Alge Eater for 6-gallon Tank?

[mandi]

I have a 6 gallon Eclipse tank that currently has 2 red wag platies in it. I noticed today that I'm starting to get a teeny bit of greed alge growing on one of the rocks and on the gravel.

Is there any type of alge eater I could add to such a small tank to help keep it clean before it gets out of hand?

 

[corrosive]

I have a 6 gallon Eclipse tank that currently has 2 red wag platies in it.  I noticed today that I'm starting to get a teeny bit of greed alge growing on one of the rocks and on the gravel.

Is there any type of alge eater I could add to such a small tank to help keep it clean before it gets out of hand?

Otocinclus, known as oto's they grow to about 2" and are good algae eaters, quite cheap too!

Edit: oh yeh, there a catfish btw.

Edit: A bit more info, they like to be in groups, so get at least 3 of them for your tank. They are quite delicate though, so dont put them in an uncycled tank or anything .

 

[mandi]

Do you think keeping 3 of them in a 6 gallon tank that already has 2 fish (platies) in it would be too crowded?

 

[Chasing Puck]

For small tanks, IMO, cleaning more often and doing more frequent water changes is a much better option. Adding more fish will increase the nutrients available for algae, meaning more algae, but seldom enough to keep algae eaters alive. So, you end up having to supplement the food supply to keep a worker fish alive--which IMM, means you could do without the worker fish and just do more maintenance yourself. JMO.

 

[Nisha]

Otos are a wonderful addition to any tank, though three of them might be too much for your size tank. Perhaps one or 2 would be better but they do tend to be happier with more of their own kind.
Another option might be to get lots of algae eating shrimp (about 3-5) which don't add too much bio-load to the tank at all. They do a good job in a tank that size and with regular water changes and cleanings you should do fine.