You can't cover your patio with copper sheets, but you can spray on a liquid solution of copper that will soak into the top surface of the concrete pavers. This copper will stop the growth of the pesky green and black organisms in their tracks.
Combine 1/4 cup of liquid bleach with 1 gallon of hot water in a large bucket. To avoid damaging your lawn or walkways, always dilute your bleach and control your runoff when rinsing. Soak your brush in the solution and scrub the entire area until it's fully saturated.
One of the keys to fungus and algae prevention on concrete is to control the flow and presence of water. For exterior surfaces, this is commonly achieved with a suitable design that uses gravity to channel the water flow away from the structure.
Black algae can grow on many outdoor surfaces such as concrete or roof shingles and will thrive as long as there is moisture and sunlight.
Black algae (Gloeocaspa Magma) appears on your driveway as dark grey or black streaks and smears. Black algae is a type of fungus that thrives in moist areas, in both the sun and shade. From a distance, it looks like ordinary garden dirt, but you can't wash it away with the hose.
Black mold, a type of mold that can potentially pose health risks to humans. It produces mycotoxins, which are toxic substances that can be released into the air when the mold is disturbed or when it grows on damp or decaying materials.
The Differences Between Algae and Mold
Algae are plants that grow from the sun and must have sunlight to continue growth. Mold does not need sun to grow and in addition to moisture, must have organic material to grow. Molds grow in households by eating the organic materials present in building materials.
Use a mixture of water and white vinegar to spray down the area and kill the algae. Rinse the surface alga off the concrete with a water hose. Next, pour white vinegar directly on the surface and scrub using a brush.
Many sealers out there help with algae control, but not many of them uniquely target green algae. However, this product does exactly that and much more. You can expect this sealer to help discourage the growth of black and brown algae.
Best for Mold and Mildew: Wet & Forget Outdoor Mold & Mildew Cleaner. If you're dealing with black or green stains on your concrete from mold, moss, or algae, the Wet & Forget Cleaner is an easy way to get rid of them. The spray is bleach-free and non-acidic.
Barley straw is a natural way to fight algae. On contact with water, the straw starts to break down, and as it does so it releases peroxides into the water which combat algae. Available in mini bales, or as a concentrated extract of barley straw liquid, it's a natural way of chemically fighting algae.
Now it's time to shock your pool — preferably with a calcium hypochlorite shock. Shocking increases your pool's chlorine and other chemical levels and is a black algae killer. Now, because black algae are so difficult to kill, we recommend using four times the recommended dosage for your size pool.
Even if you don't normally use it, we highly recommend using calcium hypochlorite shock to kill the black algae in your pool. Nothing else will work as well.
In the same way that baking soda can be a spot treatment for black algae, household borax does the same for blue and green algae. Simply use the borax to scrub away algae that's sticking to your pool walls, then use the brush to dislodge it. Follow up by vacuuming up or scooping out the free-floating algae.
The black algae will take advantage of the surplus of nutrients and utilize them to grow and spread throughout the tank. Black Beard Algae can be a result of poor water quality, poor maintenance, overdosing fertilizers, low levels or fluctuating levels of CO2, too much light, or a combination of all of these.
Black algae itself won't hurt you, and you can't get sick from simply swimming in a pool that has algae in it. But black algae growth can encourage the development of bacteria, which can be unhealthy. This is why it's important to treat black algae as soon as you see it -- and to take steps to keep it from coming back.
Pay attention to the color and consistency: We already talked about black mold above, though it's more accurate to say that Stachybotrys chartarum has a greenish-black hue. Toxic mold can also have a grayish, soot-like texture, or a slimy, wet surface. In some cases, you may even notice furry orange or brown spots.
Many aquarists dislike Black algae because of its stubborn nature, which is extremely hard to get rid of. Your black algae problem typically won't go away on its own.
Make sure your pH levels always sit between 7.4 and 7.6 and your alkalinity levels are between 120 and 150 ppm (parts per million). If you're getting rid of blackspot algae, keep your pH lower at around 6.8 to 7 for 2 to 3 months. Algae loves high pH, so this will slowly kill it and its roots over time.
Chlorine is still one of the most effective killers of algae so doing a super-chlorination of 10-20 ppm of chlorine can go a long way towards wiping out the algae. Liquid chlorine is an ideal shock for algae because it is fast acting and does not add cyanuric acid (CYA) or calcium to the water.
Cleaning concrete with vinegar will not damage it! However, saturating concrete for an extended period will damage the cement that binds concrete together. Over time, vinegar erodes the concrete itself, so be careful.
As a gentler cleaner, bleach can't harm concrete's durable material. Aside from being an effective cleaner and stain remover, it also acts as a disinfectant to the concrete surface.
If you often park your car, van or even caravan on your driveway and rarely move it, then the tarmac underneath isn't given many opportunities to completely dry out. By regularly moving your vehicles and allowing the sunlight to dry your tarmac, you can help prevent the growth of moss and algae.