Ummm.....how do u grow more algae??

[PCDawg]

My 2 otto cats and my 3 amano shrimps have cleaned out my tank of algae and im looking into more food sources for them.....

The amano shrimps will eat leftover fish food...but for the ottos...they dont seem to eat it...

So how do i grow more algae as i cant seem to have any luck......is the only way to do so is by having the lights on longer??

I dont want to stress out my other fishes

Thanks

 

[Richer]

Instead of trying to grow algae for your otos, try feeding them zucinni. What I do is, buy one zucinni, slice it up into thin slices, wrap them up in plastic, and stick em in the freezer. Once a week, I take a slice out let it thaw and throw it into the tank. Cheap, and it works.

HTH
-Richer

 

[djlen]

Also Romaine(sp?) lettuce is good stuff.
Len

 

[plantbrain]

Peas are yet another. Pumpkin and other squash also.
Sinking algae disc are okay. Otto's are the more difficult animal to feed.
You can place a flat stone outside in bucket with some house hold fertilizer and it'll get a nice film fairly fast and plop that in there also.

Regards,
Tom Barr

 

[Glenstorm]

sarcasm

algae growth is a very complex ecological formula. It is directly proportional to the magnitude of your expectations for a lush planted tank and the amount of money you have invested in those expectations. . .



Feed them the veggies!

 

[wetmanNY]

Maybe, if we all concentrate real hard on how much we need some extra algae, on how essential it is to our aquarium plans...

well, I know it works with green water after your gouramis have spawned...

 

[Nobody]

One word.. sunlight

 

[superstein61]

I'd be happy to send you some of my algae

 

[wetmanNY]

Some old hand once told me that if your nice green water culture is starting to clear, you can extend its life somewhat by adding fish fry that are too large to eat the algae but not so large they ignore the plankton. If you want the green to grow, you need carnivores to keep down the herbivores...

Ecological thinking at its simplest eh?

I've always wondered whether a full-grown Oscar would ignore Daphnia or, better, Moina. They would keep the water clear... (No way for me to try this in my simple apartment setups. A tank big enough for a full-grown Oscar would drop right through my old floors...)

 

[ChilDawg]

I think Neal Pronek wrote something to the effect that full-grown Oscars may ignore single Tubifex worms, but will take them in clumps.

This doesn't have any application here, though, does it?...actually, it does.

His point is that full-grown (and even half-grown) Oscars often ignore smaller foodstuffs (esp. livefoods) because the effort required to catch them is not equivalent to the caloric intake from such foods.