killing zebra mussels in ballast tanks

[Hugh]

In the Northern Hemisphere we're gearing up for summer.

How does one go about disinfecting water ballast? IE killing Zebra mussels. Chlorine Bleach? into ballast.
I'm talking a practical way, easy to do.

I asked on another forum and was told using google ,
this what came up http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOC ... 014876.pdf

Lifted from the file:
Chlorine may be used to kill mussels, but only under carefully controlled circumstances.
• Chlorine is toxic, corrosive, and a strong oxidizer; it is extremely reactive. Only properly
trained personnel, wearing protective equipment, should use chlorine. Work must be done in
specifically designated areas and every one else should be kept out.
• Chlorine can be detrimental to the environment and harmful to water bodies in sufficient
concentrations. Control chlorine runoff through evaporation or proper disposal.
6
• Chlorine has been used for years to kill mussels. Still, treatment should be conducted only as long as necessary to prevent damage. Use only the minimum concentration necessary. These apply to whatever boat system is being treated.

The other method is using a KCL solution (potassium chloride) An effective mussel-killing solution — for each ballast tank — is two gallons of a 200 parts per million (ppm) solution of potassium chloride (KCL)

Any thoughts on this? Practical solutions?

I realize State inspection or in my case, Provincial inspections are ramping up but what can we as responsible owners do to prevent the spread of Zebras.
This summer, we're moving Cedar Wind from AB through SK and MB into NW Ontario which has zebra mussels. My concern is what to say to inspection stations.

[NiceAft]

I don't believe the author of the article had Mac's in mind.

I believe that if you add a cup of bleach to your ballast, and then let it sit for awhile it will kill everything in the ballast.

A cup of bleach diluted in 1200 pounds of water (about 150 gallons), and then slooooowly released as you motor at about ten MPH will be dissipated quite well.

That's my feeling.

Ray

[dlandersson]

KISS. Keep it simple. Put a 1" pool chlorine tablet in your ballast tank.

[WASP18]

I use bleach tablets and when I empty the ballast on the ramp, the water rushing out looks very clear. Here's a brief article about bleach.
http://www.differencebetween.com/differ ... vs-bleach/

[NiceAft]

I use bleach tablets and when I empty the ballast on the ramp, the water rushing out looks very clear. Here's a brief article about bleach.
http://www.differencebetween.com/differ ... vs-bleach/

While a Marketing major in college, I studied many such examples. For example, using the brand name Kleenex when refering to all facial tissues, or Jello for all gelatin's.

The statement made in the article that people think Colorox is different from bleach is wrong. The choice of Clorox over less expensive brands is an example of good marketing. Purchasers don't believe Clorox is different from bleach, but rather they are convinced that it is a better bleach. Great marketing, that's all. They use Clorox as synonymous with bleach.

Sorry to hijack the thread, but I just couldn't read that and not comment. I now return you to your previously watched thread.

Ray

[Russ]

KISS. Keep it simple. Put a 1" pool chlorine tablet in your ballast tank.

+1

I have to break it up into smaller pieces to fit through the vent hole. Keeps it squeaky clean in there.

[bobflshmn]

When crossing the board between Ca and Az If they find moisture in your tank they simply add water at around 180 degrees before letting you cross the boarder. The mussels cannot withstand this. If you arrive at many of the local lakes in Ca with a wet tank you will be banned for 7 days! This can be found on many of the lake websites. So a dry tank is the best way. I have left the valve open and plug out for a few weeks and had decent results.

[WASP18]

I use bleach tablets and when I empty the ballast on the ramp, the water rushing out looks very clear. Here's a brief article about bleach.
http://www.differencebetween.com/differ ... vs-bleach/

While a Marketing major in college, I studied many such examples. For example, using the brand name Kleenex when refering to all facial tissues, or Jello for all gelatin's.

The statement made in the article that people think Colorox is different from bleach is wrong. The choice of Clorox over less expensive brands is an example of good marketing. Purchasers don't believe Clorox is different from bleach, but rather they are convinced that it is a better bleach. Great marketing, that's all. They use Clorox as synonymous with bleach.

Sorry to hijack the thread, but I just couldn't read that and not comment. I now return you to your previously watched thread.

Ray

The purpose of my comment and reference to the Bleach link (regardless of brand) was to assure that the use of bleach is safe as it disinfects and kills bacteria effectively, and that my personal experience included seeing how amazingly clear the ballast water appeared when cascading out of my ballast tank. Most Mac owners dump their ballast water before recovering their boat at the ramp, thereby never seeing how clean looking the water is. However, I share your reaction of the deceptive marketing strategy message transmitted by the Clorox Company.

[Catigale]

I use bleach tablets and when I empty the ballast on the ramp, the water rushing out looks very clear. Here's a brief article about bleach.
http://www.differencebetween.com/differ ... vs-bleach/

That's a classic case of bad information on the Internet. Poorly written, inaccurate.

The major difference between brand and generic bleach is the concentration, but if you look at the content label you can get that straight. Clorox actually upped the solution strength in 2010? To a 6% solution so that cup of your grandfathers Clorox was weaker than the present.

Has any found zebras in their ballast tank? They like flowing water, not tanks. Of course, the larva are in the water but draining to dryness will kill them.

[mike0404]

i heard also about hot water working on zebras, tried it on ants, it worked well. Carefull with chlorine , my replacement at the pool burnt himself badly handling chlorine powder. I would consider all alternatives and try the least potential dangerous first.
Could a filter prevent it ? salt in ballast and maybe a pool salt system ... ?

[seahouse]

I use chlorine bleach (in Canada known as Javex) or sodium hypochlorite solution. I use the 10% solution because I already have it on hand for a swimming pool as shock (which is twice the concentration of Javex). 1/2 cup more than does it. A funnel made from a 2 l pop bottle cut in half makes a neat job, it fits right into the ballast vent hole, and a bit of water rinse after it cleans it up.

If you do not do it regularly and a bio layer has built up inside the tank it might take more than that for an effective kill in a reasonable time because it can take time and a higher concentration to penetrate a heavier layer.

You have to be more careful with your handling of liquid than tablets, but it is instantaneously available and acting (tablets are designed to be not soluble, they can take a week or more to dissolve, even when broken up and in flowing water). If you have a couple of weeks for it to reach full effect, then it should be fine.

Note that you are NOT putting ALL that chloride into the environment (unless you dump it immediately) because the chlorine is "consumed" (combined with other substances like nitrogen to form chloramines etc) by the sanitation process and therefor made less reactive over time. If you leave the ballast closed for several weeks (or a large portion of the season as I do) what will drain from it in the end will have a much lower, and thus less environmentally harmful concentration of chlorine, maybe less than that of regular tap water, by my nose.

One thing that is certain, is that drying itself will not be an effective killing method because it is not possible to completely drain our ballasts, there will always be a several litres left, even when drained on a ramp. The internal "knee wall" bulkheads in the tank prevent complete drainage, and the small openings retard evaporation, and the organisms can live in the small pools if left alive.

I found that zebra mussels easily blast right off the anti-foul coating on the outside of the hull. I did not realize how easy until I left a fitting for the pressure washer at home and had to use regular hose pressure instead. It still came off easily, with a little light brushing in a few spots.

[seahouse]

Note Mike that the function of salt in a pool is solely as an easier to handle source of chlorine, you won't cause as much harm spilling salt as you will with the various other forms of chlorine. And also that the concentration of salt in the pool normally is less than that of sea water. (Though it is enough to kill your lawn over time if you backwash onto it, so it's far from environmentally friendly).

If you were to use salt as the chlorine source as in a pool you would need the anode and cathode and electrolysis aparratus (and electricity) that a pool needs to produce it, which is not very practical on a boat.

[sandpointsailor]

My recent post regarding water ballast boats and invasive species seems to have sparked some interest and there is a long thread of suggestions on decontamination of water ballasts. One person suggested that one decontamination method could be to launch a potentially infected boat into salt water. I posed this question to a trusted and knowledgeable environmental colleague who found this academic article that is worth reading: “Evaluation of watercraft quagga mussel decontamination in salt water” by J. Hofius, et al published by the Regional Euro-Asian Biological Invasions Centre. Here is the link: https://www.cabi.org/ISC/abstract/20153317489

To quickly summarize the findings of this study, salt water or brackish water immersion as a method of decontamination is highly dependent upon the salinity of the water and the duration of immersion. Brackish water found in deltas or salt water estuaries is generally not sufficient to kill the critters. Additionally, immersion in full salt water would require a 40 hour exposure to ensure 100% mortality of the mussels. This is just a quick summary and I encourage you to read the full article.

The forum also had many posts suggesting dosing the ballast with chlorine. However, dosing the ballast with chlorine would also be subject to concentration and duration; most of the posts were speculative suggestions and not science-based. Just thinking that either salt water or chlorine dosing is good enough, is not good enough. Certainty of mussel mortality is required.

I encourage boaters who are considering moving their boat from mussel-infested waters to pristine waters to fully educate themselves on the catastrophic consequences of such action. If you want to boat in a pristine waterway, I recommend you store your boat out of the water, (clean, drained, and dry) in sub-freezing weather for at least a month, or more practically, rent a boat at the destination lake.

Please keep potentially infected boats out of pristine waters.

[NiceAft]

I stopped reading the thread when I got to Catagail’s post.

I forgot that the easiest way to kill them, and other water living contaminants, is to leave the ballast valve open. Let the ballast tank dry out for a few weeks.

P.S. I just read sanpointsailor’s post. If you have the time, open the valve for over a month or two. I imagine bone dry for a few weeks kills effectively. If there is any scientific data to the contrary, please post.

[Spector]

When going thru checkpoints coming back from the BC coast, as soon as they hear I been in the ocean they give it a quick visual and send me on my way
As well...
'indicated that submersion in hot water at 45 °C was sufficient to cause 100 % mortality'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4544425/