Anyone use those Algae ball things?

[DawnMarie81]

I was just wondering if anyone uses those little green aglae balls/moss balls, and if they really worked or not, or if they are just a scam? 

[bergenm]

What are they supposed to do, other than sit in one spot

[DawnMarie81]

Well I was told that when you have some in your tank, the algae will grow on them instead of on the rocks and structures and that they will keep the tank cleaner.  Then you are just suppose to move them around once in a while...though mine seem to have a way of moving on their own...and after a while, take them out, and clean them off under some fresh water and put them back inthe tank.  They can grow apparently, though I am not sure, I just got mine yesterday, and I read in another forum that one girls gourami picked hers apart to make a nest with it and the little chunks got in her filter, but also that some of the little chunks started growing and getting bigger making their own little algae balls. 

[beowulf]

Never used one but have heard they can work and do indeed grow.  On ebay you can find some for sale the size of a baseball.

[Vizerdrix]

I used to have some.  Can't say I ever heard of them "attracting" algae.  Yes they grow, mine were actually quite big, and you can cut them into smaller pieces to make new ones. 

They like flowing water, and it moves them around (thus keeping their round shape), and in nature will actually rise to the surface during the day, then drop back to the bottom at night.

[bergenm]

I used to have some.  Can't say I ever heard of them "attracting" algae.

I suspect they compete for the same nutrients, thus reducing algae growth elsewhere in the tank...

[beowulf]

I suspect they compete for the same nutrients, thus reducing algae growth elsewhere in the tank...

I think that is a better discription of what they do.

[Laura]

I've heard that they only hold their round shape with water flow.  A LFS employee told me that when left alone - they break down and spread around the tank, distributing a different type of algae.

[RoxyDog]

I've heard that they only hold their round shape with water flow.  A LFS employee told me that when left alone - they break down and spread around the tank, distributing a different type of algae.

This *seemed* to happen to me when I had one.  It sat in one spot and ended up more like hair algae than a moss ball.  I never knew to turn it or put it in flow.   

[mseguin]

Oddly enough, I didn't know I still had one until I stripped much of my plants down to find one sitting there, happily still in a ball shape