i gotta 20 gal tall tank that im tired of cleaning everything by hand! im looking for something that will not get too huge for my tank. pleco, suckermouth cat?? need algae control! any suggestions?
need a pleco...
- Thread starter jerzsky
- Start date
I always just buy the regular plecos and sell them back to the pet store when they grow to large. I have never had good luck with other algae eaters.
i have had great success with my golden suckermouth in my 55, but i wanna try somethin diff in my 20.
Otocinclus (Otos) are good for smaller tanks. I'd get 3-4 for your 20g. You should definitely try to ID your algae and find out the cause. An algae eater will help with the problem, but it won't solve the problem.
This is a good algae site. If you look through the different types on the right hand side, you may be able to ID it. Then, if it doesn't say on that site what causes it, you could always google it and do some research. Then you'll hopefully know how to fix the problem.
This is a good algae site. If you look through the different types on the right hand side, you may be able to ID it. Then, if it doesn't say on that site what causes it, you could always google it and do some research. Then you'll hopefully know how to fix the problem.
Algae --> algae-eating fish --> poop --> nutrients --> algae
any questions? you don't solve anything by buying a pleco (your tank is pretty small for one anyway), you just feed a cycle that can only be broken when you, as "The Responsible Fish Owner", step in and actually clean the tank yourself and do water changes. Algae-eating fish won't pick up your slack.
Not only that, but plecos *surprise* need other things than just algae to thrive - algae wafers, pellets, fresh vegetables. . . depending on the species some need driftwood or high protein diets. getting one and expecting it to live on algae alone is cruel. getting one and feeding it properly is going to make your tank a lot dirtier than it already is, and probably max out your bioload.
any questions? you don't solve anything by buying a pleco (your tank is pretty small for one anyway), you just feed a cycle that can only be broken when you, as "The Responsible Fish Owner", step in and actually clean the tank yourself and do water changes. Algae-eating fish won't pick up your slack.
Not only that, but plecos *surprise* need other things than just algae to thrive - algae wafers, pellets, fresh vegetables. . . depending on the species some need driftwood or high protein diets. getting one and expecting it to live on algae alone is cruel. getting one and feeding it properly is going to make your tank a lot dirtier than it already is, and probably max out your bioload.
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don't you already have a common pleco and a golden CAE? you're pretty much stocked if you've got both of those fish.
