local lake

Busgod

elodes is in a lake neer my house can it be cleaned and used in my tanks or is that just a real bad idea

herefishy

Yes, just make sure to disinfect it first. It may also contain snails. I've collected it before with no adverse effects, but I may have gotten lucky, too.

Busgod

thanks herefishy do you know how to clean?

In my research I've found three types of elodea:
American waterweed (Elodea canadensis) 3 leaf swirls
Egeria(Egeria densa) 4 leaf swirls
Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) 5 leaf swirls
All three are found in washington state.

How do you clean them for use in my tank, not sure at all.

willow

you can bleach dip them,however off the top of my
head i can't remember how,
hold on and someone i hope will post a linkie thingie.

okiemavis

1 part bleach for 19 parts water...or 20. I've read both but I honestly don't think it matters at all. Just make sure you use unscented liquid bleach.

It also might be wise to let it chill in it's own tank for a while, just in case it's taken up any pesticides or chemicals.

Busgod

is there a method that doesen't use bleach?

herefishy

I've heard of using a brine mixture, but I've never tried it nor do I know the ratio.

fish_4_all

Potassium Permanganate does the same thing. Never used it though, I use bleech dips to kill algae and snails. PP also only needs to be rinsed and not treated before adding the plants. You need to dechlor the plants before adding them. Is what I would do anyway.