Moss Balls/Marimo Balls (Cladophora aegagropila)

[lmm80]

Anyone have any experience with these? I have always been intruiged by them, and I think it would go well in my 20 gallon tank. I think they look neat and from the research I have been doing, they "help" control algae by using up the same nutrients as the other kinds of algae that grows in tanks.

Thoughts - good, bad, etc?

Thanks!

[cocoa_pleco]

i have about 10 now. Theyre really easy to grow, and filter alot. Shrimp and bottom feeders get the food that sticks to it, and the moss balls are almost impossible to kill. When they grow, you can split them in half and have 2!

[Chrona]

Anyone have any experience with these? I have always been intruiged by them, and I think it would go well in my 20 gallon tank. I think they look neat and from the research I have been doing, they "help" control algae by using up the same nutrients as the other kinds of algae that grows in tanks.

Thoughts - good, bad, etc?

Thanks!

Most plants outcompete algae, but moss balls grow pretty slow. You'll have better luck if you are trying to suck nutrients out by using fast growing stem plants like hygrophila or anacharis.

[Fishguy2727]

With moss balls, do you need to rotate it to maintain the ball? I have seen one book say yes and one say no.

[cocoa_pleco]

no. Mine have always stayed 100% still and they form 100% fine. You should flip them over once every 2 weeks though since the side facing down gets brown from no light.

[Fishguy2727]

What lighting do you have on your moss balls?

[cocoa_pleco]

Theyre all standard 15W's. I once kept them in tanks with 0 lighting and they were fine. Theyre really hard to kill.

One time, when my 20g long had fish, there was a REAL disaster and the tank got 5ppm ammonia, and the moss ball had no problem

[Fishguy2727]

Cool. I will probably get the owner to get one in at work for me. I have thought about it before but I think the rotating them and the lighting held me off. I remember them being a little more expensive than other plants so that may have discouraged me too.

[cocoa_pleco]

10$ canadian here.

Theyre no work at all. I remember reading the same stuff as you that they need to be rolled and all that, and its bull. The moss balls are really strong and can survive fish pecking at it and being washed out. They grab waste and food well, and fish often peck at it and it is a really good filtration device.

Wonder how much bacteria they hold?

[cocoa_pleco]

another thing- if price is a setback, ebay sellers sell them for cheap.

[Fishguy2727]

Price is not an issue. I get them for just over what the owner pays for them. They are more expensive than some of the other plants and since I was not sure how hardy they were or if they needed rolling I held off.

[Chrona]

Mmmm, rolling plants.....

[willisrad]

I have one, and I really like it alot.

It took me a while to find one, and I paid $12.00 for it.

THEN, I found the plethra of plants available on Ebay for super cheap.......

Probably not going to buy petstore plants for a while after finding super cheap ebay plants.

I just ordered my first group of plants, so we'll see what kind of condition that they are in when they come in.

[cocoa_pleco]

im shopping for plants too. Since my 20g planted is no work, the 29g is gonna get planted too

[Drumachine09]

http://cgi.ebay.com/4-LARGE-Marimo-Moss-Balls-Live-aquatic-Plant-FREE-P-P_W0QQitemZ290114300671QQihZ019QQcategoryZ66794QQr dZ1QQssPageNameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItem


$2.50 a peice plus shipping isnt bad.

[cocoa_pleco]

4 for 10.91 is a pretty fair deal

[Drumachine09]

4 for 10.91 is a pretty fair deal

Its almost as cheap as cabomba is here. Most people can get it for a dollar a stem, but i can get seven stems for a dollar, cause i have conections :thumb:. Dont have Co2 though, so i dont take advantage of it.

I havent seen a moss ball untill today when i saw the pic on ebay. They look really cool!

[cocoa_pleco]

i get cheap cabomba too. The store has it floating allover, so i get a huge chunk.

[willisrad]

But what all do you have to do to get a plant through customs in the US.

I am guessing it's more of a hassle then it's worth.

[nanaglen2001]

Mossballs, I like them a lot.

Mine grew from Golfballsize to veeery big apple size by now.

Nice looking thingies with no real use, whatever.

[frizzlefish]

....

Nice looking thingies with no real use, whatever.

Lol, what an endorsement! I may need to get one :)

[nanaglen2001]

Thats how my mossballs look in my tank.

As I just wrote, I keep them cause they look good.

[lmm80]

great, thanks everyone! I'm going for it!

[cocoa_pleco]

Sweet! its your shrimps and fish's new buffet table!