"Tynk" wrote in message
ups.com...
On Oct 30, 7:34?pm, "Bill Stock" wrote:
I've got a horrendous outbreak of BGA in my Goldfish tank. It's gotten so
bad it plugs the filter screens every week and now the sink drain is
plugged.

So I plucked the large Sword out of my office tank (20 G) and put in a
bowl
of gravel in the GF tank. I'm hoping it's big enough to outgrow the GF
nibbling and reduce the Nitrates. It was getting way too big for the
office
anyway. The first day I put it in the tank they hid in the other corner
away
from the large green thing. But now they have discovered that it's
covered
in Snails as they cruise through the leaves. I was informed that they did
not want their food today. No wonder, they've been eating Escargot all
day.

In the past they've pretty much destroyed everything I put in the tank
with
them; they either eat it or dig it up. It does not matter that they are
not
supposed to like that variety of plant. I was watching them swim by the
plant tonight and they were giving me the "who us, eat your plant" look.
LOL.

We shall see.

Sorry I didn't read your post until now, but the subject (sword
plants) isn't where my knowledge is.
Outside the house...I have a gorgeous flower garden...inside the house
and fish tanks....I can kill the *un-killable* plants. = /
However, your problem with BGA (Cyanobacteria) is easily cured Maracyn
(1) or any straight erythromicin antibiotic.
However, it has to be that one, not some other antibiotic.
If you are having nitrate problems, you need to up your water changes,
gravel vacuuming, and figure out why.
What size tank is it, and how many (sizes too) Goldies do you have in
it?
When it comes to Cyanobacteria, you have 2 options. Kill it or battle
it.
To kill it, you treat it with antibiotics, just like any other
bacterial infection. To battle it, you'll need to keep pristine water,
starve it of nitrates, no sunlight, turn your lights off for longer
periods of time, and check your phosphate level.
Cyano feeds off all 3, but only needs one to keep it thriving.


Yes Erythromycin will kill off BGA.

Oddly enough I gave my filters a thorough cleaning (discovered the intake
tubes were partially blocked) and the BGA has all but gone. BGA hates
current too. It was hiding some other type of algae, like string algae, only
shorter.


There are 3 GF, one 8", one 6" and one 3+". I used to have two small ones,
but he died of dropsy a few weeks ago. I have no gravel and they get bathed
every week (50% water change). Giving them the plant has caused a
Columnaris outbreak, likely due to some sort of parasite. They're on
Kanamycin now and doing better. Potassium Permanganate (I've got a lifetime
supply) has been suggested, but it always kills the biofilter.