This Works on BBA!

[bellatrixferox]

Hi there,
Just wanted to share this because I had really good results getting rid of black beard/black brush algae.

I bought a used tank off of Craigslist about 8 months ago that came with live plants. When I got it there was already BBA on the plants and on the water intake, which I didn't think much of. I thought once I got a pleco it would get rid of it (keep in mind, this was my first tank lol).

The problem seemed to get worse and the pleco only occasionally touched the BBA. The first thing I did that seemed to help was to reduce the temp from 80 to about 77-78. Still...the stuff is pretty unsightly so I searched for a way to kill it.

I decided to use the 7 parts water to 1 part bleach dip method. So this is what I did:
1 bucket with the bleach mix. I took each plant/decoration out and soaked it in this bucket for 3-6 minutes. After the timer went off, I rinsed each item in tap water, and then soaked it in a bucket filled with fresh water and decholorinator for at least 5 minutes. After the time was up in the "rinse" bucket, I placed each item on a counter to dry for another 5 minutes. I kept this whole system in rotation until each item out of the tank had been through this process. While I was doing this I also did a water change in the tank, not sparing the decholorinator, and did a very in depth gravel vacuuming (nothing in the tank made it pretty easy!).

I also had to do the water water intake and the bubbler hose (yes, it was that bad).

I felt pretty triumphant because it was like a BBA genoicde, my rinse bucket was totally red from dying BBA. Everything that I dipped has little to no BBA on it, or it is all white/grey. Now I just hope it doesn't come back lol...
I'm going to add a CO2 booster every day which will hopefully help prevent other big outbreak. I just wish I had taken before and after pics!

 

[Brian_Nano12g]

Glad you got rid of your BBA -- feels good to triumph over all forms of algae, especially when you encounter a certain type for the first time. Anyway.... bleach dipping is effective but IMO should be a last resort when other 'safer' methods have been exhausted. Bleach is really harsh and if there's any trace of it left, it can be detrimental in your tank.

Just as an alternative suggestion here, BBA is treatable with a syringe of 3% solution Hydrogen Peroxide. You can turn off your filter so there's no flow in the tank and simply inject the H202 directly on the BBA... You'll notice a bubbling effect and literately see the BBA sizzle (well bubble). After 2 to 3 repeated treatments, the BBA turns red and dies off. H202 almost immediately converts to water and oxygen. So if used in moderation, there will be no harm to your fish and plants. I forget the exact dose, but I believe it's safe (correct me if I'm wrong) at 3mL/gallon.

 

[Paul1792]

bba on artifical plants / Will Flourish Excel help ??

The water in my 38 gallon tank is crystal clear and tests out "excellent" at Petland and home test strips. I have only a few goldfish and a Pleco (baby that grew to 7"). All my "lants" are artificial "silk" plants which are covered by bba and it keeps getting worse despite regular siphoning & PWC's.

When my old Tetra 30-60 (300 gal/hr) filter "crapped out," I discovered it was a virtual breeding ground for bba (black beard algae). So since I am starting with a new, clean Aqua Tech 30-60 (330 gal/hr) filter, , I decided to
to remove all my plants and driftwood and soak them in Hydrogen Peroxide or Bleach solution to rid the tank of the problem.

I notice that after a bleach or peroxide treatment to rid themselves of the problem, many people add Flourish Excel to the water to prevents BBA from recurring. Most user testimonials I see are with live plant aquariums. Will Excel also help in an aquarium with no live plants.

Note: I believe I am experiencing the bba issue due to direct sunlight hitting one side of the aquarium in the morning so I plan to cover the affected side and keep my lighting on only 6 hours a day.

The new Aqua Tech filter is a bit noisy and the filtering media is pretty "lame" so I am looking at a Fluval C4 HOB unit with its five stage filtering and all kinds of gizmo additives. Does anyone have experience with a Fluval C series helping to stop the growth of bba ??

Oh, and thanks Brian for suggesting I post to a different thread than the last one I did.