Hello all. Confused by forum.... 8*(

[Kim]

Well, I originally came in here to post a question but read that I must introduce self first??? Is this the case? I guess it don't matter, here I am. I have a 20 gallon with only neon tetras in it (my first real tank ever), I also have a 55 gallon tank with 5 (4 to 5 inch) clown loaches, 2 blue gouramis (about 4 inches also), 2 lavender gouramis (you guessed it, 4 inches), one bala shark (a little longer than the gouramis), 10 long finned danios (the hardy starters, still alive and kicking), and one georgous male betta (who happens to run the entire tank, he especially doesnt like the lavender gouramis.... however it is only show, never any violence).

So anyway, thats my fish. However, the reason I came here is because of the most annoying algae to have ever inhabitted a fish tank.... "BEARD ALGAE"!!!!!! At this point I am only successful in dealing with the problem, not eliminating it. I have two sets of plants (fake) and 2 sets of decorations (glass), and one large piece of driftwood. I rotate the plants and decorations on an, oh say, bi-monthly basis. It keeps the aquarium looking clean, but the algae will never go away. I have on three occasions bought siamese algae eaters only to have them die withing the week. I do not know what is killing them. My other fish are fine and I have never had a problem introducing new fish to the tank. If anyone has any experience with this problem, or perhaps knows a little more about the siamese algae eater, I would greatly appreciate the advice. I was under the assumption that the siamese algae eater was a very sensitive fish, and that is why he was dying. I have since read that they are a very hardy fish, and that my tank supports it vitals as far as ph or temperature are concerned. I also do not believe that any of my fish are the killers. I do not have an aggressive tank. Please help!!!!! Im tired of bleaching and cleaning plants.

 

[Jesse]

Well, I do have one question for you - is your tank in sunlight? If it is get it out. I dont know about your algae eater. I have one that I have had for about 4 months and hes grown like crazy! (he's in a 10 gallon).

 

[Kim]

The tank is not in direct sunlight. As far as that is concerned, I have even attempted to leave the lights off for over a week. This did nothing but make me feel guilty for depriving my poor fish of light. Even when the light is on it is never on for more than 9 hours.

If I could ask you a question... Do you know the ph of your tank? What temp do you keep it at, and what other fishes are in it. Although I assume that he is the biggest fish in the tank? He was about average in mine which makes me believe the fish arent killing him, something else is. Sorry, more than one question...

 

[Jesse]

Sorry, I dont know the Ph of the tank, but I always keep the temp from 71-73 degrees F. Actually, he is not the biggets in there. I have a red-tail shark, a blue gourami, and 3 pristella tetras with him.

 

[William]

Do you have any bogwood in the tank? If not you may need to get some, for many sucker catfish they need to have bogwood to gain essential minerals. Instead of siamese algae eaters which will grow up to turn on other fish you could try a bristlenose (ancistrus sp.) pleco as they do a great job on algae. The pH of your tank should always be about neutral (7) but it does not matter if it is one either side of that in fact some fish like acidic conditions.

If your pH is stable at say 7.8 or something then don't bother trying to change it as it will always go back after a few water changes and can really stress out the fish if you add "pH down" or other such products as they are such a rapid change in pH.

you may want to register to allow you to post important questions in other forums such as tropical fish emergencies, cya around

 

[Pufferpack]

Hi Kim...Welcome to the forum ...as Willian says, be sure to register so that you can post in the other sections to, as well as enjoy the other members pics.

Have you though of trying 1 large snail for algae control? I find a single large Apple or ramshorn snail keeps our tanks pretty clean. We use single snails to stop breeding, but in your case you might want to look at multiple snails as I believe the Clown Loaches will make a meal of any babys thay pop up
Other than algae eaters, aand with no live plants, you could try an algae destroyer liquid. They are available at most lfs, and are fish safe as long as you follow the directions to the letter. Good luck, let us know how things work out

HTH

Don.

 

[Jamnog]

hi kim nice that your hear as for alge eaters parhaps chineese are not the right sort for the tank, there was one thing that occoured to me they need a secondary source of food apart from the alge on the side of the tank. to keep them for a long time you will need to buy "alge wafers" in order to keep them well fed. also to keep the alge down it might help to introduce some real plants to the tank to help balance out the oxigen and co2 levals tho im not shure if beard alge is an oxigen provider or oxigen taker... anyways good luck hope you enjoy the forum.

 

[Tanked]

to the forum.

 

[Kim]

Well, thank you all for replying. I have read thru and decided to try and introduce some live plants to the tank. Any suggestions as to what sorts to bring in (something not very needy preferably)?

I do not believe that the siamese algae eaters were dying due to lack of food. As I mentioned they all died within the first week. Even if they had nothing to eat, they would have lasted a week. I am still baffled by this though. They were not even bought at the same lfs. And I have had no problem introducing new fish in the past or even since then. Just for some reason I can't keep those little suckers (pardon the pun) alive.

 

[William]

Well, thank you all for replying. I have read thru and decided to try and introduce some live plants to the tank. Any suggestions as to what sorts to bring in (something not very needy preferably)?

Elodea densa is the simplest plant to keep, you could also try perhaps some java moss which grows fast. Both of these will use up lots of nitrates You can also do more frequent water changes to lower the nitrates.

Good luck

 

[cichlidmaster]

Kim,

Welcome to the forum. It seems that you are getting a very good response to your questions which is what this site is all about.

We hope you continue to find it helpful and enjoy your time here as well.

Larry - CM

 

[kevin007]

good luck and welcome!

 

[Jesse]

Do guppy fry eat live plants? I dont know what in my tank would be doing it, but one of my plants is torn up.

Red-Tail Shark
Blue Gourami
3 Pristella Tetras
3 Tiger Barbs
Chinese Algae Eater
4 Guppy Fry

 

[kevin007]

Jesse, doen't ur 4 guppy fry get eaten by other fishies?