I got a 1.5" diameter marimo moss ball from petsmart that was listed as such, but after reading around the internet people say it may just be java moss. i squeezed water out of it when i got home and it's currently floating in the jar it came in. how can i tell if it's a real marimo moss ball besides cutting it open?
Marimo Moss ball from petsmart- how can i tell if it's real?
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Real moss balls generally won't float and they'll be more "velvety". The fake java moss ones will have what looks like sprouts growing out of it.
This is fake:
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2005-04-28/99037-001.jpg
This is real:
http://www.tropicalfish.site5.com/tfc/attachment.php?attachmentid=41315&stc=1&d=1295865295
This is fake:
http://www.cichlidforums.com/postimages/2005-04-28/99037-001.jpg
This is real:
http://www.tropicalfish.site5.com/tfc/attachment.php?attachmentid=41315&stc=1&d=1295865295
the petsmart stores i've visited always have the real ones. I've never seen a marimo ball at petsmart that looked like a ball of java moss. I'm not sure about how to disinfect one. You might want to quarantine it though.
Potassium permanganate dip or bleach dip would probably be too harsh, I would just QT it if you feel the need to.
i'm going to keep it in the jar it came in for a few days and make sure there are no visible hitchhikers. I emptied out the petsmart water, washed the ball and squeezed the water out of it, and put water from my tank into the jar.
I've read about fake ones before from petsmart but most of those postings are a couple years old, from what I've seen they only carry real ones now.
Thanks, that sounds like a good plan.
They look like real marimo balls to me, too. It's a chain and all, but they've been more or less decent as a pet supply store (in my experience). Strange thing is, ever since I started picking up equipment from them, their aquatic selection has been expanding by leaps and bounds. Their fish look better, they've got more and more fancy brands of food, they've got Marineland LED lights now, there's real aquarium gravel and a wider selection of tanks. Maybe it was the holidays?
They look like real marimo balls to me, too. It's a chain and all, but they've been more or less decent as a pet supply store (in my experience). Strange thing is, ever since I started picking up equipment from them, their aquatic selection has been expanding by leaps and bounds. Their fish look better, they've got more and more fancy brands of food, they've got Marineland LED lights now, there's real aquarium gravel and a wider selection of tanks. Maybe it was the holidays?
When you squeeze them all junk that made it sink is gone and is filled with air, mine do this too. To get them to sink again you either wait a bit (they will sink on their own) or squeeze them under water so they release the air and take in water. Remember to squeeze the detritus from them time-to-time