Is it safe and acceptable to use hydrogen peroxide on BGA?

[Byron]

Well, my only comment on this is, why do you want to stress out your fish even more by moving them for no reason? There are safe ways to deal with this. Have patience.

 

[Rocky998]

Well, my only comment on this is, why do you want to stress out your fish even more by moving them for no reason? There are safe ways to deal with this. Have patience.

True but Ive been treating it now for quite some time (about 2-3 weeks) and the cyano has made only a little progress in dying... Some has died off but definitely not much...

So what should I do to help it along further?

 

[BrianK]

Maybe I should take the fish out and put them in with the large fry in my 10g and use a strong dose of hydrogen peroxide and kill off all that algae... Then do a big water change or two and let the tank ready itself and then put them back in

You can do that but remember you will be crashing your cycle too.

 

[Rocky998]

You can do that but remember you will be crashing your cycle too.

Oh the peroxide would kill all the good bacteria?

 

[Byron]

True but Ive been treating it now for quite some time (about 2-3 weeks) and the cyano has made only a little progress in dying... Some has died off but definitely not much...

So what should I do to help it along further?

Two or three weeks is nothing here, that's one problem so many have in this hobby...they see a "problem" (which may or may not even be a problem, another issue) and our societal instinct tells us we can get rid of it overnight by using chemicals. None of these things are "safe," they are foreign to the fish and worse.

I took probably 3 months with cyano, can't remember, but I know I used my fingers to loosen all I could see at each weekly water change (it sinks to the substrate or some surface as it falls), then I did a major water change vacuuming up all I could see. I stopped plant liquid fert for just a few weeks, and I was very careful to feed way less. I kept the canister filter cleaned more than usual. It did disappear.

 

[Rocky998]

Two or three weeks is nothing here, that's one problem so many have in this hobby...they see a "problem" (which may or may not even be a problem, another issue) and our societal instinct tells us we can get rid of it overnight by using chemicals. None of these things are "safe," they are foreign to the fish and worse.

I took probably 3 months with cyano, can't remember, but I know I used my fingers to loosen all I could see at each weekly water change (it sinks to the substrate or some surface as it falls), then I did a major water change vacuuming up all I could see. I stopped plant liquid fert for just a few weeks, and I was very careful to feed way less. I kept the canister filter cleaned more than usual. It did disappear.

Ah ok... I thought mine was just being stubborn. Good to hear it normally takes a bit!

 

[Alice B]

Hm ok... I could see that but it's on all my rock scape and on sections of my wood... So basically I'd be spot treating ALL over the tank

I used to pull my live rock out of the reef and treat with peroxide over the kitchen sink, then rinse with dechlorinated water and put back

 

[Rocky998]

I used to pull my live rock out of the reef and treat with peroxide over the kitchen sink, then rinse with dechlorinated water and put back

I guess I could take everything out and put it in a bucket with peroxide...
Good idea!

 

[Alice B]

I just found some red brush on the tips of my anubias leaves. I know it can handle a bleach water dip (like 2%) but I might try dipping the plant leaves in a peroxide mix instead this time

 

[Rocky998]

So I removed MOST all the rocks on Wednesday and put them into a bucket with a strong hydrogen peroxide/water mix. The rocks still have LIVE BGA on them! How!?!?!? Shouldn't it be dead?? How strong is this stuff??? My goodness...

 

[BrianK]

It might be dead. How can you even tell if it is alive or not. It will either grow or slowly disappear.

 

[Rocky998]

It might be dead. How can you even tell if it is alive or not. It will either grow or slowly disappear.

I thought it would die off by turning a different color or at least fall off quickly...

 

[Alice B]

after peroxide apply toothbrush vigorously, then rinse rock and put back

 

[GaryE]

BGA isn't BGA - it's a bacteria. It works differently than algae. How tough is it? It was a very early creator of oxygen on the planet. It is ancient and it has survived. You are trying to eliminate a life form hundreds of millions of years old in a few days. Of course it will, and can put up a fight!

In many places, it comes with the water in season. I've dealt with Cyanobacter since my first tank 56 years ago, and it'll be in aquariums long after I'm gone. There are no quick solutions, no poisons that eliminate it, no convenience.

In one of my 10 gallon tanks housing a pair of killies, I have an air driven filter, a thin layer of pool filter gravel and 2 acrylic egg collecting mops at the back of the tank. At the front, on the gravel, I have a hollow centred circle of dark cyano. I've removed the affected gravel, and it returns to the same place, and only that place, very quickly. It's always the same shape. I guess it's lighting, as the bacteria photosynthesizes. It's quirky.

 

[Rocky998]

BGA isn't BGA - it's a bacteria. It works differently than algae. How tough is it? It was a very early creator of oxygen on the planet. It is ancient and it has survived. You are trying to eliminate a life form hundreds of millions of years old in a few days. Of course it will, and can put up a fight!

In many places, it comes with the water in season. I've dealt with Cyanobacter since my first tank 56 years ago, and it'll be in aquariums long after I'm gone. There are no quick solutions, no poisons that eliminate it, no convenience.

In one of my 10 gallon tanks housing a pair of killies, I have an air driven filter, a thin layer of pool filter gravel and 2 acrylic egg collecting mops at the back of the tank. At the front, on the gravel, I have a hollow centred circle of dark cyano. I've removed the affected gravel, and it returns to the same place, and only that place, very quickly. It's always the same shape. I guess it's lighting, as the bacteria photosynthesizes. It's quirky.

I knew about that but dang... That's crazy that it comes back in that same spot and you just can't seem to rid of it!...

Yah I guess one of the worlds first bacteria would put up a strong fight lol. I will probably scrub them today if I have time...