Algae Eater

[Biglog]

I have some brown algae in a planted community tank and am trying to decide between a super red bn pleco or a crew of ottos or amano shrimp(Caridina multidentata) to help out with it. The algae isn’t hard to wipe off but I wouldn’t mind some help on some of the ornaments and tough to get to spots.

 

[Colin_T]

pictures of the algae and tank?

you might be able to control it with more live plants.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

More live plants may help, like Colin's already suggested.

I would first try to tackle the algae problem yourself before getting more fish to deal with it.

A few things to take into account:
Bristlenoses are great fish as they are, but it should be noted that they are terrible algae eaters/worker fish. They poo so much that it becomes massively disproportionate to how much they actually clean. And they require a deceivingly large amount of space. They need around 20-30 gallons minimum, despite only growing up to around 4-6 inches in length. They can also live up to 15 years if they're healthy and happy, so they're no short-term worker. They are by no means efficient algae eaters, and are more like greedy free-loaders who leave huge stringy poop all over your tank. And yet I still love them.

Otocinclus are great algae eaters, unlike plecos. However, they do come with risks and you may find your hands full if you're unprepared. They're obsessed with eating algae, so much so that they can quickly become malnourished and starve if they're not fed well. When picking out otocinclus in a shop, you should look for ones that have plump, round bellies. This indicates that they've been well fed, and won't die on you the minute you get them in your tank. You need a lot of algae to keep them occupied and healthy, so you might want to get a good supply of algae before putting them in your tank. On top of all of this, otocinclus are typically wild-caught, so there is a chance that when you no longer have algae for them to eat, they may not care for algae wafers that plecos and other catfish enjoy snacking on. However, I haven't come across anyone personally who has had this issue, so it's definitely not going to be a problem you'll have to deal with for certain. Overall, I'd say they're a good fish and very good as algae eaters. Quite cheap, too.

Amano shrimp are also good as a cleanup crew. They are more comfortable with large patches of moss in the tank, so I would definitely look into getting moss for this tank if you haven't already. Be aware of gourami and cichlids, however, as they are prone to nibbling on, attacking, eating and killing shrimp. Larger shrimp (like amano shrimp) can resist being outright eaten, but can be permanently damaged by attacks from these groups. Baby shrimp are most vulnerable with these tankmates, so I would advise against them if you have cichlids or gourami.

I would consider otos or amano shrimp as main options, but would avoid bristlenoses or any type of pleco as an algae eater.

Hope this helps, sorry if it was quite the long read.

 

[Biglog]

More live plants may help, like Colin's already suggested.

I would first try to tackle the algae problem yourself before getting more fish to deal with it.

A few things to take into account:
Bristlenoses are great fish as they are, but it should be noted that they are terrible algae eaters/worker fish. They poo so much that it becomes massively disproportionate to how much they actually clean. And they require a deceivingly large amount of space. They need around 20-30 gallons minimum, despite only growing up to around 4-6 inches in length. They can also live up to 15 years if they're healthy and happy, so they're no short-term worker. They are by no means efficient algae eaters, and are more like greedy free-loaders who leave huge stringy poop all over your tank. And yet I still love them.

Otocinclus are great algae eaters, unlike plecos. However, they do come with risks and you may find your hands full if you're unprepared. They're obsessed with eating algae, so much so that they can quickly become malnourished and starve if they're not fed well. When picking out otocinclus in a shop, you should look for ones that have plump, round bellies. This indicates that they've been well fed, and won't die on you the minute you get them in your tank. You need a lot of algae to keep them occupied and healthy, so you might want to get a good supply of algae before putting them in your tank. On top of all of this, otocinclus are typically wild-caught, so there is a chance that when you no longer have algae for them to eat, they may not care for algae wafers that plecos and other catfish enjoy snacking on. However, I haven't come across anyone personally who has had this issue, so it's definitely not going to be a problem you'll have to deal with for certain. Overall, I'd say they're a good fish and very good as algae eaters. Quite cheap, too.

Amano shrimp are also good as a cleanup crew. They are more comfortable with large patches of moss in the tank, so I would definitely look into getting moss for this tank if you haven't already. Be aware of gourami and cichlids, however, as they are prone to nibbling on, attacking, eating and killing shrimp. Larger shrimp (like amano shrimp) can resist being outright eaten, but can be permanently damaged by attacks from these groups. Baby shrimp are most vulnerable with these tankmates, so I would advise against them if you have cichlids or gourami.

I would consider otos or amano shrimp as main options, but would avoid bristlenoses or any type of pleco as an algae eater.

Hope this helps, sorry if it was quite the long read.

I just have brown algae right now starting to show up on parts of the glass and some of the ornaments. I have a decent number of live plants already and am just waiting for them all to grow out. I do have a dwarf gourami but he hasn’t really messed with any of my ghost shrimp. The ghost shrimp are pretty good at cleaning up debris like leftover food and dead plants so really just need something for cleaning ornaments, driftwood, and hard to reach places on the glass. It seems like ottos or amano shrimp is the best option so which would I get a “bigger bang for my buck” in bio load vs algae eating as my tank is already pretty heavily stocked?

 

[carligraceee]

More live plants may help, like Colin's already suggested.

I would first try to tackle the algae problem yourself before getting more fish to deal with it.

A few things to take into account:
Bristlenoses are great fish as they are, but it should be noted that they are terrible algae eaters/worker fish. They poo so much that it becomes massively disproportionate to how much they actually clean. And they require a deceivingly large amount of space. They need around 20-30 gallons minimum, despite only growing up to around 4-6 inches in length. They can also live up to 15 years if they're healthy and happy, so they're no short-term worker. They are by no means efficient algae eaters, and are more like greedy free-loaders who leave huge stringy poop all over your tank. And yet I still love them.

Otocinclus are great algae eaters, unlike plecos. However, they do come with risks and you may find your hands full if you're unprepared. They're obsessed with eating algae, so much so that they can quickly become malnourished and starve if they're not fed well. When picking out otocinclus in a shop, you should look for ones that have plump, round bellies. This indicates that they've been well fed, and won't die on you the minute you get them in your tank. You need a lot of algae to keep them occupied and healthy, so you might want to get a good supply of algae before putting them in your tank. On top of all of this, otocinclus are typically wild-caught, so there is a chance that when you no longer have algae for them to eat, they may not care for algae wafers that plecos and other catfish enjoy snacking on. However, I haven't come across anyone personally who has had this issue, so it's definitely not going to be a problem you'll have to deal with for certain. Overall, I'd say they're a good fish and very good as algae eaters. Quite cheap, too.

Amano shrimp are also good as a cleanup crew. They are more comfortable with large patches of moss in the tank, so I would definitely look into getting moss for this tank if you haven't already. Be aware of gourami and cichlids, however, as they are prone to nibbling on, attacking, eating and killing shrimp. Larger shrimp (like amano shrimp) can resist being outright eaten, but can be permanently damaged by attacks from these groups. Baby shrimp are most vulnerable with these tankmates, so I would advise against them if you have cichlids or gourami.

I would consider otos or amano shrimp as main options, but would avoid bristlenoses or any type of pleco as an algae eater.

Hope this helps, sorry if it was quite the long read.

I agree with this about the Otos. I did not have a successful ownership of them. They disregarded all algae crisps I would feed them and they cleaned my tank too well. Needless to say.. I have not found the body (don't worry, I cleaned, did huge water changes, everything is okay).

That was grim. Anyways, I recommend shrimp. If you do not have aggressive fish (livebearers, looking at you), I would get amano shrimp. Do not get cherry shrimp to mainly clean algae. Yes, they clean well but they are incredibly overpriced because of their outstanding colors. 5 of them cost me $30 at Petco. For as much algae amanos clean, they are far cheaper and worth your while.

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

It seems like ottos or amano shrimp is the best option so which would I get a “bigger bang for my buck” in bio load vs algae eating as my tank is already pretty heavily stocked?

Amanos can be a little expensive, whereas otos can be bought for $2-$5 each, but I'd say that if you're not looking for the risk of poorly kept otos from the fish shop, I would go with the shrimp. My personal preference is otos as they've got pretty bold, contrasting colours (black, white and a bit of pink maybe), whereas amano shrimp are hard to see at times.

It's entirely up to your personal preference, really.

I agree with this about the Otos. I did not have a successful ownership of them. They disregarded all algae crisps I would feed them and they cleaned my tank too well. Needless to say.. I have not found the body (don't worry, I cleaned, did huge water changes, everything is okay).

That was grim. Anyways, I recommend shrimp. If you do not have aggressive fish (livebearers, looking at you), I would get amano shrimp. Do not get cherry shrimp to mainly clean algae. Yes, they clean well but they are incredibly overpriced because of their outstanding colors. 5 of them cost me $30 at Petco. For as much algae amanos clean, they are far cheaper and worth your while.

100% agree with this. No idea why livebearers need to be so cruel to everyone in their tanks, either. Too big for their boots.

 

[SAChichlidLover]

Totally agree with @PlasticGalaxy here! Plecos are possibly the messiest fish I have ever owned and my albino bristlenose is only 8 months old and has managed to not only be the greediest fish in the community, but also pooped everywhere you could think of! Its like stringy landmines waiting to get caught on my finger everytime I do a water change which has now had to be 50 percent weekly because of the nitrate this singular fish can create in a week! Ottos are fantastic algae eaters to the point they wont stop untill your tank is spotless, but as mentioned before they are so hard to feed especially with other fish in the tank as they can also be pretty shy even with community fish! Shrimp or snails are the best algae eaters and I would probably say snails as they are dirt cheap, great at their job and some of them look really nice for a snail too (nerites I'm looking at you!) Only downside to snails is that most of them rapidly breed and can overrun a tank in days if they have the resources to do so.. Zebra nerite snails and a few other nerites I believe can only properly reproduce in brackish water so I would recommend them massively as they also clean up uneaten food and general tank detritus

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

Only downside to snails is that most of them rapidly breed and can overrun a tank in days if they have the resources to do so..

Tell me about it. Currently the proud parent of approximately 200 MTS.

 

[carligraceee]

Tell me about it. Currently the proud parent of approximately 200 MTS.

Haha- I haven't had any snail babies yet!

 

[PlasticGalaxy]

Haha- I haven't had any snail babies yet!

It won't be long, trust me! A couple snails hitched a ride on a piece of wood into my 54L and now I have at least five in there. I don't even know how this happens so fast!

 

[Biglog]

What is the bio load difference between a crew of ottos vs amano shrimp

 

[Biglog]

I have bladder snails but they don’t seem to like brown algae or to get on the decorations

 

[carligraceee]

What is the bio load difference between a crew of ottos vs amano shrimp

Amano shrimp will produce less bio load than a fish.

 

[Biglog]

pictures of the algae and tank?

you might be able to control it with more live plants.

This is brown algae right? I am kind of confused as to where it’s coming from because everything I’ve seen said it comes from not having enough light but is only forming on the tops of things that would have more light?

 

[SAChichlidLover]

Tell me about it. Currently the proud parent of approximately 200 MTS.

I could say the same about pond snails right now.. Luckily they do an awesome job at cleaning my community of algae so I let them of lol