# Algae eater



## Kdizzle (Jun 28, 2012)

What would be the best fish to take care of algae in a 10 gallon tank? are there any different ones for a 15 gallon tank?


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Plecos eat Algae. A lot of them also poop a lot to. But if you want something that will clean the rocks, that is what I have. It can also grow to like 20" so keep that in mind although the one I have in my 10g tank has not grown much in the 4 months that I've had it. Also it doesn't even eat the the waffers for it or anything elsez he just feeds on whatever else in the tank.


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## ZebraDanio12 (Jun 17, 2011)

plecos are great but will get far too large for your tank. Ottos are good. Chinese algea eaters are great with algae but they too get very big. So try ottos.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

plecos.......................many are not really algae eating types ; but carnivorous....many of the algae eating types will exceed 2 feet in length...most of the ancistris species stay fairly small (under 6 inches) and are pretty good with the algae....

otocinclus are fantastic little fish but a kot of people kill them by starvation....they think the algae is enough....they needs lots of other stuff...

chinese algae eaters really suck....they eat some algae when small but kinda stop when a little bigger..they also get very mean and will kill other fish....

there are several kinds of snails that will also eat algae....

true siamese algae eaters are fantastic...i have never had them bother other fish and t6hey devour ahy kind of algae....but they need a long tank so they can swim...

so otos are your best bet for a smaller tank like a 10 or 15...get 5 or 6...and feed them a good varied diet that also includes algae wafers and spirulina flake or sticks or bytes...


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## Kdizzle (Jun 28, 2012)

I knew plecos get to big but i have read otos need a min. of 30 gallons. I would like to get snails and/or shrimp


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## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

Otos don't need a 30 gal. We kept them in a 20 gal with no problems. They are so small too that they don't have a large bio load. The problem you might have with them is not enough algea after a while. I'd recommend one.


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## Kdizzle (Jun 28, 2012)

ya I don't really want more than one and I read an article that said they love zuchini if you are lacing algae


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I've read Plecos do and they eat cucumbers also, mine doesn't eat any food I give him and I've tried a bunch of foods for him. I've had it in my 10g for 4 months and I see no size difranse. I also was going to get one for my other 55 community but decided against it just because someday he may hit a growth spirt. But even at about 3" his poop is so long and stretches about 6" long at times. I thought I lost him for about a month when i first got it. And the only way I found him was because I seen a huge long poop stringing across the tank.

Here he/she is and has not grown at all


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## Kdizzle (Jun 28, 2012)

What type of pleco is that? I think i will end up getting an oto.


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2012)

If you get an oto, you want to get more than one, because they are shoaling fish. They are happiest in groups of 3 or more.


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## Guest (Jun 29, 2012)

That pleco is a common pleco, they get about 2 feet in length, so that one is going to need a bigger tank soon. I heard that they grow quickly.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Angelclown said:


> That pleco is a common pleco, they get about 2 feet in length, so that one is going to need a bigger tank soon. I heard that they grow quickly.


In my case that is not true that it grows fast. This is the only one I have ever had so other fish may vary. That pleco has not grown at all in the past 4 months. And if he does he will go into one of my 55g tanks


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## Guest (Jun 30, 2012)

Cory: may I suggest that you put that pleco in one of your 55 gallon tanks now. When I got my plecos they were tiny, about 2 in. They are now 6 1/2 in and they have been in the 55 gallon tank for 5 years.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I would my only issue is that my other tanks have much more filtration and not a lot of food falls to the bottom like my 10g so if I put him in there I don't think it would eat anything. Since mine won't eat any food I give it.


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## Redhead305 (May 30, 2012)

@cory plecos are i'd say one of the worst a.e's out because they don't do anything. Once they reach a certain size they tend to stop cleaning. They also like you said are messy and arent worth the bioload. In his case id go with ottos or true siamese if he can find them.


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Yea Mine makes a mess, I'm just not completely decided on keeping it in a 55 yet. I may take him over to my moms house for one of her tanks. That's what I do with most the fish I don't want to keep lol. She may like it I'm not sure. But yea they make a big mess.


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## Guest (Jun 30, 2012)

Cory: how many plecos do you have? If you only have one, I would suggest getting another one so that the one you have may be happy. Maybe the one you have is not happy being alone, if he is the only pleco you have. It could be why he isn't eating anything. 

Plecos eat what is left over from what other fish don't eat, plus they eat fish waste as well. My 55 gallon tank is clean and clear, and I have two plecos that keep it that way.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

angel....contrary to some beliefs , fish do not eat fish waste....
plecos are mostly solitary creatures so i doubt they get lonely or have any need for a friend to be happy...
i agree that it needs to be moved to a larger tank...i am not sure exactly what species it is but there are a few we can rule out...
commons do grow fast.....if one has a common pleco that is 5 years old and only 6 or 8 inches long then it is severely stunted....i bought a couple of tanks from a guy..with them came fish..2 of them were 3" common plecos....within a year they were almost 10"at 2 years they were 18"...that is when i sold them to a coworker who put them in a 240 gallon tank...i wonder how big they are now...lol
not all plecos are fast growing...most of the hypancistris and peckoltia do not reach fuul size until they are 5 or 6 years old...and most of them stay pretty small...6" or less...


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

Oh god if mine was 18" I would put that bad boy in my pond! That's way to big of a fish that I ever want to keep lol. I don't think he's lonley and it seems fine. I just have not seen it grow at all. So until I see a size change or a huge growth spirt it will stay in my 10g he likes hanging out in the darker areas of the tank or hangs out on my filter tube. And I really never see him so it's not like I wouldn't relies it growing because it comes out like once a week. 
He likes to just hang out by my heater. But I already have 2 full proof plans to move it to another tank.


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## Redhead305 (May 30, 2012)

i dont think its a common, it looks like a clown imp. Commons dont have much patterning


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## Cory1990 (Jun 14, 2012)

I really have no idea I just know its small has not grown much if any at all and it's poop can stretch up to 6" at times when I see the huge string of poop coming off of it.


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## Kdizzle (Jun 28, 2012)

If I were to get a couple shrimp and a snail would there be a need for fish that would essentially do the same thing?


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## morla (Jun 23, 2012)

Ya, I would say you get 2 otos in a 10 gallon tank. Thats what im gonna get for my brothers tank. I read that otos like being in pairs of 2.


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