Algae eating fish with a betta?

In Spazz's tank, there is starting to be some algae growth on the side of the glass and subtrate. It irritates me for some reason.......first, what causes it? Too much light, not enough light...something else?

Next, what types of fish can be put into Spazz's tank without disturbing her? How much algae would the fish need to eat? Thanks for any tips!

 

what color algae is it? a picture would help. but I have a panda cary in with my betta and they get along great.

 

what color algae is it? a picture would help. but I have a panda cary in with my betta and they get along great.

Some brown (substrate and a couple decorations) some green (glass).

 

counds like a cory would be ok. how big is the tank? maybe a small CAE or some Ottos?

 

counds like a cory would be ok. how big is the tank? maybe a small CAE or some Ottos?

It's a 5 gallon tank.

BTW, thanks for your help!

 

If you want something to eat algae, I would go with Otos. They stay small and are very inoffensive.

 

light and/or nutrients can cause algae. otos or starving the algae (less light and/or live plants to take nutrients) can get rid of it or you can wipe it off using an algae magnet or even a paper towel.

 

light and/or nutrients can cause algae. otos or starving the algae (less light and/or live plants to take nutrients) can get rid of it or you can wipe it off using an algae magnet or even a paper towel.

I use a paper towel cause I'm cool like that....no scents or dyes though!

Will try more live plants and keep the light on less to keep it down a bit. Might be better than introducing Spazz to a new fish.

 

yea, that's what we do with algae whenever it pops up in any of the betta tanks here.

 

yea, that's what we do with algae whenever it pops up in any of the betta tanks here.

But....I did just do an search on otos. They are really cute! But, for some reason I don't think I'd feel right putting an oto in with Spazz AFTER she has her established territory, patters, etc.

 

right.. after doing the quarantine on the otos - you'd have to take her out, rearrange everything, acclimate the otos and let them swim around a bit, then acclimate her back and hope she takes to them. some female bettas kill any 'intruders', even otos.

But....I did just do an search on otos. They are really cute! But, for some reason I don't think I'd feel right putting an oto in with Spazz AFTER she has her established territory, patters, etc.

 

Yes, supposedly otos and corys are reasonably safe with bettas, and it really works out in one of my tank, but it was a total disaster in another tank. The female betta totally went to destroy the pygmy corys I'd put in there. You'll need to be vigilant and have a back-up plan.

 

Another little known fact is that Cories are not algae eating fish. They will not touch the stuff. If you want algae eaters in with a Betta you can have two choices. Otos are for small tanks like 5 gallons or so (no more than 2 otos in a 5 gallon tank) and for a 10 gallon you can have one of the small plecos: I have the following and they are all fine: Queen Arabesque, Clown Pleco, and Gypsy King Tiger Pleco (my very favorite is the Clown Pleco and the smallest). They are not so touchy as the Otos in health but they are more tempermental as far as eating the algae. You have to fail to feed them unless they will eat the algae or they will NOT eat it and only eat what you feed them.

Rose

 

Yep, corys won't touch your algae. They're substrate cleaners, though.

Clown plecos and arabesques eat algae? I thought only bristlenose and common plecos ate them.

 

yea, there are a handful of dwarf plecos that are algae eaters.

 

I think only two plecos will eat algae. At least that's what I'd read. The others will suck the glass, but won't scrape the algae off. That's what I read on planet catfish anyways, but who knows. There's so many opinions around.

 

I can't find the list i'd made of all the algae-eating dwarf plecos. I think there are 4 or 5 total out of every pleco in the entire list, but if I remember right, they're not easily found in most chain stores and would probably require finding a pleco breeder.. seems easier to find a dwarf pleco that is wood-eating.

 

Oh I'd definitely be really interested if you could find it. I'd have loved a fancy algae eating dwarf pleco, but I always assumed I couldn't.

 

I wish I could, but i've lost the tablet that I'd made that list on. I'll have to go through all the plecos again sometime and re-make the list.

Oh I'd definitely be really interested if you could find it. I'd have loved a fancy algae eating dwarf pleco, but I always assumed I couldn't.

 

Can anyone suggest a critter to eat algae in a 5 gallon Betta tank ?

 

Some Bettas will tolerate snails or otos. Just make sure you have a back up plan in case it doesn't work out.
I tried putting a snail with Cami today and she went into attack mode.

 

a snail would be a better idea than an oto, but it depends on the temperament of your betta. my betta girl hera loves snail hunting, ares isn't fond of snails either, the rest seem to be okay with them

 

We are lucky as our Betta seems to like his Oto tankmate and does not attack him, but he does like small snails, as a food source!

From what I read it really is the luck of the draw if your Betta will accept anything in the tank with it.

If you do decide to try it there are a couple of things to consider first.

1) make some changes to the tank add a new decoration and move around the existing stuff at the same time as adding the Oto to make 'new' territory available for the new addition that the Betta does not consider HIS.

2) Have a back-up plan, watch the new arrival to make sure that the Betta accepts him, at any signs of aggression have somewhere else to put the Oto

 

With our previous betta, we had two otos with him and they were fine. He wasn't that aggressive though; in fact I never saw him flare.

My issue was keeping the otos alive. They'd be all active, plump bellies, then *snaps fingers* all skinny and then dead. One would go and then the other. I'm willing to consider it might have been the source, as all came from the same LFS. I commented on the problem and they said 'huh, people come in all the time buying them'. Replacing them, maybe?

With our new betta, I wouldn't try it. He flares at everything. His food, anything put near the tank...all fair game.

But from what I've read, if any tankmate's going to work, it's otos. They have little spines that discourage biting. Found that out when I was keeping dwarf puffers, who are a lot more aggressive than most bettas.

 

My issue was keeping the otos alive. They'd be all active, plump bellies, then *snaps fingers* all skinny and then dead. One would go and then the other. I'm willing to consider it might have been the source, as all came from the same LFS. I commented on the problem and they said 'huh, people come in all the time buying them'. Replacing them, maybe?

yeah, a lot of people run into the same problem. otos are wild caught and some of the practices they use to catch and transport them are questionable at best. generally the rule is about 80% of otos will die before a month, but if you can get them to live in your tank for over a month then they'll live for years.

 

we have kept two ottos in the betta tank. ive found that the bettas we have had nibble on the snails antennae.

 

yeah, a lot of people run into the same problem. otos are wild caught and some of the practices they use to catch and transport them are questionable at best. generally the rule is about 80% of otos will die before a month, but if you can get them to live in your tank for over a month then they'll live for years.

Yup. It's a shame as they're perfect for small tanks. I just tire of seeing them die. The last one got skinny, then he plumped up again, only to waste away. I began to wonder if the tank was cursed; then I realized the issue with otos; dwarf puffers can be tricky as well, and of course with all that bettas go through it's no wonder it can shorten their lifespan.

Still, for this application they're the best option. I have heard it's better to have the otos in first so they're part of the enviornment when the betta arrives, rather than add them later when the betta has already staked out the whole tank as his territory. All comes down to the individual fish though.

 

Otos like to be in groups with this size tank plus a betta, I'm not sure it'll work.
In a 5 gallon its going to come down to water quailty too.

 

2 of them seemed pretty happy in my 5 gallon hex; I didn't even notice behavior change when there was only one. Weekly water changes would of course be a must....

I will say that at this point I'm going with the foolproof algae control solution: watching light levels and the old fashioned scraper Guaranteed to work, and the scraper has no food demands, isn't going to die on me, and doesn't contribute to the bioload...

 

Yup. It's a shame as they're perfect for small tanks. I just tire of seeing them die. The last one got skinny, then he plumped up again, only to waste away. I began to wonder if the tank was cursed; then I realized the issue with otos; dwarf puffers can be tricky as well, and of course with all that bettas go through it's no wonder it can shorten their lifespan.

Still, for this application they're the best option. I have heard it's better to have the otos in first so they're part of the enviornment when the betta arrives, rather than add them later when the betta has already staked out the whole tank as his territory. All comes down to the individual fish though.

yeah, the problem is that they don't get anything to eat after they get caught and then during shipping. if the LFS doesn't make certain that they eat when they get there most of them will starve to death

2 of them seemed pretty happy in my 5 gallon hex; I didn't even notice behavior change when there was only one. Weekly water changes would of course be a must....

I will say that at this point I'm going with the foolproof algae control solution: watching light levels and the old fashioned scraper Guaranteed to work, and the scraper has no food demands, isn't going to die on me, and doesn't contribute to the bioload...

lol, yep I just use my algae scraper every week during water changes. it's a bit of a pain but it works

 

definetly an otto cat they are great I hear and there small

 

Are there any algae eaters I can put in a 5-gallon or 6-gallon tank with a male Betta ?

 

Hello! I have cory cats and a snail in each of my male betta 5gal tanks. Really it depends on that bettas personality if you can keep anything with them.

 

In that small of a tank, I'd really only recommend an olive (or zebra) nerite snail. That size tank is really too small for oto cats, Chinese or Siamese algae eaters, or any type of pleco, and a betta will make a quick snack out of amano or red cherry shrimp.

 

For algae eater, I recommend cherry shrimp or amano shrimp, depending on your bettas personality. Usually, they get along well, especially if there are plenty of hiding places.

 

If your tank were a little larger like a 10 gal there would be no problem with putting some type of pleco in there with it (if you go with the varieties that stay rather small) but since you have a smaller tank I would reccoment some type of shrimp. To be honest I work at a pet store and I know the only freshwater shrimp that we ALWAYS have are ghost shrimp and they keep the tank VERY clean and they are only like 89cents each.

Watch out if you're going with a snail many (maybe most I can't remember) can multiply on their own and you will end up with THOUSANDS of snails, your tank will be clean, but who really wants a thousand snails in their little 5 gal?

 

Watch out if you're going with a snail many (maybe most I can't remember) can multiply on their own and you will end up with THOUSANDS of snails, your tank will be clean, but who really wants a thousand snails in their little 5 gal?

I believe you're thinking of pond snails, which are generally regarded as pests by everyone. They are asexual, so they don't need a mate to reproduce. Mystery snails, apple snails, and nerite snails require a mate to reproduce, so if you only have one, you won't have any unwanted babies.

 

A pleco in a 10 gallon is not a good idea, just to note (I know the OP does not have a 10 gallon) Some people get away with corys, but IMO snails are much better suited for bettas.

 

I believe you're thinking of pond snails, which are generally regarded as pests by everyone. They are asexual, so they don't need a mate to reproduce. Mystery snails, apple snails, and nerite snails require a mate to reproduce, so if you only have one, you won't have any unwanted babies.

Oh I bought a snail that was listed as "mystery snail" and I got it and then a few months later had THOUSANDS of babies. But maybe it was just a mistake.

A pleco in a 10 gallon is not a good idea, just to note (I know the OP does not have a 10 gallon) Some people get away with corys, but IMO snails are much better suited for bettas.

Some pleco breeds stay small and get a max of 3" and those variety are fine in a 10 gal.

 

I would still be cautious with the plecos though... what breeds stay that little?