# Cleaning moss from BBA



## Mac120 (Sep 21, 2012)

hi
I received a rare barbula sp. Milimetermoos and there are Clados + Black Brush algaes sticking on it. The Clados didnt disturb me and can be pickep up manually, but the BBA makes me some concerns because this stuff seems to highjack and take over the moos.

So how can I get ridd off the BBA without damaging the moos?
(i know spottreating Excel will kill BBA, but i don´t know how sensitive this moos is and so i don´t want to try such things)

Would it help to put the moos for some weeks in a small water box without much light and ferts?


And a general question, would putting any moos for some days in a fridge kill BBA?


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

I assume you mean moss instead of "moos".

I don't think BBA can be removed from the moss by putting them in the fridge. I doubt you can kill BBA by cutting down on light for several weeks. BBA is very hardy.

Excel and bleach will kill BBA and moss at the same time. It's not an option if you're scared of killing the moss.

The other option is a hard and tedious one if you have too much BBA on the moss - manually trim any part of the moss affected by BBA.

Using juvenile SAE is another option. Adult SAE will not work because they prefer fish food. However bear in mind that SAE will also eat part of your moss. If you have only small portion of moss, I won't recommend it but if you have a lot of moss, I don't think the SAE can consume everything so easily.

I personally will not use any moss too badly affected by any algae because it will eventually create more problem in the long run - wasting my time and effort setting up the tank to be destroyed by algae.


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## Mac120 (Sep 21, 2012)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*



> I personally will not use any moss too badly affected by any algae because it will eventually create more problem in the long run - wasting my time and effort setting up the tank to be destroyed by algae.


yes, that´t right.
weeks ago i received another rare moss (any fissidens mini nobilli stuff or whatever so) and this moss also had much BBA sticking on it. I putted it in my tank and noticed after some weeks that the BBA starts to spread around in my tank. The tank is well cycled and since 4years algaefree, never had BBA bevore and very annoying indeed. 

so i want to make it this time smarter and killing BBa bevore putting the moss in the tank.
I still don´t have any good idea how to get ridd off it, SAE are fish - or?
If yes, they are too huge.

What is about Taia naticoides?
I have read many times that this snails eat BBA, but is this true?


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

SAE is Siamese Algae Eater. Yes, the fish can grow rather big. Max 6 inches/15 cm. They are also jumpers. Usually in my country, people keep the juvenile ones only to fight algae. When they grow up, they're often given away or naturally they will commit suicide by jumping off any tank without a hood.

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/algae-control/siamese.php

Taia naticoides - I tried to google for it and found out it's a type of snails that I had not come across. Maybe someone else can help to provide a better comment on it.

Are there a lot of BBA on the moss? If you intend to throw away, I would suggest you try to dip it in a water with non-perfumed bleach. Since you intend to throw it away, there's no harm trying this drastic action. Who knows you may get lucky that some will survive without BBA.


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## blue thumb (Mar 30, 2010)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

Feeder goldfish works. I put a lot of Java Ferns Java Moss into my feeder tank I keep outside that had a lot of BBA algae growing on it. The Goldfish cleaned up the BBA but don't eat the Moss or Ferns.


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## herns (Aug 28, 2007)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

Its hard to get rid of BBA growing in the moss.
The only way to get rid of them is to fix your lights, co2 and dosing.
excel may help but dont dose directly. It will kill the moss.


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## Mac120 (Sep 21, 2012)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

hi,
I finally decided to throw away the Moss after realizing that the BBA attachs the filter pump and ...surprise: The Co2 Flipper. (plants are not affected) Well, I don´t think that increasing Co2 can fix this algae if it likes to attach the Co2 Flipper. So, I spotthreathed it with H202 and the BBA died like you can see, but it didnt last long and continues attaching Filter pump/Flipper. I think the algae is in a spore stage and will now try 2x overdosing Excel in the watercolomn and also putted some ramshorn snails into the tank, if this will not help - I think i will do a 1 Part Excel:10 Part water theadment for 15minutes and then making a huge waterchange to get finally ridd of it.
Very annoying situation, because it is my test tank that I am running without doing any waterchanges. The tank never had any algaes before and now the stuff is there. :roll: It was so unbelievible stupid to put a BBA infected moss into a clean tank and to keep it. I learned my lesson right now, because seems to be a nasty and disturbing algae.


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## totziens (Jun 28, 2008)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

Ramshorn snails do not help eliminating BBA. In fact BBA can even grow on the shell of ramshorn snails


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## Mac120 (Sep 21, 2012)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

Young Raimshorn snails eat BBA only if the algae is weaken.
This snails can sometimes help in a very early stage. Certainly, if the algae enters the full size, this snails don´t help anymore. So it is imo importand to get directly controll (with Excel) over the algae. Excel weaken the BBA and if the snails eat it = it can´t spread anymore (spores).


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## Mac120 (Sep 21, 2012)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*



> Excel and bleach will kill BBA and moss at the same time. It's not an option if you're scared of killing the moss.


Meanwhile I found a simple solution to kill BBA and not the moss.
Just put it in a small water box (outside the tank) and dose some copper sulfate there, because BBA seems pretty sensitive against it. The right dose will just kill the BBA and it will not do any harm or damage the moss.
After the moss is algaefree, just let it sit a few days in fresh water and rinse it, then put it back to the tank.


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## Yo-han (Oct 15, 2010)

If the BBA is on Fissidens, just leave it outside of the tank for a month. The BBA will die but the moss will grow on after being places submersed again


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## Mac120 (Sep 21, 2012)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

Moss was Barbula sp., it grows very slow. I don´t know if this moss can be grown emersed?
Copper itself took1-2weeks to get ridd off each attached BBA.
Excel and things like that don´t work good for BBA cleaning, it destroyed algae and moss.


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## Yo-han (Oct 15, 2010)

*Re: Cleaning moos from BBA*

Fissidens is not an emerse moss as well. But it didn't die, so you can try it with a small piece. Other option would be increasing tank condition. And when the moss has grown enough you could take the new moss and get rid of the old: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/algae/87902-cause-solution-bba.html


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