Splitting moss balls

[jaylach]

Some searches I've done have indicated that I can cut my 4 moss balls in half and use my hands to form the halves back to a ball sort of like making a snowball. Still I trust what is said here over general internet searches. Is what I've read true?

 

[kiko]

you can cut it in whatever many parts you want...the issue after is getting the new small guys to be "round"
grab a round container
drill a hole on its side in an angle and connect an air/water pump into it so the balls keep spinning around inside that container making them round in the process

 

[jaylach]

you can cut it in whatever many parts you want...the issue after is getting the new small guys to be "round"
grab a round container
drill a hole on its side in an angle and connect an air/water pump into it so the balls keep spinning around inside that container making them round in the process

Thanks a LOT! But, of course, there is another question... Do moss balls have to be balls? What would happen if I just cut the balls in half and made a pattern of domes? While I have zero knowledge I suspect that the flat surfaces of the domes that would be on the substrate would end up just rotting. Am I correct?

 

[kiko]

they don't really rot...it'll change color a bit but I've never seen mine actually rot nor have I cut them...but it's the only method that I've seen that actually makes sense...
some people will say to put elastic bands to hold the new ones into shape but at the end of the day you're just squishing them into another form...
the round container with an air/water pump will make the water spin round and round and together with it the mini moss balls and they'll get round as they grow
as for other shapes...you could always make moss squares xD
grab those square shrimp hideouts and put the moss balls inside them so when they grow they'll gain that shape...

 

[jaylach]

they don't really rot...it'll change color a bit but I've never seen mine actually rot nor have I cut them...but it's the only method that I've seen that actually makes sense...
some people will say to put elastic bands to hold the new ones into shape but at the end of the day you're just squishing them into another form...
the round container with an air/water pump will make the water spin round and round and together with it the mini moss balls and they'll get round as they grow
as for other shapes...you could always make moss squares xD
grab those square shrimp hideouts and put the moss balls inside them so when they grow they'll gain that shape...

LOL! As to making different shapes mayhaps I could cut out squares from an ice cube tray and put some in. Let the tops round off and I could have a mushroom patch.

 

[kiko]

well...I wish you good luck and lots of patience as these things barely grow anything...
I got mine a while back from a view tank in a pet shop...it wasn't for sale and since they're banned they still didn't want to sell it
but like I told the lady at the time...times are tough with the corona's so I'm pretty sure everything's for sale as long as we understand each other pricewise...
so in the end I got a 4 year old moss ball for 50 bucks
nobody sells those nowadays...and the only places you'll find them in shops is inside view tanks only
some shops tried selling them in Canada only to get fined thousands and thousands and losing all the imported ones

 

[jaylach]

well...I wish you good luck and lots of patience as these things barely grow anything...
I got mine a while back from a view tank in a pet shop...it wasn't for sale and since they're banned they still didn't want to sell it
but like I told the lady at the time...times are tough with the corona's so I'm pretty sure everything's for sale as long as we understand each other pricewise...
so in the end I got a 4 year old moss ball for 50 bucks
nobody sells those nowadays...and the only places you'll find them in shops is inside view tanks only
some shops tried selling them in Canada only to get fined thousands and thousands and losing all the imported ones

WOW! $50.00 for a moss ball? In Wyoming I paid like less than that for 4 of the things. Of course they may be a different type.

 

[kiko]

yeah but how many years ago did you get yours?
they're now banned because of the spread of zebra mussels
and to risk getting one infected from the internet VS convincing the store person to sell you something from a view tank years old...
I'd rather buy the store one and have a clean conscience that I'm not spreading anything with my water changes

 

[jaylach]

yeah but how many years ago did you get yours?
they're now banned because of the spread of zebra mussels
and to risk getting one infected from the internet VS convincing the store person to sell you something from a view tank years old...
I'd rather buy the store one and have a clean conscience that I'm not spreading anything with my water changes

The last I bought was a couple of weeks ago. Apparently they are not banned in the U.S.. Now I WILL readily admit that the plants I bought a couple of weeks ago killed all my fish but I think it was a bad Anubias rather than the moss balls. I didn't notice at first but after the fish died the containers were still on my kitchen counter. The water for the moss ball containers was totally clear but the container for the Anubias was kind of brownish..

 

[kiko]

well...the zebra mussels are banned in the US even owning them...
stores get fined for having moss balls with them if audited and found to be selling infected moss balls...that's why most places just dropped them instead of running the risk..

 

[jaylach]

well...the zebra mussels are banned in the US even owning them...
stores get fined for having moss balls with them if audited and found to be selling infected moss balls...that's why most places just dropped them instead of running the risk..

That well may be but moss balls are not banned and fairly cheap. I got my moss balls from a local pet shop.

 

[Essjay]

Not all US states have banned moss balls - but Wyoming is one of those which have.

marimo balls/zebra mussels

Wyoming game and fish has issued an order to destroy and properly dispose of marimo balls, and sanitize or destroy any other plants, substrate, and decorations in any tank that has a marimo ball, because they recently found some with zebra mussels in them. Today the Wet Spot's newsletter said...

www.fishforums.net

 

[jaylach]

Not all US states have banned moss balls - but Wyoming is one of those which have.

marimo balls/zebra mussels

Wyoming game and fish has issued an order to destroy and properly dispose of marimo balls, and sanitize or destroy any other plants, substrate, and decorations in any tank that has a marimo ball, because they recently found some with zebra mussels in them. Today the Wet Spot's newsletter said...

www.fishforums.net

Then explain why I bought two moss balls two weeks ago from a local Petco store in Sheridan Wyoming...

 

[Essjay]

I saw Pomacea snails for sale in the UK during the time they were banned (by the EU, we've since left and they are legal again here now). Just because they are banned doesn't mean they won't be sold

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Thanks a LOT! But, of course, there is another question... Do moss balls have to be balls? What would happen if I just cut the balls in half and made a pattern of domes? While I have zero knowledge I suspect that the flat surfaces of the domes that would be on the substrate would end up just rotting. Am I correct?

My moss balls fell apart, shape wise, after some time, but the pieces they fell into didn't die or rot away. I've now glued the bits to a slate cave that my pygmy cories use, and the moss seems fine!