About Freshwater Algae Eater name Octocinclus,need advice

[FishfarmerTRP]

HI , I have 7 Octocinclus algae eaters that suck on the glass part of the fish tank in a 30 gallon tank. They are very healthy and hyper and but they all stay together and swim all over the tank. Its so exciting to watch them. I also read that they can breed with each other underneath a plant leaf by a shape of letter T. I was wondering if Platies , Swordtails and Mollies and a corydoras cat are their tank mates. according to the fish equarium pet store that is what is under their description. Does anyone have more information on these guys for me , and as far as what I should feed them if they run out of Algae to eat? Please let me know. Thank you,
Sincerely,
FishfarmerTRP

 

[BHead707]

my guess would be algae wafers to feed them, but not everyday as for the fish to live with them those 3 suggestions would work fine otos are peaceful fish

 

[absolutangel04]

Hello, you can feed them algae wafers, blanched veggies, or you can grow your own algae on a rock in the window and use that to supplement their diet. I suggest supplementing their diet even if there still some algae in the tank because it gives them some variety which is good for them.
Lots of people on here, myself, included have experience with otos. If you have any other specific questions, feel free to ask.
Yes, the fish you listed are perfectly good tankmates.

 

[FishfarmerTRP]

absolutangel04-Thank you

Yeah I put a piece of collard green on a clip in the tank and I saw a couple of Octos nipping at it. I have 7 octos in my tank and they all stay together at times. I really enjoy watching them. In a couple of days I plan to put a thin piece of squash in there. I really do appreciate you helping me with this , this is a really big help for me. I do however have a question, how do you get rid of White spots on your fish, I have been using Fungi tablets that disolve in the water and then after 24 hours then I do a 25 percent water change and then after that I put in Ick and parasite relief in the tank all day and then a 10 percent water change , I have now 3 fish that still is showing signs of white spots they are definitely not easy to get rid of. I just don't know what else to do. would freshwater salt work for the fish?

Sincerely,
FishfarmerTRP

 

[absolutangel04]

Depends on what the white spots are. Most of my otos will get a bit of normal white mottling on their heads if they are stressed or something. If the white spots stick up a bit and look like grains of salt, then its ich. If they are fuzzy clumps, its fungus.
I suggest you google ich to see if thats what it is because the treatment for ich is different than the treatment for fungus.
To treat ich, you need to raise the tank temp to 86 degrees slowly. Depending on your stock, you can raise it to 88 if the fish can handle it. Depending on your stock, you can also use salt to treat it, but some fish are sensitive to salt and don't do well with that treatment, so I recommend using just the heat first. The ich will appear to get worse for a couple of days and then start to disappear. You can lower the temperature again after at least 7 days have passed since the last visible symptom.