paekakboyz Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 Hi all, I've just been rearranging the tank and pulled out two large pieces of bogwood that have some black beard algae on them. At this point I've left them out in the sun to kill it off (hopefully). The pieces are too big to boil but I was thinking of pouring boiling water over them and then giving them a good scrub... what are the chances this will work? has anyone dealt with a similar situation? I'm about to redo the aquascape and am really keen to knock the BBA on the head! thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon1990 Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 I have the same problem in my tank, but the woods to large to remove :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted February 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 how did you get it in the tank then!! or is it just too deeply buried in the substrate? I had to take mine out to catch some fish and ended up rejigging the tank - one piece was a real pain to get out as its an odd shape but the other was pretty straightfoward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon1990 Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 It twists in there when empty..lol But its soo heavy now and to twist it out will be impossible(nearly) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 Hi all, I've just been rearranging the tank and pulled out two large pieces of bogwood that have some black beard algae on them. At this point I've left them out in the sun to kill it off (hopefully). The pieces are too big to boil but I was thinking of pouring boiling water over them and then giving them a good scrub... what are the chances this will work? has anyone dealt with a similar situation? I'm about to redo the aquascape and am really keen to knock the BBA on the head! thanks I had a major BBA outbreak in my tank. When I moved house I took the opportunity to remove all the plants and throw them away, scrub the tank thoroughly, boil the filter media, scrub the filters and run them overnight with hot salt water. I also treated the wood. Wood treatment: The bits that were small enough, I boiled and microwaved! The bits that were too big to boil, I put them in the bath and poured boiling water over them. I then added huge amounts of salt and left them soaking in the bath overnight. I also scrubbed the wood with a wire brush to manually remove any algae I could see. And guess what? ... The algae came back within a month. When it returned, I used double-dose Flourish Excel, squirted directly onto the algae. It grew faster than I could treat it. Eventually I bought three Siamese Algae Eaters (sold at Hollywood Fish Farm as Black line Flying Foxes). The algae is now under control! SAEs are now the only method I recommend for control of BBA - because they are the only thing that worked for me in my own personal experience. Your experience may be different, but I know I spent a lot of time and effort on cleaning and scrubbing (then getting new plants, getting filters re-established etc) and eventually the little SAEs saved my bacon. Long may it last! :bounce: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon1990 Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 SAE's are asian though... :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 SAE's are asian though... :lol: Teach them to speak Spanish and/or Portuguese and nobody will notice the difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixon1990 Posted February 16, 2009 Report Share Posted February 16, 2009 Teach them to speak Spanish and/or Portuguese and nobody will notice the difference. They would look so out of place in my setup. What kind of algae do Otos eat-Anyone know? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted February 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2009 Doh! Just what I didn't want to hear!! :lol: The good thing is that the outbreak isn't really bad, up till now I've been able to pluck bits and pieces off - I'll try as many options as I can (sun, scrubbing, boiling water etc) and see what happens. Fingers crossed as I don't really want to add Siamese Algae Eaters to the tank. Sheesh that is an awful lot of work to wipe out the BBA!! must be one of the toughest algaes to knock off! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cichlid7 Posted February 17, 2009 Report Share Posted February 17, 2009 when it it out of your tank use a water blaster to clean it off thats what i did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oeminx Posted February 17, 2009 Report Share Posted February 17, 2009 when it it out of your tank use a water blaster to clean it off thats what i did. you bet me to it, I did the same and it worked for me to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paekakboyz Posted February 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 17, 2009 you bet me to it, I did the same and it worked for me to. Woo Hoo power tools!! not that I need an excuse! cheers guys, will let you know in a month or so if the dreaded BBA returns Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted February 17, 2009 Report Share Posted February 17, 2009 I have heard of people using peroxide or similar on BBA. It can be squirted directly on the algae from a syringe actually IN the tank, but obviously on the wood out of the tank would be less worrying... DO a google, I know i have seen this, with before and after photos, and it is very effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted February 17, 2009 Report Share Posted February 17, 2009 it will come off easily with a wire brush when its dry i have a friend taht used a waterblaster to no avail so i ended up with the two large bits on question! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted February 18, 2009 Report Share Posted February 18, 2009 I have heard of people using peroxide or similar on BBA. It can be squirted directly on the algae from a syringe actually IN the tank, but obviously on the wood out of the tank would be less worrying... DO a google, I know i have seen this, with before and after photos, and it is very effective. Speaking of syringes, where can I get them from without looking like a drug addict? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted February 18, 2009 Report Share Posted February 18, 2009 Steal them from a test kit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oeminx Posted February 18, 2009 Report Share Posted February 18, 2009 Speaking of syringes, where can I get them from without looking like a drug addict? I just went into a pharmacy and asked if they had a syringe the would suit administering meds to a pet no needle of course Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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