water quality

Andrew

dont get a pleco- they are such big things. i recommend a dozen ottos, so cute and they never stop eating algae, the plecs tend to become lazy with age. O how could i forget shrimp!! Well thats what i use in my tank/keep in my tank.

TexasTornado

hmmm shrimp...could i have shrimp and a pleco???

fish_4_all

Shrimp would be lunch for your tiger barbs and the gourami. BN pleco only get to 5 inches or so. There are others that only get to 3-4 inches. And as for getting lazy when older. My my BN I showed is huge and I know he is over 2 years old and when it comes to the algae helikes, he would eat my finger off if it were covered with it. Keep them happy and I think they will eat algae for along time, but you have to know which algae they eat. Hair algae, staghorn, BBA will NOT be eaten by any pleco I know. Tetras, FFF and black mollies are the only ones I have heard that will munch them.

Also, I think my BN wold eat a shrimp if given the chance. He tried to eat my Bamboo Shrimp and I wound up having to return them so he didn't kill them. Ghost/glass shrimp last about 2 hours in my BN tanks.

TexasTornado

lol ok thanks! Im gona stick to the BN pleco then...

TexasTornado

my guarami is sick! i don't know whats wrong with it. it's stomach kinda looks fat, and he hides ALL the time (very abnormal), swims slow and kinda looks funny, and weak! what could it be?

fish_4_all

Post in sick fish section so you can get some better help. The only thing i can think of is a parasite or constipated. Feed some frozen peas with the skins peeled off is all I can recommend.

TexasTornado

i just posted there but it's laying at the bottom of the aquarium now and it's head looks darker (abnormal for it) than the rest of the body. also the water Wisteria leaves have been coming off like crazy today and i dont know why...don't know if they have anything to do with each other or not!

bettababy

The problem with the gourami could be a number of different things. Before attempting to diagnose anything, we'll need to know those nitrate levels in teh tank.
How much decoration is in the tank? Can you give more details about symptoms?
As for the debate about algae eating animals... For starters, in a 20 gallon tank I would not put more than 3 - 4 ottos in there, if working with ottos. A BN would be safe, but will outgrow a 20 gallon tank. Shrimp would be ok, and the fish should NOT eat the shrimp. The tricky part with the shrimp is in getting the right species if you're wanting them to eat algae, as not all shrimp eat algae and some shrimp can eat fish.
We may find that when you check nitrate levels, if there is an elevated nitrate, it is part of what is causing an algae bloom, and if the water params get fixed, a lot of times algae will go away on its own. I would also suggest checking phosphate if it's a hair algae, and I'd want to know how old the light bulbs are and how long in a day they are kept on.