Otos Help Algae

[AdamBeat8]

I have some brown and green algae on my plants but not all of the plants. Will otos solve my algae dilemma? Or do i need to find a better solution. I know otos do best in schools of 5-6

 

[Liquid skills]

Hi ottos may help but not much how big is your tank?

As bristlenose plecs will help

Its just ottos arnt the best and 5-6 ottos will leave alot of mess compared to one bristlenose

Best bet is to got for a bristlenose ive found them the best algae eaters personaly

 

[AdamBeat8]

My tank is 46 gallons. I have had this algae for like 4 months now. Its brown on some plants but not on all. Mainly my anubias and swords

 

[Liquid skills]

hi i would give the same advice also how much are you feeding them cause thats a cause of algae as there will be extra nutrients in the water helping the algae to grow also plants will help reduce it plants like java moss are excellent in removing nutrients from the water

but the options you have are reduce feeding and / or get a bristlenose pleco

but i would leave the ottos i have them they dont do much and produce 2x the amount of waste that they eat lol but yeh

cant be much help with it but those options. youll always have algae in your tank everyone does but getting an algae eater dosnt mean you dont have to scrub the tank also i have 3 bristlenoses in my tank ill still have to wipe the tank

youll always need to wipe it lightly to get new growin algae off

but yeh there your only options im afraid

 

[loraxchick]

maybe a better solution to your algae problem then getting some livestock as a short term solution would be to increase flow around the tank (but a powerhead maybe so you dont have dead spots) and look at the photo period of the tank.
In all likelihood adding more fish (especially poo machines like otos or plecs) will ultimately make the problem worse in the end.
just a suggestion
cheers

 

[ZoddyZod]

as above, no fish is a real 'soloution' to algae in the long term.

The brown alage that you are talking about is very common in new tanks. If the tank is given time to settle it will usually disappear of its own accord.

How long do you have the lights on every day?
Do you have any real plants in there?

 

[Liquid skills]

Good suggestion

I didnt think of that

You could combine the reducing amount of food fed and the increase of the water flow and keep the light on for about 8-10 hours aday (i think thatd right please correct me if im wrong ) and if all else fails you could try the algae eater

Dang i hate algae horrible lookin stuff lol

 

[cynic]

Well i did both, alterd the lighting, still on for as long but half as strong, and got a bn. They are a bit dirty but entertaining all the same. And happy to be on their own.

I don't have to wipe anything now the tank is lovely. He snacks on any left over food and gets some cucumber for his troubles.

 

[ZoddyZod]

cucumber is not very nutritious. Try courgette, peppers, boiled brocolli, slices of apple, pear etc. instead.

Also, don't rely on him to survive on leftover flake (I presume that's what you mean). BNs are primarily herbivores and therefore need a vegi diet. Most flake is stacked full of protein which is fine in moderation, but should not be his/her main food. Invest in some algae wafers.

 

[cynic]

No its not leftover flake the Harlequins wouldn't allow that, the sinking pellets are what he will snack on.

 

[ZoddyZod]

again, if they are standard pellets they are probably protein (meat) based. You need specific algae or spirulina based foods.

 

[cynic]

According to the ingredients they are 10%protein, then vegetable, vegetable products (!) and algae. I can see where your coming from the tropical flake is primarily protein, the goldfish food my daughter uses for her goldfish has far more vegetable content.

I will give him some apple though as well as the cucumber. Any other reccomendations, carrot? or anything that sinks

 

[Liquid skills]

Its funny i found tgat a mix of goldfish and tropical fish food works well for fish as goldfish have certain nutrients that tropical flake laks and vis versa

But i use king british algae wafers for my bn's they are the best ones ive found so far by looking at their typical analasis

 

[AdamBeat8]

as above, no fish is a real 'soloution' to algae in the long term.

The brown alage that you are talking about is very common in new tanks. If the tank is given time to settle it will usually disappear of its own accord.

How long do you have the lights on every day?
Do you have any real plants in there?

I have a coralife light and yes real plants, filled with plants, I have a co2 system. The tank is 6 months old and the algae has been around for like 3-4 months. Light are on for 7-8 hours a day.

 

[gatorsean]

cutting the photoperiod down to 6 hours a day for two weeks works for me when algae seems to get out of control suddenly.