# Using H2O2 - Hydrogen Peroxide



## crazy loaches (Sep 29, 2006)

Ok, I was hoping to get some feedback and hopefully getting a thread together that has some good info on how to use H2O2. I did some searching and have more questions now than before I started lol! As I am about to start up a new big tank, I dont want to be migrating plants over from my existing tank that currently has some thread algae problems without doing everything I can to eliminate it.

So I am hoping with some input from folks we can come up with:

1) Directions for spot treating with H2O2

2) Directions for whole tank treatment

3) Directions for plant dip w/ H2O2

4) What success folks have had with H2O2 with what types of algae (and what method of dosing H2O2)?

I know these have been all answered in the past... but after doing a quick search and reading through a dozen or so posts I could not find any real directions. And I'd like to combine the various ways to do it all in one thread, and hopefully some folks success with it. So any input you all can give would be great.


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## spypet (Sep 15, 2006)

in my experience, H2O2 is best used as a spot treatment
if you are willing to eyedrop spray the algae several times
each day for a week or two. H202 is the least traumatic
on your fish and plants of the algae abatement solutions.

whole tank or dip techniques have better solutions than H202.
for whole tank I use algae destroyer and chemiclean, 
for dipping, bleach is by far the best solution.

If your water chemistry is under control, and the algae
is old and not spreading, manual removal may be best.

of course, such solutions should be used as last resort,
and could have a disastrous effects on your livestock
if the chemical is not administered and removed properly.

I administer H2O2 spot treatment as follows:
fill 1oz plastic dropper with H202 from the drug store.
*turn off all water flow*.
comfortably submerge your hand with dropper to the
level of the algae, then slowly spray the H202 within
a centimeter of the algae without moving your hand.
once dropper is empty, do not suck tank water back
into the dropper, or move your hand or arm for
15 seconds as your movement may disperse the H2O2.
continue refilling and spraying H2O2 at all algae involved.
remember to *turn on all water flow* when you are finished.
try to do this at least once, preferably twice each day,
for at least one week, preferably two, until the algae
turns from dark/green to white/clear.
at this point the algae is dead, and will dissolve away
after another two weeks of good water flow.


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

spypet said:


> in my experience, H2O2 is best used as a spot treatment
> if you are willing to eyedrop spray the algae several times
> each day for a week or two. H202 is the least traumatic
> on your fish and plants of the algae abatement solutions.
> ...


As a *Last resort* is wise advice.
You really need to focus on providing good conditions for the plants.
That is the only way to beat the algae + good maintenance.

Another method is using the H2O2, or Excel as a diluted spray.
You lower the tank to about 75% etc, then while empty, spray the infected parts.

Wait 1-3 minutes, refill.

Still, take care of the root cause, not the symptoms, you'll never get that far ahead otherwise.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## crazy loaches (Sep 29, 2006)

Thanks for two methods spypet and plantbrain...

Tom - that diluted spray method is new to me and sounds intriguing as that might actually work well in my situation. But for those seeking to try this method, what strength solution are you using for this diluted spray? And is your method a 1 time deal or something you would want to do say every day for a week?

Spypet - thanks for going in such detail. You said 1oz... thats ~30ml so then are you aiming for the 1/ml gal concentration (your 29g tank?)?

And for both of you - what about water changes? Spypet, I assume with the number of treatments you propose that your not doing a water change after each treatment? And Tom, I assume after your method just filling the water back up with new water is what your doing?

Has there been any known issues with particular fish or plants being overly sensitive to H2O2?


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## spypet (Sep 15, 2006)

Mosses can melt from too much Excel,
while nothing I've seen melts from H2O2.
High amounts of Excel in your water can
also do damage, while H2O2 will dissipate.
so high Excel dosing should be changed out
while H2O2 does not require such vigilance.

















I mention 1oz droppers as they are commonly
sold for dispensing liquids for children, and are
cheap. I did not mean to imply any H2O2 to
water in your tank ratio. Just use the H2O2
as needed to properly spray all your algae.

If money is no object, _Kent Sea Squirt_ is a
$12, *21"* long dropper making this easier.


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## CampCreekTexas (Feb 28, 2007)

I'd like to know what types of algae H2O2 works on. For instance, the current bane of my existence, clado. And what about staghorn and BBA?


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## plantbrain (Dec 15, 2003)

Like all strong oxidizers, it should work on everything.

I add about 1:4 ratio of H2O2/water for a spray, Excel about the same. Leave for 5 minutes, then rinses plant and refill fast.

Note, this is only to kill algae that's there, it still does not address why you have algae to begin with.

It concerns me when folks are far more interested in how to kill algae than to grow plants, that is and should be your primary mission here, not merely killing the algae, that part is easy.

Our goal in the hobby is to grow aquatic plants, not learning the ways of algicidal methodology:icon_wink 

Stick with that goal.

I know it is frustrating, but things are not going to go right until you get that part down.

Spend all your effort there, not here.

Regards, 
Tom Barr


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## crazy loaches (Sep 29, 2006)

I know spypet suggests bleach is far better for plant dips but I wonder if there is any other opinions on this? Like I said I am going to be starting up a new tank, will be buying lots of plants I'm sure as well as using many from my existing tank. I've never bothered doing anything to plants I've bought before, but I want to do everything possible I can from the get go to ensure I'm not introducing algae. Which brings me to my next point... Tom's advice is sound obviously about focusing on the problem rather than the bandaid, but I assume folks resorting to chemical warfare are doing so as a last resort. Or the algae has been introduced into there tank even though the tank is in good condition. At this point I am assuming thats what happened to me and this thread algae... I recall thinking that it was some sort of moss tangled in with some plants I put in it several months ago. I think from now on I'll be inspecting the plants better along with using a dip. Which brings me back to whats best for a dip solution?


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## Robg32 (May 16, 2007)

crazy loaches said:


> I think from now on I'll be inspecting the plants better along with using a dip. Which brings me back to whats best for a dip solution?


Along these lines, I just went to petsmart near my work and I looked at their plants.... HUGE clumps of thread algae all over the plants. I wasn't really looking to by from them anyhow but WOW... it didn't look good at all.


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## CampCreekTexas (Feb 28, 2007)

> Our goal in the hobby is to grow aquatic plants, not learning the ways of algicidal methodology
> 
> Stick with that goal.


 Algaecidal methodology. I like that. :icon_lol: 

I do agree with you, Tom. That's why I've been learning and learning and learning for these past few months since that's my goal ~ learn the causes of problems so you can avoid them in the first place. I live that idea here on the ranch ~ knowing that rain rot is caused by warm and moist conditions means I can avoid it by keeping the horses brushed out so that they dry quicker, clean so the dirt doesn't hold in moisture and healthy so their own systems can fight it off; knowing that intestinal parasites in my livestock can be controlled by worming at the right time, rotational grazing and keeping the concentration of animals low in each pasture means I can avoid horrible infestations and the associated health problems; etc., etc.

But no matter how many things I do to keep my animals healthy and provide all their needs, there still could come a time when drastic measures are needed. I prefer to learn about those drastic measures ahead of time so I can be ready should I need them ~ I know that listerine will kill rain rot, moxidectin will kill _any_ parasite, etc. I don't use those as a first line of defense since it doesn't make sense to do that ~ I'd be "chasing the dragon" that way. It makes more sense to keep your animals healthy (grow those plants! ) and avoid problems that way. Lots less stressful on everyone involved, including me.

So, with that in mind, I've been reading here (got my EI method info printed out), aquiring tools and supplies (got my Rex Grigg ferts, weight scale, bottles, etc.), got lights set up above some of the tanks and plans for more lights above the others (I've started low as I think that's better than blasting 4wpg from the beginning and wondering why I have algae), etc. I've already been practicing and learning from experience on the two tanks I've had set up the longest. Two tanks I think I've got under control pretty good ~ algae (diatoms, green water, hair algae, etc.), hydra and snail infestations crept up and I learned how to control them without resorting to much hand-picking or adding chemicals or "quick fix" cures. I learned, did it and it worked.

But in one tank I can't seem to get rid of the clado completely. I have gotten it to slow down it's growth considerably, but it's still there. I have a marimo ball in there, so the conditions that would kill out clado would also kill it since they're kissing cousins. I've been hand-picking it, but sometimes it gets a bit out of hand if I miss a spot one week.

So you can see that I AM addressing, to the best of my knowledge and research/learning ability, the reasons the algae is there in the first place and am also putting forth the effort to find and use a lasting solution instead of a "quick fix". Yet it's still there. What do you do then? IMHO, you find out about ALL ways to avoid it, control it and kill it, so that all of them put together may give you the best outcome.


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## fishymatty (Feb 25, 2007)

I have some interesting data from my experience. Green algae doesn't stand a chance to h2o2. As far as how much to use. I filled a 5cc syringe enough times to spot treat everything with algae on it. Probably 40cc total in a 38g tank. I know many will say too much but no problems with the fish. 
I spot treated with the filter off and did a water change about an 2 hours later.
I also was having the beginings of a staghorn and hair algae outbreak. The day after the h2o2 I dosed excel at the recommended amount for three days and turned up the co2 way high so I don't know what killed the staghorn and hair algae but from previous experience the green algae is toast.

The only thing that you have to consider is some plants are more sensitive to h2o2 and they may die if you use too much. IME glosso and HC get damaged but bounce back. Rotola gets damaged but not too much at all.
Those are the only plants that were damaged at all. IME


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## crazy loaches (Sep 29, 2006)

Thanks for the input fishmatty - BTW cc = mL (one of the nice things about the metric system) so your 40cc in 38g is ~1ml/gal which from what I can gather seems to be the norm.


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## fishymatty (Feb 25, 2007)

Well thats good to know. I thought I was using too much but I couldn't stop because it was just fizzing the algae away. It was sweet relief and I didn't want it to stop.
By the way I kept the co2 up high since and the algae has almost completely disappeared.
Obviously the best offence in a good defence so not having an algae problem in the first place is the way we all want it but since we all tend to over look certain things when we start out h2o2 is a good way to get back on track.


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## yellowshrimp (Jul 6, 2007)

I am also having bba issues. It showed up originally on a sword I got from my mom, thanks Mom I trimmed it off the leaves, now it is on my anubia nana and some ludwigia that is right next to the sword. I have no other algae, the tank has been up for at least 4 years. I use the EI method. Have 3 wpg in a 29 gallon tank, lights are on for 10.5 hrs. I use diy co2. The fish load is not heavy. Nitrates are around 5, I have hard water with a ph near 8. I have a few shrimp in this tank, so I really don't want to dose the tank with 
anything. I was thinking about doing a mild bleach dip, but what else should I do to keep this stuff from coming back? Is there anything specific I should look for in my water?


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## crazy loaches (Sep 29, 2006)

BBA is normaly an indicator of insufficient CO2 levels. Have you ever tried to measure your CO2? I think the best two methods are to either use a properly setup drop checker or take a sample of tank water out and let it gas-off all co2 (never tried this, I think letting it sit out for a day will suffice? or perhaps aerate it with a bubbler for a few hours?) and your pH in your tank should then be 1 point lower than your de-gassed sample to indicate that it had 30ppm CO2. How many bps of CO2 do you run? How do you diffuse it?


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## yellowshrimp (Jul 6, 2007)

It is diffused with the hagen bubble ladder. I use diy co2 and excel every other day. The degassed ph sample is a good idea. I should be able to do a ph test from the tap and from the tank to give me an idea of how much co2 is getting in. Thanks.


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

Great information on using H2O2:

http://www.gpodio.com/h2o2.asp


Mike


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## crazy loaches (Sep 29, 2006)

Momotaro said:


> Great information on using H2O2:
> 
> http://www.gpodio.com/h2o2.asp
> 
> ...


Yeah, that link was the only real source of 'directions' I found a while ago for using h2o2. I was going to include it but wanted some folks own opinions first, as I figured once that link was posted no one would contribute anymore. Anyhow I think some good suggestions have been brought up, and so far it has worked well for me and my thread algae. I sorta did a spot treatment although it was over a fairly large area so I couldnt really concentrate it one 1 or two small spots. I did the 1ml/g (maybe slightly higher) and shut off the filters for about 10-20 minutes. Two days in a row, and the third I did a partial treatment and ran out of peroxide. I wasnt as careful as spypet was about creating any movement, but its been a couple weeks now almost and I am not seeing any thread coming back yet. On my 10g I did 1 spot treatment on a large clump and it appears to be totally dead as well (but still elsewhere in the tank). I need to buy some more peroxide to finish that one up.

I still am curious about its plant-dip usefulness...  has anyone any opinions on it versus bleach dip?


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