Blanket Weed - Why do i keep getting it?

[Powercooker316]

Ok im new here and could really use some help on this one

Ive got a small pond (about the size of a Mini (the car) and about as deep as my waist) and the problem is no matter what i seem to do i KEEP getting blanket weed.

In the pond i have

x2 Lily plants - these appears to have what looks like acid dropped on them? this has only happened recently and im not sure why
Loads of parrots feathers
2 water soliders
some oxygenating plants (i cant remember the name of them)
and is it hogwarths?? they look like mini lily plants and float on the furface

lifewise i have

10x trapdoor snails
1 koi
2 golden orfs
1 goldfish
1 ramhorn snail

Now i DONT have a pump or filter - this is mainly down to the fact of how the house is built and the ponds location

What i DO have however is x2 mini fountains on each side of the pond (the solar powered) and they always work even in cloudy english weather. So these 2 fountains are always keeping the water moving. Now inbetween the 2 fountains i have a large barley straw log which gets the water falling on to it pretty much all day. Ive got it resting ontop of the hogwarths plant so its half submerged

now the problem is have is i dont understand why i keep getting blanket weed. I made the pond about 5 months ago and only in the last month has blanket weed started to appear.
i Empty the pond once ever 3-4 weeks and then refill it with refesh water (or half empty and refil) but about 2 weeks ago i noticed the fish wouldnt come to the top of the pond and when i put the netting back i found all this blanket weed that had appeared from no were.

I changed the barley straw log and removed all the blnaket weed i could by hand. I then added loads of barley straw extract near the fountains so they would keep it regulated and flowing.
However even today when i went to the pond there is STILL blanket weed showing up out of no were

Whats the best way i can get rid of this stuff? is there a type of animal that can eat the blanket weed? ive heard golden orfs eat it but i dont think its a good idea to get 50+ fish just to eat some weed

is there an easy and quick way i can remove this stuff? i dont think its an algae issue because when i emptied the pond today there wasnt that much algae and the snails mainly eat all that

 

[crsublette]

WELCOME to the forum!!


Easiest route would be to dump chemicals, but you can kill fish or harm birds or pets if the dosage is incorrect. You never will actually kill algae, you can just retard it.

You are going to have algae, period. All you can do is ask "how can you work with algae by having the algae help you instead of being an eye sore".

There are algae that grow very slow. There are algae that grow very fast. I would try to keep on scooping out the fast growing algae to allow the slow growing algae to grow big enough so to compete with the faster growing algae. In my situation, I have kept the algae in my stream and have had nothing in my main reservoir.

Algae perform all sorts of bio-filtration functions. Algae is the most efficient bio-filter of nature. Build a bio-filter to perform some these functions instead of algae. A bio-filter can also house particular bacteria that can excrete particular allelopathic chemicals to hinder the growth of particular algae species. You can build yourself a Skippy type filter in a barrel or trashcan or stock tank. Then, to hide it, you can build a structure around it or put it in a filter pit or closet or create a living plant wall around it.

You can also try a constant water change system where you keep a garden hose connected to a landscape drip emitter. ((example: 168 hours in a week, one 2gph drip emitter will put out 336 gallons in a week and you can have the overflow water, or old water, exit out a standpipe or low run off spot of the pond. I added this overflow water to my irrigation for trees and soon to flower beds.)) This can help dilute phosphates and other nutrients that are required by algae. You can also get chemical binders to make certain nutrients unavailable to algae.

Any chemicals ya pour in for algae will also affect your plants and beneficial bacteria as well so think about it before you go crazy with all sorts of chemicals.

Personally, I don't use any chemicals. I just scoop or vacuum out the algae I do not want in your main reservoir. Built a bio-filter. 30% a week water change. Kept algae growing in my stream. Be sure you are on top of keeping your mechanical filters, your filter pads, clean.

No quick and easy about algae unless you want to pour in chemicals. No one time fix to algae.

 

[sissy]

Best removal is hand removal and a toilet bowl brush works great and one you see you are getting ahead of it keep it up .Just takes time

 

[Powercooker316]

i dont think you understand what im asking....
im not going on about Algae

im talking about BLANKET WEED being the main problem that ive got

the barley straw log helps keep the algae at bay so the water doesnt end up looking like pea-soup but its the blanket weed that keeps coming back no matter what i try or do

i try by hand to remove all the blanket weed i can but the damn thing just keeps on coming back

 

[sissy]

That I know of there is nothing but hand removal and wish there was but have not heard of anything

 

[j.w]

Everywhere I looked on the net says Blanket weed is a type of string algae. Some use Hydrogen peroxide to kill it. I've never tried that but some swear by it here but it will come back............it always will, you just have to keep on top of it to keep it at bay.

 

[j.w]

Check this out: http://www.gardenguides.com/127075-cures-blanket-weeds.html

 

[Waterbug]

im talking about BLANKET WEED being the main problem that ive got

the barley straw log helps keep the algae at bay so the water doesnt end up looking like pea-soup but its the blanket weed that keeps coming back no matter what i try or do

Originally barley was said to only kill blanket weed, not green water. But you think barley is instead reducing your green water algae, but not killing your blanket weed. Interesting. This is basis for barley working, people seeing what they want to see. Not sure how you'd know it's the barley keeping the green water at bay...couldn't be the blanket weed stopping the green water?

BTW, barley was proven to be ineffective by several US universities for any kind of algae. Not that this has even slowed down sellers from telling people whatever it takes to get them to buy it. Money is money.

i try by hand to remove all the blanket weed i can but the damn thing just keeps on coming back

Not sure why you think the blanket weed wouldn't come back. Did someone tell you it wouldn't come back?

 

[Powercooker316]

well the pond used to look like pea-soup after about 2 weeks...then i started to use the barley straw stuff and now i dont get pea-green-soup water anymore

the problem ive got is that until 2 weeks ago i didnt get blanket weed. its just suddenly shown up in the last 2 weeks and ive had the pond rather afew months now

Ive heard this stuff called GoodByeBlanketWeed is good at removing blanket weed (hence its name) but have never used it before so dunno if it will work or not

 

[crsublette]

i dont think you understand what im asking.... im not going on about Algae
im talking about BLANKET WEED being the main problem that ive got

Blanket weed is an algae. J.W. is correct.

You will have the same problems as you would with any other algae. Only difference is the "what is used" to help control it.

the problem ive got is that until 2 weeks ago i didnt get blanket weed. its just suddenly shown up in the last 2 weeks and ive had the pond rather afew months now

Yep, that's how algae works. Some are slow to grow. Some are fast to grow. You probably always had it, but never noticed it until it got big enough to be noticed. Same way with pea green water algae, also called phytoplankton algae.

Ive heard this stuff called GoodByeBlanketWeed is good at removing blanket weed (hence its name) but have never used it before so dunno if it will work or not

Be sure to follow the directions with precision. Bad stuff can happen if ya put too much of any chemical.

 

[Waterbug]

Found this marketing lingo for GoodBye Blanket Weed.

Effective against blanketweed, green water and organic sludge.
A unique, worldwide patented bio-product consisting of bacteria cultured on barley straw, enzymes and activated barley straw.
Easy-to-use, no mess, no measuring. Simply drop one water-soluble sachet of Nishikoi Goodbye Blanket Weed into the pond or filter every week. One water-soluble sachet treats ponds up to 1000 gallons.
Each pack of Nishikoi Goodbye Blanket Weed is an 8 week treatment for a 1000 gallon pond.

I've been in the ponding hobby for many years, so I've seen hundreds and hundreds of products come and go. The scams always say basically the same thing so here's what raises a red flag imo.

1. "worldwide patented" That's impressive, unless you know there's no such thing as a worldwide patent. Anyone want to bet they don't have a patent any place?

2. "bio-product". That sounds good, very natural, green, feel good. And means nothing.

3. "bacteria cultured on barley straw". A bacteria that can only be grown on barley straw? Or a bacteria that could be grown on anything but they just happen to name drop "barley straw". Why? Well if I wanted to sucker people I'd want to speak to people who've already been suckered in once by the barley straw scam. They're easy marks. Anyone want to bet they're just talking about bacteria that's already on everything? You think they actual have a lab or something?

4. "enzymes". Enzymes are good, right? So toss them into the ad for good measure. Doesn't cost anything so why not.

5. "activated barley straw". Your barley straw that didn't work must not have been activated, which obviously is why it didn't work. Inactive barley straw isn't any good at all. What you need is activated barley straw. Activated barley straw actively does stuff, so it's clearly better. Great term for selling, but completely made up by a marketing person to scam people. There's no such thing as activated barley straw.

6. "Easy-to-use, no mess, no measuring". If you're looking for suckers "easy to use" is top on their list. Tell people what they want to hear.

7. "one water-soluble sachet of Nishikoi Goodbye Blanket Weed into the pond or filter every week. One water-soluble sachet treats ponds up to 1000 gallons". Really important when trying to maximize $$$ that you have to keep applying a product (buy more) before you should expect to see results. By the time you're suppose to see results they're gone with your $$$.

Goodbye Blanket Weed is a living, biological solution for blanket weed and requires the correct pond conditions for it to work effectively. Unlike many chemical algae treatments, Goodbye Blanket Weed is not an instant fix.

8. "correct pond conditions" Always slip in an ironclad out. If this product doesn't kill your blanket weed there can only be one explanation...your pond didn't have correct conditions. And what are those correct conditions? That they don't mention.

9. "not an instant fix". Just keep buying and applying. And really this is why the barley scam has been so successful and will never go away. By the time Blanket weed is a problem we're talking about mid summer, like now. Buy it, a week to arrive, we're talking about adding the first dose around Aug 1 or so. 8 weeks we're talking about the end of Sept. What happens the end of Sept, many ponds have a blanket weed die off due to several factors. And most species of blanket weed don't really live that long any ways. So tons of buyers are going to see a blanket weed die off and be 100% convinced it was their action that provided this great result. Which they will want to shout from the rooftops in pond forums.

And my fav...the web site I found selling this scam also had other products that cure you're blanket weed problems.

FreeFlow, Goodbye Blanketweed, Blanketweed Inhibitor, Blanketweed Buster, Viresco Koi, Blagdon Blanketweed

10. Six products any of which will solve your blanket weed problems. Why 6? Why not just pick the cheapest if they all work? Because you might not believe one scam, so they give you a choice of scams that might appeal to you.

Great scam.

Just my opinion.

If you believe barley does anything you may what to check out my cure for the common cold. You take a slip of my great tasting elixir once a day for 14 days and your cold will be eliminated when you keep correct conditions like getting plenty of rest and drinking lots of fluids. And for a little more money I send you my worldwide patented common cold inhibitor. Taken just once a week it will reduce your cold to no more than 1 or 2 per year.

 

[crsublette]

Oh man :razz: :razz: Good stuff there WB. Not saying I'm a scientist, but WB is correct there about the marketing. Same thing with particular vitamins in the grocery store and other stuff. Even the pond hobby have their marketing scam artists.

Ya gotta pay attention to what ya buy. Now, when a notable, well known among experts, companies such as SeaChem or API or others come out with an algae "fix" or bacteria cultures, etc, then I'd give it some considering.

Each pack of Nishikoi Goodbye Blanket Weed is an 8 week treatment for a 1000 gallon pond.

Yeah, this statement makes me very skeptical. A 8 WEEKS treatment period, seriously?? Sheesh ... I bet if it does take that long to work, then the algae has been controlled by other means naturally.

 

[Powercooker316]

ok well i will avoid that

has anyone use POND DYE before? there this i found

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Hydra-Blu...den_PondsWaterFeatures_UK&hash=item3f18777865

my friend from Canada says this stuff is fantastic as i can change the color to light blue/yellow/red/black etc etc

He said its ok for plants and fish etc and that it mainly just stops UV rays entering the pond and blocks them out so i shouldnt get algae/blanket weed

has anyone here used this stuff before?

 

[sissy]

my neighbor did and she calls me in a panic because the pump went out and she had to go to work .I had blue arms up to my shoulders for almost a week .Also a blue chin trying to reach her dang pump to pull it out .She does it again she is going to be a smurf not me and I made sure she knew that.It was good that it was only a light blue after the peroxide I had to wash with ,she put the whole bottle in and water was a dark blue . :razz: :razz:

 

[crsublette]

@ Sissy - Haha, that's awesome. I bet you looked good in blue.

@ Powercooker316 - I don't know about the blocking UV ray thing. I guess ya can say it is sunscreen for water. I never done much research into the dyes blocking UV rays. I have only read about the dyes used to hide the "goings ons" in the water for people who want just plants in their water garden, no fish or don't care to show off their fish, and the dyes used to extremely slightly reducing water temperature.