Advice On Filter Or Possibly Adding Shrimp To Freshwater Tank

[skkl123]

I have a 39 gallon tank with an external Aqueon filter, can't remember the size but the fish shop (reputable, not a petco or petsmart place!) states the filter is the right size. Set up for 2 months. 2 gouramis, 2 neon tetras, 1 zebra danio, 1 odessa barb, 1 albino catfish (not sure what kind, but it's like an inch long and we have been assured it won't be very big) and an albino chocolate pleco. There has been a lot of poop on the bottom of the tank since the addition of the pleco. I have done two 20% water changes with vacuuming the gravel in the last two weeks, and there's still more poop to be found. Do I need an under gravel filter, submersible filter, add some critters that clean up and leave less waste behind? I'd like to add a couple more fish but not until I figure this out. There is a tallish rock decoration on the side that the filter is on, should that be moved to the opposite side of the tank?

 

[BelldandyShanny]

you can try rinsing your filter in some tank water incase it's not picking up stuff like it should.  Also you don't need an underground filter unless you really want to have to deal with it. Vac your gravel really well and it should be alright.  You can also add some ghost shrimp, they are fun to watch and do a great job at cleaning up bits of anything on the bottom.  I don't think anyone you have should be an issue to them

 

[skkl123]

Awesome, thank you! Less maintenance is definately better! I will look into getting some ghost shrimp =D

 

[BelldandyShanny]

my shrimp have no problem eating fish poo, and the fish love eating shrimp poo, it's win win

plecos definitely are poop factories, though I'm worried he may get too big for your tank, as well most of the other fish you have would be much happier in larger groups.

 

[skkl123]

I found out about the pleco poop factory the hard way! lol. I got him (her?) from a different pet store, and they certainly lied to me. They assured me it wouldn't get very big, and I unfortunately researched after the fact and found out that is most likely untrue. I will keep my fingers crossed and hope it doesn't grow to its full potential. Not going back to that pet store.
 
We are just starting our tank so I didn't want to add too many too quickly. There was another odessa barb but it passed away last week =( I think I will get a couple more tetras with the shrimp. Two gouramis are good for my size tank isn't it? Holding off on odessa's to see how the one I have left does. It's a scardy cat and hides most of the time, if they're all like that I'd rather have more outgoing fish.

 

[BelldandyShanny]

well with more of it's own it would likely be more active, and the gouramis I think you're fine on.  That plec though.... You can get away with keeping it till it gets too big, I know a lot of people do keep commons and such and donate them back to a petstore when they get too big, or if it's really too poopy for you could just return it anyway and find yourself a nice BN pleco...not as big so not as poopy!  Still pretty poopy though. I don't find it a challenge though, it's far easier for me to clean up the poops than than do a full on algae scrub all the time, I appreciate the help washing the windows.  Do make sure you have some real wood and plants in there, plecos need wood for dietary reasons.  Like...I dunno fiber for all that poop.

 

[skkl123]

Oh good, fiber to help get all the poop out! LMAO! I did read that not all plecos need wood, and I was under the assumption mine didn't. Wow, the BN Pleco is... interesting looking! Definately loving the window washing, I just need a clean up crew for the window washer. How big is too big for the 39 gallon tank? This is Waldo the poopy Pleco. Not sure how to tell if he's a wood eater.

 

[BelldandyShanny]

probably safe to assume you should just have wood anyway. I'm not sure what "too big" would be for your tank, hopefully someone else will come along who may know a bit more.

 

[skkl123]

Looks like the catfish is an Albino Cory, and apparently those need friends too. So, I need wood, shrimp, and more fish. Oddly that makes me happy! Thank you for your help

 

[BelldandyShanny]

np =)

 

[Chaydell]

Your albino should be from the aeneus (spelling?) family.  So more albino or bronze cory cats will make him happy.  If you are wanting help with cleaning algae in the tank you may consider a small school of otocinclus catfish.  I'll caution you to research them first as they can be hard to integrate into your tank sometimes.  I personally won't buy them unless they have been at my LFS for at least two weeks and even then I will only buy them if they look fat and happy.  One nice thing about oto's is they come out during the day unlike some plecs and are much smaller with a much smaller bioload for the tank.  With that being said don't buy them just for cleaning purposes as you will likely have to supplement their diet with fresh vegetables and depending on where you get them it may take a while to get them up to speed on that.  Also take into consideration that due to the way they are caught and shipped you could experience a very high mortality rate.  So, with all that being said you may want to stick to a BN as they are easier but take a look at the oto's if you are up for a challenge and want a school of small sucker mouths over one big one.

 

[skkl123]

I got a new Albino Cory today, and it is following the older one around and they both seem happy! I'm pretty sure I saw Otocinclus at the LFS today. I will let Waldo stay and see if he gets too big for the tank. I saw one at the LFS store today and it was pretty big. If Waldo gets that big I will have to consider Oto's, although the BN is pretty interesting. Too many choices!!!!
 
I got 4 shrimp, the cory, 2 glow light tetras, 2 rummy-nose tetras, and a piece of wood for Waldo! =D So happy!

 

[Chaydell]

You will probably want to get your cory school up to at least 4 but 6+ would be best. I'm not saying your two won't be fine if you don't but they are schooling fish and need a group. Of course tank size may limit you, but I thought I would pass it on.