# Algae in moss



## mpodolan (Mar 27, 2007)

It is a pain to get algae out of moss. You could try to be really aggressive with pruning the moss to remove all of the bba. Keep the co2 in the right range. You might need to increase flow toward the moss to ensure the plant has access to what it needs


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

Thanks, I'll position my diffuser right under the moss and hope for the best. Have you had any luck getting rid of the BBA completely in moss? Strangely, I have flame moss growing just a few inches from the Taiwan and I don't have a single spot of BBA in it.


----------



## mpodolan (Mar 27, 2007)

I've never actually had BBA in moss, but I've had clado and hair algae in there before. It just takes lots of patience and diligence to fix the problem.


----------



## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

I have an idea.. This is only a hypothesis..

Take the moss out, and put it in a closed light proof container. Leave it in there for a few days.. Hopefully, the algae dies off before the moss.
:/

I might try that... I have algae in my moss too.


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

What kind of algae do you have mistergreen? I think I'll take half of my moss out and give your experiment a try. Do you think 3 days would be sufficient or maybe 5?


----------



## mistergreen (Dec 9, 2006)

I have hair/maybe clado growing in the moss... It's not a big deal since they're both green and you can't tell the difference but it's impossible to get out. 

Since you were thinking of throwing the moss out, give the blackout a try first.
try 3 days and check in on it. It might take as long as 5 days. Throw in a few snails with the moss and see if they'll feed off the algae.


----------



## ikuzo (Jul 11, 2006)

hair algae inside moss is a real pain. the cure is SAE with a great probability that the SAE will mow the moss too


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

So, I started mistergreens experiment yesterday. I grabbed a chunk of the moss and placed it in a closed container and put in a dark corner of the closet. I'll give it another 2 or 3 days and post here if it works...fingers crossed.


----------



## FrostyNYC (Nov 5, 2007)

I tried the closet blackout along with spot treatment with H202.

Algae was dead within a few days. Put the moss back in my tank. It was completely light brown and dead within two weeks. Not sure why it took so long, but Im certain it was the one-two punch of blackout and H202... most likely the H202 really, Im guessing. 

Butttt the algae was dead too. That's a plus at least...


----------



## dekstr (Oct 23, 2007)

So one way to remove algae from moss is to partially kill both--with the algae dying faster than the moss?

I have tried the bleach dip method before. 20:1 water:bleach solution, dip the plants in the solution for exactly 1 minute. Rinse with tap water very thoroughly. I noticed BBA turned red the next day--however, some leaves of plants and moss parts did die off.


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

I haven't checked on my moss in the closet yet...I'm going to wait at least another day. I once treated a similar moss with a little Excel each day for about 3 days. On the third day, it was as dead as a door nail.

At least we'll know whether the blackout method minus the H2O2 works....


----------



## efish (Apr 23, 2006)

any updates? I'm interested to see if blackouts really kill BBA.


----------



## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Potassium permanganate would take care of the algae yet be safe for the moss. Stuff is pretty messy to work with though. If you use the powdered, you need to take precautions not to inhale it. Here's a link if you're interested:

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/FA027


----------



## A Hill (Jul 25, 2005)

Hey guys even if you kill the moss, put it back in the tank for around a month. There is a good chance it will "come back from the dead" if any of it is alive.

SAEs may actually be good for moss... Let me think that over, over the weekend though.

-Andrew


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

Well, I just took my moss out after 5 days in the dark. The cup smelled absolutely disgusting but, I gave the moss a good rinse and it appears as though 98% of the BBA seems to have cleared up. I still see a tad here or there but, that may just be what's leftover of the dead stuff.

I think I'm going to remove all of my algae infested moss from the tank now and put it all in the dark for another 5 day period. I wonder if that period could be extended longer with even better results? In 5 days, the moss looked as healthy as ever.


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

lauraleellbp said:


> Potassium permanganate would take care of the algae yet be safe for the moss. Stuff is pretty messy to work with though. If you use the powdered, you need to take precautions not to inhale it. Here's a link if you're interested:
> 
> http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/FA027


Have you successfully used this on moss? Where did you purchase it? Thanks for the help


----------



## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

You get it from Ace Hardware in the pool chemical supply section in liquid form. A lifetime supply is about $10. I've also seen the powdered form on Ebay- but you do need to be extremely careful not to inhale it. I've never personally used it on moss, but it's much more gentle on plants overall. That article from UF that I linked is pretty informative...

It does permanently stain skin and clothing though- so unless you want to walk around looking like Barney make sure you use rubber gloves!  

It's commonly used in 3rd world countries to sterilize raw vegetables for eating, like lettuce to make a salad. (First time I ever heard of it was in Africa and that's what we were doing with it, a lot of work to make a tossed salad, let me tell you! LOL)

It kills snails, too.


----------



## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

Thanks, I'll check that article out! Your example makes me thankful for the little things we have the luxury of, like pre-packaged salads.


----------

