Algae eater in my CA tank?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Psylant said:
I absolutely hate common plecos, that's why I made this thread. Every time I have needed an algae-eater I have gotten one of these, and then it produced more waste than most of the other fish combined. Also, they ate copious amounts of my driftwood. I'm trying to avoid this again if possible. At least with a bristlenose I would assume much less would be eaten!
Click to expand...

They are not common pleco's.....they don't need driftwood.....and you won't need a half dozen to clean a 180 gal tank :D

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/_image.php?species=pterygoplichthys+gibbiceps&image_id=1102

Steve
 
Nerite snails will survive with cichlids and will eat every type of algae you can think of. Green, hair algae, cyano, brown diatoms, driftwood fungus, everything. Unlike other snails labeled as "algae eaters", Nerite feed only on algae 24/7, they won't eat leftover fish food or plants, and can't reproduce in freshwater. Quite possibly the best algae eater I've ever seen, kept my tank spotless (and I mean spotless) for as long as they were there.

Downside: They poop a LOT. I don't think their poop has much of an effect on the bioload but it looks nasty, everywhere. You will have to be vacuuming the substrate at least once a week. They also lay LOTS of eggs that look like white sesame seeds (won't hatch in freshwater but take months to disappear and are nearly impossible to remove manually) in all the surfaces of your tank. They start laying them on the driftwood but once that is completely covered in eggs they will lay them on rocks, plant leaves and glass. I ended up getting rid of mine because of this.
 
Psylant said:
Oops, my bad. It looks very similar to plecos I've had in the past. I suppose it's a contender. It does get pretty huge though :P
Click to expand...

np

For the money spent on a sailfin you can't go wrong. In my experience they don't get lazy like a common pleco and will be out most of the time cleaning when the light is on. They also have a fantastic copper ring around every mark on their body when their happy. You can usually sell/trade it when you think its too big.
Can you tell I like these :D

A while ago I had a 20" male in my 240 gal and was very sad the day I believe he died of old age :(

Steve
 
aclockworkorange said:
Since it's brown algae I'd check you phosphate and silicate levels. Most LFSs should be able to check those for you if you bring in a water sample.
Click to expand...

Not a bad idea. It wouldn't surprise me if my phosphate levels are high. I live in one of the largest farming areas in the world. The silicates wouldn't surprise me either, I believe my gravel is crushed granite.
 
cacichlids said:
Nerite snails will survive with cichlids and will eat every type of algae you can think of. Green, hair algae, cyano, brown diatoms, driftwood fungus, everything. Unlike other snails labeled as "algae eaters", Nerite feed only on algae 24/7, they won't eat leftover fish food or plants, and can't reproduce in freshwater. Quite possibly the best algae eater I've ever seen, kept my tank spotless (and I mean spotless) for as long as they were there.

Downside: They poop a LOT. I don't think their poop has much of an effect on the bioload but it looks nasty, everywhere. You will have to be vacuuming the substrate at least once a week. They also lay LOTS of eggs that look like white sesame seeds (won't hatch in freshwater but take months to disappear and are nearly impossible to remove manually) in all the surfaces of your tank. They start laying them on the driftwood but once that is completely covered in eggs they will lay them on rocks, plant leaves and glass. I ended up getting rid of mine because of this.
Click to expand...

I was about to go out and buy these until I read the downside part. I think the eggs are more hassle than they're worth :(
 
urs4 said:
np

For the money spent on a sailfin you can't go wrong. In my experience they don't get lazy like a common pleco and will be out most of the time cleaning when the light is on. They also have a fantastic copper ring around every mark on their body when their happy. You can usually sell/trade it when you think its too big.
Can you tell I like these :D

A while ago I had a 20" male in my 240 gal and was very sad the day I believe he died of old age :(

Steve
Click to expand...

These sounds pretty good. It really pissed me off when the common ones ate half my driftwood previously. I think it may be difficult to find sailfins in my area. I bet they get mixed up with common plecos all the time when small.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom