Moss In The Water

[Bagwan]

My wife loves her little blue fish that are kept in three large jars in which water lilies (lotus?) grow. Every other day I have to clear out a lot of slimy mossy stuff. We have emptied out the jars and scrubbed them thoroughly and hosed down the lilies to try to get rid of the moss but it returns within 3 or 4 days. The local pet shop which specialises in fish has been unable to recommend a chemical which will kill the moss but not harm the fish or plants. Can anybody help?

[meandwi]

My wife loves her little blue fish that are kept in three large jars in which water lilies (lotus?) grow. Every other day I have to clear out a lot of slimy mossy stuff. We have emptied out the jars and scrubbed them thoroughly and hosed down the lilies to try to get rid of the moss but it returns within 3 or 4 days. The local pet shop which specialises in fish has been unable to recommend a chemical which will kill the moss but not harm the fish or plants. Can anybody help?

Have you tried sucker fish and snails?

[Bagwan]

My wife loves her little blue fish that are kept in three large jars in which water lilies (lotus?) grow. Every other day I have to clear out a lot of slimy mossy stuff. We have emptied out the jars and scrubbed them thoroughly and hosed down the lilies to try to get rid of the moss but it returns within 3 or 4 days. The local pet shop which specialises in fish has been unable to recommend a chemical which will kill the moss but not harm the fish or plants. Can anybody help?

Have you tried sucker fish and snails?

No, but will make enquiries.

Why are they called sucker fish? Do they get ripped off too?

[Steve2UK]

I agree with the suggestion of sucker fish - they're the ones that you see attaching themselves to the glass of the fish tanks in the shop. Water snails likewise - both will graze on the algae (which is what the "moss" is").

The treatments I have seen in the UK designed to deal with algae (where fish/plants are present) all seemed to be mainly a blue dye - to reduce the amount of sunlight reaching the algae. Basically, any chemical strong enough to kill algae is highly likely to also affect/kill fish and plants. The solution is more often to improve the balance - less sunlight going into the water; a good balance is usually about 50-70% of the surface area covered by floating plants e.g. water lilies and also others with roots that go down into the water. The other part of the equation is to reduce the amount of nutrient in the water; more food for the fish = more fish poo = more phosphate = more algae. I wonder if maybe your wife is giving them too much food too often? BTW, the floating plants with suspended roots (e.g. water hyacinth) will thrive by taking in a lot of the excess nutrient - to the extent that you'll need to thin then out after a while - so using those kills two birds with one stone.

I don't know if your blue fish are eating at least a little of the algae/moss. I get just a few strands building up on the plants in my small pond and my assorted goldfish-type fish graze on it. Might be worth asking in a pet-shop that sells fish for ones that "graze" like mine.

The only other approach that comes to mind is a high-tech UV filter system that will kill the algae as the water passes through it. Doesn't seem practical for what you're describing.

Take a look at the following links - they're more about pond algae but the principles of dealing with it are pretty much the same:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cl...;articleid=2259

http://www.naturalsolutionsetc.com/garden-...gae-control.htm

Edited October 1, 2008 by Steve2UK

[dumball]

My wife loves her little blue fish that are kept in three large jars in which water lilies (lotus?) grow. Every other day I have to clear out a lot of slimy mossy stuff. We have emptied out the jars and scrubbed them thoroughly and hosed down the lilies to try to get rid of the moss but it returns within 3 or 4 days. The local pet shop which specialises in fish has been unable to recommend a chemical which will kill the moss but not harm the fish or plants. Can anybody help?

We had a similar problem that did not clear up even with the cat-fish , it just grew too fast , most of the cause , we found out , was that it came in the tap water , so we switched to purified water and now the tank stays clear .

[Bagwan]

Many thanks for your interest and replies. I will give the fresh water snails a miss as I don't fancy wrestling with Bill Harzia but will supplement the plants and advise she who does the ironing to go easy on feeding.

[Knightsbridge]

Many thanks for your interest and replies. I will give the fresh water snails a miss as I don't fancy wrestling with Bill Harzia but will supplement the plants and advise she who does the ironing to go easy on feeding.

NOO!!!Not a good idea to get snails as they carry thir waterborne disease which kills off your fish ... 2 years I reccommended snails to a fishowner friend to clear the algal growth in the glass aaquarium. (works in NZ).. she bought them and for a week they kept back the growth... but then the snails just pegged it and then the lovely big fish went into a slow detah. The friend consulted a petshop owner who advised her Thai snails bring disease....