If you get a couple of healthy ottos,they will keep the algae down. I've got a nano tank that grows plants and algae with great abundance. The bristlenose is more interested in the tetramin wafers than algae, but the two ottos keep it pretty well algae free and don't harm the plants.
Green Algae gone wild...ready to do away with plants...
- Thread starter moboe
- Start date
Thanks for the suggestion, Fishpoor. I love ottos, but "healthy ottos" seems to be the problem for me. I went through 4-5 in my 20G tank...none survived longer than a few weeks. I'm afraid my Betta would bother them, too. He used to take the sinking wafers I put in for the cories, and swim around with them in his mouth until they were small enough to swallow. I eventually lost all 3 cories...I think from starvation, and anxiety over staying away from the Betta.
Any idea how to get Healthy ottos? I even tried to get ones that had been at the LFS for a while (from what I understand, they often die later from the stress they experience from shipping).
Thanks for your help!
Moboe
Any idea how to get Healthy ottos? I even tried to get ones that had been at the LFS for a while (from what I understand, they often die later from the stress they experience from shipping).
Thanks for your help!
Moboe
You're welcome 
Just so you know, CO2 and O2 are independent - more CO2 in the tank doesn't mean less oxygen. Aim for somewhere between 15 - 30ppm CO2, that should be enough for plants and just fine for the fishies.
You can measure CO2 by comparing the pH and KH of your water. Check out Chuck's planted aquaria pages - there's a wonderful CO2/nutrient calculator there. Just download the teeny program, then punch in your pH and KH and it will calculate the CO2 for you. There's lots of good information on the site as well.
Have fun
[edit] If you're shopping for otos, see if you can find out how long they've been in the store, and check their bellies to make sure they're eating (should be round, not concave). I've read that most of the otos destined to die from stress will die within the first 72h of being shipped. I recently bought 5 at Big Al's and though they looked good in the store and had been there for a few days, I fully expected a few not to make it. Lucky me, they're all fine. [/edit]
Just so you know, CO2 and O2 are independent - more CO2 in the tank doesn't mean less oxygen. Aim for somewhere between 15 - 30ppm CO2, that should be enough for plants and just fine for the fishies.
You can measure CO2 by comparing the pH and KH of your water. Check out Chuck's planted aquaria pages - there's a wonderful CO2/nutrient calculator there. Just download the teeny program, then punch in your pH and KH and it will calculate the CO2 for you. There's lots of good information on the site as well.
Have fun
[edit] If you're shopping for otos, see if you can find out how long they've been in the store, and check their bellies to make sure they're eating (should be round, not concave). I've read that most of the otos destined to die from stress will die within the first 72h of being shipped. I recently bought 5 at Big Al's and though they looked good in the store and had been there for a few days, I fully expected a few not to make it. Lucky me, they're all fine. [/edit]
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Blinky's right about the full bellys. It also might be the time of year you get ottos. I never had any luck with them either but a couple of months ago I tried again and they're fine so last month I bought 2 for another tank and they seem to be doing well too. I have also heard that a lot of times stress kills the bacteria they have to process their food and without that they starve to death, so again, this probably isn't a fish you want to buy skinny to fatten up yourself.
Thanks Blinky and Fishpoor for the great information. I'll consider otos again. The ones I had actually got very fat bellies a week or 2 before they died. I thought someone told me that they weren't fat in a good way, but the bloated bellies meant that they were sick and going to die. I may be remembering that incorrectly, though.
I think I'll work on the CO2 levels, and then the cleaning crew. I downloaded that calculator, and will have my husband run it on his PC...it's not a Mac program.
Thanks again for everything!
Moboe
I think I'll work on the CO2 levels, and then the cleaning crew. I downloaded that calculator, and will have my husband run it on his PC...it's not a Mac program.
Thanks again for everything!
Moboe
That can happen too - they should look well-fed, but not bloated, which can indicate major illness.
Otos constantly search for food, so it's likely that you'll see a healthy bunch hanging on the sides of the tank, scrubbing the substrate and generally looking perky. You will probably also be able to notice the fish producing waste. I watched my newest otos at the store for about half an hour - they were all hunting around for food, pooping, with flat or slightly rounded bellies. I bet the staff thought I was strange for sitting in front of the tank for so long, but it's a pretty failsafe method for making sure the fish are healthy!
Concave bellies are a fairly reliable way of telling if they're ill or new to the store (they're not fed before or during transport, so if they're thin in the store they're either sick or newly arrived - either way, I wouldn't buy them).
Otos constantly search for food, so it's likely that you'll see a healthy bunch hanging on the sides of the tank, scrubbing the substrate and generally looking perky. You will probably also be able to notice the fish producing waste. I watched my newest otos at the store for about half an hour - they were all hunting around for food, pooping, with flat or slightly rounded bellies. I bet the staff thought I was strange for sitting in front of the tank for so long, but it's a pretty failsafe method for making sure the fish are healthy!
Concave bellies are a fairly reliable way of telling if they're ill or new to the store (they're not fed before or during transport, so if they're thin in the store they're either sick or newly arrived - either way, I wouldn't buy them).
Going back to the CO2 again...
That great CO2 calculator (what a great site!) needs ph level and KH...carbonate hardness. My test kit has a test for GH...general hardness. Can I use this GH test or is there a KH test kit I need to get?
Still wishing I remembered more about chemistry...
Moboe
That great CO2 calculator (what a great site!) needs ph level and KH...carbonate hardness. My test kit has a test for GH...general hardness. Can I use this GH test or is there a KH test kit I need to get?
Still wishing I remembered more about chemistry...
Moboe
moboe - If the "hedge" you refer to is what I believe it is, that is a big part of the problem. There are plants sold as "cherry hedge" and "green hedge" that aren't true aquatic plants even though they are often sold as such. I learned this the hard way, when I discovered that my cherry hedge and purple crinkle were not aquatic species. Light and Co2 won't help hedge grow underwater. It will live for a while and then die, and when it decomposes will pollute the water. I ended up with a small nitrite spike when this happened, which led to a nitrate increase and an algae outbreak. It took more frequent water changes to correct this, and then I added more plants that were true aquatics and things worked out much better. Stem plants are best for "choking out algae", provided you give them suitable growing conditions.
The advice about otos is right on......the most important part is picking fish that are healthy and not starved. I won't buy 95% of the otos I see available because they aren't healthy enough. If you see lots of dead fish in the tank, or they look skinny, or pale, (often all three) don't buy any fish from that tank! I look for active fish with full bellies (not swollen though) and overall just healthy looking. Also I find it important to acclimate them slowly, as they can be a bit sensitive to changes in water parameters.
For fast growing stem plants that don't require high lighting, I like rotala indica. It grows well in my low-light and moderate light tanks, although it looks nicer and grows faster with higher light (take on a pinkish hue at the tops). I don't use CO2 or fertilize, and I have to constantly prune. I do frequent water changes though, which helps.
For fast growing stem plants that don't require high lighting, I like rotala indica. It grows well in my low-light and moderate light tanks, although it looks nicer and grows faster with higher light (take on a pinkish hue at the tops). I don't use CO2 or fertilize, and I have to constantly prune. I do frequent water changes though, which helps.
Thanks, Aqualung, for the valuable information. I know they called it hedge, and I can completely believe that it isn't really an aquatic plant, but maybe what I have isn't really hedge, then, because it has been growing really well in both my tanks for almost a year now! Granted, it took off when I first put it in, then slowed, but I began to add plant food, and it has been growing really well. I keep clipping it and planting the clippings elsewhere in the tank, and it roots easily, and has been growing well. The one bunch I started with in my 6G now fills almost half that tank, and half my 20G into which I planted clippings. Very confusing!!!
Thanks for the recommendations re: otos and rotala indica. I'll definitely look into that when next I'm at the LFS.
I'm attaching 2 photos..the first one is a close-ish up of the plant, to see if anyone can identify it. The 2nd is meant to show (to some degree) the algae problem in my tank...currently most evident on the leaves of the plant and on the decoration. I just cleaned the tank and algae Thursday night.
Thanks again.
moboe
Thanks for the recommendations re: otos and rotala indica. I'll definitely look into that when next I'm at the LFS.
I'm attaching 2 photos..the first one is a close-ish up of the plant, to see if anyone can identify it. The 2nd is meant to show (to some degree) the algae problem in my tank...currently most evident on the leaves of the plant and on the decoration. I just cleaned the tank and algae Thursday night.
Thanks again.
moboe
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