# Killing cyanobacteria (aka the green slime of death)



## Grah the great (Jul 3, 2013)

Currently I have a large number of plants in a QT tank being treated for a cyanobacteria attack. I was using melafix and the photoperiod is greatly reduced, but the stuff has spread since the infested plants were moved there. Any advice on how to get rid of thew stuff?


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## CannaBrain (Oct 3, 2008)

i've had success many times using erythromycin. never failed on me.


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## squatingdog (Jan 26, 2014)

+1 to erythromycin. it worked for me.


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## 125planteddiscus (Apr 11, 2015)

Is that something that can be found at your local pet store? If not where is a good site to buy?


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## Clayman (Jan 7, 2015)

You could try a 3 day blackout. Cover the tank so no light can get in there for three days. No peeking.

erythromycin is a antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections.


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## foster (Sep 23, 2012)

Remove as much as possible with airline tubing(siphon). Then hit the rest that remains with hydrogen peroxide 3% solution. It will fizz, scream, and die a miserable death. Unless you find the cause it will return no matter what remedy you use. I have found in the past that dirty substrate seems to encourage it. Its normally heaviest where stuff concentrates in the gravel.
If you have fish in the tank only spot treat a small area at a time so as not to OD the fish. Peroxide breaks down in to just O2 in a matter of a couple minutes.


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## clopez1 (Jun 30, 2013)

+1 on spot treating 3% peroxide.


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## CannaBrain (Oct 3, 2008)

you can get erthromycin at most fish stores. api has packets that make it easy. def available at petsmarts.


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## Bine (Jul 12, 2015)

I just waged a huge protracted battle with cyanobacteria. It's what ultimately led me to finally remodel my 55. That stuff was everywhere. :icon_eek:

After water changes, gravel cleaning and manual removal didn't get it all, and it kept coming back with a vengeance, I used UltraLife Blue Green Slime Stain Remover. It contains a secret blend of "natural cellular matter, select biological accelerators and special supplements." It says it does not contain erythromycin. One bottle, two doses, was $14.61 on Amazon. 

I followed the directions. Manually clean as much as possible. Give one dose. Add supplemental air. Wait 48 hours. At that point, there was no new cyano and little old cyano die off. Add dose two, keep with the air, wait 48 hours. By that time, the cyano was dying the true death. Two days later, I began the remodel. And the clean up. What a mess. 

All the old gravel is gone. New river rock is in place. All the fancy rocks and petrified wood I wanted to save were cleaned and set out in the sun for two days. After that, it all got a short soak in 3% hydrogen peroxide. The plants were all wiped and sprayed down. The glass has been cleaned. The HOB and hoods, too. The filters have been changed. Most of the water, as well. 

No fish (tetras, yoyo and a CAE) or plants (tiger lotus, anubias and a water onion) died. So far, the cyano has not resurrected. It had been coming back strong after just one to two days. That stuff is wicked evil. 

To keep from having this happen again, I will feed two small feedings a day rather than one larger one, and keep up with cleaning the substrate.


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## klibs (May 1, 2014)

+1 on H2O2

Worked great for me. Spot treat it, let it burn, then repeat the next day if any is left.
You have to kill it before it spreads... If you see ANY BGA in your tank at all - get rid of it immediately.

Best way to prevent in future is to make sure you don't have too much light, have good flow (no dead spots) and do water changes to siphon out any waste. BGA loves waste that just sits in one spot from what I have seen.

IMO BGA is the easiest of the algaes (even though it is bacteria) to get rid of. It should not come back if you fix the root cause and kill it off.


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## micheljq (Oct 24, 2012)

Strange the cyano stuff is not something that i am worried about. I fear BBA or filamentous much more. I was plagued with cyano for months. But it did began to reduce as soon as i did add KNO3 and KH2PO4 in my tank for helping the plants.

By that time i had sand as substrate and a group of corydoras. They did kill cyano on the substrate because they were always moving it and even burying cyano in the sand, where it died without getting light.

It is easy to siphon but yet can come back quickly.

Michel.


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