I will be buying a bunch of new plants in an upcoming auction to start my first planted tank. Since these plants come from fish tanks (not fishless nurseries), there is vulnerability of introducing ick or snails to my established tanks. Is it OK to soak the plants in water treated with Rid Ick (malachite green and formalin formula) over night before planting.
Quarantining new plants
- Thread starter viejafish
- Start date
Yea usually soak for a few minutes (3-5) then rinse off with dechlorinated water. If still has any odor or discoloration then rinse again. Then can add to ur main tank.
Most advise qt for several weeks to make sure.
Most advise qt for several weeks to make sure.
I am thinking of soaking the plants in a bucket over night, not just a few minutes. I will dose it the same amount as to treat fish and rinse afterward. Will it be harmful to the plant.
I know quarantining for a week is best, but I don't have a set up to do it.
I know quarantining for a week is best, but I don't have a set up to do it.
I would advise quarantine for several weeks as well...with frequent water changes to wash away snails once they hatch. No matter how much care I took, I find myself picking off pond snails almost daily. I don't mind the ramshorn & trumpet snails, but can't stand those pond snails because they multiply so rapidly.
I cant say how the plants will react to MG, since I havent dipped with MG myself. I would just watch the plants if you are more comfortable with a 24hr soak. I think by dipping/soaking you cut down the parasite load substantially but there could be unhatched parasites that will/could emerge. So just depends how safe you wanna be. Another option is to just separate plants to a quarantine tank without fish for a couple weeks and separate the parasites from a host. What plants are talking about? Some will be more sensitive to meds.
I am thinking about java fern, anubias, crypts, vals and amazon sword, something tough to withstand abuse, yet easy to grow under low light and preferrably no substrate. I also like moss and cabomba, but doubt that can withstand abuse. My quarantine containers are buckets in the dark, so I can't do 2 weeks quarantine. My Rid Ick label says nothing about plant safety, this is why I ask. But it says don't use for invertebrates, implying that it must be good for eliminating snails, ick and other pathogen larvae.
Hello; some months ago I was fighting outbreaks of slime algae ( cyanobacter) in my tanks. It was suggested that I make up a weak Clorox solution dip. The process was described as needing three buckets (if I recall correctly). Dip the plants in one bucket of Clorox solution briefly, then into a bucket of water and then into a bucket of Prime (or safe) solution.
I do not recall the suggested strength of the Clorox solution nor the time of the dip. maybe a search.
For what it is worth I may have solved the slime algae issue. At least for a year or so now. I broke down my tanks one at a time and used Clorox on all the hard parts including the substrate.
The live plants and snails were put into five gallon buckets with a stout erythromycin solution while the tank cleaning was ongoing. Maybe three days or so using one capsule of EM in four gallons of water.
All the hard parts were treated with Prime when the tanks were set up.
I also reduced the lighted time of the photoperiod to around 12 hours or less. I think the shorter light period may be a big factor as well as having lots of snails.
I do not recall the suggested strength of the Clorox solution nor the time of the dip. maybe a search.
For what it is worth I may have solved the slime algae issue. At least for a year or so now. I broke down my tanks one at a time and used Clorox on all the hard parts including the substrate.
The live plants and snails were put into five gallon buckets with a stout erythromycin solution while the tank cleaning was ongoing. Maybe three days or so using one capsule of EM in four gallons of water.
All the hard parts were treated with Prime when the tanks were set up.
I also reduced the lighted time of the photoperiod to around 12 hours or less. I think the shorter light period may be a big factor as well as having lots of snails.
I would say cabomba will probably be the most difficult; its never been an easy one for me. Other people may have better luck but I've lost a few on transplant
I've read online on one of the planted tank forums that many use a mild bleach or hydrogen peroxide solution on their plants.