# Will a bleach dip kill Hair Algae on Jungle Val in roots?



## bettang (Oct 30, 2017)

See title.


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

It will.


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## Cichlid-140 (Sep 28, 2018)

Aren't roots a little tender for bleach dips? Couldn't that kill the Val, too?


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## varanidguy (Sep 8, 2017)

Cichlid-140 said:


> Aren't roots a little tender for bleach dips? Couldn't that kill the Val, too?


That's what I've always read. Don't dip roots, only leaves.


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## OVT (Nov 29, 2011)

Well, whether the dip would kill the plants was not the question. ....

I am pretty sure the plants will suffer, and, most likely, die, whether dipping roots or leaves. Anubias and Java Fern might survive, but not many other plants. In my oppinion, bleach should not be anywhere near a running tank. Hair algae is a symptom, not the cause. Fix the cause.


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## Ken Keating1 (Nov 22, 2017)

+1 on what OVT states. Even if bleach could kill the algae without harming the plant, algae would just come back. It's best to remove the conditon(s) causing the algae.


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## PlantedRich (Jul 21, 2010)

Understanding how the bleach works is something of a key to how to use it. It is an oxidizer and that makes it work very much the same as other oxidizers like hydrogen peroxide. It does the same thing and we need to use it much the same way as it is strong and will combine/react with most organics. In this definition we are speaking of carbon bearing items, not the organic as used in stores and food. That reaction can be used to neutralize things like pesticides, oils, or diseases like in our water but it also does react with the organics like plant roots in the same way peroxide will. If it is used too strong, it kills the plant. It's not that one or the other product is good or bad but more a matter of how strong and how long we make the reaction. 
And that is where things get really tricky as there is no firm way to say how much or how long to use to kill algae but not roots. I would suggest using other methods to remove the algae from roots and then work to sort out why the algae is a problem in that spot. 
If I had lots of spare plants, I might try a few with really low doses of bleach and very short times, following very quickly with a good rinse but I would only do it on plants that were expendable. I might guess the loss would be too high in plants of any value.


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## bettang (Oct 30, 2017)

OVT said:


> Well, whether the dip would kill the plants was not the question. ....
> 
> I am pretty sure the plants will suffer, and, most likely, die, whether dipping roots or leaves. Anubias and Java Fern might survive, but not many other plants. In my oppinion, bleach should not be anywhere near a running tank. Hair algae is a symptom, not the cause. Fix the cause.



Yeah, I took down the tank and cleaned it out because it got taken over by algae and threw out most of the plants except a few. I think I'll try the bleach dip and if that doesn't work, throw them out.


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