chris02_84

What's wrong with algae...Why do people not want algae?..... I don't mind it in my tank just as long as it not out of control...but otherwise why not?

Isabella

Algae always compete with plants for nutrients. So if you have enough algae to consume most of the nutrients, your plants will eventually die (of starvation). Algae can start growing on your plants' leaves which blocks the light from plants and also causes them to die. If algae are any other color than green they look very "un-aesthetic" (they make the tank look dirty). But, if you have no plants, but just algae growing, I don't think they have to be a concern. Plus, they will be good food for any algae eater(s) you may have.

off-ice

If you don't mind it, there's really nothing wrong with having algae. Some of it can actually look pretty nice.

Isabella

The violet-pink stuff is algae ?! It looks beautiful, lol, as if it were a part of the plant! I had no idea algae come in pink and violet colors! How do you cause such alage to grow?

newbie101

thats awesome! 8)

off-ice

Yup, that's algae. Black brush algae to be exact. It's usually a dull grey/black color, but it is in the red algae family and can take on that color. I don't know of any way to grow and keep it that color though. You kinda just get what you get.

chris02_84

that's pretty cool

0morrokh

There's nothing wrong with a bit of algae. In my tank, which is unplanted as of now and has 2 cats, I don't do anything with the algae. It makes great 'snack food' for all the fish, and I think it makes everything look more natural. Granted, I've never had serious algae growth. Many people just don't like how it looks. It gets to be a problem when, like Isabella says, it starts growing all over a planted tank and interferes with photosynthesis and competes for nutrients.

Parvath

I have algea in my tank now... looks like its food for fishes so I dont mind and moreover I dont have live plants in the tank. I just dont like it when It starts building up on the sides of the glass.

Isabella

Some fish, or so I hear, do eat algae - so in this respect it's good. Algae are also good food for loaches and, of course, algae-eaters (lol).

Jon

except chinese algae eaters ^,^

Isabella

Well ... not quite so. I have a Chinese algae eater. He is so effective I can't find one speck of algae on the glass of my tank. Not even anywhere on the gravel or decor. I know these algae eaters have a bad reputation, but I can't find one fault with mine. He is not aggressive and he does not suck on the slime coating of other fish in the tank. I think you just have to know how to care for this loach, and it'll be OK.

Jon

are you sure... hmm ... interesting... perhaps you have a Siamese algae eater? they look similar i think... idk what to say ive only ever heard bad things about there algae eating capabilities... good job if your that good of a fishkeeper that you can make CAE eat algae... congrats thats cool

Isabella

Jon, I am sure of my algae eater. If he were aggressive, sucked on my fish's slime coating, and were not effective at getting rid of algae, all of my fish would be dead long ago and algae would be all over my tank by now. If my fish are fine, if I never see him attack any of my fish, and if I have no algae in my tank - that means he has to be effective.

Now, I am not saying that "all" Chinese algae eaters are like this. I am well aware of their bad reputation. Mine may simply be an exception. It's not at all that I am some exceptionally good fish keeper. I am just like everybody else - I do what I have to do, i.e. regular water changes, etc. - which I wouldn't classify as somehow "exceptional" because these are the regular things we have to do.

I am sure mine is not Siamese. Here is what a Siamese looks like: http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/gsae.html. And here is what a Chinese looks like: http://www.azgardens.com/images/Gold-Algae-Eater.gif. This is my algae eater: http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=1/2523175535.jpg&s=x4. As you can see for yourself, it is a Chinese form.

One again, all this is not to "prove" that they're good algae eaters - all I am saying that mine happens to be very good, it works well for me. I don't know what it is, but I have personally come to believe that these types of algae eaters will be aggressive if kept in small tanks, where they have no space to let their energy out. They're very lively and very fast, so they need a LOT of space. I'd say AT LEAST 30 gallons, not less. Of course tanks bigger than that would be great for them. Just imagine, how would you feel if you were confined within a tiny space where you could barely move? Fish feel the same way, and if they don't have enough space, they'll eventually become aggressive (in the case of a Chinese loach).

Considering that most people start the fish hobby as inexperienced beginners (as I have myself started; and when I was getting that alage eater, I didn't even know it had a reputation for being aggressive), they often fall prey to fish stores that just want to sell their stuff without, for example, informing their customers that Chinese algae eaters may be aggressive. I am not surprised that these loaches get a bad opinion if most of the people getting them don't even know what they're getting - and at the end, they're surprised and disappointed. But nobody even cares (or knows, as mentioned above) that they DO need a lot of space in order to be effective. I believe this is where the negative opinion comes from.

0morrokh

I think I have read that while CAE's start out peaceful and algae-loving, they may become more aggressive and less likely to eat algae as they grow older. I'm no expert on them though. Like Isabella said the tank space would probably be a big factor. And of course in all fish species there are exceptions to the "rules" about how they act.

Isabella

I have also heard that they become ineffective as they grow older. I can only hope this won't happen to mine. I have no way of knowing what will happen in the future. At approximately what age do you think they become aggressive, etc.? Mine is about 2 years old and it stopped growing long ago. It's about 4-5 inches in length.

0morrokh

I thought basically they became more aggressive and less effective at algae eating as they reach maturity.* If yours has already reached full size and has not changed, then I would assume that chances are he will stay the same.* Are you sure he's done growing?* I know they grow very slowly.* Do you know the adult size of a CAE?

Isabella

It was still growing a couple of months ago, but indeed very slowly. But since then, I haven't seen any increase in size. Maybe it's still growing only so slowly I can't see it. But I doubt it because his size doesn't change relative to the size of other mature fishes in my tank. I know Chinese loaches are reported to grow to much more than 4-5 inches but that happens when they're in huge tanks or in nature. In smaller tanks they never get this big.