neupane00

Hey guys i have 29 gallon tank running for about 3 weeks now. After first week, i added 6 gloflish (colored zebra danios). they are awesome and very happy in my tank. Now the question is, however less i feed, fish miss the food and there are some uneaten food in the bottom. Now i am looking for some cleaner fish for the bottom of the tank. I dont like shrimps and snails... And common plecos are too big and ugly. Any other? Currently i have 6 zebra danios, i plan to add 6 cardinal or neon tetra and few guppy. What would be ideal bottom feeder to eat uneaten tropical fish flakes, crisps, freeze dried brine shrimp? Also if that bottom feeder would take care of algae, that would be awesome. So far i have researched cory or otto will be good. both small for small fish tank. Are they good cleaners for bottom and glass? Any suggestion for stocking my aquarium will be greatly appreciated.

AlyeskaGirl

Are you vacuuming the gravel to pickup any uneatten food and waste? Is your tank cycled? What are your readings for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? Sorry for all the questions.

Corys are a good bottom dweller but don't think of them as just cleaners .....you still need to feed them a good diet such as good quaility flake food, frozen bloodworms, frozen brine shrimp and sinking wafers. :They are social and best kept in groups of 3-5. They don't eat algae.

What does the algae look like...green? brown? I don't have algae eatters because I don't have any algae in my tanks. My tanks are away from direct sunlight and just away from windows in general. Is your tank getting sunlight or just day light? You can just wipe it off the glass etc. when you do a water change. You really dont' need algae eatter when you can do it. lol Ottos are a algae eatters but they are not recommended for newly cycled tanks. They are very sensitive to water conditions.

neupane00

its new tank and away from sunlight. i dont have any algae yet that i can see. i was thinking just in case there is on plants and decoration that i cant see you know.
my readings are:
ammonia - 0ppm
nitrAte - 10
nitrite - 0 to .5
pH - 7.4

do corys eat uneaten flakes, crisps? i have freeze dried brine shrimp but that ususally stays on top and doesnt sink. thats not good for corys right? can they live off flakes and crisps or do i NEED frozen bloodworms and frozen brine shirmp? i am trying to stay away from live and frozen food (only freeze dried) because i heard that sometimes carry disease? or atleast more chance?

since i have no visible algae right now and tank is new, i shouldnt get any algae eaters like otto? or should i get it and feed algae sinking wafer? whats your suggestion

lousieg55

You could get a pellet type of food and drop those down there for a cory to eat.

haedra

I have corydoras; but I do not use flakes in my tank, so they get their own food. However, they are scavengers; and should eat leftover flake. They would help in that regard, but to make sure they get enough to eat you might want to also supplement their diet with something that sinks.

What makes this a bit rough right now, is that while they would help in eating leftover food, corydoras (and otos for that matter) are a bit more sensitive to the water chemistry than some other fish. So it is generally recommended to keep them in more established tanks; and not in one that is still cycling. The color result for your nitrite, is that definitely above 0? If it is; I would really wait on the corydoras.

I wouldn't worry about algae just yet. I'm of the school of thought that it is better for such creatures to get the bulk of their diets from their natural food, with manufactured supplements as needed; which at a tank age of 3 weeks there really won't be enough of yet. I know there will be some to disagree; this is just my opinion.

I know you said you already feed less; but if possible you might want to do your best to spot clean excess food. Adding new inhabitants when a tank is not completed cycling (or even too soon after, as I experienced myself) can throw things out of whack, prolonging your cycle and stress on the fish.

Regal

You could add some cories to eat the food that the fish don't get. But they do need to be fed more than just leftovers. They love shrimp pellets.

It may be a good idea to hod off on the ottos for a while. They don't do well in newly established tanks and if you have no algae they won't have anything to eat anyway.

carlos413

I agree with everyone else. Id go with Cory cats my self I own a school of 4 peppered Cory cats and they are awesome friendly bottom feeders.
On the algae some algae is essential even beneficial. A little bit on wood rocks is ok you just don’t want it to take over your aquarium. Id stay away from the ottos they are a bit sensitive and in my opinion Cory cats are better bottom feeders.