Algae question

Hi all,

I am an advanced Malawi cichlid keeper, however, I now have diatom or brown algae, idk which one I exactly have.

My question is, are there plecos or other fish that will eat those type of algae, I know they eat green algae, but I wonder about brown or diatom.

Thanks everyone.

Hi Francois.

I think the best pleco for that type of algae are otos. They are fairly small, need to be kept in a group and can be sensitive to poor water conditions(not suggesting you have poor water conditions )

Link to more info and a profile http://www.plecoplanet.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2142

Have you checked the nitrate and phosphate levels?

Hey doodles, thank you very much, I am scared to get otos since they are so sensitive to PH changes, and my PH is of 8.4!

But, I can always try and see if they work in there. However, you rly don't think that there are any plecos I could have that would eat this algae?

Maybe it is part of the cycling, but it rly looks ugly, and everyday, there is more. It is everywhere, on rocks, on the glass... Even in some places that I cannot reach.

Regarding my Nitrates and phosphate levels, I am going to get them tested tomorrow at my LFS because they have electronic scanners that are much more precise than my regular test kit.

Plus, I rly like the idea of having a pleco, they are such good looking creatures.

But, you know far more than I do regarding plecos, so I will follow w/e you tell me to do.

Sounds like a job for a bristlenose.

Ill be honest, i don't think the oto's will do too well in that ph. There aren't really any plecs that are suited to that ph which will eat that kind of algae.

I actually forgot about bristlenoses lol, they do a good job with algae, not all types of bristlenoses though but personally I would say the PH again is a little on the high side for them too.

Link to common bristlenose info Ancistrus cf cirrhosus

But, it does sound typical of a newish setup tank and it will disappear as the tank matures anyway, so really any fish that would be beneficial is really just a short term fix. Water changes may help and if you have high phosphates in the tap water, you can buy phosphate removers but im just thinking its just part of the tank cycling.


btw, plecs are awesome fish, you should get a tank set up for some with a lower ph:clap::clap:

That would be amazing, I might do it you know, it would be fun.
I'm gona try to buy a BN even though the PH is a little high, I'll definitely acclimate it well.

Here comes my other questions.

I have only rocks in my tank, and, will they make them topple if they suck on them?

And the last question of all is, are plecos hard to catch once they are in a tank?
I ask that question in case where I might need to remove it if it does not do too well.

Some bigger plecs would make them topple but i would think a bn would be fine. You should really add some wood into the tank though, even if its just one bit, and not really hard wood like mopani, there are thoughts that wood or the organisms that grow on the surface of wood over time could be needed in the bns diet.

and veggies:yes:
courgette/zuchinni etc, theres a stickie thread in the feeding forum that has a good list of veggies for plecs.


Compared to other fish, plecos are fairly easy to catch imo.


Try and get a common bristlenose as they are much hardier than a lot of other ancistrus. Let us know how you get on:yes:

I agree with that, a common Bn would be well suited and will adjust to the ph. wood will also help. He/she will need some shelter from bright light , like a flower pot on its side or wood proped up so he can get under it.

also some plant ferts help with algae such as easycarbo. you did not mention if any plants?

Well, plants, I can't have because my cichlids would just eat them all.
Common pleco? Will it eat brown algae as well?

Concerning hiding places, trust me, my tank has a lot of that, since a Malawi tank is all about rockwork and hiding places!!

yep a common pleco will eat algae( not sure if they are fussed about the brown algae though) but they tend to get lazy when they are older plus need a pretty large tank:yes:

We have a cichlid forum, you should post some pics up some time:clap:
A lot of members on here like cichlids

ok, I will post some when my tank is full, atm, I have 6 yellow labs and 4 OB peacocks.

very nice:yes:

I've looked at getting some South American cichlids but not quite got round to getting any lol.

Please Try to cure this problem with out using a fish.

I know many people keep Plecos in with African cichlid, s..
They can tolerate the conditions but believe me its not going to be happy.

There are many ways to deal with Algae.

Try setting the lighting to come on for 10 mins and off for 20 mins for a couple of hours. Algae hated interrupted light.

Try increasing your water changes

TRY FEEDING LESS. TRY ANY THING APART FROM PLACING A FISH FROM SOFT WATER IN WITH HARD WATER SPECIES.

The other worry I have is that your cichlid will want to use the caves in the tank so will any pleco.

As macvsog23 said, my main concern would be harassment which is typical coming from the inquisitive nature of Malawi cichlid species.

Well, interestingly, after having kept quite a number of malawians, they tend to not be too agressive to other fish species.

I am not that worried about my pleco, I have 2 pictus in my 55 right now, and no one touches them.

But, I still keep in mind that there is a risk, and I know it, which is why I will do my best to keep it as small as possible.

My LFS is out of BN's which is strange since they are usually very good at having a lot of different types of freshwater fish.

Anyways, Doodles, what SA cichlids were you thinking about?

They are definitely very cool too, however, the require bigger tanks, and my budget is still small as I am a teenager lol. So, I went with Malawi as they are fascinating fish.

However, if I had the money, I would have a 125 gallon discus tank with a few rams.

And I would have a 300 gallon saltwater tank.

I feel that should I make any more comments I will offend.





Good night for now

Hi all,
Macsovg is right about the fish, but Francois, plants will help enormously to keep your nitrates in check and also to slow algal growth. Additionally your Yellow Labs and Peacocks are both insectivorous in nature (and not Mbuna), so they won't eat the plants anyway. You can have floating plants like Salvinia and I'd also suggest Vallis and Hornwort. You need to leave a large enough sand area for your Aulonacaras to forage over.
cheers Darrel

How about building an algae scrubber?
"The principal is very simple: You have a screen; light is aimed at the screen, and tank water is streamed over the screen. What happens is that a type of algae called "turf" starts growing on the screen (it feels very similar to artificial turf on football fields), and this turf eats ALMOST ALL the nitrate and phosphate in the water flowing over it."
"This is the OPPOSITE of a skimmer, which takes out the food/pods/plankton, but leaves in the nitrate and phosphate that you have to then get out using other means. What about fish waste that skimmers normally pull out? Well that's food too, for somebody. Only after waste decomposes completely into nitrate and phosphate is it no longer "food", and at that point the turf algae zaps it! After all, what do you think the green algae on your rocks and glass are eating? Food? No. Nitrate and phosphate!"
Here is a link that I found very interesting
http://www.algaescrubber.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=36
Although this system was originally designed for saltwater setups, people have had great luck using them on fresh setups as well.
HTH
Cheers
Stan

Sorry but yellow labs are mbunas, and OB peacocks are thought to be a mix of Metriaclima Estherae (Red Zebra) and a species of Aulonocara. So part of it is mbuna.

One last final word, Yellow labs are mainly herbivores. Sorry to contradict but it's true. Which is why studies have been done, and it is thought that a diet too high in proetein could be a cause of the Malawi bloat.

If you do get a pleco,you might want to see how other keepers maintain our tanks.

http://www.plecoplanet.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1476

Plecos emit alot of waste,so you might be doing more water changes then you usually do.