Duckweed... Arrghh!!

**Justikanz** · 14th Dec 2005, 01:20

Hmm!... For no reason, I discovered duckweed floating in my shrimp tank! I am manually removing about 10 leaves nightly and am getting quite frustrated, not to mention irritating... What can I do to get rid of them besides having to do it nightly? The tank is a 1ft cube with snails and shrimps only...

**Johnc** · 14th Dec 2005, 01:28

How about putting a small goldfish into the tank until it clears up? That is provided you do not have tiny shrimps and plants that goldfish eats.

/John

**Justikanz** · 14th Dec 2005, 01:34

It is a shrimp tank, John... And planted with Taiwan moss, Java moss and Limnophilia sessiflora among others... Think the goldfish will love the shrimps and the plants first...

And then what to do with the goldfish after that?

**ranmasatome** · 14th Dec 2005, 02:23

feed it to arrowana..

Actually thats not good cos too fatty..will cause eye buldge.

i usually just manually remove all that i can see..and tediously attack the duckweed.. usually after about 3 days its all gone.

**Justikanz** · 14th Dec 2005, 10:08

Justin, that is a horrible suggestion!...

I manually remove them for a few nights liao... And they will appear stronger the next night... How the hell they appear in the first place???

**Johnc** · 14th Dec 2005, 11:00

Goldfishes do not eat mosses, but they may eat some of your other plants. And while they are very clumsy, they may snack on the smaller shrimps if they can catch them. You could float them in a net to prevent that?

But then, really the best way is to scoop them out manually over a few days, with the light intensity lowered.

/John

**vinz** · 14th Dec 2005, 11:05

Probably from water when you buy new plants or fish. Or even dormant seeds stuck on driftwood, etc.

Well, just keep removing them.... as much as possible everyday. Or weekly. Thats what I used to do (weekly, I mean). One fine day you won't have any to remove and you wouldn't even noticed that you've stopped. They're not a bad thing frankly, if you don't mind the weekly inconvenience. Good for controlling NO3 levels... especially if you it's a low maintanance, no/low WC tank.

Alternative is to fashion some sort of skimmer with a fine weave netting to catch them.... if you can be bothered to.

**Justikanz** · 14th Dec 2005, 11:20

Hmm... Seems like manual work, it has to be... I am just afraid that they will grow too much and block out light for the other plants...

**vinz** · 14th Dec 2005, 11:25

A weekly or bi-weekly clearing should be frequent enough to prevent light blockage.

**budak** · 14th Dec 2005, 11:43

Try sucking them up with a thick straw

Alternatively, my duck will dipose of them for an agreeable fee.

**Justikanz** · 14th Dec 2005, 11:46

Your duck will eat all my moss and other plants too, no thank you.

Besides, dun think it will fit into a 1ft cube tank.

**brianclaw** · 14th Dec 2005, 12:55

Do what I did for my tank. Skim as much off the surface using a fine net, then sit down in front of the tank with a tweezer and manually remove everything - leaf, by leaf. Even dried up leaves stuck on the tank's glass.

**stormhawk** · 14th Dec 2005, 21:20

Thomas, you don't want duckweed? I love duckweed.

My guppies are my duckweed control animals.

**valice** · 15th Dec 2005, 00:32

in tat case, will most surface skimming fauna eat them? like platys and mollies? cos they are pretty omnivorous like the guppies...

**stormhawk** · 15th Dec 2005, 00:34

Yes I think they will. I've witnessed my guppies feeding on the duckweed so I won't be surprised if the platys or mollies will do the same.

**valice** · 15th Dec 2005, 00:36

thomas, in that case u need mollies to help solve ur problem? can always lend u mine as they are quite prolific... Got 2nd generation liaoz...

**Justikanz** · 15th Dec 2005, 10:14

I am scared they will prefer to take my shrimps.

Anyway, my shrimp population is not growing. Any dent on it would prove fatal...

**valice** · 15th Dec 2005, 10:28

my mollies dun disturb my cherries as much as my golden algae eater does... but my glosso and japonica giving them lotsa cover from the mollies...

**Justikanz** · 15th Dec 2005, 10:47

But mollies like kinda biggish in a 1ft cube, right? Maybe I can get the Endler's, since they MAY behave like guppies... Then can sell from my side, rather than be a middleman... Very tiring to act as middleman, still have not settle the Endler sale. 2 birds 1 stone...

**Johnc** · 16th Dec 2005, 17:19

I have juvenile red mollies if you want. These have been spawning in my tank. I suspect many have fallen prey to the Badis badis; but a few have managed to grow too big for them to eat. HOWEVER, I have never seen my mollies eating duckweed. But then, my main tank where the mollies are has no duckweed. Could have been eaten by them.

/John

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