Algae Q :d

[Cantbesaved]

Hey all! =D

My tank sits in front of a window (well other side of the room but directly in across). The window is on the east side of the house, so in the morning, natural sunlight DOES get into the tank for 2-3 hours. I do have to clean some algae sometimes, which I do not mind, because the sunrise gives the natural morning effect on the fish, making it less artificial for them, and the plants can benefit also .

Although the algae is not excessive (yet), and I can clean it fairly easily, I would like to know if it is safe. It seems my Oto Cats dont eat it. That doesn't really mean they DON'T necessarily, it just means it grows faster than they can eat, and they rarely eat off the front of the tank, where most of the algae is. I usually find them on the sides, bottom (mainly where I place algae wafers), bogwood, and the plants (real and fake).

It is green algae, and it is in little tiny dots all over the front and the back of the tank (the sides have nothing, but they do not get in direct sunlight). Where the filter water pours in, there is no algae on the front of the tank... So I guess where the water is constantly pushing on the front of the tank, it will not grow. I also have some on the fake plants. Once it started appearing, it spread rather quickly, so I bought an algae brush and scrubbed it off the front of the tank only, just tonight.

So here is my Q:

Is this algae OK for the cats? Is this algae OK for the rest of the fish?

Reason I ask is, if it is OK for my cats, and they do eat it and enjoy, I will not clean the rear of the tank, and the fake plants as often as the front, since they will eat it off the back! It is also a pain to get it off the back, since I need to take the lid off and scrub it down, where the front I can open the door thing and scrub any time I assume it is OK, I just want to be safe. I love my Otos!!!!!

Thanks in Advance!!

 

[three-fingers]

Algae if fine for fish, most environments in the wild seem to be full of it!

You could put a black background on the back of the tank so you cant see the algae as much, but it will still be there for the otos to browse upon, will make fish colours stand out too.

I like some algae in tanks, on the front and side glass it annoys me, but I like having it on rocks, wood etc. Just seems much more representative of nature to me.

 

[Cantbesaved]

Algae if fine for fish, most environments in the wild seem to be full of it!

You could put a black background on the back of the tank so you cant see the algae as much, but it will still be there for the otos to browse upon, will make fish colours stand out too.

I like some algae in tanks, on the front and side glass it annoys me, but I like having it on rocks, wood etc. Just seems much more representative of nature to me.

Cool! Yeah, I have a black background, so it isn't as noticeable, but I am looking for it, so I can see it I dont mind the algae on the fake plants, because it is green, so hard to see! It also makes them look more real!

Thanks!

 

[vinylman]

IMO, people get FAR too worked up about algae in the tank; it's a natural by-product of light+water. As long as it's not over-running the tank I wouldn't worry. My tank gets 1-2 hours sunlight per day, but it's no big deal. If the sun was on it most of the day then you WOULD have a problem. Any tank with some live plants and several Otos would keep it at an acceptable level. If you find it on decorations like wood etc,. just take it out and brush it off whenever you do a water change - you're cleaning the inside of the glass anyway so it'll only take a couple of minutes. I also leave the back glass to give the Otos something to eat apart from the nightly wafers. If you really think the Otos aren't touching much of it, try some algae eating Shrimp, assuming they'd be safe with your fish, of course!.

 

[Cantbesaved]

IMO, people get FAR too worked up about algae in the tank; it's a natural by-product of light+water. As long as it's not over-running the tank I wouldn't worry. My tank gets 1-2 hours sunlight per day, but it's no big deal. If the sun was on it most of the day then you WOULD have a problem. Any tank with some live plants and several Otos would keep it at an acceptable level. If you find it on decorations like wood etc,. just take it out and brush it off whenever you do a water change - you're cleaning the inside of the glass anyway so it'll only take a couple of minutes. I also leave the back glass to give the Otos something to eat apart from the nightly wafers. If you really think the Otos aren't touching much of it, try some algae eating Shrimp, assuming they'd be safe with your fish, of course!.

Well the reason I even asked, is I was reading about algae before I got my tank. It said that some algae is bad. I know green algae is OK, I just wanted to make sure it wasnt something stupid, because I saw some site that showed like 20 types of green algae, with stupid names like Blueish green, and yellowy blue... just dumb!

Shrimp... Something I have been wondering about. Are there fresh water shrimp? I can't get any now, because I am already overstocked a bit. But for future reference I would like to know. I don't particularly like the transparent shrimp though. I don't know what the kind of shrimp is called, but it is red and white. They have them at my LFS, just marine only I think

 

[loachman]

IMO, people get FAR too worked up about algae in the tank; it's a natural by-product of light+water. As long as it's not over-running the tank I wouldn't worry. My tank gets 1-2 hours sunlight per day, but it's no big deal. If the sun was on it most of the day then you WOULD have a problem. Any tank with some live plants and several Otos would keep it at an acceptable level. If you find it on decorations like wood etc,. just take it out and brush it off whenever you do a water change - you're cleaning the inside of the glass anyway so it'll only take a couple of minutes. I also leave the back glass to give the Otos something to eat apart from the nightly wafers. If you really think the Otos aren't touching much of it, try some algae eating Shrimp, assuming they'd be safe with your fish, of course!.

Well the reason I even asked, is I was reading about algae before I got my tank. It said that some algae is bad. I know green algae is OK, I just wanted to make sure it wasnt something stupid, because I saw some site that showed like 20 types of green algae, with stupid names like Blueish green, and yellowy blue... just dumb!

Shrimp... Something I have been wondering about. Are there fresh water shrimp? I can't get any now, because I am already overstocked a bit. But for future reference I would like to know. I don't particularly like the transparent shrimp though. I don't know what the kind of shrimp is called, but it is red and white. They have them at my LFS, just marine only I think

THere are a couple of marine shrimps that are common, cleaner shrimps and peppermint are 2 of the most common.

For freshwater, cherry red shrimps are nice for algae control. Amano shrimp are also used a lot, although they are transparent with some black spots/markings.

 

[saz326]

Try not feeding algae wafers for a few days. You will then see whether your algae eaters are doing their job.

The worry is that if you keep pampering your ottos etc with wafers then they will forget what their mouths were designed to do. You would't harm the fish by not feeding them for a few days. Plus it would help keep the water cleaner.

I use algae wafer as suppliments to my algae eating fishes diets. And they are more than happy.

 

[Syphoniera]

I wonder if you're thinking of Crystal Red shrimp?

http/www.planetinverts.com/Crystal%20Red%20Shrimp.html

 

[Cantbesaved]

Try not feeding algae wafers for a few days. You will then see whether your algae eaters are doing their job.

The worry is that if you keep pampering your ottos etc with wafers then they will forget what their mouths were designed to do. You would't harm the fish by not feeding them for a few days. Plus it would help keep the water cleaner.

I use algae wafer as suppliments to my algae eating fishes diets. And they are more than happy.

Thanks. Been busy, so didnt get time to reply earlier. I will leave em be for a few days and see how they do. During the day I see them on the live plants, but maybe they are sleeping

I wonder if you're thinking of Crystal Red shrimp?

[URL="http/www.planetinverts.com/Crystal"]http/www.planetinverts.com/Crystal Red Shrimp.html[/URL]

No those are not the ones... The ones I saw were a bit skinnier, and the red is only on their back (and a lighter red), and it is coloured all along, no breaks. And they have a white belly!

 

[Dave Spencer]

IMO, people get FAR too worked up about algae in the tank; it's a natural by-product of light+water.

Add light to water and life will flourish. It doesn`t have to be algae, even in small amounts.

Dave.