Can anyone recommend an algae eater?

[sandro]

Well, I guess I've learned my lesson in terms of listening to pet store employees ...

I have a 10 gallon tank, it's been running about a month and a half now. It cycled quickly as I had pre-established gravel to start off with. I went to the pet store looking for one or 2 small algae eaters as I'm already getting some pretty big growth (and the tank isn't even exposed to direct sunlight!). I came home with a panda cory and a freshwater flounder (ok, the flounder was bought mostly because they just look cool). They're not doing a thing to the algae. I've since found out that they're just bottom feeders, they won't touch algae.

So, now I've got a tank that's getting pretty (over)crowded, and the algae is building up. Any suggestions? I'm running both an undergravel filter and a biowheel to help with the crowded conditions, and I do 25% water changes once a week. Could this tank handle an Otto? Do Ottos stay small enough? If I have to scrub the glass regularly, then so be it. I'd rather do that than crowd the tank any more than it is ... but it would be nice to have a fish do it as it would clean up the fake plants which are also growing algae

This is what lives in the tank as it is:
3 platies
2 black neon tetras
1 betta
1 african dwarf frog
1 freshwater flounder (small, no more than 1 inch)
1 panda cory

 

[Bol]

Otos stay pretty small. I've never seen any over 1.5".
In any case, they're probably the smallest algae eater you'll find.

However, if the algae you're talking about is green spot algae (looks, not surprisingly, like green spots on the glass and plant leaves ) , then chances are no fish will eat it.

 

[Doggfather]

i use kissing gourami...but they will get way to big for your tank, lol, one of mine still refuses to eat flake food, or frozen bloodworms!!! it loves eating all the algae it can find

 

[Dragonslair]

Bristlenose Plecs are the guys to help you with algae. However I would question the fact that you have an overgrowth of algae. Do you have a lot of phosphate or nitrates in the water. Algae love these elements. You may need to buy a nitrate/phosphate absorber to take out the exceess chemicals. You may also need to check the effectiveness of your filtration system.
Do you have an overloaded tank?
Do you have too much lighting?
Check these physical things out before setting out to buy fish to do a job. By all means buy these fish to look nice in your tank and by way of feeding let them eat the algae, but don't depend them to clear the algae. This will not happen.

 

[smileandnod]

While bristlenoses are excellent at clearing algae, it would out grow a 10 gallon fairly rapidly.

I have two otos in my apisto tank, and they are idle gits. I have to clean the algae off the glass myself. Don't know why I bother with them really.

Ian.

 

[thecichlidaddict]

Hey Sandro Do you have plants? How long do you leave the lights on? What type of lighting are you using?

 

[kingzac]

try a cleaning magnet very good for cleaning algae,you can get one from most good shops. plus very easy to use.

 

[sandro]

wow thanks for all the replies!

There was some green spot algae on the glass, but not much of that. It's mostly brown algae on the fake plants (I don't have the light for real plants), and then green algae has pretty much covered the hollow log I put in (also fake) ... I'm not sure if it's the same kind of algae that was on the glass.

overcrowding: I don't think I'm technically overboard yet as I'm providing extra filtering, and the inch count on all my fish is 9 as it is. Still, it's more crowded than I would have made had I known the cory and the flounder wouldn't clear algae (they do, however, do an amazing job of cleaning up the bottom)

lighting: definitely not too much. The tank gets no direct sunlight, only *very* filtered light. I have 2 15 watt incandescents in the hood, but they're not on more than 6 hours a day.

The filtration is good as far as I can tell, so I guess that leaves checking the phosphates and nitrates ...

Thanks!

 

[guppymonkey]

Go with Ottocinclus. They are small but will clean all the algae out of a tank in next to no time. My tank was full of algae and it was all gone in less than two weeks after I got two Ottos.

 

[Lateral Line]

Brown algae, (actually diatoms - not algae), is almost always a symptom of insufficient light.

 

[Origami Gourami]

I agree with guppymonkey, I have two Otos and they dealt with the algae in no time at all. In fact now, they are sporting a pair of beer bellies to rival anyone!

 

[noelberg]

I just got a rubberlip pleco from PETsMART this week. Apparently they get slightly larger than Oto's but won't get half the size of the common plecos. I'll let you know more when I see it grow ... I can't find much on the web about rubberlips however

 

[Cali]

Go with Ottocinclus. They are small but will clean all the algae out of a tank in next to no time. My tank was full of algae and it was all gone in less than two weeks after I got two Ottos.

Ditto! My two Ottos got rid of my algae overnight!

No kidding, the night I bought the Ottos I went to bed with brown algae all over my fake plants and I woke up with no algae problem at all.

 

[Origami Gourami]

Me too Cali! I bought them because my fairly new tank was starting to gain a 5 o'clock algae shadow, everything was dulling and looking a bit yellow/green. Stuck the two fellas in, expecting them to have enough food for weeks, and the next morning, hey presto! Shiny and good as new!

Was worried they would be hard pushed to find more food, but the fat little devils are finding it from somewhere!

 

[bstier]

I'm not sure if these fish would get to big, but if you can find some small ones, I have a chinese algae eater in my 20 and he works his butt off all day and cleans the tank. They are good fish