# Best way to treat new plants? Caught Hydra



## StevieD (Jun 17, 2017)

I have only had Hydra once and I was advised to add a couple of what are called in the UK Opaline Gourami, they took care of them in a very short space of time. This is a colour morph of the three spot gourami so I doubt if one color is any better than the other. 

A friend who also got Hydra (we suspect from the same source) used a 9 volt battery and had copper wires running from the battery into opposite ends of the tank for an hour or so, seemed a little to *out there* for me but it worked for him. I would imagine given the copper wiring this would not be a good idea if you keep shrimp. 

To be honest I know three things about shrimp, (1)they have an extremely low tolerance to copper, (2) not much and (3) beggar all

I read recently where the canine worming medication Panacur also worked and very quickly. I do not know what dosage was used though.

Keep us posted.


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

StevieD said:


> I have only had Hydra once and I was advised to add a couple of what are called in the UK Opaline Gourami, they took care of them in a very short space of time. This is a colour morph of the three spot gourami so I doubt if one color is any better than the other.
> 
> A friend who also got them (we suspect from the same source) used a 9 volt battery, seemed a little to *out there* for me but it worked for him.
> 
> ...


I've already ordered fenbendazole (active ingredient in dewormer), going to treat the entire tank before I upgrade. I'm not going to buy a band-aid fix like a fish.... its a shrimp tank after all. I know the fenbendazole will treat the hydra, but for future plant purchases I'm looking for effective and proven treatments (dips/baths) to take out pests hitchhiking on plants.


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## Fish Em (Jul 3, 2015)

I recently came across some planaria in one tank and looking to prevent more from incoming plants too. I was about to do a standard bleach dip, but I also read planaria are very sensitive to ammonia. Maybe you can experiment on some hydra with bleach dips or other methods.


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

Fish Em said:


> I recently came across some planaria in one tank and looking to prevent more from incoming plants too. I was about to do a standard bleach dip, but I also read planaria are very sensitive to ammonia. Maybe you can experiment on some hydra with bleach dips or other methods.


I removed the single hydra I found, I haven't found any since, I'm still going to treat the tank because there has to be more in there....

I read that you can dip plants in water treated with fenbendazole, but that can get expensive fast. I would be curious if H2O2 or bleach baths would work...


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## JusticeBeaver (Oct 28, 2017)

Fish Em said:


> I recently came across some planaria in one tank and looking to prevent more from incoming plants too. I was about to do a standard bleach dip, but I also read planaria are very sensitive to ammonia. Maybe you can experiment on some hydra with bleach dips or other methods.


Hydrogen peroxide dip followed by quarantine is probably the best method of cleaning out plants. It's rather hard to overdose H2O2 since it's already 3% from the grocery or pharmacy store.


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## ScriptedDrama (Dec 29, 2017)

potassium permanganate is also used for plant dips...i dont know the dosage though


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## theatermusic87 (Jun 22, 2014)

I prefer alum, available at the grocery store in the spice section. 1-2tbsp per gallon for 48 hours. Seems really soft on plants but fatal to everything else. And it kills snail's AND snail eggs


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

Thanks all, found a whole bunch more just now. I'll treat the tank and look into those treatments for new plants. Perhaps stick to TC plants as much as possible as well.


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## ScriptedDrama (Dec 29, 2017)

theatermusic87 said:


> I prefer alum, available at the grocery store in the spice section. 1-2tbsp per gallon for 48 hours. Seems really soft on plants but fatal to everything else. And it kills snail's AND snail eggs


never heard of alum as a plant dip! :surprise:
do you know if any plants (like java moss) tolerate it?


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

theatermusic87 said:


> I prefer alum, available at the grocery store in the spice section. 1-2tbsp per gallon for 48 hours. Seems really soft on plants but fatal to everything else. And it kills snail's AND snail eggs


Would alum take out hydra? I'm more concerned about them over snails. I guess I could pick some up and experiment...


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## PlantedRich (Jul 21, 2010)

There are several good items to use to clear plants of hitchhikers but they all have the same fault. Whether you use peroxide, bleach or alum, they all have some risk involved. Since they are all chemical that react with the hydra, they also tend to react with the plants. Too little reaction and the hydra survive, too much and the plant dies! 
So it is not simply a matter of choosing which to use but also HOW to do the job. How strong and how long? 
And that is never going to come down to an honest answer as it will vary even within the same group of plants as certainly from one type plant to another. I rarely bother to dip plants to kill things like hydra but do it more often to knock down algae so I just do a very quick, light hit with bleach as it is the one item that I keep on the shelf and handy for tank use. 
But since chlorine is one of the stronger items we might use, I go for just a small amount like a tablespoon in a gallon or two and then go this way:
One bucket for dipping, one for rinsing and one with dechlor, if I plan to put the plants with fish right then. In and out of the bleach dip, without even a two second pause, then immediately to the rinse and from there to the dechlor bucket for final. 
The thing I keep in mind is that there is no perfect way to kill things that will not also risk damage to the plant if it is a tender type. So that leaves me to balance what I might expect to come out of the plant that I would not want versus the damage I may do to the plant in the dip. It all requires a balance. If the choice is to dip a plant and possibly save it or throw the thing out, I go for the dip. But if it is something like Java fern which almost cries out that it will be ruined, I may throw it out and not bother at all. 
You gotta kill a few to understand what to do with the rest!


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## p.lewis (Sep 22, 2010)

Quarantine tanks aren't just for fish! Remove the fishy hosts and many diseases and parasites won't survive long. I've been quarantining my plants in spare tanks or plastic totes for quite a while now. You can use more aggressive solutions in a quarantine tank or bucket than you would your display tank when you do find an unwelcome hitchhiker. And you will find them.

I have had success with Fenbendazole for hydra and planaria, but there's a few other treatments folks have suggested here I might have to try in the future.

Tissue culture seems nice, but I think everyone can do just fine with the regular stock by taking some precautions.


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

PlantedRich said:


> There are several good items to use to clear plants of hitchhikers but they all have the same fault. Whether you use peroxide, bleach or alum, they all have some risk involved. Since they are all chemical that react with the hydra, they also tend to react with the plants. Too little reaction and the hydra survive, too much and the plant dies!
> So it is not simply a matter of choosing which to use but also HOW to do the job. How strong and how long?
> And that is never going to come down to an honest answer as it will vary even within the same group of plants as certainly from one type plant to another. I rarely bother to dip plants to kill things like hydra but do it more often to knock down algae so I just do a very quick, light hit with bleach as it is the one item that I keep on the shelf and handy for tank use.
> But since chlorine is one of the stronger items we might use, I go for just a small amount like a tablespoon in a gallon or two and then go this way:
> ...


Thanks for the detailed post, I agree there isn't a "one size fits all" fix for keeping pests out.
That said, I'm not too concerned over algae or snails for that matter, mostly the hydra, I think if I buy from this seller again I will make up a small 1 gallon dip treatment with a high dose of fenbendazole (I bought extra), that should take the hydra out and maybe some snails, I could probably rinse and use something specifically for snails if I'm really worried about them. Another reason I'll always recommend TC plants if you can get the species you're after. 

If I get real worried I could set up a quarantine system... Plastic container and a 23w CFL bulb should do, add an airstone too.



p.lewis said:


> Quarantine tanks aren't just for fish! Remove the fishy hosts and many diseases and parasites won't survive long. I've been quarantining my plants in spare tanks or plastic totes for quite a while now. You can use more aggressive solutions in a quarantine tank or bucket than you would your display tank when you do find an unwelcome hitchhiker. And you will find them.
> 
> I have had success with Fenbendazole for hydra and planaria, but there's a few other treatments folks have suggested here I might have to try in the future.
> 
> Tissue culture seems nice, but I think everyone can do just fine with the regular stock by taking some precautions.


This tank is a shrimp tank, impossible to remove them all. plus fenbendazole doesn't harm shrimp if used correctly. 

As for removing fish, the diseases and parasites live on/in the fish so... removing them from the display tank wont do anything, unless you put them in a hospital tank and treat accordingly, but that leaves the display tank with possible spores/surviving parasites etc. I think preventative measures such as dipping plants/quarantining/TC plants/reputable sellers is a far better approach than "I'll deal with it when it shows up". 

I should note that I am upgrading this tank, so I'm looking to treat it and then dip plants as an extra precautionary step before transferring plants to the new tank.


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## PlantedRich (Jul 21, 2010)

All sounds rational to me as we all have different needs at different times.
That brings me around to saying I like your tagline?

If it were easy we wouldn't be here. 

That's something that is suddenly hitting me on which fish I want to raise and breed. Since I don't like to limit the production and really like raising the little folks, I pretty well need to follow the market for what sells. For a while the African cichlids were highly sought after and very easy to raise. So easy, in fact that they are now old hat and folks locally have moved on. TOO EASY!


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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

PlantedRich said:


> All sounds rational to me as we all have different needs at different times.
> 
> That brings me around to saying I like your tagline?
> 
> ...




I think we can all agree that we are never truly “finished” with a tank/setup, we always strive for something more, likely traveling down new paths (or cutting your very own new path!) and along those new paths things get difficult, so here we are, helping with problems and finding solutions until we find it “easy” and the cycle repeats. 

I’m actually stuck on stocking ideas for my new tank, I want something new I’ve never kept before, but I just can decide on something  so again.... it’s not so easy, so here I am LOL 


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