it never gets algae?

ive had my tank for about 2 months now..it never gets algae or hasnt yet..is this normal... or will it take a while to get algae..or do some tanks never egt it.. and when I do get algae, what's the smallest simplist thing that will get rid of the algae besides snails (would get one but am afraid of it multiplying :-\) do shrimp eat algae..I have no clue about bottom feeders any help would be nice

 

We've never had algae in any of our tanks yet & some have been running since early January. If you get algae, it's ok to go with a mystery snail or apple snail (for bigger tanks) but just 1 so you don't have reproduction going nuts. Otos are also good for algae, but they like to have at least a few and will need about 2 gallons worth of your tank each. Plecos are good IF you have at least a 20 gallon tank and get a dwarf pleco (4-5" adult). Allow about 1.5 gallons per each adult inch for them since they put out so much waste. We only have 10 gallon & 5 gallon tanks so haven't really considered a pleco.. if we ever get algae we'll probably put a mystery snail in each tank that gets the algae.

 

k well I have a mollie now in a 5 gallon..so I know plecos and corys are out...I guess I will get a snail when the time comes...they sell these little see-through shrimp though at my LFS what do they do

 

the ghost shrimp will clean your tank & eat algae for you also.

 

Ghost shrimp will do minimal algae cleaning if any at all. If the tank is small then algae isn't a big pain to remove. I had my tank going for 1.5 years no algae with direct sunlight then all of a sudden I had a hair algae outbreak. It may or may not come. No reason to buy an algae eater if you have no problem and it's best to find out why you are having algae and eliminate the cause instead of buying a temporary solution. You may have excess nutrients in the water, too much sunlight etc. If you ever get algae there are multiple sites that tell you how to get rid of it and I know members here and myself can help you out but it's hard to tell you all the algae's and how to get rid of them.

Best of luck to keep your tank algae free.

 

thanks atm and FLbetta I think I might get a ghost shrimp , these ones are really small how big do they get?.. they clean the tank too so that would be nice... anyone know what they eat? they don't hurt fish do they?

 

The Ghost shrimp are omnivores and will consume algae, detritus and left over food. Sometimes you'll want to drop in a piece of algae wafer (or a small wafer) for the shrimp to eat if you feel he's not getting enough to eat. Ghost shrimp are peaceful and shouldn't bother fish and I don't believe your molly will do anything to the shrimp.

 

ok thanks

 

you're welcome. Best of luck with your tank.

 

make sure you have a hiding place for your shrimp, they molt monthly and need a place to hide where fish won't bother them until they regrow since they are sensitive after they molt. If you want a shrimp that eats algae get amano/algae eating shrimp, those are two names for the same shrimp. If you feed your ghost shrimp a wafer break off a tiny piece, they can't eat a whole wafer, I have a lot of them and they don't eat a lot, they are better scavengers.

 

An Oto would do the trick too....You may even be able to get two.....Since they are less active than other fish their oxygen consumption isn't as rapid. As long as you keep up on the water, two should do fine.

 

Otos have a reputation for getting lonely with just 1, but sometimes a single oto will be ok. Still 2 might be better, although a bit of overload on the 5 gallon tank so you'd have to do more frequent water changes. The otos would appreciate a good hiding spot or 2 also.

 

I had a single oto for the longest time...He was quite happy among the corys and got quite the little belly on him....Then we got him a tank mate... It doesn't seem to have changed him with the exception that his belly isn't as big from sharing the food supply and they're never together...Come to think of it, I don't recall ever seeing them in the same general area....

 

I had a single oto for the longest time...He was quite happy among the corys and got quite the little belly on him....Then we got him a tank mate... It doesn't seem to have changed him with the exception that his belly isn't as big from sharing the food supply and they're never together...Come to think of it, I don't recall ever seeing them in the same general area....

Funny thing - while we were away on a 2 week trip, the 5 gallon our female betta is in developed a bit of algae so it looks like we'll be getting an Oto or 2 (if the LPS has any in tommorrow).

 

I have some ghost shrimp and they don't seem to make any dif to the algae at all. they do like to eat flakes that have made it the bottom of the tank and bits of algae wafer that have broken off. they go mad for baby brine shrimp and swim to get to them! that's funny to watch! don't be alarmed if you see a shell/exoskeleton! they will molt when they grow. they get to about 1.5 inches. the girls carry eggs in their abdomen and they're green..so look out for them. my girls have had eggs, but no babies....somebody must be eating them :! also if you look in the freshwater fish profiles, shrimp are in there, so that may be worth a read:
https://www.fishlore.com/profile-ghostshrimp.htm
otos are meant to be excellent algae eaters.
tan