# The dreaded bga



## MCFC (Feb 12, 2017)

Looks like it's on the rock too? 

I turn my filters to low, hit it with a heavy dose of H2O2, wait ~10 mins, hit it with a heavy dose of Excel, then turn my filters back to their normal flow. After a day or two it's gone and I don't see it again until I screw something up, again.


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

MCFC said:


> Looks like it's on the rock too?
> 
> I turn my filters to low, hit it with a heavy dose of H2O2, wait ~10 mins, hit it with a heavy dose of Excel, then turn my filters back to their normal flow. After a day or two it's gone and I don't see it again until I screw something up, again.


What's on the rock is actually dye from Rid ich+ but it could be mixed in with that, I'm gonna pull the parva out as there's really no need to try to grow a carpet in gravel from what I've read, I just don't understand how I got it my tank is ultra oxygenated. 

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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

I've read about the h2o2 but they say only use 3% solution, I have excel but stopped using it because of the negative impacts on fish and plants not to mention it isn't co2, do i fog the areas affected with a spray bottle or something? 

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## MCFC (Feb 12, 2017)

The typical H2O2 you buy from a pharmacy is 3%, should say so on the bottle.

Can you explain the negative impacts of Excel on fish and plants? I know some plants, like vallisneria, can melt from it, but they can also be trained to be tolerant by starting at small doses and working up. It's true, some people use Excel as a low-grade alternative to pressurized CO2, but it's main use is as an algaecide.

I use a plastic syringe with airline tubing attached to the end. I just recently had a 3x3" spot of BGA pop up in my high tech tank. I hit it with ~24ml H2O2 and about 12ml Excel. It fizzled and popped for a few minutes. Didn't see it the next day and haven't seen it since. Funnily enough there was another little spot on the other side of the tank that also disappeared the next day.


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

MCFC said:


> The typical H2O2 you buy from a pharmacy is 3%, should say so on the bottle.
> 
> Can you explain the negative impacts of Excel on fish and plants? I know some plants, like vallisneria, can melt from it, but they can also be trained to be tolerant by starting at small doses and working up. It's true, some people use Excel as a low-grade alternative to pressurized CO2, but it's main use is as an algaecide.
> 
> I use a plastic syringe with airline tubing attached to the end. I just recently had a 3x3" spot of BGA pop up in my high tech tank. I hit it with ~24ml H2O2 and about 12ml Excel. It fizzled and popped for a few minutes. Didn't see it the next day and haven't seen it since. Funnily enough there was another little spot on the other side of the tank that also disappeared the next day.


Here's a post I copied from a guy that has researched it extensively, I also have a pdf of scientific research done in fish and plants from glutaraldehyde, excel names it something different but there's no such thing.










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## MCFC (Feb 12, 2017)

It's tough to understand what you wrote there: "five in fish", "excel babes"? But Excel being glut is well known, and like I said, poor man's CO2 but effective algaecide...

"acute toxicity for plants and animals in the wrong dose" - same with just about everything in this world  

"accumulative damage on a cellular level... over time." - how much time? 

I've never seen any damage to plants (except val) or fish from Excel, but I also don't use it that much. I recommend using H2O2 and then Excel, much more effective than just H2O2 alone. I don't recommend removing your substrate and sterilizing it. But if you did, what would you sterilize it with that doesn't cause acute toxicity for plants and animals in the wrong dose and that doesn't cause accumulative damage on a cellular level over time?


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

MCFC said:


> It's tough to understand what you wrote there: "five in fish", "excel babes"? But Excel being glut is well known, and like I said, poor man's CO2 but effective algaecide...
> 
> "acute toxicity for plants and animals in the wrong dose" - same with just about everything in this world
> 
> ...


Yeah I corrected my typos, here's the pdf if you want to read the scientific data of the affects on plants and fish, I was actually referring to People who dose it daily thinking it's co2 which it is not lol.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c8FYCvd5hiS36ONwr6JAq0qJFOGfoGUl/view?usp=drivesdk

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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

So I got some more advice which I'm confused about, I was told not to do anything right now just up my husbandry for a few weeks to manually remove it, if it doesn't go away then use a product called chemiclean, I was advised to not use h2o2 as many people have killed fish doing it, also I was advised to add many more plants to the tank as I use a robust nutrient dosing and have a very strong light, which in turns I guess means more plants = no algae, im still super new to this so maybe explain how more plants will stop bga? 

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## mgeorges (Feb 1, 2017)

p0tluck said:


> So I got some more advice which I'm confused about, I was told not to do anything right now just up my husbandry for a few weeks to manually remove it, if it doesn't go away then use a product called chemiclean, I was advised to not use h2o2 as many people have killed fish doing it, also I was advised to add many more plants to the tank as I use a robust nutrient dosing and have a very strong light, which in turns I guess means more plants = no algae, im still super new to this so maybe explain how more plants will stop bga?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk


I'd honestly recommend you just go straight to erythromycin, easiest and most effective treatment in my opinion. API E.M. Erythromycin is what I've used with great results. We're dealing with a bacteria, antibiotics kill bacteria, erythromycin is an antibiotic. That being said, erythromycin will not kill your beneficial bacteria as long as it is used properly.


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## MCFC (Feb 12, 2017)

Lol. This reminds me of a certain man and his watches...


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

MCFC said:


> Lol. This reminds me of a certain man and his watches...


I don't know what that means, I'm simply trying to find the safest way, I have very rare and uncommon rainbows I can't risk killing them , I did my water change and everything vacuumed out, I don't know if bga Vacs out, as I stated I'm super new 5 months into the plants, but been keeping fish for about 6 years now.



mgeorges said:


> I'd honestly recommend you just go straight to erythromycin, easiest and most effective treatment in my opinion. API E.M. Erythromycin is what I've used with great results. We're dealing with a bacteria, antibiotics kill bacteria, erythromycin is an antibiotic. That being said, erythromycin will not kill your beneficial bacteria as long as it is used properly.


I did look for erythromycin but I cannot find it anywhere so I guess there's seachem meds that do the same thing?

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## MCFC (Feb 12, 2017)

It was a reference to @jeffkrol and the recent discussion of Segal's Law: A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure. 

You've been told H2O2 + Excel is effective. You've been told H2O2 and Excel will both kill your fish. You've been told to use erythromycin. 

You seem to be collecting watches...

You need to do some of your own research and decide what the important *facts* are. I'd start with what happens to H2O2 when introduced to H2O...


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

MCFC said:


> It was a reference to @jeffkrol and the recent discussion of Segal's Law: A man with a watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure.
> 
> You've been told H2O2 + Excel is effective. You've been told H2O2 and Excel will both kill your fish. You've been told to use .
> erythromycin
> ...


I have it turns to oxygen, I don't even know if it was bga as when I did my water change it all vacuumed up, liked like thin sheets of green slime, I will use excel only for spot treatment of plants, what I meant about excel is for those who dose it every day thinking they are adding co2 when they aren't and are only hurting their plants and fish in the long run, I talked to many people about h2o2 and they've all said they would steer clear of it for "bga" and use either better husbandry, or erythromycin or doxycycline, dennis recommended more plant mass /chemiclean 

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## MCFC (Feb 12, 2017)

Good luck with all those watches haha! 


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

MCFC said:


> Good luck with all those watches haha!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Did you not ask for multiple opinions when you first started? I know you mean well and such but I literally just started plants (5 months) but I've had my fish 6 years 

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## Quagulator (May 4, 2015)

Chemiclean, 2 doses. BGA Gone.

I threw everything, literally everything at my tank with BGA. 

I got it under control and I was on top of it, but it was ALWAYS still there, no matter what I did it was slowly creeping along.

2 does of chemiclean and it has been gone ever since.


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## p0tluck (Feb 17, 2017)

Quagulator said:


> Chemiclean, 2 doses. BGA Gone.
> 
> I threw everything, literally everything at my tank with BGA.
> 
> ...


Ty sir, it's been recommended to me by you as well as Dennis as well as a few others, if what I had was in fact bga that's now gone but if it returns I will use this product. 

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## mgeorges (Feb 1, 2017)

p0tluck said:


> I have it turns to oxygen, I don't even know if it was bga as when I did my water change it all vacuumed up, liked like thin sheets of green slime, I will use excel only for spot treatment of plants, what I meant about excel is for those who dose it every day thinking they are adding co2 when they aren't and are only hurting their plants and fish in the long run, I talked to many people about h2o2 and they've all said they would steer clear of it for "bga" and use either better husbandry, or erythromycin or doxycycline, dennis recommended more plant mass /chemiclean
> 
> Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk


https://www.aquariumcoop.com/products/e-m-erythromycin

Here's your Erythromycin. Buy it, use it, problem solved. 
What you described with it coming up in slimy sheets is exactly what cyanobacteria does, and what you show in your picture is cyanobacteria.

Edit - Never used Chemiclean, so if that's also a great option, cool. Like Quagulator, everything else I did was a band-aid, only Erythromycin fixed it.


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## milesm (Apr 4, 2006)

i've used blue-green slime stain remover by ultralife reef products. cleared up after just 1 dose. erythromycin is a band-aid and so is bgssr. upped kno3 and aeration in the tank and the bga has not returned. wary of h202 and antibiotics for the negative impact on beneficial bacteria.


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