# what Algae eaters works for you?



## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

Looking for help as to which works for you and one's not to get.

I read SAE are good put read the other posts maybe not.

The plecos I was told all are bad is that right?

What about snails and which ones work and which is bad news?


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

I have never read a bad word about otocinclus catfish. My remaining one, of 4 that I had, just goes about his assigned job, day after day, never bothering any other fish or shrimp.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

I personally like to keep a variety of algae eaters in my tanks. Keeping just one species does not work on all algaes. Which algae eaters you get also depends on the size tank you have.

SAE's are great for eating BBA, however they do have a taste for fish foods. Even so in the tanks I keep SAE's in, I have no BBA. I've heard that these guys like tearing up moss, but I've never had a problem with them. You will want to keep at least three of these guys together, other wise they have a tendency to chase other fish. They can reach sizes up to 6" in an aquarium.

Otto's like eating the brown algeas. They are very peaceful and stay small, so they are good for smaller tanks. Otto's can be hard to accumilate to your tank conditions, there for you may have losses. You also need to keep Ottos in groups.

Pleco's are also good algea eaters, but may take a liking to large leave plants. Stay with the smaller species: Clown, Bristlenose, Rubberlip. You don't want a Common pleco because they get very large 18", maybe bigger; unless you have a very large tank. 

Algea eating shrimp make nice little algae eaters. However they may become snacks for your fish.

Snails that are good is pond, ramshorn & nerite. The first two will produce rapidly, keeping fish feeding to a minimum will help with this. Nerites are harder to find but don't reproduce in fresh water (I think).


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## milalic (Aug 26, 2005)

I like a combination of otos, nerites, shrimp and endlers. Yes, in my experience endlers love hair algae.

-Pedro


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## joephys (May 9, 2006)

My otos always look nice and full and I my tank has no visible algae in it.


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## Minsc (May 7, 2006)

I prefer the parotocinclus species to otos... same tank niche, but something a bit different.


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

trenac,the pleco's I read they all are bad and will eat and tear up the plants but there are some that as you said are ok?


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## Astral (Sep 24, 2004)

*American Flag*

Can anyone share their experiences with this guy. Just saw one at a lfs and was wondering he is worth a try?

Frank


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## Burks (May 25, 2006)

I'm a huge fan of Otos. If I could hug them I would.

They have cleaned my tanks numerous times of brown diatoms and various forms of algae. I keep 2 per 10g tank (high lights so lots of food). 

Shrimp are another good algae eater. My RCS that I recently purchased have been doing very well to clean my moss of algae. Cute little guys too.


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

Burks said:


> I'm a huge fan of Otos. If I could hug them I would.
> 
> They have cleaned my tanks numerous times of brown diatoms and various forms of algae. I keep 2 per 10g tank (high lights so lots of food).
> 
> Shrimp are another good algae eater. My RCS that I recently purchased have been doing very well to clean my moss of algae. Cute little guys too.


Burks,
I got two otos now in the tank is there anything special about taking care of them?


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

Astral, I've heard mixed reports on the Flag fish. Some say they're great algae eaters, and some aren't as impressed. I've never tried them, but they are pretty, and probably worth a try if you're interested in them.

fishtk75, the smaller Pleco's like Bristlenoses and Rubbernoses are fine in most planted tanks. I think the only time you might have problems with them ripping things out is if you have some very delicate, hard to root things that you're just trying to get established.
I keep them in almost all of my tanks.

I'm also a big fan of Nerite snails and different algae eating shrimp.


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## risk2123 (Aug 31, 2006)

one thing i can tell you about otos is they like to be in groups of 5 or more so fishtk, i would recommend getting a few more. best way i acclimated mine was set the bag from the lfs in the tank for about 20 min., then after that every 7-10 min. i would pour a little water from my tank into the bag untill the bag got pretty full. then just put them in as you normally would any other fish. anyways, that worked fine for me and i *knocks on wood* havent lossed one yet. 

i really enjoy amano, tiger, and rc shrimp!!! before i got them i couldnt really understand the appeal, but as somebody mentioned earlier regarding ottos, and i will say the same about shrimp, if i could give them a hug i would.


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

risk2123,
I will get 3 more ottos and look at the others.

jans,
I will look at them too.

Thank you all for your help.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

fishtk75 said:


> trenac,the pleco's I read they all are bad and will eat and tear up the plants but there are some that as you said are ok?


I have a Bristlenose and clown, they both are very docile and don't bother the plants that I can see. The clown stays smaller and has a nice color pattern and is more visable during the day, which makes it my favorite of the two.


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## gpodio (Feb 4, 2004)

Ancistrus are good with plants unless you're trying to grow HC or similar difficult to root plant. SAEs are worth it when needed, otherwise they do like to eat my moss and fresh young tips of many stem plants. Olive Nerites are great, they won't reproduce under water. Small army of Ottos of course...


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## AndyT. (Jun 28, 2006)

Regarding flagfish, my experience is that, yes, they do eat hair algae. However, when they are not eating hair algae, they were tearing up the fins of the other fish and harrassing each other literally to death.

I have had good luck with Rosy Barbs nibbling on hair algae. They are not serious algae munchers, but since they are so pretty I did not worry about that.


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## Astral (Sep 24, 2004)

Jan and Andy, thanks for the advice on the flagfish. It's just that I happen to see one for sale the same day this thread was started so I though I'd ask. 

I resisted temptation to buy. (No room for him anyway!)


Good to hear about the Rosy Barbs as they are a fish that I'm considering for my empty 4ft tank.


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

thanks also about them.


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## apistaeasy (Jul 16, 2004)

I personaly believe that flagfish are only good to take care of a hair algea break out. Buy them for that purpose and then take them back to your LFS. 
Keep the flagfish hungry by not feeding it anything else if you can and your algea problems will diminish.


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## banderbe (Nov 17, 2005)

You can have an algae free planted tank without algae eaters.

If you are battling algae then your tank is maybe still maturing or you don't have enough plants or your nutrient regime is deficient in some way... 

that said, I found early on that ottocinclus were the only effective algae eaters.. I have an SAE who doesn't do much of anything.. Lots of folks found shrimp helpful, but I never had much luck with them.. Then there are the nerite snails.. some folks report them to be voracious, while others didn't have any luck with them.. I am in the latter group..


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## toddnbecka (Sep 20, 2006)

Bristlenose pleco's (Anciistrus spp) are the most effective algae eaters, IME. They are great for anything but hair algae, even eat diatoms. I had a male in my 29, he kept it spotless. He was moved to a 55 for cleanup, and the 29 became overgrown with diatoms. Everything was brown, rocks, glass, plastic ornaments. I finally found a female, and put her into the tank. After about a week, the tank was clean again, and has been ever since. I feed her spirulina flake once daily, since ther isn't enough algae left to support her.


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## Ibn (Oct 20, 2004)

Some of the best algae eaters that I've kept.


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

Ibn said:


> Some of the best algae eaters that I've kept.


How many per gal per tank?


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## Ibn (Oct 20, 2004)

Depends on how much algae you have in there and what types. What kind of algae are we talking about here?


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

Ibn said:


> Depends on how much algae you have in there and what types. What kind of algae are we talking about here?


Do not know the right name the green algae that grows on the glass,rocks, and leaves. Is there pic's somewere that show all the differant freshwater algae so I know what I am looking at so that I can tell you what the right name is?


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## Ibn (Oct 20, 2004)

Is it short or long or does it form a slime like mat? If it's green spotted algae, then Parotocinclus jumbo or a bushy nose pleco will be great for it. If it's longer and hairlike then I'd go with either of the Parotocinclus and/or the Gara above. If its the brownish soft algae, then the Otocinclus would be the way to go.

If the algae is a slime like mat, then none of the above will help and is toxic if any of the above consumes it.


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## vollman1 (Jul 25, 2006)

*Types of Algae*

Here are two links for identifying algae; I hope they help!

Types of Algae

Aquaticscape.com


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## erijnal (Apr 5, 2006)

By the way, since ottos do seem to mysteriously die, I recommend using the dripline acclimation method over any other because it's a lot more gradual and constant in the way of gradually changing the water parameters. About an hour of slow dripping should be good at 2-4 drops/second. 

I used to lose ottos when I did the cup o' water acclimation, even when I would extend the acclimation to an hour plus, but 0 casualties with the dripline so far.


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## fishtk75 (Sep 6, 2006)

vollman1 said:


> Here are two links for identifying algae; I hope they help!
> 
> Types of Algae
> 
> Aquaticscape.com


Thank you very much vollman1 that is what I needed to see what it is.

So for it looks to be green spot algae.

erijnal,
Thank you I always us the drip and bucket acclimation method.


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## Mud Pie Mama (Jul 30, 2006)

*Thanks for the beautiful photos!*

Eric,

Those are some of the best photos of Otto cats I've ever seen! Simply beautiful.

I really like the second photo, Parotocinclus maculicauda, thats one I've never seen before. He has some beautiful coloration. Does this guy have a common name? Is it a hard variety to locate / or diffucult to keep?

Thanks,
Mud Pie


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## Ibn (Oct 20, 2004)

Thanks, MP. 

The P. maculicauda isn't a hard variety to keep, but it's a hard one to locate since it's not regularly available. I'm not aware of a common name for these guys as they came in as giant otos (which they aren't).


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## lljdma06 (Sep 11, 2005)

Otos now have worked well for me. The key has been purchasing otos that have been in the LFS for at least 2 weeks. These fish have survived the acclimation process at the LFS and have eaten. I have 6 otos in various tanks and plan on getting more, I like their antics. A very active little fish. I have to supplement their diet in my 20g, which no longer has a reliable algae supply, good for me. My other tanks are new, so otos are welcome and there's plenty to eat.

Another interesting choice for nibbling on green algae and hair algae is the cherry barb. Now they don't accomplish much as a single fish or a trio, but I have 36 in a 36g aquarium and they are constantly nibbling away. The group consists of fry and a breeding pair. The fry are especially partial to algae. 

I have considered the American Flag fish, but I've never been able to get a hold of one. 

I have never tried shrimp or snails, and my tanks are too small for most plecos.


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