Best 'cleaning' fish

[Elle2]

As my cycle seems (hopefully) to be approaching the end I am starting to plan my stock. I am just wondering what everyone thinks is the best algae eater and the best fish to keep the bottom clean. I would really like to have one or two kuhli loaches so I am hoping for something compatable with them. In general I need something not too large or aggressive since I only have
20 G and would like a community tank.

Thanks,elle

 

[sir_dudeguy]

the best algae eater i ever had was the chinese algae eater, or cae...get them when they're young tho, because when young, they clean better, and get aggressive when older

 

[Rondory]

If you have brown algae (diatoms) the oto catfish is wonderful! I just added a couple to my tank and boy do they eat the algae. They are very fragile fish for the first couple weeks so be prepared to have to restock them if/when they die off. They are pretty inexpensive so its more the saddness for their loss vs the money loss.

 

[newfound77951]

I have a combination of bristlenose plecos (2), otos (3), cories (3), siamese algae eaters or SAEs (3) and zebra loaches (2) to keep my 55 gal tank clean. The loaches I got specifically to take care of a massive snail problem, for which they performed admirably...no snails at all after one month. The otos, SAEs and BN plecos take care of pretty much any algae that pops up except for the green spot algae that they can't get off the glass. The cories will pick up any leftover food and generally stir up the sediment surface.

For a 20 gal I would get a few cories (any type, but they like to be in groups) and a few otos (same about the groups) and a BN or clown pleco. These guys all stay small (unlike the SAEs), are very peaceful with just about any fish, and are very entertaining. Otos have a reputation for being delicate, so I wouldn't get them until the tank is settled, but that said, I got my three near the beginning and still have all three.

Good luck!

 

[hsherman1986]

i have one single otto, started with three. Two of them died in my last ick battle. I love my otto, and plan on getting two or three more to replace once I get back from canada next month. I also have a rubber lip pleco and a school of cories in my plans for my 55, as well as a groupe of cories for each of my 20 gallons.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

CAE's do well when small, but as they get bigger, they eat less algae and become very aggressive.

Here's my recommendations, any of the below....

For Algae:
True SAE's
Otos
BN Plecos

For excess food:
Cory Cats

 

[Elle2]

For some reason I was under the impression that plecos could be agressive too? No? I thought I read that they would eat goldfish from the inside out? Will ottos, plecos and cory cats all get along with my kuhli loaches? (I really have my heart set on something that looks like a little eel)

 

[newfound77951]

Pretty much any fish will eat another dead fish. I have never heard of a pleco attacking anything alive, and BNs are pretty small and very peaceful. Mine will defend a shrimp pellet, but just by sitting on it so no one else can get to it! I've never seen them go after any of my other fish.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Some plecos are aggressive, but not all, and usually only to other plecos. BN Plecos are very peaceful as well. All those you listed would get along just fine with khuli loaches.

 

[Elle2]

This is getting very exciting.... I really like ground dwellers and I am pretty sure my cycle is getting close to the end. So would 2 kuhlis, 2-3 cories, 1 otto and 1 pleco be too much for a 20G (I guess that would depend alot on what else I stock?)

Thanks for all the suggestions!

 

[joannde]

Elle - if you can find panda cories I'd go with them. They are my absolute FAVORITE fish. They're such little characters and they don't get as large as some of the other cories so you could do a group of 3 and watch them interact. They're a little more expensive than the other cories but they're worth it in my opinion.

 

[smithw14]

I heard some algae eaters (SAE's) and plecos will sometimes suck your fish briefly and remove their slime coating - is this true? I think I just witnessed my new pleco do just that.

 

[SkullJug]

Plecos will suck the slim coating of other fish but I've only ever heard of this happening to large goldfish and discus

 

[JustOneMore20]

Sorry to be the bubble burster, but the tank is only 20g. Is it a long tank or tall? That makes a difference in the number of fish.

If its a long tank, I think you could get away with 3 Kuhlies and 5 small cories (pygmy, habrosus, or pandas only) and some ottos. If you want a bristlenose, I'd go with 4-5 kuhlies and the BN. There isn't room for all of those fish.

If its a tall tank, I'd go with 4 Kuhlies and a few ottos. Tall tanks don't have as much surface area and since most fish swim horizontally, it cuts down on the number you can have.

Cories and loaches are both social fish. Numbers of atleast 4 in a group will make them much happier...the more you have, the merrier.
Don't overstock the tank though by having too many bottom feeders. You could have aggression issues if you crowd too many fish together.

Bristlenoses get about 4 inches...pretty big. They are also big waste producers. If you want one of those, then you don't have room for the loaches, cories and the BN.

If you get cories at all...go for one of the smaller types I mentioned. They are harder to find, but won't get too big for the tank. Many cories, like bronze, albino, sodalis, and paleatus (peppered) grow near 3 inches, which is too big for a 20g tank. So stay away from those types.

I believe SAEs get a little too large for a 20g. They are shoaling fish, meaning you would need 4 or more...too large IMO.
CAEs, like mentioned above, get more aggressive with age. They are also shoaling and get around 12 inches. I've never seen one this big, but I've seen one that was about 6-7 inches....pretty big fish. They also get more carnivorous and will eventually stop eating algae. I had one suck on 2 danios before and it killed them both. These fish should be avoided in small tanks.

 

[Alshain]

Otos are not hard to acclimate as people say. Just make sure you acclimate the water parameters as well as the temperature. A lot of people will float and release them without ever mixing water from the tank into the bag and this is what usually kills them. I have 3 otos, the first 3 I ever owned and they have been ok for the past 4 months now.

 

[trotty]

IME plecs are only aggressive towards their own kind, ive seen large BN males fight like no tomorrow. To the point i had to separate( there was a breeding pair in the tank)
And they can suck to fish, but ive only seen this when there isn't enough food in the tank for them.

I'll let this pic tell the story....

 

[Bubble_B0y]

that's a gorgeous tank !!!!!!1
the discus are very colourful !!!!!!!!1

 

[talloulou]

I always cringe when people ask which fish is the best for cleaning. No fish is gonna make as big a difference in cleaning that tank as you yourself will through careful feeding, water changes, filter maintenance,and glass cleaning.

 

[JustOneMore20]

I agree talloulou. You still have to feed bottom feeders also. They don't just eat the leftovers. Thats why I prefer they be called bottom feeders and not clean-up fish.