Best Algae-Eater?

[TheTankMan]

Hi fellow fish fanatics 

 
I was just wondering what, in your opinion and from your own experiences, is the best algae eater. Which fish, shrimp or snail works tirelessly to keep your tank clean and tidy?
 
Information like what size tank you have and how many of these algae-eaters are in your tank would be appreciated.
 
Thanks! 

 

[ech0o]

In my experience, shrimp are fun, but generally are going to work on excess foods and waste in the substrate, and then will advance to algae when everything else is gone (amano shrimp are the most efficient algae eating shrimp).  Snails seem to focus on algae, and are mindless so they seem to just bumble around consuming, a very good choice.   Plecos are GREAT algae eaters, our albino BN will wait for the leaves of plants to get covered, and he will go around sucking each leaf off,  he has cleaned an entire tank of plants like this before.

 

[CrimsonBoli]

I saw a YouTube video last night about a Siamese Algae Eater (IIRC) and the guy swore by them. Claimed they ate all the algae off his plant leaves and glass within hours!

 

[Nordk]

Snails are great algae eaters, the best fish are otto's, but you need 3-6 of them.
Most "algae eaters" tend to grow big and stop eating algae, exceptions being otto's (1.5-2 inches), and the aforementioned BNP's and SAE's (6 inches). Be wary of SAE's though, there's a plethora of fish that look like and are sold as them, such as Flying Fox and Chinese Algae Eaters, which aren't as good at algae control and get a bit aggressive. CAE's grow to a foot and will kill pretty much anything in the tank, and stop eating algae all together.
Algae is a sign of the water chemistry being off though, and if the tank is running properly you shouldn't need anything other than a few snails to keep it clean. Fish can't survive on algae alone, and need other sources of food. (Algae wafers, various vegetable matter, etc.)