Hydra - How long can they survive out of water?

[Norstar]

My angel breeding tank had an outbreak out hydra. I wasn't too concerned about it because I was able to move the angelfish to my hospital tank.

The existing tank has a bare bottom and I am now cleaning it out. I was just wondering if anyone knew how long hydra can survice out of water? Do I need to bleach the tank with a mild solution? The sooner I can refill my tank the better!

Thanks all!

:Poppy-Icon-3: Remember!

[Melody]

I have found more information about getting rid of pests, by finding out what makes them thrive. There is more scientific information on the latter, which gives us more reliable information than what some chick named 'Melody' spouts on a forum :rofl:.

I recently stumbled upon Hyrdra (hydrozoan) culturing information while researching algae culturing. They are delicate creatures actually, by comparison to other pests like Planaria. One thing I learned is that unlike many other pests, having Hyrdra doesn't mean you're doing something wrong that will hurt your wanted creatures - it means you're doing things very right. Planaria doesn't do well in algae infested, oxygen deprived or foul water U C. If you're feeding live foods, even infusorians, they are thriving on that.

From that I would guess that drying the tank would do the trick. However, if you dry it you're going to be killing off your beneficial bacteria anyway, so I'd probably bleach it to take care of any nasties while I was at it. Keep in mind that one capfull of bleach will disinfect a child's swimming pool, so you don't need much. The less you put in, the less there is to rinse out. Remember to bleach out your filter, ornaments, etc as well, and garbage or dip your live plants.

When I bleach mine, I rinse at least three times, completely filling and emptying (bleaches out the vacuum too, which is always good). Then I add a triple dose of dechlorinator, start running the bleached filter and leave it for a couple of days. Then I test the water, add my seeded media and one fish and leave it again for a couple of days to make sure all is safe for more fish. I don't trust tests enough to rely on them in these matters and I'd rather lose one fish than several.

Otherwise, I'm told that Clout will erradicate Hydra. Blue Gourami love the stuff. Good luck!

[Norstar]

Thanks, Melanie

I can always count on you!

[Melody]

That's right! Even if I don't know the answer, I can fake it better than anyone else! lol

MELODY, Camille, you're going to give me a complex.....lol...go with Mel, seems all of my friends shorten it to that eventually, much to my dismay, even my Mother calls me Mel...lol.

[Norstar]

Oops, that's what happens when your kids are talking to you at the same time! :Embarassing:

[Melody]

LOL I hear ya - wait until you start calling everyone 'Darlin' and 'Luv' like I do - never did that before I started hanging out with kids :Blush: .