However, these brightly colored dwarf shrimp breed easily in home aquariums, and with a decent-sized colony, they provide excellent preventative maintenance against the buildup of excess food and algae.
Read more about them in our cherry shrimp article. An army of bright red cherry shrimp exploring a lush forest of green aquarium plants is a delightful sight to behold. The catfish of the Otocinclus genus are commonly known as otos or dwarf suckermouths because they typically stay around 2 inches 5 cm in length.
Their smaller, slender bodies allow them to fit into tighter spaces than other algae-eating fish. Like the hillstream loach, their mouths are ideal for eating diatom algae from flat surfaces, and you can find them usually hanging out on the aquarium glass or plant leaves.
Otos are prone to being underfed, so make sure you give them plenty of Repashy Soilent Green and vegetables like canned green beans and blanched zucchini slices. For more information on how to care for these adorable catfish, read our full article here. Otocinclus catfish are a schooling fish, so try to get at least three to six of the same species to help these shy creatures feel safe and comfortable. Crossocheilus oblongus also known as SAE for short is a 6-inch 15 cm cleaner fish that is commonly used in larger aquariums.
Their downturned mouths are well-suited for eating hair algae, black beard algae, and leftover scraps in the fish tank. Therefore, you may need to reduce food portion sizes in order to get older SAEs interested in eating algae again.
As with hillstream loaches, SAEs can be a little territorial with their own or similar-looking species, so choose to either get one individual or at least three in a group for more algae-eating power. Siamese algae eaters are not the same as Chinese algae eaters, which are much more aggressive and can get twice as big. This 2. If you have an unheated tank with other fast-swimming tank mates, this killifish may be the right algae eater for you.
As a native of North America, flagfish can thrive in cooler water environments without any aquarium heaters. Thankfully, bristlenose plecos from the Ancistrus genus are peaceful catfish that stay between 4 to 5 inches less than 13 cm , making them perfect for a gallon tank or larger. Their suckermouths are made for devouring algae, vacuuming up food crumbs, and keeping driftwood clean.
However, remember to feed them a well-rounded diet of sinking wafers , frozen bloodworms, and Repashy gel food to make sure they get all the necessary nutrients. Mollies are popular livebearers from the Poecilia genus that live in fully fresh to fully salt water in the Americas. Because of their flat, grasping jaws and bottomless stomachs, they are constantly picking at algae found on plants, hardscape, and even flat surfaces. The aquarium hobby has selectively bred them into a wide range of colors, patterns, fin types, and body shapes, and they readily reproduce if given plenty of food and hiding spots for the fry.
As a heads up, fancy mollies are often raised in brackish water fish farms, so if you sense health problems with your new fish, consider adding aquarium salt and extra minerals to help them thrive.
They grow up to five to six inches. Once they wipe out the algae in your aquarium, you can supplement their diet with seaweed. Flame Angelfish: Flame angels are beautiful and active algae consumers. They tend to grow to six inches long.
Flame angelfish are peaceful among their tankmates except for similar-looking angels. They grow to about two inches, making them a great addition to a marine or reef nano tank.
Rainford Gobies are remarkably peaceful towards other fish in the aquarium. Besides algae, you can feed them flakes, pellets, and frozen food. These active swimmers are very peaceful and love to be part of a schooling group. They go around digging in the substrate looking for detritus and worms to eat. You can feed them dry and frozen fish food along with algae.
They have small heads and rectangular bodies. Their body is silver with a yellow or green hue, covered with dark spots. Mature Spotted Scats need a saltwater tank with slightly brackish water. They grow up to 15 inches, so they need a large tank with plenty of room to swim. Mollies, Gobies, Monos, and Archers make great tankmates for this species.
Invertebrates That Eat Hair Algae 8. Shrimps Amano Shrimp : Amano Shrimp are well-known and traded for their hair algae-eating abilities. They can survive in various tank conditions. Amano shrimp also eat debris, detritus, and leftover fish food. They grow up to two inches and are therefore great additions to small and medium-sized aquariums.
However, they can breed and multiply in various water conditions. They grow about 1. In addition to hair algae, they consume other algae types, detritus, and leftover food. Snails Many snail species can help you with your algae problem.
Most of them need minimal care and can survive without an additional food source. Nerite Snails are cheap and easy to find. They scavenge and eat algae and clean the rocks and tank glass.
Cerith snails consume hair and film algae. They can fit in nano tanks since they grow to only one inch. Crabs Hermit crabs and Emerald crabs can consume ample amounts of algae in saltwater and reef aquariums without hurting the corals or knocking down the decorations. They can eat all types of algae and even leftover fish food. Dwarf Blue Leg Hermit Crab.
Twenty years ago I was in the lesser-water-changes crowd, but some friends convinced me to try doing more water changes. I gave it a try and now believe my fish and plants have done better because of it—so I have switched sides and now advocate regular water changes. I think the benefits outweigh the possible disadvantages.
For those of us with water like liquid rock, there are other options. First you can purchase or filter your own water. RO water is often used in planted aquariums. Usually it is mixed with tap or several additives are mixed with it to achieve the desired water conditions.
Adding CO 2 will also lower your pH and can be very beneficial to the plants, but it does require more tank care. Plant Selection and Growth: Another option—something that I do in the majority of my tanks—is to just grow plants that prefer the rock-like water. Many plants will do well in this type of water, including val, hornwort, swords, and mosses. Many emergent and even terrestrial plants are falsely sold as aquarium plants. You need to have healthy aquatic plants to compete with your algae.
New growth should be noticeable and should continue indefinitely. Speaking of healthy plants, another method used to keep aquarium algae down relies on optimal plant growth. Doses are added daily to several times a week and large water changes are carried out weekly to ensure there are no excessive buildups. Results can be impressive, but this is a labor-intensive way to grow plants. You have to stay on top of it to keep the tank levels consistent, and you will need to trim regularly to keep up with excess plant growth.
Another way to use desirable plants to curb algae is by letting your plants grow across some of the top of the tank or even out of the tank. More plant growth means less for your algae, and plants growing across the top and out of the tank have the added benefit of being able to use the CO 2 in the air. Plants at the top of your tank can also provide shade, which can hurt some algae. Make sure you have adequate lighting for your aquarium, and replace bulbs frequently.
Most sources cite six months to a year as a good time to change bulbs. Often a patch of hair algae can be linked to a passing period of daylight that streams in to a tank from an open window across the room. Algae Grazers: Good aquarium practices are a key in fighting hair algae, but you also may wish to employ a small clean-up crew to aid in your battle.
Several fish and invertebrates will eat at least some species of hair algae. And if you want to try something really unusual, the tiny Gammarus crustaceans will also eat it.
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