Algae Eaters For My Tank

bala · Sep 4, 2009

Hey guys, im new to this Forum thing so i wasnt 100% sure were to post this, so if its not ment to be here my bad (let me know were).

umm, i have a large 150litre tank with 1 bala shark (10-12cm big) a rainbow shark (4cm) and a ghost knife (15cm), its a well planted tank with plenty of hiding spots and cover as well as a large open swimming area at the front (very well suited for a pictus cat, im getting 2 later today), and i have very fine gravel on the bottom (almost sand) i wanto get some algae eaters but also wot kind of fish (or is there a fish) that is suitable for cleaning the gravel? like an algae eater or sucker fish?
.
if anypone knows wot kind of fish is good for cleaning could u let me know, cheers thank bye.

once again im new, bear with me guys

llamalord305 · Sep 4, 2009

Some fish go through sand, ,like digging, but cleaning the tank is your job. (Not trying to be mean or anything) Do you use a gravel vac? That's what most people do. It's a little syphon hose thing that pulls all the debris (feces, etc.) away from the gravel. If you are having algae problems, it may be because of the light. Is the tank in sunlight? How many hours does it get a day?

You may want to take a look at this post as well.

http

/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=101658

bala · Sep 4, 2009

hey, umm yea i clean it, was just wondering if theres a fish that could help me out make the job easier

, umm nah no algea at all (yet) planning ahead, i was also going to ask, wot do algae eater eat when there no algae? (is there a food substatute), my tank gets sun when theres sun, its next to my window and i open it up everyday it gets good light (ghost knife dosnt like it thank god for the cave

).

ahh yea that post helped heaps, cheers dude

snowflake311 · Sep 5, 2009

just keep on top of maintenance and keeping fast growing plants help keep Algae down.
a few fish I have kept and find to be good for brow Algae.

Bristle nose pleco- But they poop a lot. If well fed on wafers they will get lazy and stop eating algae. But when they have to they will do a great job at cleaning the tank.
otto- Can be hard to keep alive for longer then a few months. good little cleaners BUT will starve if not getting enough food.
Flying Fox- might not get along with the Rainbow shark. They are Ok at eating algae not the best. Great at getting left over food.
Chines algae eater- Aggressive can pretty big are Wonderful at cleaning algae when small but once they get to be 3-4 inches they eat less and become bossy. I do not recommend them for the long term.

Others I have not kept but read up on are.
Pitbull pleco- Small and love the eat algae, good little workers
Siamese Algae Eater (SAE)- Eat all kinds of Algae and never grow up of their love for the stuff. They are THE BEST Algae eaters for a planted tank if you can find a true one. The false SAE is not as good at cleaning. They look almost the same Research them.
American flag fish- They are said to be great and eat all kinds.
Garras- They will eat some.