algae, your tank has an infection. I do agree that they will not harm the fish, at least, I have never seen it do so, and yes it is unsightly, in the extreme. But one negative impact it does have, is that it covers surfaces that the algae would be growing on. My fish eat the algae, and with blue-green in there, there are less places algae can grow. When I had it in my planted tank (eradicated by increasing the nitrate in my fertiliser), it was so covering, that I lost species of plants that were previously doing so well that I was selling the excess off to aquariums.

I am not concerned about Furan-2 affecting the nitrifying bacteria in my tank, as it has never done so in the past. I also used Furan-2 in the past on my Tropheus when they had bloat (partially successful) following recommendations from Tropheus experts (the reason I still keep it in stock). However, if I used it now the fish are healthy, I am concerned how the bacteria in the gut of the Tropheus will be affected. When used on Tropheus in the past with bloat, I was on a no-lose kind of situation. But now that there is no problems with the fish, will adding Furan-2 wipe out the beneficial bacteria in their gut that is doing what it is meant to do? This is a big reason why I am looking for another answer to the blue-green algae situation.

I don't believe one can be too fastidious with tank maintenance (I am definitely not in this category by the way) provided one looks after the bacteria (and to a lesser degree water parameters such as pH). I also have an Ammonia Alert in this Tropheus tank, and it has NEVER had any reading, even when the tank was first set up as I added more biological media to my system tank three months in advance, and added this to the filters the day I put the Tropheus in the tank.

I don't want to add plants to the tank, as that will not be biotypically correct. There are no plants other than algae in their native biotops, and it would not look good aesthetically to my eyes. I believe any benefits that the higher plant forms can produce, algae can do also, which is why I have 5 NEC Triphosphore florescence on the tank promoting algae growth. Having just a few plants in there (my substrate is not correct for plants anyway), will not have enough impact I believe to make a difference to the oxygen levels, I definitely wont get oxygen saturation as I did with my planted tank. And in any case, when the tank was a plant tank, absolutely chocker-block with plants, they had NO effect on the blue-green algae, so adding plants to my Tropheus tank will make no difference to the current blue-green algae, other than increasing the surface area blue-green algae may attach itself to.

I use an Ehime Surface Suction Extractor on this tank, which skims the surface of the water leaving it completely free of scum, which creates great surface exchange for oxygen. I do have an airstone in there, but it is not on very hard as I bleed most of it off. Do you think increasing this will have an impact on the blue-green algae? I don't see how myself.

It has occurred to me to use my PMDD on the Tropheus tank to promote the algae growth, as its growth has reduced as the fish have gotten larger. But I don't feel that I am experienced enough with Tropheus to know how adding such ingredients as nitrate (in particular) will have on the fish. Or if I add it minus the nitrate, wether or not this will be beneficial to the algae. I also don't see how this can affect the blue-green algae as it is not a plant.

To sum up; I will check my phosphate levels, which I expect to be zero.

I really feel that my tank has been infected with blue green algae, and it is surviving for the same reason it did so in my planted tank - that is, no nitrate, and probably lots of light is helping it too. I believe my tanks turning over of the nitrate cycle is so successful, including the eradication of nitrate, that this is the route cause of why the blue-green is surviving and increasing.

Having written all that, it has just occurred to me, that if I turn all my tank lights off for a couple of weeks, being photosynthetic, this should wipe out my blue-green algae? My algae will suffer as well, but I guess this could re-establish itself at a later date. I think I just answered my own question, as I 'm sure this will work! Your suggestions Sabine definitely helped, how long do you think I should leave the lights off for?.

Craig

Author: MagicaDiSpell

Craig, you must have misunderstood. I didn't say that they weren't bacteria, but rather that I would not regard them as an infection, i.e. a pathogen. Not all bacteria are negative either.

When I mentioned that you might have been too fastidious in cleaning the filter, I thought maybe you removed too much of the bacterial population for the filter to function properly. The ammonia alert, by the way, only picks up ammonia, but not nitrite, which I would suspect to be the culprit here. Have you got a nitrite test kit? Might be interesting to measure that.

Oxygen levels should have no noticable effect on the growth of blue-green algae.

I probably woudn't add any nitrate to a Tropheus tank. They don't like that very much. But if you are really keen on doing that, why not scale back your waterchanges a little in frequency.

Hmm, not so sure about turning off the light. Green algae (my guess is they are the ones that you want to grow) need quite a bit of light in order to thrive. I am not so sure about the pigments in blue-green algae, but I think you might be giving them the advantage in a low-light environment.

Mind you, sounds like you are at the point where you will try anything. You could always remove some of the algae you want to grow and keep them in a bucket outside for the duration. I am not sure how long you leave your lights on. You could start by switching the lights off for a couple of hours during the day (in some plants and algae is has been shown that it is day-length, rather than total light-duration over 24 hours that determine the success or lack thereof of plants).

Good luck with it Craig. Keep us up to date.

Author: CThompson

I have blue-green algae. I don?t want blue-green algae. To get rid of it, these are my known choices;

1. Add nitrate

2. Use the antibiotic Furan-2

3. Turn the lights off

Nitrate will not be good for the Tropheus.

Furan-2 will not be good for the Tropheus gut bacteria (?)(with potential long term problems for antibiotic resistant blue-green algae)

No light will not be good for the algae.

I see choice three as the one doing the least harm, so I turned my lights off last night, and they will remain off for a month or for as long as I can stand it. Tropheus will get by without algae for a bit (they don?t survive on algae, but on the food I put in there), and it will regrow once I turn the lights on.

I know my tank has no ammonia, and I believe I have no nitrate (with a large nitrate filter, and in addition, the blue-green will support this). I can?t have nitrite without nitrate or ammonia. I will test this tonight though as I have all these test kits.

I have two efisubstate filled baskets in my Ehime filters (one in each) they are rinsed in water from the tank whenever the filter is cleaned. The bacteria will remain unaffected by this, as you?ll agree.

I'll get back to you.

Craig

Author: YeW2001

Craig -

Have you added any rocks to the tank recently? I've found in the past that some rocks appear to contain partially soluble/soluble minerals which contain either nitrate or phosphate (or chemicals which get broken down by other microbiological processes to these substrates).

Just thought I'd mention this in case you've recently added a "nice rock" - which may be the source of the problem.

Author: Willy wombat

Hi Craig -

Tested your phosphate levels for me yet? These blue green algae are pretty clever - their ability to pull atmospheric nitrogen from the water is a big factor that makes them difficult to control, once they get into your tank.

I have attached some interesting articles for you to peruse at your lesuire.

interesting reading

archived articles

Really in terms of controling algae or cyanobacteria you need to control either

1. light

2. or nutrients.

If you use antibiotics it will treat the symptom but wont solve the problem in the long run.

This products (im not sure if it is available in Australia? - but it probably is) may be able to help you:

possible non-antibiotic cure

Anyway let us know how it all goes.

Cheerios

Author: CThompson

Yew, I have not added any rocks or anything new to the tank for months. All rocks and substrate are of the same volcanic origin, basalt.

Willy wombat ? phosphate level is 1.0ppm. Ammonia = 0 and nitrate the same, 0.

Thanks for the links you sent me, they were very comprehensive, but one part stayed with me written in ?interesting reading?; ?I try to remember this gift of atmospheric oxygen, when I'm siphoning the slimy cyanobacterial sheets off my gravel, and I try to feel grateful. But that was then, and this is now.?

It mentioned reducing the photo period, but didn't say turn the lights off. I will have to go back and read at greater leisure

Craig

Author: merjo

Sabine's advice is correct - at least that's what she taught me at Uni!!! Drop us a line Sabine and find out what your favourite star pupil is up to now!!!......Shoooooooosh!!

Andrea

merrileebrennand@bigpond.com

Author: MagicaDiSpell

Craig,

I think you might have your nitrogen cycle backwards there. Ammonia is converted to nitrite and that is converted to nitrate. So, yes you can have nitrite without nitrate. In fact, if you don't measure any nitrate (without waterchanges and while feeding fish, which is of course not the case here), I would say that is a definite indicator that the nitrogen cycle is not working properly, I wouldn't even have to test.

I can tell that you are getting quite exasperated with the blue-green algae. Are there any catfish that might be able to help you????? Just another thought.

Author: CThompson

Thanks for all your input again Sabine. I don?t have my nitrogen cycle backwards though, and am very familiar with it and understand fully with your reasoning in regards to no nitrate as you explained.

I tested again a few parameters, ammonia zero, and the same with nitrate. I feel that without those two, there can be no nitrite so didn?t test this area.

Phosphate in water change barrel = zero, in tank 1.0ppm, after another 2/3 water change phosphate dropped to 0.5ppm. Sera Flora has a detailed 1.1ppm of phosphorus. I don?t overfeed so feel a little trapped here.

I turned a light on my tank yesterday to do water change, first time since last Tuesday. There is a dramatic loss of blue-green algae, along with the algae, which the Tropheus have scoured nearly back to rock.

Craig

Author: MagicaDiSpell

Craig,

You misunderstand. If for some reason your denitrifying bacteria are not doing their job, you will not get nitrate at all. Denitrifying bacteria convert nitrITE to nitrATE. That is why it is so important to check for nitrite. The nitrate measure would be meaningless in this case.

Author: CThompson

Without bacteria, you won't get nitRATE, with out bacteria, you won't get nitRITE. Without bacteria you will get Ammonia. If one has no Ammonia, then it must be getting broken down aerobic bacteria break ammonia to nitRITE, they also break it down to nitRATE. Anaerobic bacteria break nitRATE down. I have a fully operational nitRATE filter, which is why I have no nitrate in the tank (coupled with water changes). I have no Ammonia, either in my waterchange barrel (in the tap water) nor do I have any ammonia in my fish tank itself.

If I?ve got no Ammonia (along with no nitrate), and I?ve got fish in the tank (ie, producers of ammonia), then my denitrifying bacteria are doing their job. Unless there is something radical in my understanding that is wrong, I don?t understand what you are driving at Sabine.

If I take it that I am wrong in not only my understanding if the nitrite cycle, but also in my ability to water test correctly, then I would have sick Tropheus, as they will not handle ammonia, nitrite, or to a lesser extent, nitrate. My fish, though still living in the dark (it will be two weeks this Tuesday the 2nd), are fighting fit and hungry. This in itself would indicate a fully functioning cycled tank, yes?

Even though my tank is in a dark corner, last night I put a towel around it to further cut any ambient light that may be helping the blue green algae to hold on, as I noted a few small spots where it had grown back, and they were all close to the front of the tank.

Stopping the light in the tank seems to be doing the job, so if anyone else out there has blue-green algae, this is a drug free method, that so far seem to be able to get ride of cynobacteria.

Craig

Blue-green Algae Remedy - 2

Mon, 08 Dec 2003 21:24:18 +0000

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CThompson

Jack Dempsey

Posts: 248

(12/11/03 8:21)

Reply | Edit Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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In a planted tank in the past, I remedied blue-green algae by increasing the amount of nitrate in my plant fertiliser. In the past I have also used the antibiotic Furan-2 with a successful outcome.

I have blue-green algae in my Tropheus tank, and don’t want to put nitrate in there for obvious reasons, and though I have some Furan-2 on hand, would seek and alternative method of removal.

I am wondering if anyone has had any other successful eradication methods to remove blue green algae?

Craig

Edited by: CThompson at: 12/11/03 8:22

jaz1986

Firemouth

Posts: 71

(12/11/03 9:40)

Reply Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Try adding some freshwater mussles to your tank... they suck out algae pretty damn well... I had 2 in a 300L tank that was like pea soup... and they sucked it clean within a week... Although... be warned... they will dig into the gravel... and are strong enough to re-arrange features

thanks

jared

CThompson

Jack Dempsey

Posts: 249

(13/11/03 8:08)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Blue-green algae or, cyaneobacteria, is a bacteria and not plant life as with algae. It is also fixed to surfaces, and not free floating as with green water, where the filtering action of mussels would have impact. You can’t get ride of blue-green algae by increasing the nitrate or adding Furan-2, which is an antibiotic.

Thanks for your suggestion Jared, but the mussels will have no impact.

Craig

MagicaDiSpell

Forum Veteran

Posts: 1029

(13/11/03 13:24)

Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Hmm, blu-green algae doesn't sound to good, Craig. Are you sure your filter is running ok? Oh, and adding Furan is not really a good idea. Anti-biotic agents should only be used to cure diseases (not to disinfect kitchen surfaces or to get rid of a nuisance in the tank). Overuse of antibiotics creates resistant strains (and I do word this intentionally, apparently these mutations are not quite as random as the older school of evolutionary teaching would have led us to believe), resistant strains create great trouble later on.

I only ever encountered blue-green algae problems in tanks, where the filter was crashing. I would suggest treating the cause, rather than the symptom, and your fish will thank you as well.

In the end, we will conserve only what we love, We will love only what we understand, And we will understand only what we are taught. (Baba Dioum, African Biologist)

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 257

(14/11/03 13:42)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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G’day Sabine,

In this case, I have a nitrate filter (filled with about 10 L of Denitate) in operation on my tank, and adding nitrate is not an option. The filters themselves were cleaned about five weeks ago, they are two large Ehime (2229 and 232 filters. The tank is 400 L and there are only 15 fish in there. Even though Tropheus are messy buggers, I feel confident that my filters are not an issue.

My understanding is that when one has a BG algae problem, one has an infection, and not an imbalance in the tank that algae itself would indicate. I also agree, one shouldn’t reach straight for the “antibiotic”, and that is the reason I posted looking for an alternative to Furan-2. Resistant strains of bacteria will come about through misuse of antibiotics. To me, “misuse” implies not eradicating all of the bacteria you are targeting, leaving individuals that begin to build up resistance to antibiotics. If one uses antibiotics and destroys all of what you are targeting, you are not creating a resistance build-up in the bacteria.

It is my thinking that my “cause” as you put it, is zero nitrates. My tank gets regular 1/3 – 2/3 water changes, and the change water has Tanganyikan salts, KH generator added to it, water ager, pre-heated, pre-filtered, and aged by one to two weeks. I think you’ll agree that the lack of maintenance side of things is not the issue.

I appreciate your response Sabine and you have given me food for thought in regards to my filters needing changing, and I will see to that this weekend. You are a very cluey person, so further thoughts on blue-green algae from you would be welcome. Please feel free (as I’m sure you will) to contradict anything I may be erroneous about written above.

Craig

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 261

(18/11/03 13:36)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Okay, I cleaned both filters on the weekend, and apart from the propellers and magnet area that I obviously missed last time I cleaned them, they were both clean (clean enough).

Any more suggestions Sabine.

Craig

Willy wombat

Red Terror

Posts: 495

(18/11/03 16:35)

Reply Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Craig - isnt it generally an excess of phosphates in your tank that is the problem? The cyanobacteria can use the phosphate as a food source in the absence of nitrogen, unlike normal algae?

What are you feeding the fish? - there are some low phosphate foods available on the market - but these are probably not suitable for your tropheus.

Im stumped - never has that problem. Best of luck with it

Willy

MagicaDiSpell

Forum Veteran

Posts: 1031

(18/11/03 18:01)

Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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If I remember my plant physiology correctly, cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) are able to live on forms of nitrogen other than nitrates. That was the reason why I suspected a filter crash. If the nitrogen cycle is somehow not quite working, then the likely symptom is a blue-green algae outbreak.

Hmmm, is there any chance that you might have been tooo fastidious in cleaning the filter. Maybe the nitrogen cycle has been interrupted by the loss of some (or sufficient) bacteria in your filter.

Craig, you were obviously pretty successful with a planted tank, so why not put that experience to some good use and add plants to your Tropheus tank. You know - some Valisneria or similar - that way you remove nitrates (cut down on your waterchanges), phosphates (which may contribute to your problem), add oxygen (that is always good, especially with the warmer weather starting), adds some interest for fish in a confined space (who wants to stare a furniture all day ) and brightens up the tank (what more can I say?). I know you used to add nitrates, but considering that you are keeping Tropheus, maybe a cutdown version of your previous planted tank would be a good idea. I.e. add your plant supplements without the CO2 (or even with some) and without nitrate.

Just food for thought.

In the end, we will conserve only what we love, We will love only what we understand, And we will understand only what we are taught. (Baba Dioum, African Biologist)

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 262

(19/11/03 12:17)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Willy and Sabine,

a total pleasure to read your considered responses.

To sum up; I will check my phosphate levels, which I expect to be zero.

Craig

MagicaDiSpell

Forum Veteran

Posts: 1034

(19/11/03 23:09)

Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Craig, you must have misunderstood. I didn't say that they weren't bacteria, but rather that I would not regard them as an infection, i.e. a pathogen. Not all bacteria are negative either.

Oxygen levels should have no noticable effect on the growth of blue-green algae.

I probably woudn't add any nitrate to a Tropheus tank. They don't like that very much. But if you are really keen on doing that, why not scale back your waterchanges a little in frequency.

Good luck with it Craig. Keep us up to date.

In the end, we will conserve only what we love, We will love only what we understand, And we will understand only what we are taught. (Baba Dioum, African Biologist)

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 263

(20/11/03 8:20)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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I have blue-green algae. I don’t want blue-green algae. To get rid of it, these are my known choices;

1. Add nitrate

2. Use the antibiotic Furan-2

3. Turn the lights off

Nitrate will not be good for the Tropheus.

Furan-2 will not be good for the Tropheus gut bacteria (?)(with potential long term problems for antibiotic resistant blue-green algae)

No light will not be good for the algae.

I see choice three as the one doing the least harm, so I turned my lights off last night, and they will remain off for a month or for as long as I can stand it. Tropheus will get by without algae for a bit (they don’t survive on algae, but on the food I put in there), and it will regrow once I turn the lights on.

I know my tank has no ammonia, and I believe I have no nitrate (with a large nitrate filter, and in addition, the blue-green will support this). I can’t have nitrite without nitrate or ammonia. I will test this tonight though as I have all these test kits.

I'll get back to you.

Craig

Edited by: CThompson at: 20/11/03 8:21

YeW2001

SCP Webmaster

Posts: 3521

(20/11/03 8:27)

Reply Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Craig -

Just thought I'd mention this in case you've recently added a "nice rock" - which may be the source of the problem.

-- YeW | ICQ: 259452

Edited by: YeW2001 at: 20/11/03 8:28

Willy wombat

Red Terror

Posts: 499

(20/11/03 10:24)

Reply Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Craig -

I have attached some interesting articles for you to peruse at your lesuire.

interesting reading

archived articles

Really in terms of controling algae or cyanobacteria you need to control either

1. light

2. or nutrients.

If you use antibiotics it will treat the symptom but wont solve the problem in the long run.

This products (im not sure if it is available in Australia? - but it probably is) may be able to help you:

possible non-antibiotic cure

Anyway let us know how it all goes.

Cheerios

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 265

(21/11/03 8:12)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yew, I have not added any rocks or anything new to the tank for months. All rocks and substrate are of the same volcanic origin, basalt.

Willy wombat – phosphate level is 1.0ppm. Ammonia = 0 and nitrate the same, 0.

Thanks for the links you sent me, they were very comprehensive, but one part stayed with me written in “interesting reading”; “I try to remember this gift of atmospheric oxygen, when I'm siphoning the slimy cyanobacterial sheets off my gravel, and I try to feel grateful. But that was then, and this is now.”

It mentioned reducing the photo period, but didn't say turn the lights off. I will have to go back and read at greater leisure

Craig

merjo

Feeder fish

Posts: 5

(21/11/03 19:30)

Reply Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sabine's advice is correct - at least that's what she taught me at Uni!!! Drop us a line Sabine and find out what your favourite star pupil is up to now!!!......Shoooooooosh!!

Andrea

merrileebrennand@bigpond.com

MagicaDiSpell

Forum Veteran

Posts: 1036

(22/11/03 10:44)

Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Craig,

I can tell that you are getting quite exasperated with the blue-green algae. Are there any catfish that might be able to help you????? Just another thought.

In the end, we will conserve only what we love, We will love only what we understand, And we will understand only what we are taught. (Baba Dioum, African Biologist)

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 266

(24/11/03 8:17)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Thanks for all your input again Sabine. I don’t have my nitrogen cycle backwards though, and am very familiar with it and understand fully with your reasoning in regards to no nitrate as you explained.

I tested again a few parameters, ammonia zero, and the same with nitrate. I feel that without those two, there can be no nitrite so didn’t test this area.

Phosphate in water change barrel = zero, in tank 1.0ppm, after another 2/3 water change phosphate dropped to 0.5ppm. Sera Flora has a detailed 1.1ppm of phosphorus. I don’t overfeed so feel a little trapped here.

Craig

MagicaDiSpell

Forum Veteran

Posts: 1037

(28/11/03 21:33)

Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Craig,

In the end, we will conserve only what we love, We will love only what we understand, And we will understand only what we are taught. (Baba Dioum, African Biologist)

CThompson

Oscar

Posts: 267

(1/12/03 12:24)

Reply | Edit Re: Blue-green Algae Remedy?

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Without bacteria, you won't get nitRATE, with out bacteria, you won't get nitRITE. Without bacteria you will get Ammonia. If one has no Ammonia, then it must be getting broken down aerobic bacteria break ammonia to nitRITE, they also break it down to nitRATE. Anaerobic bacteria break nitRATE down. I have a fully operational nitRATE filter, which is why I have no nitrate in the tank (coupled with water changes). I have no Ammonia, either in my waterchange barrel (in the tap water) nor do I have any ammonia in my fish tank itself.

If I’ve got no Ammonia (along with no nitrate), and I’ve got fish in the tank (ie, producers of ammonia), then my denitrifying bacteria are doing their job. Unless there is something radical in my understanding that is wrong, I don’t understand what you are driving at Sabine.

Stopping the light in the tank seems to be doing the job, so if anyone else out there has blue-green algae, this is a drug free method, that so far seem to be able to get ride of cynobacteria.

Craig

Edited by: CThompson at: 1/12/03 12:32

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Yew told me I could copy and past the above from the old forum, so I hope I have done it correctly.

I have turned the lights back on my Tropheus tank, and all but a few tiny spots of the blue-green algae have gone.

I have come to the conclusion, that while turning off the lights has dramatically helped the situation, it is not the cure, as I have come to the opinion that the problem has initially been caused by high phosphate levels. Before the lights were turned off, they were 1ppm. After two weeks, and now three weeks without light, and the drop in algae, my phosphate has gone up to 3ppm. I imagine the algae helped to reduce phosphate in the tank, and turning off the lights, reduced the algae and increased the phosphate... :

The lights have been back on for two days now, and I can already see an increase in algae growth. The fish look great, it is good to see their activity again, and seem none the worse for living in the dark for that time.

I will have to look at ways to reduce/eliminate phosphate in this tank, and have been considering some sort of resin. Do any Tropheus keepers out there use this in there tank?

Craig

Brush Algae

Tue, 03 May 2005 08:57:16 +0000

Hi Gang

I have some corro that I am not able to answer as I don't keep plants. Could someone offer a solution please?

Hello,
I have a problem of “BRUSH ALGAE” in my planted aquarium. And after trying out varies suggestions from fish shops and from web postings, I’m sad to say that I’m running out of ideas
I’ve tried manually ‘pulling them off’ leaves. Doing this is very tedious and hardly affects the overall population of brush algae! What’s more, a small proportion of removed algae remain suspended in the aquarium thus collecting in another region when the filters back running; and the cycle continues.
Another advice I got was to try a product on the market that supposably eradicates this nuisance! Azoo Brush Magic. Again, this works to an extent, more like above the ordinary dosage! I tried following the instructions at first, but it didn’t seem to doing anything at all, except make the water cloudy. The brush algae still grew and spread. So then I decided to remove the plants and bogwood from the aquarium and treat them in isolation, while adding 3x the dosage on a daily bases and changing 50% of the water every 5 days! This appeared to work! After a week or 2, you can see the brush algae turn white and start to reduce in size. However I found this form of treatment has detrimental effect on the plant! The leaves often turn yellow around the edges and eventually the leaf dies, probably due to poisoning!
Then with the bogwood and plants (what’s left of it) back into the aquarium for a couple months, to no surprise, the brush algae is back on them!
Maybe the only way is to ‘start from scratch’; remove everything and replace everything….but I won’t do this until I’ve exhausted every avenue!
I have read of a ‘drastic’ way to remove algae from plants is to soak them in diluted bleach (like 10-25% bleach solution for 2-3 mintues then rinsed clean). I’m wondering if you have tried this before? Which brand do you recommend? Was it successful? More importantly, did it affect the fish when the plants were introduced to the aquarium?
Another thing I read is to introduce a Crossocheilus siamensis (Siamese Algae Eater) into the aquarium, as this is the only ‘known’ fish to eat brush algae. I think this is the path I’ll try next. Just have to relocate my red-tail shark to another tank!
In the meantime, if you have other suggestions or know of sites that address this issue, I’d be most appreciative!
Regards

creepy crawlies in tank

Tue, 12 Apr 2005 03:55:51 +0000

creepy crawlies in tank

Author: hoges

Can anyone give me any information relating to some little tiny creepy crawly looking bugs that have taken over a tank.

You can see them all over the glass, but they are sooo tiny and white!!!

Replies »

Author: GreenTerrorToTheRescue

Are they on the inside or the outside of your tank?

Author: Barra

do they look like worms? if so, you probably have alot of organic waste inside the tank. as usual the answer to most fish related problems is "frequent water changes will help".

so, just do as the advice states, do some water changes to keep that level of organic waste down.

Author: lonezomebetta

Hey Barra,

Is organic waste bad for your fish?

cheers

Richard

Author: hoges

they are just on the inside and they are definately not worms!!! They are more round with little tiny legs, they just look like tiny spiders I suppose

Author: lonezomebetta

I have some white creepy things in my discus 6ft tank also, they look like little worms

Author: hoges

melafix should fix up ur worms!!! But these guys definately aren't worms!!!

Author: GoFast01

Have you fed your fish worms before... as in earth/compost worms?

Author: hoges

nope, just normal cichlid dinner....

They seem to thin out after water changes but then multply again soon after.

They don't appear to be doing any hard to anything, well I hope not, though the only fish in the tank has been off his food lately.

Author: SeayTaing

Do some have a mud case like home?

Forgotten their scientific name however....

If so, thats the result of overfeeding. Happened to me a long time ago. Some water changes will generally fix em up and just dont feed your fish as much as you used too.

Seay

Author: hoges

Its just a normal brick house, I think!!!

But the tank does have an undergravel filter if that means anything?

Author: fishboi2000

yeah i think i know what your refering too, they look like little pin head sized mites that walk around everywhere and they are white? i had a problem with these things a while ago they were constantly multiplying and walking around on my driftwood. They seem to cause no harm and they just dissappeared one day. I dont know what they are or how to get rid of them but just like to know someone knows what your refering to, thats if its the same thing

Author: YeW2001

Hi -

Do you have a photo?

-- YeW | ICQ: 259452

Author: lonezomebetta

Hey Fishboi,

I know what yor talking about now

I had these little creepy things in my fighting fish breeding tanks they were everywhere and colonised the sponge filter!

They didnt do any harm and thr fry even ate them!

I think you could try to put some melafix in the tank, should help.

hth

Richard

Author: Barra

yes lomezomebetta, organic waste is no good for you fish. organic matter decays and releases toxins into your tank. much like having a dead fish floating around in your tank. thats bad for your water chemistry

Author: hoges

Fishboi you have it in 1, I hope these will disappear soon too!!!

I don't think they would come out in a photo yew, they are soooo small and I also dont have access to a digital camera!!!

I wish I knew what they were called so I could look them up, they look so outta place in my tank, they look like they belong on wood but not wood underwater

Author: fishboi2000

by dissappearing i think it was around 2 months, i didnt use any medications or anything i just waited it out and one day i noticed they were gone. So might be abit of a wait or you could try medication of some sort and see if it helps, but i say just wait it out as they seem to do no harm.

Author: Barra

www.aquariumfish.net/info...ble_p2.htm

try that link, ive done some research on them.

Author: phatoscarlover

Hey guys,

Ive had the same problem in a 10gal tank with just a few BN and some drift wood! they look almost like newly hatched brineshrimp as soon as they come out of the egg (really really small!) but yeah i thought they may have been somethin more serious than they sound so i emptied the tank and washed all the gravel and its been about a week and i got some oscar fry who are happy with a new clean home now!

HTH Cheers Andy

Author: Barra

hi there phatoscarlover, do you have oscar fry? do you have a breeding pair of oscars? if you do, there are some questions that i would REALLY like to ask you about your oscars.

if you could please be so kind as to e mail me on jeffreywan@astrazeneca.com i would REALLY like to learn what you already know about your oscars. or alternatively you could leave a post here with you email adress on it.

Author: jaz1986

The creepies sound like either a type of Daphnia. or Chlamydemonas.

They are good for the aquarium, and it is best not to get rid of them... if you do want to keep them under control, try to get some small fish in there... either baby or some type of gudgeon or blue eye, or guppies or gambuisia (assuming the other fish wont eat the smaller fish... i didn't bother reading what were in there...)

Both of these water bugs are the staple foor of all freshwater aquaculture fry... and their relatives are the staple food of all saltwater aquaculture fry..

they will do a good job of cleaning up leftover food...

And if you want to get rid of them... DO NOT CHANGE THE WATER... an increase in fresh water makes them think that the rains have come and flooding is about to start... i.e. there will be an increase in food... and so they start to breed!

Good Luck

Jared

Planeria Worms

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 03:05:06 +0000

Worms in the tank!

Author: Marie

Hi guys

Apparently nothing goes smoothly, at least not in my tank. Yesterday, while I was sitting glued to the glass (almost like my BN) ignoring all the household duties, I noticed short, thin, white filaments on my driftwood. Then, to my horror, they started to move! After careful observation, I concluded that these creepy crawlies are actually WORMS. Obviously thriving in my perfect (?!) little eco system. They must?ve come with the plants as the driftwood has been dry a couple of years and boiled a couple of hours, but they obviously inhabited it with delight. I also saw a few crawling up the back glass and a few being sucked by a filter. And a couple of them were devoured by the bristle nose!

So, here comes a question (or two). Anyone had these worms in their tanks? Should I do anything at all? Also, parts of driftwood have some grey cotton wool like growth on them that fish don?t graze on. And I?d hate to part with the driftwood as Java fern and moss have nicely attached themselves to it and BN often resides on it too.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Replies »

Author: Melbourne Bill

Yes I have had these little white filament "worms" in my tanks and have never been able to get a definitive answer to what they are except that they are harmless. Some fish (eg kribs) go into a feeding frenzy when these worms appear - other fish (eg apistos) just seem to ignore them. So I would do nothing about them.

The cottonwool growth on the wood is some sort of fungus/algae thing (as a non-botanist I sort of think of them as the same - sorry Magica) which seems to be almost impossible to destroy (even Melafix doesnt work) and doesnt seem to do any harm and no-one seems to want to eat it. However java fern when it grows seem to keep this growth under control. And anubias and banana lillies seem to do their bit also. I think this growth on the wood makes a pretty natural looking environment.

Ok all you people who can get nice plants to grow, tell me differently. I confess that plants in tanks or gardens hate me and generally refuse to grow apart from java fern, anubias and banana lillies which my LFS keeps on telling me are impossible to kill.

Author: YeW2001

Hi Marie,

Bill's right these little worms are harmless - I must have a look at one one day and see if they are anelids or flatworms.

Regardless of what they are, they can be an indicator of overfeeding - so check that you aren't feeding your fish too much. I feed mine once/day - the food is gone in under a minute.

I think pl*cos & bristlenose cats that rasp at wood will remove the fungusy growth.

Author: Marie

Hi MelbourneBoy and Yew

It's good to know that those little horrors mean no harm! I guess they'll have to stay where they are and keep the fish happy. I didn't realise how densely populate my tank was!

Yew, you are right, I definitely overfed - empty tank! (when I tried my hand at fishless cycling).

Thanks

Author: CID in OZ

The little wormy things are most likely Planeria

and are harmless

BUT if they have a tenticle like head they could

be Hydra which are no probs with any thing bigger

than young fry

Do a search and check the results

Hope this helps

Chris D

Author: Cichlid Boy

I had a massive infestation of such worms a couple of years ago. Thousands and thousands of the damn things, all over the glass etc. My fish started dying off and I quickly began water changes, treatments, even scr@ping them physically off the glass etc to no avail - every last one of my fish died.

It really put me off cichlids for a while, as I'd spent a fortune setting up the tank with beatiful males.

Only this year I've come back to cichlids and am having a lot more success (touch wood!).

I can assure you that the worms I had definitely were NOT 'harmless'...

Author: E4G13M4N

Testing my memory here

But Planeria worms are harmless and these may not be the ones in Maria's case..

Planeria worms live in the substrate and are only really seen when the gravel hasnt been cleaned for some time, as they breed rapidly and overpopulate the gravel bed. They are then seen on the glass etc.. They are also the favourite food source of most Gourami's

I would suspect the loss of fish was to another problem..

The biggest killer of Africans is ammonia as the higher the PH is, the more lethal a small amount of ammonia becomes..

Not sure of type of worm it is in Maria's case but ive seen them before in tanks with driftwoods and most fish seem to enjoy these..

^Mark^

Author: Marie

Well, CichlidBoy, you scared me! I'm sorry about your loss, but I hope it was caused by something else and not worms. These ones in my tank seem to be only on driftwood. I don't know about the gravel, I washed it really well before putting it in the tank and have vacuumed it since (and I've had the tank set up for only about a month now). I haven't really noticed the worms anywhere else except on driftwood and a few on the back glass a week ago. So far their numbers don't seem to be increasing at an alarming rate. I think that the bristlenose has been feeding on them too.

Why do they like driftwood? I noticed them hanging inside that grey cotton wooly stuff (I've been removing the stuff by hand just in case)

Snail Removal

Thu, 14 Apr 2005 21:22:35 +0000

A Question of Snails.

Author: Chris Perth

More to the point what eats snails, I seem to recall that Loaches in particular Clown Loaches relish eating snails and will clean out a tank in no time at all - Please confirm or any other advice as to what will rid my tanks of snails- which appear to be ramshorns just a bit larger than the size of a pin head. They seem to have appeared out of no where - probably some eggs left on a piece of wood or rock - bummer!

I know this is more of a catfish question than a cichlid question - but the snails are in some of my cichlid tanks.

Replies »

Author: YeW2001

Clown loaches are your best bet - also reduce your feeding this tends to keep snails in check - no spare food = low snail populations.

Author: CThompson

This particular type of snail is an absolute bastard to get ride of. I have them in a number of tanks, one of which is a planted tank, and the clown loaches, which did a good job for a while, have stopped eating them, and the snails are now taking over. In my Cichlid tanks, I have tried squashing/crushing them with extreme diligence...and I'm still working on it. I even go at it at night when the lights are off, with a torch, and I still haven't succeeded after a year and a half, of REALLY trying. In short, with this particular snail, I feel you are looking at some sort of chemical means of eradicating them.

Craig

Author: Baz

I've found the same thing Craig, and in the end gave up.

I keep my feeding under check as YeW mentioned, and have learnt to enjoy these snails for their benefits.

They burrow through the sand, cleaning and turning it, and eating any excess food which falls.

I find them to be a very efficient clean-up crew, and also a good way of knowing when you are feeding too much. Too many snails? decrease the food.

The only downside is they steal a lot of eggs from my multifasciatus' shells.

I am reluctant to go chucking chemicals in until they become a serious problem for me.

Author: YeW2001

Hi -

The best way to control these guys is thru limited feeding... in a closed system - you are adding the energy these snails take to breed - so make sure u add enough for the fish (and no one else)... you'll still have a few snails, they'll subsist on alga & droppings but the number will be managable.

If you have many, a jar with a piece of food in - left in o/night. Acts as a good snail trap...

Good luck

Author: az

Maybe there is a market for renting out good snail eating loaches. Always looking for an angle.

Cheers

Andreas

Author: Bummers

Fish of the Chilotilapia genus are the best snail eaters you'll ever find. rhoadesii pop up every now and then. If you lived in Sydney i have a nice young male that would fix your problem no worries.

Kurt

Author: CThompson

These snails are not the Chinese burrowing ones that people usually talk about in reference to a ?snail problem? Buz, which is what I feel you are referring to when you mention their benefits in regards to turning over the substrate. These guys, as mentioned in the first post look like ramshorn snails, but are only a few millimetres in size. They don't seem to be restricted by limited feeding (my plant tank is testament to that), and I never overfeed my African tanks, yet they have managed to survive one and a half years of an extermination campaign. And I don't intend to give up. I expect I will eventually will have to resort to chemical means, as this snail if left unchecked gets to unsightly numbers. Besides - I just DON'T WANT IT!

Signed - snail frustrated

Author: Smokey Jewel

CThompson,

I too have these little critters in one (only one thank goodness) of my fry raisers (8g).

When I moved house this tank was not setup for about 3 months, tank was 98% emptied and left to sit.....the snails are all dead! When I reset it up afew weeks ago literaly thousands of 1mm snail shells floated to the surface. these were disposed by overflowing the tank (outside) with water for a few minuits.

So far there is no sign of the snail problen in this tank, however the filter that was on the origional 8g now is getting a new outbreak........here we go again.

The snails love and I mean love zuchini, secure a few pieces to the bottom then remove the totaly snail covered zuchini and leave it in the sun on the drive for a few hours to rid yourself of the little beasts. However annoying these little snails are (especialy in the impellor of my filter) they are good indication that the tank is stable and chemicaly healthy.

Smokey.

Snail removal

Sun, 05 Jun 2005 04:38:55 +0000

Hi,

I've got a snail infestation in one of my tanks and its driving me crazy, not only does it look bad, but I think they are responsible for eating the bristlenose eggs!

I've checked out the FAQ and it seems my best option is to remove all the fish and then dose the tanks up to marine salt levels to kill all the snails, and their eggs in the filter media as well.

My questions are:

How much salt do I have to add per litre to get it up to marine standard?

How long should I run it at those salt levels for?

I also guess it is best to wash the gravel / filter media under fresh water?

How many fresh water cycles should I add before re-introducing the cichlids?

I think I could figure most of it out, just wondering if anyone has had any personal experience and tips....

Thanks for any help.

With regards,

Clinton.

Snail Removal Part 3

Sun, 24 Apr 2005 06:01:20 +0000

Millions of the little buggers...

Author: flashgordonv

I've been away overseas for 9 days. I come back to find one of my 5 ft Tanganyikan tanks just covered in bloody snails. Little ones, big ones, huge ones everywhere. I have been killing them in their hundreds but am hardly making a dent in them.

Is there some relatively simple way that I can nuke these little $%@#s without killing the bacteria in my filters or killing the fish for that matter?

Replies »

Author: gswalker

there is a snail repellent you can get thats pretty good

if they are the small reddish ones they are very hard to get rid of

Author: Cichlid Boy

There are some fish which love eating snails.. can't remember which (maybe loaches?) perhaps a safe way to get rid of them would be to add a couple of these fish?

Author: Mazimbwe

Rather than use a poison to get rid of the snail problem, get yourself a couple of clown loaches and toss em in the tank. In no time the snail problem will have been eradicated without any nasty side effects, viola!

Author: fiona ls

my hongi snaffle snails ...

Author: cichomaniac

I have also heard that the hongis are good snail eaters

Luke

Author: micks fish

Hi there

I had sails everwhere. just get 2 big clown loaches not to big put them in there next day all the sails are all gone

Mick

Author: krichmond

if you are like me and arent really keen on clown loaches and neither do you enjoy adding any unwanted chemicals then i drop in thin raw slices of zuchini, after bn's have a had a munch the snails move in !! I can literally pick it up and place it in a net with 100's of snails in it !!,

good luck

Kurtis

Author: mtchye

Hongi eat snails? Do they just eat an occasional one or are snails one of their favourite foods like for loaches? Thats a new one.. I must give that a try!

Any other fish, in particular tanganyikans, that people can think of that are good snail eaters?

Oh, and in addition to clown loaches, the skunk loaches are also supposed to be even more avid snail eaters! Might be worth a try..

Author: Taz sydney

Neolamprologus tretocephalus is a natural snail eater!

Hopefully they get on well with your other fish, this could be another problem altogether!

Good luck!

Author: mbuna1

throw in a couple of Chilotilapia rhoadesii, they'll do the trick

Author: FatVana

I had a snail problem of epic proportions

I added two clown loaches. It was amazing to watch. They grab the snails flip them over and sucked the snail out of the shell in the blink of an eye. As a rule, I hate carnage in my tank but I hated the snails more so, it was amazing to watch. These guys went thru thousands of snails in two days. Now they live happily ever after in my tank. I recommend them for the snail eating show if nothing else.

Author: nels87

Hi,

HmMmm... Everytime i get Clown loaches they seem to develop white spots, everytime, well twice LOL

So i'm scared to add them in these days, is my tank in bad condition or is it because of the aquarium i got them from? HaHa both loaches were from the same aquarium

Anyone else get white spots when adding Clown loaches?

Author: MagicaDiSpell

Clown loaches are very suseptible to white spot, but I have found that those from some shops seem to be more prone to develop the disease than others. I recently bought a few very healthy clown loaches at Auburn Aquarium. Just be careful that you acclimatise them slowly to the new conditions. I guess these fishies stress very easily.

By the way, I tried the zuccini the other day. Guess who beat everyone to the treat: THE CLOWN LOACHES!!!!!!!! I guess that night the snails didn't have anything to fear, the two clown loaches were round and full by the time they left the zuccini alone. Hmmmmm!

Author: ryan

do snails do anything good for the tank ?

Author: MagicaDiSpell

Well, apparently they do move the substrate and so act a little like earthworms in a compost heap I guess (not really a very good comparison, but there it is). So, I guess it keeps you substrate free from anaerobic pockets that may develop, especially around fixtures such as rocks or logs. But in my opinion, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages, if you are trying to breed fish.

With substrate spawners the problem is obvious, the snails are active at night, when most fish sleep and so can get the eggs pretty well unharmed. With mouthbrooders the problem becomes obvious when you try to strip the females of her fry and instead find a couple of fry and lots and lots of snails, which the unsuspecting female picks up together with the eggs at the time of spawning. When comparing tanks with lots of these snails and tanks with hardly any (and looking at the same species), the number of fry was always greater in the tanks without snails.

Snails: Removal

Wed, 17 Nov 2004 12:13:33 +0000

hi ppl.

i was wondering with snails whether adding alot of salt will kill them off? i have a big infestation but i have taken all my fish out and i dont plan on using the tank in the near future. and also how to take care of the snail eggs? (that jelly thing)

What snail is this?

Sat, 20 Aug 2005 03:24:19 +0000

Hello!

I have about 50 of these little fellas in my 2' planted tank in the study. I was wondering if they're good, bad or other? I would like to know what they are called too.

Cheers - OziOscar.

EDIT: Fixed link to image.