Aquarium Cleaning Fish

[cidley69]

I am new to the aquarium thing and wondering if anyone can list som e fish that are good at keepin it clean?

Like catfish style fish. My aquarium is a small freshwater tank.

[AllGoNoShow]

33gallon or so?

Pleco's are good bottom feeders/algea eaters, but they can grow up to 20"

Otto's are also just as good, but are smaller.

The catfish I got arent any good at algea but seem to eat everything else.

[accord823]

Try Rubber Pleco if you don't have a big tank and Otto's are good choice too
cheers :thumbsup:

[dragonone]

i read that fish of this type actually create more toxic chemicals, creating a heavier load than normal

[Thaco]

snails

[D'z Nutz]

Pleco's do a pretty good job of cleaning up tanks, but if they don't get vegetable matter in their diet, their shit gets long and spaghetti like :barf:

I'd advise against snails. They breed like crazy and if it gets out of hand your waste levels will jump.

[civicrider]

loaches are awsome along with some ghost shrimp they are really cool to watch as well:thumbsup:
for the glass any sucker fish will do the trick

[Rockski]

Originally posted by D'z Nutz
Pleco's do a pretty good job of cleaning up tanks, but if they don't get vegetable matter in their diet, their shit gets long and spaghetti like :barf:

I'd advise against snails. They breed like crazy and if it gets out of hand your waste levels will jump.

plecos get huge and will not fit in a "small" aquarium in the end. plus they produde more amonia and nitare (or nitrite, the one that comes first, in the cycle)

you can get zebra snails that arent asexual and wont breed like crazy, just get one large one...

freshwater clams are also good to add to your tank system...


try a cory as a bottom feeder ( might work out for you, but they like to be in groups of 5 or more )

[SportTwin]

Plecos are cool in a bigger tank, but once they get big they tend to get lazy. If you put enough food into the tank they'll just ignore the algae, and if they're over-fed they crap all over your tank. Yuck. Egyptian or Chinese Algae Eaters (sucker fish) are pretty good.

I've got some small snails in my tank- they're awsome, but snails are usually high maintenance because although they eat algae, they put all kind of toxins into the water and the population needs to be controlled. If you get any snails, make sure that you also get something to eat them, like a yo-yo loach. Also be certain that you can do your water changes regularily enough to keep your tank chemistry healthy.

And if you want to keep algae blooms in check, make sure your tank is not in direct sunlight. Less sunlight=less algae and will make the problem easier to deal with.

[jus_sum_guy]

A bristlenose pleco is the best choice for your aquarium. They only get about 4 inches big max

[yohan4ws]

wow, i used to have an aquarium when i was 12, but reading this .. its like a really cool little eco system and not just a gold fish bowl with a water pump.

[Lo)2enz0]

most of your problems start in your gravel/sand. As more and more waste is produced it makes tank cleaning hell. I do sypon 2 of my tanks and my other tank I do nothing to it. But I do have 15 khuli loaches in there. those guys do wonders and the tank is also crystal clear for over a year now.

pleco's are a waste of money if you are buying them as a "cleaning" tool. Buy them cause they are cool looking, but hey, this is coming from someone who spends $75-100 on rare pleco's.