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![]() | Using Bleach & Salt for plant cleaning in Aust |
keithgh![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() *Ultimate Fish Guru* Posts: 6371 Kudos: 6918 Votes: 1542 Registered: 26-Apr-2003 ![]() ![]() ![]() | Am I right in assuming the bleach for cleaning is White King and at 10% which seems rather strong. Also at what strength would I use SeaSalt for plant cleaning Keith ![]() ![]() Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do. I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT? ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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trystianity![]() ![]() ![]() Mega Fish Posts: 1028 Kudos: 926 Votes: 49 Registered: 20-Mar-2004 ![]() ![]() | An alternative to a bleach dip for decontaminating aquarium plants is to use either potassium permanganate or hydrogen peroxide. Both are powerful oxidizing agents and work in a similar way. Be careful with this, an overdose of hydrogen peroxide or potassium permanganate could damage plant tissue. Because hydrogen peroxide is easier to buy than potassium permanganate I like to use it as a dip for my plants. I originally tried this method out because I had used H2O2 as a dip for terrestrial plants to rid them of pests and also as a root treatment for rot so I reasoned that it would also work for aquatic plants as well. After dipping you might see some drooping in the newest leaves for a few days. IME they bounce back pretty quickly. If you're going to use hydrogen peroxide, get the 3% stuff from a pharmacy, mix about 10-20 mL in a Litre of water (this is what I use, you can experiment with more or less of it), and dip your plants in for about 2 minutes. Spot check the treatment on a leaf first to be safe. Here's an article from [link=http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/articles.php?action=viewarticle&artid=24]http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/articles.php?action=viewarticle&artid=24" style="COLOR: #36af30[/link] about plant dipping. It is a good idea to disinfect all new plants before adding them to your fish tank. And, sometimes algae gets such an upper hand on your plants that they have to be removed and dip/bath treated. I will describe three dips, please pay attention to the words of caution also. If you're going to use bleach, make sure you get the unscented stuff. You want just plain chlorine bleach. Potassium permanganate should be available from either a pond/aquatic garden supply or a pharmacy. May be different in Australia. |
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bensaf![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Fish Master Posts: 1978 Kudos: 1315 Registered: 08-Apr-2004 ![]() ![]() | Bleach is incredibly tough on plants. A lot won`t survive the treatment or a least be severly knocked back. It`s a treatment of last resort for algae infestation and even then should not be attempted more then once per year on a plant. Salt and plants is not a good mix. Think about it. The chances of introducing something into your tank via the plants is very slim. It`s almost a certainty that the treatment will cause some stress or damage to the plant. To me the most cautious methdod is to put the plant in untreated not the other way round. Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability. |
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