Cleaners For My New Tank

[revlok]

I would like to know your opinions of what would be the best cleaners/algae eaters/etc for my new community tank and/or your opinion on fish my supplier offers so I may make the choice myself =]

I have, currently, 11 Neons and 5 Glowlight tetras in the tank and wish to find a good cleaner and/or algae eater for the tank.

There's only one place near where I live that has fish is WalMart (sadly)- the next closest fish store is about 30 minutes away (one direction).

Walmart offers-
Golden Algae Eater (about 2in)
Botia (about 2in)
common Pleco (small, about 2-3in)
common Corydora (about 1in)
Ghost Shrimp (occasionally, none in right now)
Bamboo Shrimp (about 2.5in)
Striped Raphael (about 1in)

Please give me your suggestions and/or information on these species WalMart offers.

 

[Lindsey88]

Walmart fish are usually unhealthy. I would go to the other fish store even though it is farther away you will get healthier fish and more selection.

 

[revlok]

Walmart fish are usually unhealthy. I would go to the other fish store even though it is farther away you will get healthier fish and more selection.

I would, but the nearest place to get healthy fish around my small town is too far away to keep the fish alive in the bags =[

And WalMart gives full refunds on sickly fish, but the only ones I've actually gotten that were truly sick from WalMart was one Oscar, one Bamboo Shrimp, and many many of their Goldfish. Oh and their puffers are horribly sickly =[...other than that, this WalMart seems pretty good with exception of severe overcrowding.

 

[Revision17]

Of those fish, only the Pleco eats algae and would be desirable in a community tank. It will need a large (30 gal+) tank to grow to it's full size.

Also, if you have TONS of algae, you are probably doing something wrong, with regards to nutrients in the water, plants, lighting intensity and duration, etc.

EDIT: Just saw your new post. Fish can survive a decent amount of time in bags. Places like liveaquaria.com ship fish overnight with success. If possible, ask them to use a larger bag with more air in it.

 

[Lindsey88]

Golden Algae Eater (about 2in)-These fish have a tendency to become aggressive with other fish. They also grow 10 inches long.
Botia (about 2in)-Grows up to 4 inches, The Botia Loach requires small amounts of food several times a day. Younger Loaches will eat most prepared foods while older ones may be more finicky. Feed them a varied diet of bloodworms, brine shrimp and a quality flake or pellet food. They do not eat algae
common Pleco (small, about 2-3in)- these guys grow enormous and will outgrow almost every tank.
common Corydora (about 1in)- All corydoras species are adorable and they scavenge on the bottom of the tank eating dropped flake food. They also need their own food I feed mine algae wafers and frozen bloodworms along with the dropped food.
Ghost Shrimp (occasionally, none in right now)-These guys are great scavengers they do not eat very much algae though
Bamboo Shrimp (about 2.5in)- these shrimp filter floating food from the water and require a current in their tank. They do not eat algae
Striped Raphael (about 1in)-These fish grow 5 inches are quiet and nocturnal they will eat small fish and fully grown would eat your neons.


I would really recommend going to a different store if you want an algae eating fish.

 

[luque]

what size is the tank?
also glden sucking loach rn't aggressive, i think you may be thinking of CAE's you could always get ottos.
ottos are very small (abuot 1"-1.5" IME) and do a great job

 

[lovemyfraggies]

At one time I bought the golden algae eaters. They are great algae eaters when they are small. Always zooming around eating algae off everything from plants to the walls and gravel. I had only one for a 20 gallon and he really had the algae under control. They do grow slow. When they get bigger you can always rehome them. I actually put mine on Craiglist and had no problem finding a good home for him. He would keep the algae under control and the ghost shrimp would eat the uneaten food. They got along fine. They do aggressive when they are older although they are very slow growers. If you are willing to drive to the other pet store ottos are great algae eaters and they stay small. Good luck!

 

[mrbudgie]

get the striped rapheal (also known as a talking catfish) its pretty does not get to big, grows slow and it will get left over food at night (dont have cave and hiding places ya cant see into or ya wont see it) P.S. when it buzzes its funny