Those weirdo - moss balls

[Molch]

Those of you who have these, do you mind my asking how those moss balls did for you? I saw RobM :supercool: has one in his avatar, with a kaiseri perched on top.

I'm thinking of getting some for my newt tanks but I just don't know what to make of them. They're weird. What's on the inside? Old moss? Doesn't it rot in there and stink up the water? Do they grow? Which moss species is it, or is it an algae actually? I saw them sold as "Merimo" balls or something, but that sounds more like an Italian ice cream flavor than anything that grows....

Happy New Year from Alaska,
cheers Claudia

 

[Greatwtehunter]

Marimo moss balls are actually Cladophora aegagropila, which is a type of algae. Supposedly they are good at preventing other types of algae by out competing. I've also heard that if you leave them in one spot too long they'll start to grow along the substrate and take over the tank.

 

[evut]

I've had two for about two years and they've been good as a decoration. I can't say they do anything about algae, one of them actually has long strands of hair algae growing on it. I think they've grown quite a lot since I bought them. You are supposed to move them around so that they stay round. You can rinse them - they feel like a sponge (sort of) but the inside is hollow. I have managed to rip chunks out of one but it's still good. They definitely don't rot.

 

[RobM]

My newt is almost famous!

I have had the moss ball for quiet a while, it doesn't do much and grows very slowly. I was told that the algae it is made from is very good for the aquarium because it uses nutrients that other algae thrive on.
Reading your post made me google about moss balls, because I realised how very little I actually knew about it haha. I found this straight away: Moss Balls - Tropical Fish Expert it gave a good overview.
It doesn't mention about it spreading over the bottom of the tank though. I have bare-bottom tanks so haven't witnessed it, but I think its possible that it could do this though as the shape is designed to maximise its surface area. The speed it grows at though I would expect it to take years!


Eva - How do you keep your tank so immaculate? There is not a leaf out of place!

 

[jclee]

If you haven't yet read about them, stay away from the ones that float. Many box pet stores have taken to covering styrofoam balls with java moss and calling them moss balls.

It doesn't mention about it spreading over the bottom of the tank though.

I've seen that happen once through a fish forum. It had taken over a large piece of driftwood. I thought it was quite attractive, actually, but the owner didn't like it and wound up scrubbing/sterilizing the wood. I'm kind of curious to start a tank and encourage that kind of lush algae carpet, one of these days. I'm afraid to do it with an established tank, because I like their looks already, but it would be kind of neat, in my opinion.

 

[Sallermander]

If you haven't yet read about them, stay away from the ones that float. Many box pet stores have taken to covering styrofoam balls with java moss and calling them moss balls.


I've seen that happen once through a fish forum. It had taken over a large piece of driftwood. I thought it was quite attractive, actually, but the owner didn't like it and wound up scrubbing/sterilizing the wood. I'm kind of curious to start a tank and encourage that kind of lush algae carpet, one of these days. I'm afraid to do it with an established tank, because I like their looks already, but it would be kind of neat, in my opinion.

Covered the driftwood? Awesome! Now I want to buy a mossball and stick it on my driftwood