Fed up of green stringy algae

[fatbobsufc]

What's the algae munching power of a plec? Ihave a thick green carpet of stringy algae on the top of my substrate which Ican't control. Will a plec munch down it?

 

[bunjiweb]

It would probably try but Have you tried using a syphon to clean the substrate and make sure you treat your tap water before doing water changes?
A plec would deffinatly help but it won't control your algae problem, it will eat what it wants.

Ben

 

[tstenback]

SAE's are one of the best hair(thread) algae eaters available. I have found that many plecs dont touch this stuff, although there may be some that do a grand job on it. Ottos dont go near it. Shrimp will eat this stuff but you will need a few and if you have any aggressive fish the shrimp may become lunch. HTH

 

[bunjiweb]

Algae Eating shrimp would be fine with those fish. I put 3 in my 15G and they completly cleaned the tank and I have next to no algae in there now.

Ben

 

[fatbobsufc]

Algae eating shrimp? Not heard of them before - worth a try though if they eat that stringy stuff!!

By the way my signature showing what fish i had was out of date - I've updated it now so do you still think I'll be okay with the shrimp in there?

 

[Aqua_Princess64]

I had some of that algae, and I got an SAE and it ate it all in 2 days.
~Aqua~

 

[fatbobsufc]

Whats an SAE?

 

[FishKids]

I had a Nano Cube (12G) filled with annoying hair algae, and thanks to the recommendations of someone from this forum named "Dubby" it's all gone.

We added 1 Molly and 1 Rosy Barb and in 2 days the problem was entirely solved.

Let us know how it turned out... -Cheers!

 

[Aqua_Princess64]

An SAE is a Siamese Algae Eater.

 

[fatbobsufc]

OK so you guys have suggested a Molly, a Rosy Barb and a SAE. I know a molly will not cause any problems in my community tank so this seems the best option. Would one of the other fish control algae better/not cause a disruption?

 

[Dubby]

All the fish mentioned are peaceful and should get along with your other inmates.

 

[FishKids]

Both fish worked well with my community. NO AGGRESSION. Since our tank if only 12G we insisted on the smaller of the two fish. The only sensitivity we had was with the Rosy Barb. Theses *VERY* active fish joined with other slow moving fish in a picturesque tank stand out to a point of being disruptive. If your sensitivities are such perhaps you should add Mollies first, see how they work, and THEN add the Barbs only if necessary.

It's never without anxiety when adding more fish…, because you never want to compromise the balance and health of your community. You really want to be sure and ask all the right questions. Hope that knowing our own situation we have been able to help you. Please let us know how it worked out. Cheer!

 

[fatbobsufc]

Well, as you can see from my signature I have decided to add a couple of Rosy Barbs. I decided not to go for Mollies since I know that these can become ill if they are in unsalted water, and I cannot salt my water since I have Corys in there.

I plumped for two Rosy Barbs as I understand they are happier in a pair than on their own. Too early to see whether they control the string algae yet but I'll let you know.

Thanks all for your advice.