# Algea Eaters- Questions!



## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

Recently, there has been a lot of algea blooming in William's tank. It's all over his favorite plant and the sponge in his filter. 

So here's my question: What is the best algea eater that I could put in with him?

He is a laid-back type of fish. He only flairs at his mirror, and even then he doesn't try to attack the reflection.

He is in a 2.5 gallon and I know that may seem too small to put anything else in there, but I believe the filter can handle it. I'm prepared to do extra and larger water changes if necessary.

Even if you do not think I should put another fish (or shrimp or snail) in such a small tank with him, I would still like to know your opinion on which algea eater is the best.

I'm thinking a snail or shrimp, but I heard that snails create a lot of waste. I'd just have to deal with doing more water changes.


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

Your tank is not big enough for any more fish IMO...also, getting an algae eater...be it fish, shrimp or snail..... is not always the answer and algae eater don't eat every kind of algae anyway and so adding one may or may not help, it could even make things worse due to increased bioload

You need to find out the type of algae and the root cause of the algae and fix that first and IMO/E the number one algae cleaner is the hobbyist.........we can take care of nearly every species of algae one way or another........without chemical additives too......


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

I don't know how I would figure out what type of algea it is... Would you be willing to help me? I can describe it. It looks like mucus and is very goopy and kind of stringy. It doesn't attach to the sides of the tanks, just the fake plants and the filter. I have to idea what could be causing it, but I guess i could just take everything out and scrub it really good.

Do you think that would get rid of it?

Also, what can prevent algea from comming back?

Would I be able to have a snail in there if I find a very small species of snail? Not small enough for the betta to eat, of course, but small?


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

Can you post a pic?
What color is it, does it have an odor

How much and how often are the water changes, additives used, filtration, live plants-how many and what kind, how long has the tank been set-up and when did the algae appear?
Do you remove uneaten food, has the Betta had any health problems that required any medication?


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

Sorry, I can not post a picture.

It is green with no unusual odor. The tank has been set up for a little less than three weeks. The filter is a Tetra Whisper 10i. No live plants, one silk, on soft plastic (his favorite, which is now covered in algea). The algea appeared a few days (maybe 4) ago is is progressively getting worse. I do a 50% on weekends. I haven't done one this weekend yet, so i'm thinking about doing a 100% change and scrubbing everything. 

He always eats all of his food. After water changes I use API Stress Coat. But just a couple drops. 

He hasn't had a problem since the day I got him. I got him on August 5th.

He's very happy from what I can tell. He's always got at least one bubble nest going.


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

I forgot to mention this. I have this tetra brand Algea Control stuff, but it says not to use it on newly established tanks. 
I'm affraid to use it, as this tank is newly established.


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## Oldfishlady (Mar 1, 2010)

I would be careful in using the chemical products for algae control/killing, often it can kill aquatic plants and fish

It is hard to say what type of algae you have without a pic....have you googled it and look at some pic to ID it?

I would start by hand remove the algae and water changes


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

I took everything out of the tank today, scrubbed it, then boiled it. The algea should all be dead and gone now, correct?


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## JB5 (May 22, 2010)

Here is a good link that shows the different kind of algae's and how to treat them. It almost sounds like you have blue green algae which isnt actually an algae but a bacteria. I had this and finally used a product call red slime remover and it solved the problem with one dose and never returned. 
Check out the link.
http://www.theplantedtank.co.uk/algae.htm


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

Out of that list it looked most like the "fuzz" kind.
I think I got rid of it, but thank you for the link.
I'm bookmarkign it for future reference.


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

Actually, no. I do think it was the blue green kind. But I still believe I got rid of it.


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## JB5 (May 22, 2010)

It was the mucusy part that made me think of the blue green. I hope you did get it taken care of..


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

Trust me, it's gone.
I scrubbed the whole tank and everything in it (including the gravel!) and then boiled it.
It's dead and gone.


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## Alex09 (Aug 9, 2010)

Algae could be caused by two things: Excess nutrients and too much light. If you dont clean your tank well enough it could be the fish poo. And if your tank is in direct sunlight and doesnt have any live plants to combat the algae then you got a recepie for an algae invasion.


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## Saroar (Jul 27, 2010)

Ugh. It's BACK. It was gone for a week, and I really thought i got rid of it by boiling everything. I don't know why it came back. It always starts in the sponge of the filter. Should i just get a new filter? I don't want to have to scrub everything down and boil it AGAIN.


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