# What should I do with excess duckweed?



## Sergeant Dude (Mar 7, 2014)

Just run the water though a net as you dispose of it, however that may be. I learned the hard way that you should always do that when I accidentally poured 5 or 6 baby shrimp down a drain when I was doing a water change.


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## Bushkill (Feb 15, 2012)

Bag it up and send it to me!!!!


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## vowelsounds (Apr 3, 2014)

Bushkill said:


> Bag it up and send it to me!!!!


Gladly! There's always soooooooooooooooooooooooooo much of it!! :icon_eek:


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## thelub (Jan 4, 2013)

Although most sewage gets treated in such a way that the duckweed would be killed, its a good sign of a responsible hobbyist to be concerned about where it ends up. The method 'Seargent Dude' stated is a good way to ensure you grab all the floater bits out, then you can throw it away. Another idea is to add a bit of bleach to the bucket before flushing it. I keep my water change vessels separate. One for throw away water, and one for new water. That way it doesn't matter what I put into the 'gray water' bucket, I know it will never have any negative affects on the new water I'm adding to the aquarium.


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## H2Ogal (Apr 27, 2010)

You can put a pantyhose on the bucket end of the siphon tube to catch duckweed and debris. You can't easily clean/reuse the pantyhose, however, so that's mostly if you're trying to clear a lot of stuff from the tank.

Can also give excess duckweed to friends with critters that eat it. Goldies do, I think. Tanks are best, of course; you *can* give it to friends with ponds, but there is the risk of it getting into natural waterways via run-off, flooding, birds, etc.


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## jrill (Nov 20, 2013)

H2Ogal said:


> You can put a pantyhose on the bucket end of the siphon tube to catch duckweed and debris. You can't easily clean/reuse the pantyhose, however, so that's mostly if you're trying to clear a lot of stuff from the tank.
> 
> Can also give excess duckweed to friends with critters that eat it. Goldies do, I think. Tanks are best, of course; you *can* give it to friends with ponds, but there is the risk of it getting into natural waterways via run-off, flooding, birds, etc.


Never, ever put it in a pond.... gosh....

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## Mxx (Dec 29, 2010)

I say make smoothies with it, and throw in a few shrimp as well for taste.


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## LuckyCharm (Jan 20, 2014)

I do the bucks system, with the duckweed in there and just pour them into my lawn


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## 00camaro16 (Mar 7, 2014)

LuckyCharm said:


> I do the bucks system, with the duckweed in there and just pour them into my lawn


Except for people like me who live on a lake, too risky.

I throw all plant invasive or not into compose bucket. It dries, dies, and decomposes.

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## PhilipS (Jan 9, 2014)

Dump into trash or use for fry tank.

Make enough shade to acclimate new plants to bright lights.


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## lochaber (Jan 23, 2012)

I think H2Ogal's method might be the easiest, and it should work for almost anything, nylons, filter bags, filter socks, even just a regular old sock.

As to throwing out duckweed (and other plants), it's probably best to let it dry out first, but that's probably a fairly minor issue. I've got a small glass bowl sitting on my stove that I use for this - sitting it near the pilot light or the oven vent helps speed the drying process, even if I'm not cooking anything.

If you have indoor plants (or even outdoor, so long as there isn't a waterbody/drainage ditch nearby) You could always just use the water for them. I've noticed frogbit that I throw in planters dries completely in a day or two, I imagine duckweed would take even less time.


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## H2Ogal (Apr 27, 2010)

H2Ogal said:


> Can also give excess duckweed to friends with critters that eat it. Goldies do, I think. Tanks are best, of course; you *can* give it to friends with ponds, but there is the risk of it getting into natural waterways via run-off, flooding, birds, etc.





jrill said:


> Never, ever put it in a pond.... gosh....
> 
> Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk


Obviously, there are ways for it to escape, as I pointed out in my post. But some hobbyists do use duckweed deliberately in self-contained ponds. I had a conversation just the other day with someone in the forums who grows duckweed for his pond, where the apple and trapdoor snails eat it non-stop.


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## sbinf (Jan 26, 2014)

I throw it on my driveway to dry out, then throw it in my indoor composting system.


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## jrill (Nov 20, 2013)

H2Ogal said:


> Obviously, there are ways for it to escape, as I pointed out in my post. But some hobbyists do use duckweed deliberately in self-contained ponds. I had a conversation just the other day with someone in the forums who grows duckweed for his pond, where the apple and trapdoor snails eat it non-stop.


Still a reckless suggestion. Have we learned nothing from those goofs in the south who thought Asian carp were a good idea and would not get away. Very irresponsible suggestion.

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## H2Ogal (Apr 27, 2010)

I rescind the suggestion.


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## vowelsounds (Apr 3, 2014)

H2Ogal said:


> You can put a pantyhose on the bucket end of the siphon tube to catch duckweed and debris. You can't easily clean/reuse the pantyhose, however, so that's mostly if you're trying to clear a lot of stuff from the tank.
> 
> Can also give excess duckweed to friends with critters that eat it. Goldies do, I think. Tanks are best, of course; you *can* give it to friends with ponds, but there is the risk of it getting into natural waterways via run-off, flooding, birds, etc.


Such a good idea for the pantyhose! Thanks! And I'm totally giving it away to be eaten!

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## vowelsounds (Apr 3, 2014)

Mxx said:


> I say make smoothies with it, and throw in a few shrimp as well for taste.




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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

A nuclear bomb might kill it, but I wouldn't hold my breath. (Only partially kidding...)


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## kwheeler91 (May 26, 2009)

Lets not talk about those carp... freakin idiots. 

Duckweed is found just about everywhere... not a big deal. It also floats, so net it out of the bucket before you dump it out. Or flush it, highly unlikely its going anywhere but certain destruction. Duckweed is tough, but it aint that tough...


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