I need a cleanup crew...

[Shadowraven]

Nope, thats all me. Thanks for the nice words.

 

[kc2ped]

Is that type of snail the kind which may result in 1,000 snails in my tank after a while? I had a plant a long time ago that must have had snails, and before I knew it they were all over my tank.

The worst for that, in my experience, is pond snails
They are like rabbits
Nerite snails have a reputation for leaving little white infertile eggs all over the tank but I have not noticed it in either of my tanks

 

[kc2ped]

I also like the idea of shrimp, but I have very soft water with silly low alkalinity...not sure how they'd do in there. Don't they need a bunch of calcium? I'd rather not have additives. I do have a small amount of CC in there though.

I am with you on the additives
So my shrimp in the main tank are doing fine at around pH 6.4 and GH 3°
The dedicated shrimp tank, with the obligatory snails, is not much higher
I am always finding shed exoskeletons so they are getting enough calcium to keep growing

 

[Daumi]

My crew of cories do a great job getting all the food that the danios don't. Between them and the ghost shrimp, no food goes to waste in my tank. I would definitely recommend a little group of corydoras.

Note on Shrimp: I also have rather soft water, but you can purchase a mineral block on ebay that is made specifically for shrimp. It has calcium and other nutrients in it that the shrimp need.

 

[kc2ped]

Chinese Algae Eaters (Gyrinocheilus aymonieri) should not be used unless they will eventually be kept with larger, more aggressive species. They are often very cute and fun to watch when they are younger. I have had them myself when I was younger.

However, as they mature they can become highly territorial and very aggressive toward other fish. They can also grow to be quite large. Full grown specimens reach 10-inches in length.

One habit they have been known to engage in as they age is to eat the slime coating off of other fish in the tank. This may result in injury to the fish affected as well as decreasing their resistance to infections.

I have noticed since I accidentally got the Chinese Algae Eater that some of my female Black Phantom Tetras have black spots on their sides that weren't there before. I have never seen the Chinese Algae Eater go after them but have suspected that he was the cause
Another fish for the fish you never want to have again thread

 

[Shadowraven]

I loved my Chinese Algae Eaters when I first got them. They were like Danios in the respect that they were always into everything and playing together. They were really fun to watch.

Then they started going for the other fish. That's when I had to get them their own tank. I was unhappy at what they were doing, but I was still too fond of them to give them away. They were still fun to watch, but they can get really mean.

 

[warthog76za]

Ive got 3 pepper corys, 3 panda corys and 6 Amano Shrimp and they do their bit, corys love doing their eating in "formation" that always looks so cool, Amano shrimp eat everything and anything on the bottom of the tank.

 

[Lt.]

Oh, cherry shrimp and ghost shrimp are also a great bet, just keep them in groups.

Are shrimp bottom eaters?

 

[Esoteric Backbone]

Are shrimp bottom eaters?

That is what they are considered but my shrimp will swim up to the top to get food as well