Vodka For Algae Control

[fish are friends....]

the chemistry is correct (i think). The alcohol destroys the cell walls of the algae cells and causes them to burst due to osmotic lysis. This is when the cell takes in water by osmosis but can not cope with the pressure. (i think this is right anyway?!) lol

 

[forby3]

how about drinking the vodka whilst cleaning the algae off the tank

 

[Tarps]

i heard that lavender is supposed to get rid of algae. anyone else heard of this?

 

[markandhisfish]

drink enough of the vodka you wont be able to see the algae. and if you can you wont care

 

[Bignose]

why the search for a magic bullet against algae? Find what is causing it and remove that instead of looking to find something "magic" to add to the tank to remove it.

 

[RadaR]

why the search for a magic bullet against algae? Find what is causing it and remove that instead of looking to find something "magic" to add to the tank to remove it.

Amen!

 

[River Dog]

allow anerobic de-nitrifying bacteria to populate, which break nitrate into nitrogen gas and oxygen. This doesn't give them "

add vodka to the tank as a source of food for the de-nitrifying bacteria so that the de-nitifying bacteria can continue to effectively break down the nitrate.

But if the de nitrifying bacteria has a little too much, all hell breaks out in your tank, and it all ends up with drunken bacteria hanging around tank corners causing a nuisance even though they were given an asbo at their last court hearing.

 

[shahrezsyed]

yeah it,ll definitely work...two of my friends use it in their reef tanks.
shahrez

 

[Bignose]

yeah it,ll definitely work...two of my friends use it in their reef tanks.
shahrez

OK, here in the scientific section, this doesn't fly. "Two of my friends..." is the beginning of what can only be called anecdote -- the weakest form of evidence. Here in the scientific section, you must post strong evidence.

And, please please please don't think that I am singling you out shahrezsyed -- this whole thread is full of non-scientific stuff like this.

So, this is my plea as a new moderator to try to reign this section in a little bit.

To everyone: it is fine to post here, but the rules in this section are a little stricter than elsewhere. The rules are sticky threads at the top of this subforum -- though they need some cleanup that I plan to get to as soon as I can. But, the major rule here is that you are NOT allowed to post anecdote and simple personal opinion. In this section, we ask that you put a little bit of effort into finding evidence to support your claim, your personal opinion, your point of view. And you must cite that evidence. You have to cite it so that other people have the opportunity to look at it and review it for themselves. Otherwise, you MUST preface your post with something like "this is just my opinion" or "in my personal experience". And, if a thread only has stuff like that, I move it to Tropical Discussion, because it isn't scientific.

Thanks all, and I hope that this section can remain unique and a valuable resource to fishkeeping and this forum.

 

[RadaR]

I thought my reply was spot on but others seem to have missed it...

This sort of thing would only work in a marine tank.
In marine tanks, the owners strive to decrease the nitrate levels as much as possible. Areas in the rock and sand where there is no oxygen allow anerobic de-nitrifying bacteria to populate, which break nitrate into nitrogen gas and oxygen. This doesn't give them "food" (unlike what happens with nitrifying bacteria when the two types breakdown ammonia to nitrite, then nitrite to nitrate), therefore to ensure maximum efficiency, marine owners may add vodka to the tank as a source of food for the de-nitrifying bacteria so that the de-nitifying bacteria can continue to effectively break down the nitrate. Lower levels on nitrates in marine tanks seem to minimize the algae.
In freshwater aquariums this doesn't work anywhere near as effectively and it's not worth the hassle and would probably give more problems than you had originally.

 

[Musho3210]

To re-iterate what Radar said, but in a much longer and scientific article, refer to this:
<a href="http/reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php" target="_blank">http/reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-08/nftt/index.php</a>

Many use it, including me, and, it didnt get my fish drunk , well then again i would not be able to tell cause even when they are sober they cant swim in a straight line. Other examples include vinegar (acetic acid), sugar (sucrose), and vitamin C (ascorbic acid).

Oh yeah, its not really vodka dosing in my opinion, because you dont need to use vodka, vodka is just the most common pure source of ethanol, and ethanol is what you are dosing. 191 proof Everclear works great as well.

 

[Jonathangerous]

A few things;

to whomever said that the best way to rid a tank of algae is to maintain appropriate tank params--that's spot on. Everyone should take that advice.

That being said, algae is not necessarily a bad thing. They help uptake nitrogenous compounds more or less as efficiently as higher plants, depending on the conditions. Often, they run rampant because your macro/micronutrient levels are so low that you effectively starve out the competing plant life in the tank. Thus, in some ways, it is an indicator of good water quality maintenance (not always, but this is why you often see algae encrusted breeding tanks owned by even the most reputable breeders/aquaculturists). Also, they act as a culturing medium for microbiota/fauna that certain fish might find delectable.


"This doesn't give them "food" (unlike what happens with nitrifying bacteria when the two types breakdown ammonia to nitrite, then nitrite to nitrate)"

Neither freshwater nor saltwater aerobic or anaerobic NOB/AOBs utilize nitrogenous compounds to provide them with biomass--both are used exclusively for energy, so, depending on how you view it, both obtain food from nitrate, or neither do.

Plecos are terrible algae eaters in the sense that even the best algae eaters in the loricariidae family only feed on a select few kinds of the stuff. They should not be maintained exclusively as an algae controller, as chances are, they'll be getting an insufficient diet. Also, gold nuggets (baryancistrus spp.) are supposed to be herbivores (by and large). Feeding them an excess of meaty foods will do harm to their bioprocesses. Like all other limnivorous plecs, if they encounter a choice bit of protein, which is somewhat rare in the wild, they will pounce on the opportunity to take it up--but only as a dietary supplement, not as a main course, so to speak.