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Algae eaters

Aurora IceLeaf

Aurora IceLeaf

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hey guys! im currently looking for an algae eater for my turtle tank. I had been looking at clown plecos, since their essentially made out of armor, and can take a bit of abuse from the turtle (which wont happen since shes terrified of fish lol) but then learned those are more of just bottom feeders than actual algae eaters, and so I was wondering if you guys had any ideas on smth for the tank. I've tried snails, she eats them.
 
well you probably have a few options.

if your turtle is scared of fish, then maybe shrimp will be ok? Amano Shrimp might be an option

Siamese Algae Eater might work but idk how well it will do with your turtle, so you might need to look into that.

Dwarf suckers might be an option as well, its a small catfish.

I am not a freshwater guy so maybe someone else has better input, but I think these might be a good start to look at
 
memphis said:
well you probably have a few options.

if your turtle is scared of fish, then maybe shrimp will be ok? Amano Shrimp might be an option

Siamese Algae Eater might work but idk how well it will do with your turtle, so you might need to look into that.

Dwarf suckers might be an option as well, its a small catfish.

I am not a freshwater guy so maybe someone else has better input, but I think these might be a good start to look at
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like otocinclus? she'll eat shrimp lol, plus i dont have live plants in her tank since she ate them all
 
In the past I’ve had good experiences with clown plecos. They do a wonderful job of keeping my tank clean, particularly driftwood. How they’d play with your turtle I don’t know. As to Memphis’ comment they are more scavengers but should* do fine with eating algae. You may need to feed them a few supplements in their diet though to keep them happy. Otos are a great option but you’d need a few since they’re pretty social. I don’t know what size tank you’re working with but I’d recommend around 4 or 5 If possible
 
John Wayne said:
In the past I’ve had good experiences with clown plecos. They do a wonderful job of keeping my tank clean, particularly driftwood. How they’d play with your turtle I don’t know. As to Memphis’ comment they are more scavengers but should* do fine with eating algae. You may need to feed them a few supplements in their diet though to keep them happy. Otos are a great option but you’d need a few since they’re pretty social. I don’t know what size tank you’re working with but I’d recommend around 4 or 5 If possible
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which would do a better job with eating algae though?
 
otos are sensitive to poor water quality, so usually people keep them with slow growing plants and it gives them some good hiding spots
 
John Wayne said:
What’s wrong with the water quality? And what’s the tank size, and what do you filter it with?
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its just really unstable. one day perfect parameters the next day spiking in smth. I don't remember the exact size. it had a tetra internal tank filter.
 
Aurora IceLeaf said:
its just really unstable. one day perfect parameters the next day spiking in smth. I don't remember the exact size. it had a tetra internal tank filter.
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I would figure out the params spiking and try to stabilize it first before adding anything else as it might cause you more stress and problems later on.
 
memphis said:
I would figure out the params spiking and try to stabilize it first before adding anything else as it might cause you more stress and problems later on.
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Agreed. Let’s try and fix this tank before we go adding more fish to it. Turtles make it harder but that’s no excuse for a poor tank. We’ll figure it out 🙂. Let’s get an exact size, and pictures or a link to the filter please.
 
its all good, I'll figure it out. its not been as bad lately. i also don't want otos bc im afraid she'd hurt them. i have some zebra dainos in there and their doing really well.

any liquid algae killers or smth?
 
Aurora IceLeaf said:
its all good, I'll figure it out. its not been as bad lately. i also don't want otos bc im afraid she'd hurt them. i have some zebra dainos in there and their doing really well.

any liquid algae killers or smth?
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Liquid algae killers are a great way to crash a tank 😬. If you could send pictures I could recommend some stuff though. Is it just on decor? Or glass and substrate as well?
 
I agree with John. When you start adding stuff like that you can swing the direction of the tank really fast. And makes it harder and hard to stabilize.

I would take johns advise when it comes to stabilizing your tank. He is super experienced and can help get your tank healthy so you don't need to stress over this stuff over the long run
 
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