Transfer Bristlenose Pleco?

[sarahsunshine]

Hi,

I’m establishing a 10g, and it now has 9 white cloud minnows in it (got six more yesterday). I’ve been keeping the tank slightly warm for the white cloud minnows (74ish), because I’d like to put a school of something else in there (red phantom tetras?). It also has a couple small plants in it. Unfortunately, it’s also got tons of algae growing everywhere, and I was thinking that the 10g is too small for a pleco.

QUESTION:
I was thinking that I could
1) get a different small algae eater (any suggestions that actually eat algae?), or
2) what do people think of transfering the bristlenose from my tropical tank (77) for a couple days and then putting him back?

 

[kaiofcanada]

Actually your tank is currently at full capacity if not overstocked. A 10g is not large enough to support any other schools of fish and definitely not a pleco on top of 9 cloud minnows.

You will have alot of problems if you keep going as planned.

I suggest for the algae problem...first figure out why you have so much algae and what type it is.
Is it the green kind that accumulates on the glass? like green spots/film..if so, this is normalish for all aquariums and you simply have to get a scraper and scrub it off.

Is it brownish/whitish and looks a bit fluffy everywhere? This is brown algae and is composed of diatoms. It is predminantly present in new aquariums and ones with very low light. You can deal with this a number of ways...getting higher light...getting some otocinclus or ghost shrimp which like to eat this. These creatures do not add much to the bioload and are therefore very sought after, especially the shrimp. Do more frequent water changes and use a conditioner that is not high in phosphates, as phosphates fuel this algae. You can also add a silicate resin to your filter system which will remove the diatoms and excess phosphates.

If it is long and black or green hair like...you have a nutrient excess/imbalance issue. This is more involved to deal with and should be dealt with from multiple angles.
Aquaticscape.com

Hope this helps.

 

[sarahsunshine]

Thanks for the response!

Actually your tank is currently at full capacity if not overstocked. A 10g is not large enough to support any other schools of fish and definitely not a pleco on top of 9 cloud minnows.

I'm keeping track of this actually. White cloud minnows are low biomass-type species and using the little calculator at aqadvisor (not the 1"/gallon rule), it suggests that my stocking level would only be at 79% with 9 white cloud minnows. I realize it's not a hard fast rule, but I believe that I do have some lee-way.

I suggest for the algae problem...first figure out why you have so much algae and what type it is.

Yes, it's the typical green kind of algae on the glass and it's also growing all over the rocks. I could easily scrape it off the glass, but my algae eater would probably love to have a go at it too. My problem is that I have a lot of light, and only a couple small plants. As they grow (and I should be getting some more from a friend) I don't think this will be near as big a problem. I only put them in a week ago and I did add some fertilizer too - obviously too much!

My question is whether it would be okay to transfer my BN pleco for just a couple days to clean up the tank, and then put him back in his real home. It wouldn't be a permanent increase in fish capacity. He'd (she?) have a good meal, and my tank would be cleaned up. It seems like an ideal solution for both of us, but maybe there's something I'm missing?

 

[BigJim]

If you've got enough filtration, you might get away with adding a dwarf pleco permanently. There are algae-eating shrimp that would be fine at 74 degrees.

Temporarily, you'd be ok. Just keep an eye on the water parameters and be ready to do a PWC.

 

[sarahsunshine]

I don't currently have enough filtration to get away with a BN in my 10g, and I think the tank is a little small for a full grown one.

*But I hope to get a bigger filter soon - and a bigger tank! Dream on, dream on!

 

[kaiofcanada]

If you don't have the filtration but it will be temporary you could always just stay diligent on water changes. Increase the volume and frequency while you have the BN in the 10g and you should be good. This will also help with the algae issue. My only concern would be that the algae will go away temporatily and once you move the BN back to its home, unless you have dealt with the real reason you have algae bloom, you will get it again.

I still stand on my opinion of not adding more fish to your current set up though, at least not another set of schoolers. No matter what rule you go by for biomass capacity, I think it is wiser to err on the side of caution and leave yourself some wiggle room. If you are at or close to maxing out, there is little room for laziness. That is to say, that if you miss one or two water changes, things may spiral fast out of control. I always slightly understock my tanks so that my fish have more room and there is wiggle room in case you get busy.

 

[kaiofcanada]

Oh and I am sure as long as you acclimate the BN, he/she would be very happy to much on the algae bloom...just keep the water fresh and monitor the parameters.

Also, ghost shrimp are super cheap...like .33 at petsmart. They will not add anything to your biomass and will also keep your algae in check to some degree. Another consideration for dealing with the algae are snails. Petsmart and Petco will give you MTS and pondsnails free if you don't already have some.

And as for plants...YAY! Plants will suck up all the extra nutrients and hopefully thrive if you have alot of light. Wishing you good luck

 

[bs6749]

Algae eating shrimp will not even touch the stuff on the glass. Ghost shrimp, no matter which species they actually are, will not eat algae. They are scavengers and will consume uneaten food, detritus, and small fish fry if they can catch them. Check out their claws and you willl see that they are not made for algae eating.

 

[sarahsunshine]

Thanks! Pleco has been munching happily!

Water changes on this tank are eazy peazy so they happen more frequently and larger than necessary - so I think everyone will be happy.

As long as I don't completely over-fertilize again, I think the algae should be OK. There is quite a bit of light (not huge - haven't calculated but to CF 60hz minitwisters for 10g) so I hope to experiment with some plants, and that they will deal with most of the nutrient issue.

Any suggestion on what plants might work best at 74-75 f with minnows and maybe a couple tetras (I might decrease the number of minnow to increase colour in the fish department- plans only).

 

[yhbae]

If you are looking for species to clean your glass, look for a snail called Nerites. Their bioload is very low but they are one of the best algae eating species on hard surfaces. I have couple on each tanks and they tend to keep glass and rock surfaces clean. This could be more of a permanent solution in your small tank.

Oh and these guys don't breed in fresh water so you are not going to end up with 100 in few months.

 

[sarahsunshine]

If you are looking for species to clean your glass, look for a snail called Nerites. Their bioload is very low but they are one of the best algae eating species on hard surfaces. I have couple on each tanks and they tend to keep glass and rock surfaces clean. This could be more of a permanent solution in your small tank.

Oh and these guys don't breed in fresh water so you are not going to end up with 100 in few months.

Excellent!!!!

 

[7Enigma]

Goodluck finding them though. In my area these guys are impossible to find. Unless you're willing to shell out big bucks to ship a ton of them they are pretty rare. They are very common and easy to get in saltwater, but the SW to FW transition I've read is not fast (weeks to months) and losses are common. I always wanted some of the staghorn or tiger nerites (google image them). They are beautiful!

 

[mgamer20o0]

but you can always get them shipped in if you are in the states. there are several people with them.

 

[7Enigma]

but you can always get them shipped in if you are in the states. there are several people with them.

I know; it's just a cost issue. The closest place I could find required it to be shipped and they had a minimum order somewhere around 20 snails (think the snails were between $1-2) and shipping was going to be $20 or so. So unless I wanted to drop close to $50 for some snails I was out of luck.

I'm too lazy but I'm sure if you searched for my name and nerite snails you'd see several threads trying to find these (and my lack of success). Seemed to be much more available on the West Coast.

 

[sarahsunshine]

plus, I'm in Canada... I'll try to find someone around here...

 

[yhbae]

plus, I'm in Canada... I'll try to find someone around here...

So have you been able to find any?