I had a Siamese algae eater in my aquarium and woke up one morning to see that it had leapt out of the tank, found my keys, and stole my car. The state police caught up to him on I-74, right before he drove my car into the river and swam away. Don't get one unless you want to risk him stealing your car.
Aside from the large size that many plecos can reach, new aquarium owners should be aware of their longevity. When I bought my first pleco I was told by the shop that they "can live up to two years with proper care." 17 years later, it's still keeping the glass clean.
I had a pleco named Abrams that I got when I had my first 10 gallon tank. I literally had him my entire fishkeeping journey and he lived about 14 years. My 55 gal tank had a problem when we went on vacation and a lot of fish got sick. I swear he made himself hang on until I got back and saw him. He then died that night and it still gets me.
I started with 10 cherry shrimp almost a year ago now and I'm on the 7th or 8th generation of shrimp with at least 50+ of them with 3 more pregnant females. I love this hobby
The book "Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance" is a suggestion for anyone that doesn't want to do maintenance. Getting back into fish about 2 months ago after only having them as a kid (31 now) has really improved my mental health overall. It's pretty nice to do the maintenance, work on optimizing things in this little artificial biome, planning what I'll add or change, etc. It's definitely a type of therapy for me, after going years saying things like "Anything that requires upkeep, I hate doing it". Finally finding the value and reward in that maintenance is not something I expected from this tank.
Omg this is me now... something 2 weeks ago suddenly struck me telling me I should get a fish. Haven't had a fish since I ten and that was decades ago. Wish me luck 🍀🤞🏾
I used to have one named Boris that I rescued from Walmart and he lived with my goldfish he wasn’t aggressive at all and just did his own thing and left everyone else alone
I had a siamese algae eater and yes it did a phenomenal job on cleanup, but it was aggressive. I walked in numerous times to it going after my gouramis and blue acaras. They never killed anything but they have aggressive tendencies.
I have 3 in my discus tank for 3 years now, they do a good cleanup job and they like hiding in the Pleco tubes. Never had any problem. Didn’t think they’d last long because the tanks at 28° but they’ve grown to 5 inches and seen happy enough.
I'm a cat lover who also keeps aquariums. I've had 20 cats at one time before. After time they pass of course. I'd always bring in more but I for yrs could never get.below 9 cats. I bought a Siamese algie eater about 3 months ago. I'm now down to 4 cats ! Don't figure.
i_.uzi._i how many? I have one that is fine with my better but he’s only a 1.5 inches. I was thinking of getting another the same size because they’re good with multiple of there kind in the same tank
Great job explaining this! I'm working in a petshop and there are always people asking " How can I get my tank cleaner??? " You can keep it all clean by doing it yourself. Those tank cleaners are just there to help, not to do all the work for you. But most people don't understand that.
You can't feed creatures each other's poop in perpetuity. And... realize nature needs a big filter to provide a little clean water for fish. You can't do it in a tiny tank, even if it's 100 gallons. There is a balance to be had between "clean" looking and a living habitat.
I've noticed that some of my local aquarium supply stores have sold Chinese algae eaters as Siamese algae eaters. Chinese algae eaters only eat algae as juveniles and develope an appetite for other things as they mature.. As adults they are VERY aggressive toward all their tank mates. I had to rehome several Chinese algae eaters before I figured out I wasn't being sold the right fish. My Siamese algae eaters are very docile and get along great with everybody else.
Ah this is what I was thinking. My store sold the ones I got under the wrong name. I know I did my research back as as a kid before the internet. I would go after school to the library and read about the fish. That Chinese algae eater looks very similar but is so aggressive.
Chinese algae just need lots of hiding places. I have one and it’s going on 10 years and have had no problems with it. This fish stays to its self and does not brother the other fish.
i have 7 black khulis in a 55 gal , there's lots of river rock stacked up on one end and wisteria growing wildly through rest of tank . a couple days ago i notice a tiny 3/4 inch baby khuli when i fed the tank . YAY i bred khuli loaches .....unconsciously
@Syk of this pc bs i have a well , the water comes out of it at about 6 ph . one day about 18 months ago i added a bunch of gravel to the tank from the wrong bag and it has tiny sea shells in it , so the ph in the tank runs about 7.6. but due to that difference in my tank water and tap water , i drag a garden hose to the tank every evening and change 5 gallons of water. then about twice a month ill do a 50% change . i keep the tank about 79 degrees and the water from the well is about 62 . the fish all seem to like the colder water flowing in . i don't know why they bred and didn't see it happen . hope this helps
That's super cool! I've never had mine do that but I just got 6 new ones (old ones were aging out after 7-10 years) and I rescaped my tank a year ago with a couple of little caves so .......🤞
@@woodsmanwhitesmith6928 cold water stimulates the breeding instincts in alot of tropical fish. I could always get my Angelfish to start by doing water change with cool water
@@chaosness7684 Phew! 😅 In retrospect that was obvious, but I knew nothing about Siamese Algae eaters so I thought there might be a chance that this is true.
i have a single corydora and honestly the guy giving me my fishes was like "hey get this" and i was reluctant at first but went sure, why not AND NOW HE IS MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITTEE!!!!!! i really wanna get more corys for him i really dont want him to be lonely but he is ADORABLE!!! I LOVE CORYDORAS!!!
We added 4 baby bristle nose plecos into our 55 gal tank and it was unreal how fast they cleaned the heavy alge in our tank. After a week we had to start adding alge wafers. 😎👍
4 in the same tank? I'm hoping they get along because I had 2 and they *never* got along lol. They would split the tank in half and it would always be a fight when they encountered each other. Which was funny because one was a male and the other a female...
I lost 2 Corys due to cheap sharp gravel. I have a 2 and 1/2 gallon tank for my baby guppies. I bought a bag of cheap gravel and put 2 Cory’s in there. I couldn’t figure out why they died until I watched this video.😢
i really love look at my 2 aquarium tank after I have clean it thoroughly. Just happy to see the fish, swimming around, like they're thanking me. Best moments
Huge fan of siamese algae eaters, and have owned many in multiple tanks. However I have actually come across a few that were very aggressive towards my other fish! Very uncommon, but I've experienced it myself.
I have experience with Plecos. I got one at about 1.5 inches and was the only algae eater in a 100 gallon tank. This fish grew to over 12 inches long. At that size, they are usually no longer cleaning the tank, just lying around looking like a log. Good news: some people will buy them from you because they are looking for a larger docile fish to add to their tank. They might have a tank of Oscars, and a 12" pleco would be right at home with them. Then you can get another small Pleco and start over.
Some of them grow very big and can get very old. I would avoid any bigger ones but I had good luck with bristle plecos. They don't grow too big but they can be a bit aggressive to other fish near their "home".
My pleco poops way more than he cleans, so not the best for keeping a clean tank. You know when you go out one morning and a spiders built webs all over the place? It's like that but with poop. He does clean algae mostly off the plants, but our gouramis are much better at that with way less poop.
I have three black khuli loaches in my 20 gallon and I absolutely love watching them. They zoom around the tank when they realize it's feeding time at ridiculously high speeds. I plan on adding three striped ones to the group when I upgrade to a 75 gal. A big plus about these long bois: they might feed on small pest snails. They can't go after full grown ones, but khulis can be a huge help in controlling their numbers. In my case, they completely wiped out the bladder snail population in my tank!
I could like to say, I got two siamese algae eaters and overnight they ate ALL the algae on my glass. My once fluffy glass was SPOTLESS. And now they are cleaning up my algae-covered plants. They are in a 10 gallon tank so I didn't expect it to be all gone after one night. Absolute legends, 10/10 reccomend
After binging about a dozen of your tutorials, I had to take a moment to say that I think you're both so freakin' awesome! I've recently gotten back into the hobby and have been researching online to brush up my skills. I was so happy to find you out there...I love watching your videos! You're both just the perfect amount of corny while presenting so that the viewer remains entertained but doesn't get fatigued...and I super dig it! Apparently, it's not easy...:) It really helps get you to the end of a long video with lots of good info! Speaking of content, I'd also like to say how much I appreciate the thoughtful approach you both take with the topics and information you're providing! It's easily digestible, well organized, comprehensive and super relevant. You've a great knack for choosing compelling and relevant content, and I've learned so much MORE about the basics than I ever understood before (in record time). Your advice, tips and shortcuts are priceless...sooooo, it likely comes as no surprise that I'd ALSO love to know if you have any thoughts for me!! I've got a 20 g tall tank (24x12x16) that I cycled using NH3 and nitrifying bacteria products with same-day introduction of the guppies listed below (1st time). My tank has 20lbs of natural ocean sand and is is moderately planted with Amazon Swords, Java Ferns, Java Moss and Anubias Nana with two sizeable cave systems...1 of artificial driftwood and 1 of stacked natural stone. I'm planning to add duck weed for additional cover from the light. I've got a 40 g capacity hang-on filter, heater and LED hood. I've set it up with an atypical group of tank mates...I know...but I've used this setup twice in the past with great success (20 g and 55 g). I've got 4 Angelfish (P. scalare) at about the size of half-dollars, 1 Dwarf Gourami (2.5"), 1 Pictus Catfish (2.5") and 5 common guppies (2F/3M). My numbers are good (NO3-10, NO2-.01, GH-150, pH-7.2, NH3-0 at 75°F), I perform regular housekeeping and do a 5 g water change weekly or when the NH3 registers above 0. I'm feeding with color-enhancing Tetramin flake, frozen brine shrimp (Angels/Pictus) and FD tubeworms as a periodic treat along with rotating a sinking omnivore tablet and algae tablet for the Pictus. Can I do this long-term, with maybe only one of the Angelfish (transferring when too large)? I didn't keep the other two tanks longer than about a year and a half (military)...so I'm not sure if I would've encountered issues longer term? I do intend to move at least 3 of the Angelfish to a 55 g that I'm still working on...with nothing more than a cleanup crew and maybe some dither fish. Am I nuts? Is there an Armageddon in my future? Any tips...if your advice isn't to completely rethink my approach??? Can I add a couple of snails for the algae on the glass? I hope I hear from you, and please keep up the great work!!! #KGTROPICALSRULES #SUPERFAN
Late reply I know but your ammonia should never rise above zero. Water changes are mainly to remove nitrate, you shouldn't be detecting any ammonia or nitrite in a cycled tank. Obviously if something goes drastically wrong you can get an ammonia spike, in which case a drastic water change and lots of Prime is your best bet.
Sponge Filters are a good consideration for this, you can usually find some for most Filter Intake Tube sizes or even just to operate off of an air flow. They do need to be replaced either every 3 months or so last I heard, but it's basically a long term filter insert and safety feature at that point. Also, they will consolidate a lot of the debris on the surface for the algae and other biologic agents to act on, all of which the shrimp can eat. I've even seen some with plants rooted to them. That being said, I haven't been in the hobby for about 2 years now, so don't take my word for it.
I feel like there are some details missing but I know you had to keep the video short. I’d like to add my two cents. 1. Ottos need LOTS of friends and they can be pretty sensitive to poor water. They will hide if you don’t have enough. I’d say at least 5 to start. We had 25 In our 180 gal tank and rarely saw them. Best for planted tanks. Also if an Angel fish tries to eat one it won’t a good end for the AF. 2. Adding zucchini and cucumber is SO much fun because a whole community of fish will eat together. Shrimp, snails, cat fish, loaches etc. 3. Narite snails are perfect for fresh water tanks because they can’t breed in fresh water. They leave white eggs everywhere that never hatch though. 4. I’ve seen reports that the SAF likes to eat the slime coat of large flat fish. I mostly kept angels as our centerpiece fish so we avoided them. 5. Amano shrimp are AWESOME for planted tanks. They also can’t breed in fresh water. We had tons of cherry shrimp even with our large fish we still had several generations because we had lots of diftwood and plants for the babies to hide in. 6. Cories are SO much fun, they swim in a straight line (Cory conga). They LOVE sand substrate and might dig up your moss/grass. They breed pretty easily too. 7. Kuhli loaches are my FAVORITE we had 30 or so and still rarely saw them. They are most active in the dark you can sometimes see them doing group cartwheels after the lights go off. Or they’ll hang from your plants and you’ll think they’re dead 🤣 and they rub against each other when they eat. 8. Clowns supposedly eat snails. I haven’t had luck there but maybe worth a try if you have a snail over population. They’re called clowns for a reason. They’re SO silly and playful.
THEYRE CORYDORABLE. 🥰 Peppered cories are very good cleaners in particular. They're not perfect cleaners, but I had no algae with that specific species.
One algae eater I loved to having was my golden dojo loach he was so dope every energetic. He got over 12 inches and schooled around with my koi in my 200 gallon tank. He was the only fish I owned that would swim between my fingers when I went to clean the gravel. I don’t see much people talk about them and I would love to see others with them.
I love having loaches!! Dojos are one of my favorites. The Dojo loaches I had I referred to as my water dogs... they interacted with me at feeding, cleaning etc.
Le Baguette: mine have names, love, life, peace, and joy! They have slight difference in brightness of color so I can identify each one of mine. But you’re right, not many people give them names or care about them that much! That’s why I have an Instagram for mine, to spread awareness of how beautiful they are and how cute and wonderful they can be as pets, not just additions to the community tank
@@Mercedes_may We even named our Oto's! Now THAT'S fun trying see who's who... I can tell by the shape of the dot on the end of their tails and whether/how their side stripes intersect with it.
We had our Cory's breed once, which was cool. The next day after a water change I woke up to the glass covered in their eggs. Cory babies are extra adorable. 😁❤
I remembered back in my aunt's house where we lived first, I clearly remembered having Plec fishes (both black and white) in our aquariums. Now in our new home, our fish tank has algae or fungal looking matter which me and my sister or my dad had to clean (My sis has a fear of dead fishes from her experiences). Watching this video reminded me of the Plecs ^^
I’ve got Siamese algae eaters, they are awesome. I did have to split mine up as one of them has an attitude issue and kept picking on my golden gourami. Since I’ve done that they’ve been good as gold. I also have very well planted tanks and never had to use algae wafers.
My brother has a 120 gallon tank. He has two big beautiful Oscars in there but what I found most fascinating is his plecos. That guy is almost 3feet 6 inches long. I love plecos but will never again get one because putting it in a smaller tank is too cruel. Too many fish "experts" suggested I get a plecos for my 10 gallon tank. This couple is great at giving very good advise for your aquarium and I wish I'd found them when I had my poor plecos, I'd have gotten a bigger tank at the very least or given him to someone with an appropriate tank so he could have lived a HAPPY, normal life span. Good job on the info keep it coming 👍
I love Otocinclus catfish. They're incredible cleaners! And definitely fast and efficient. Also with them being so small they can eat the algae in the harder to reach areas
Right now I have a bristlenose pleco, some kuhli loaches, ghost shrimp, and an otto (I had three in my other betta tank that crashed, only managed to save the one before I realized what was going on) along with my other community fish. They have a nice balance to them in that between them all they can pretty much get everywhere that I have difficulty in getting to when I clean like in the more thickly planted areas. The bristlenose likes to stir up the gravel in the more open areas (which helps the others get to trapped food and stuff) and stays lower on the glass sides. The kuhlis get into any tiny space they can slither into like the roots and stems of the many anubis plants and under the driftwood (their favorite place). The otto likes to stay higher on the glass and on the leaves of the plants. The ghost shrimp pretty much go everywhere and eat whatever the others don't. Still doesn't get everything but definitely helps keep things from getting overwhelming. I did have one algae eater several years ago that would attack and rarely injure my smaller guppies but the other two I had were very chill so I always considered it the oddity and ended up giving the slightly aggressive one to my grandmother who had much larger mollies that would put it in its place if it tried attacking them. She had that one for a pretty long time and it always seemed pretty happy.
I have two golden algae eaters, at first I had them together and they fought like cats and dogs. So I separated them and now they are just joys to watch. One is only four or five inches. While the other is close to eight inches, he grew over an inch in the other tank, both seventy five, a tall and a regular. 😄
I've tried keeping kuhli loaches and Endler's Livebearers, and noticed my Endler's were disappearing after I introduced the kuhli loaches. After observing late at night with only dim red lights on, I discovered the loaches were sometimes eating an Endler that happened to be resting on bare sand as it slept! The kuhli loaches never bothered anything else, but nothing else slept on the sand.
A good friend lost his leg to a Siamese Algae Eater and he was the only one to get out of the aquarium alive. It was all over CNN for a week. Perhaps you saw the video.
I'm so happy to see clown loach on this list!!! I've got 11 of them in a 6ft at the moment!! Setting up their tank upgrade next week, I cant wait. They are amazing and I'm glad your giving the right information on them as they are a beautiful fish but are usually neglected
@@i1403s yes they are still alive ^_^ I've added to the shoal now, there are 15 of them, we've given them a tropical pond I'm the conservatory, the larger ones are about 10inchs long and chonky (about 8 yrs old) and then the smaller ones are between 4-6inchs (about 1-2yrs old) ^_^ sorry I took so long to reply :)
Thanks for great info. I've had several of these, and I clicked on this because of the kuhli loach pic. They are one of my favorite fish. So fun to watch them wiggle up and down and around the tank. Beautiful and really unique fish.
I've got 3 six year old siamese algea eaters in my 90 gallon tank. They keep the tank clean, get along with my smaller tetras, and tend to swim with my 5 Dennison Barbs. So cool to see them all swimming from one end if the tank to the other.
I wish more of our LFS customers had your attitude about maintenance. It really is a good feeling to step back after doing your job to see how much better the aquarium looks. The behavior of the fish when they get that fresh, clean water is pretty rewarding, too. Great way to top off this list. ;-)
I have a few pleco's and i love them! They dont only keep the tank clean, but they are the cutest an funniest cleaners i've ever seen! I also have a few snails, altough they lay eggs alot they are still pretty cute! Oh and the siamese algae eaters! I love them so so so much!!! They are also very fast ( if they want to be 😂 ) and they are so cool! 😍
Thanks to you guys I got 6 shrimp and 2 kuhli loaches in my iwagumu/wood addition nano thirty cubic centimeter tank And the kuhli loaches balanced the shrimp population and feasted on dead shrimp that died from old age It was a perfect balance and so cool The kuhli loaches will sometimes get on top of the wood and jus caress into the anubias So cool thanks guys
I 100% agree about corydoras being cute! I love my corys, there's a small army of them in my community tank. Corys are also pretty entertaining, they always seem to be doing something. In Australia apparently, the best algae eater you can get is the Darwin Algae Eating shrimp. They're native to Darwin and eat mostly algae. They also manage to survive in water that's inhabited by crocodiles, so I imagine they're good at hiding lol.
I have 3 in both my 20 and 36 gallon tanks. Not only cute but work horses. I have the “mud” and “albino” and speckled or “spotted”. Always working which is a thrill to watch and as we know they work much harder with the lights off. Cute and dependable!
I have been having True Siamese Algae Eaters , Clown Loaches, Bronze cories for the last 5 years and man I love them all. Maybe not as much as my rainbows but yeah they are absolutely there.
I had a Siamese algae eater over 55 years ago for my little 5 gallon community tank [we didn't know better back then and it's what I got for my birthday as a kid and it seemed to work well] :-)]. It was a WONDERFUL tank-mate and pet, never the least bit of problem with my Siamese Algae Eater and it stayed alive the years I had the tank before I had to give fish away because Dad was transferred to another province :-)
I have a 20 gallon live planted aquarium I couldn’t even see in the tank because it had so much algae on the glass I got trumpet snails and rams horn snails and they cleaned my tank spotless within three weeks💯
Hillstream loaches do best in a tank designed especially for them. In the wild they attach to rocks in fast moving water. I built a system for them using a 30g long with an under gravel filter w/4 draft tubes, 2 small powerheads at one end and sponge filters at the other. Some sturdy live plants a good size piece of driftwood and several flat rocks for them to hang onto. I had about 15 of them in the tank and when did a deep clean i found about 60 of all sizes. Turned out they were spawning inside the driftwood.
Snails are an amazing choice. Particularly nerite snails. I own one nerite snail in my 30 gallon community tank. 3 years after purchase, he still is thriving even with 3 loaches in the same tank. They just don't bother each other and they live fine with no aggression.
@@irfanhabib9508 I actually don’t feed them at all! I left the back algae and decor/substrate algae and they go to town on that! It’s actually so thick them eating it doesn’t make a dent. I have fed them cucumbers a long time ago but they just feast on mainly the algae.
I love our apple snails! Ya, they aren't the best glass cleaners, but they're so much fun to watch! Their little antenna/feelers can get super long and they are "energy efficient" (ie: they will detach themselves from what they're climbing on and "Mary Poppins" float down to the bottom of the tank). Sometimes they land gracefully and sometimes they just face-plant onto the terrain. 😂
I love that you described the corydoras as cute. I have a pair of them in my 75 gallon tank. They like to sit together and snuggle. Last week they had babies. We found 2 little ones. Now they are adorable!
I have a bigger bronze Cory together with a smaller Panda in my 37, they get along awesome(was a little worried at first being different species) they always hand around together and do nothing together as well. Couldn’t be happier
Awesome list! Uncommon in the hobby, but I would also add Panda Garra and Congo Garra to the list. They are absolute dwarf power houses scavengers and algae grazzers!
I use Ramshorn Snails and Malaysian Trumpet Snails to clear my glass. I made a channel to show you can make low-maintenance, small planted aquariums out of glass bottles and I keep a few shrimp and snails in a glass drinks dispenser! My two latest videos on my channel shows the aquariums with commentary with one showing three shrimp fighting over an algae wafer!
Look up the definition of "SPAM". Once you figure it out you'll understand why when you copied and pasted this same stupid comment 20 times it didn't show up.
@@unusualaquariumecosystems5805 please stop, you literally comment the same thing (sometimes with small changes) on a TON of different fishkeepers' comment section, and not only is it annoying, its taking advantage of people with a lot of views and manipulating them to promote yourself. Advertising on different people's comment sections without the owner's permission is NOT COOL.
I'll make a comment on the Siamese Algae Eater. We sold these at petsmart and I discovered that they weren't always SIAMESE AEs. Sometimes we were getting the very similar looking, but far more aggressive CHINESE AE. Upon researching the two species, CAEs tend to become aggressive when they reach 3-4 inches, particularly if they are female and are not provided any extra protein to produce their eggs. A friend of mine ended up with a CAE in with her gold gourami and she chewed a straight hole in the gourami's side! SAEs very rarely display aggression toward other fish in your tank and surely don't chew on them unless they're dead. If you suspect your SAE is a CAE because it's being nasty, try giving it a bit of protein boost like bloodworms or a high protein pellet food.
Yup- I was totally sold a CAE unknowingly under the name Siamese Algae Eater. He ended up taking out my oldest fish in his prime, which led me to discover his true identity, and promptly rehome him.
When I was a kid we got were accidentally given a Plecos at a fist store when we picked up a couple of small schooling fish. We didn’t know anything about it. It outlived everything, even a cat. And it did turn out to be almost 13 inches. We even got a bigger tank to accommodate it after a time. Good pet.
I had a common pleco I got with my original 30 gallon tank in 2002. Being new to the hobby I had no idea how big they got and this was back when Walmart sold fish so you didn't get any advice. It was maybe 3 inches big. I eventually upgraded and moved it to a 70 gallon tank, then 90, then 225 gallon tank. It lived until 2016 and was over 16 inches long.
I got snails and in no time I ended up wth a tank of snails 😂😂I didn’t even buy them they were on my plants , and thanks for the info on clown loaches.
At first I didn't believe Siamese algae eaters were aggressive, so I decided to bring one home. About a week later I come home after work to an empty tank in an empty house. It wasn't long after that I got a call from a blocked number... "I have your wife. If you want her to live, bring a briefcase full of unmarked hundred dollar bills to the corner of 1st and River Road. Come alone, or tonight she sleeps with the fishes". Too late I realized the mistake I had made. May this be a warning to you all.
I have 3 in my discus tank for 3 years now, they do a good cleanup job and they like hiding in the Pleco tubes. Never had any problem. Didn’t think they’d last long because the tanks at 28° but they’ve grown to 5 inches and seen happy enough.
Hi. The video says Siamese algae eaters are not aggressive. That has been my experience for the most part. One exception, not sure if this guy has a personality... I had just the one Siamese Algae Eater in my tank, and as his size surpassed the corydoras (pepper), and the tank was clean of algae... the SAE became rather aggressive towards them during feeding time. Not just stealing food, but chasing the corydoras around the aquarium. He didn't harm them, but prevented them from eating for quite some time. Thanks for the video, guys.
We have very alkaline water where we live, pH runs 8.0-8.2; yet I've been keeping Black Kuhlis for decades with great success, in planted tanks with sand substrates and natural rock. They live for years, and I had one group of three go over twelve years in a community ten gallon. An accident wiped out that entire tank so I don't know how long they would have lived. I can say they were healthy and lively up until the accident. Over the years I've learned that as long as they have good hiding places and good tank conditions they stay active and exhibit all that great Kuhli behavior. They're probably my favorite of the cleaners.
I would stick Panda garra on that list, they are amazing algae eaters, never stop... they arent at all shy and great fun to watch! and stay small too..... brilliant fish!!
They will eat algae,Ancistrus and Pleco wont touch. But..you notice they tend to ignore going over wood?..rocks,walls,plants they clean great...but not much of wood cleaners. Why I have the Albino Ancistrus..she takes over on that.
@@nekoalexx yeah i had one laying on the floor hours after I picked them up. I have a corner matten filter and have found them in the chamber where the jet lit tube leads to.
About Siamese Algae Eaters I was told that they are aggressive as well. However, the person who told me that also didn't know the difference between Chinese and Siamese algae eaters. Chinese Algae Eaters can be aggressive but almost always when they are are being bullied but other aggressive fish or when other fish are in their territory.. FYI there is a big difference between the two.. :D
finally i found the video that i need.. i fell in love with the fish and aquatic landscape.. great video and it easy to understand to just like me as a beginner.. keep it up for doing a video..
I really liked this video and the way you presented all the facts with a slight sense of humor. You brought some important facts to light and I appreciate that. Great job you two! BTW..I love her voice! Like Tinkerbell but with a sweet personality!
I have 6 khulis in my 110L tank, they are super adventurous and almost never hide. When they hide it's more so that they are exploring inside a tight hidy place. They do great with my African dwarf frogs!! I thought they wouldn't go well together at all, but the frogs have never tried to eat a loach. They nip on them just like they nip each other during feeding, but no one gets hurt and the Khulis are not at all scared of them. They usually hang out in a pile together lol.
12:00 A good Alternative for Clown Loaches you could keep in smaller (not Nano) Tanks would be Yo Yo Loaches. They show almost the same behaviour while staying significantly smaller but unlike many other fish on your list they can get cocky on other inhabitants and are also little speed demons giving you (and predatory fish) a hard time catching them. I keep a school of five to clean up after my Exodons (not recommended for a classic community tank) and it works. The Exodons don't even bother trying to go after them.
I had 6 yoyo loaches in my tank, and loved their crazy swimming behavior. Then some bacterie struck and all loaches died, my sadness was quickly replaced when I saw how the other fish of the aquarium suddenly started moving around much more, it seems they were terrified by the yoyo loaches activity, and so my aquarium is a much happier place now. The end.
@@kristelgolsteyn9672 Yeah, I guess it depends on the stocking. I keep them together with Bucktooth Tetras who constantly act like being on Speed themselves so they get along just fine without intimidating one another.
I’ve had the Siamese algae eater that was aggressive but I own one now that is pretty chill. I think it all depends on when you add them to your tank. Add them last so the other fish have “claimed the tank first”
I have gotten into a serious habit of not referring to algae eating fish or plecos as “tank cleaners” because a lot of my buddies out there get the idea this one fish is going to keep their tank clean for them, and that’s not how the hobby works. I like to convey to all my friend your fish is an animal and you are the human who has boxed them up, therefore you are the one in charge of maintenance and cleaning. Tank cleaning fish are cool and helpful, but if that algae builds up you have to step up and take care of it yourself. If you’re not willing to put in the work and effort required as for taking care of a fish, or ANY pet in general, please don’t get a fish. 😆
I love clown loaches. They have personalities. They also school with tiger barbs happily. They will also play dead so don't freak out if you see yours laying on its side occasionally. I love Corys too and have a fleet of them in my 100 gallon tank.
My cream Siamese Algae Eater actually use to love to hover with the groups of Endlers a few seconds at a time, now he mostly digs burrows around my wood.
Bladder, ramshorn, and Malaysian trumpet snails are often called pest snails in the aquarium hobby because they reproduce very quickly and are difficult to remove once introduced to a fish tank. They can enter your fish tank by hitchhiking on live aquatic plants or even at the bottom of a fish bag from the pet store.
Yeah I remember when I was 5 I talked my mom into getting a ramshorn snail for the big tank my brother had cause I thought it was cool, next thing you know they were everywhere, you'd get rid of em and there would be even more a couple days later lol took a while to get rid of em all
If anyone is wondering what fish that is with the small clownloaches (in the picture), it is called a krebenis cichlid. The fish is super pretty but if you get them, I suggest getting two because they may claim the whole tank as theirs and won't let any new fish in later. Mine haven't gone after my catfish or plecos,but my single female cichlid has claimed the whole tank as her territory and killed a new fish I got recently. You feed them cichlid food and blood worms, but I have fed my cichlid a baby fish before (live and dead) and she went crazy and devoured it. Hope this was helpful!
I started having tanks when I was about 7 years old. I'm 38 now. I had a lot of different things I had 3 tanks 20 30 55 in my bedroom in high school (I couldn't sleep without pump/running water noise for years after lol). From fancy tail guppy breeding to a VERY impressive red bellied piranha tank and beautiful cichlids even a 55 in my bathroom because it was classy. Honestly now I just want a small 10 or 20 gallon low maintenance live plant tank with some nice color. I also want a setup for an Orchid Mantis and one for a velvet ant and a large wall hanging ant farm... it's a problem. 😕😀
*Buy show quality Bettas here:*
keepfishkeeping.com/collections/live-bettas-for-sale
My bristlenose pleco doesn't even do his job and the snails do it for him
Great video, I use Ramshorn Snails and Malaysian Trumpet Snails to clear my glass
What algae eaters are good for Oscar's and patriot cichlids
And Lima shovelnose catfish
@@Demonic_mopar69 nice
I had a Siamese algae eater in my aquarium and woke up one morning to see that it had leapt out of the tank, found my keys, and stole my car. The state police caught up to him on I-74, right before he drove my car into the river and swam away. Don't get one unless you want to risk him stealing your car.
Best comment ever
facts!!!
They can't escape the scales of justice
Mxing them up with Chinese algae eaters?
Somthing is fishy about this.
Aside from the large size that many plecos can reach, new aquarium owners should be aware of their longevity. When I bought my first pleco I was told by the shop that they "can live up to two years with proper care." 17 years later, it's still keeping the glass clean.
Clown loaches can also live a 20+ years, in a planted tank with places to hide
wow
My pleco which l bought when he was about an inch long 20 years ago is still alive and about 8 inches long. Still cleans the glass.
Wow I wasn’t aware they lived that long cool!
I had a pleco named Abrams that I got when I had my first 10 gallon tank. I literally had him my entire fishkeeping journey and he lived about 14 years. My 55 gal tank had a problem when we went on vacation and a lot of fish got sick. I swear he made himself hang on until I got back and saw him. He then died that night and it still gets me.
I started with 10 cherry shrimp almost a year ago now and I'm on the 7th or 8th generation of shrimp with at least 50+ of them with 3 more pregnant females. I love this hobby
Im allergic to shrimp
Jeremy D. Laeger i love shrimp! They are so cute look like cat!
Can they go in freshwater?
brandon brooks yes there is fresh water shrimp
Jajajaja...so now you have an army..
My Siamese algae eater is now one of the most notorious cartel bosses and killed my dog for barking at him
He’s a member of the Triads no doubt😳🤫😏
Nahh rip doggo
The book "Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance" is a suggestion for anyone that doesn't want to do maintenance. Getting back into fish about 2 months ago after only having them as a kid (31 now) has really improved my mental health overall. It's pretty nice to do the maintenance, work on optimizing things in this little artificial biome, planning what I'll add or change, etc.
It's definitely a type of therapy for me, after going years saying things like "Anything that requires upkeep, I hate doing it". Finally finding the value and reward in that maintenance is not something I expected from this tank.
Omg this is me now... something 2 weeks ago suddenly struck me telling me I should get a fish. Haven't had a fish since I ten and that was decades ago. Wish me luck 🍀🤞🏾
renovating an acquarium helped me enjoying time spent at home, keeps my mind occupied and watching them relaxes me too
This is the age I am now feeling this exact same way. Just got my tank and refreshing my fishkeeping.
That's my favorite book all time.
My Siamese Algae Eaters made me eat the algae in my tank.
@My Pets 😂👍
Eww 🤮🤢
🤣😂😅
Hahaha
Eat black beard algae
Siamese algae eater shot my grandma and stole her medication 😭 They are the worse
Actually your wrong they're not mean
Mine is very aggressive. Just territorial though. When the other fish get accustomed they don’t mind running around a bit
@burningfeet 57 Lol, They are not on a rampage, just territorial. I have feeling its because it's alone. I need to have more than one.
I had an Oscar that was just how people describe Siemese algae eaters but more demonic
I used to have one named Boris that I rescued from Walmart and he lived with my goldfish he wasn’t aggressive at all and just did his own thing and left everyone else alone
I walked my siamese algae eater around the block. The neighbors brought their pitbull inside until we passed.
Bruh
monsters
🐲
I had a siamese algae eater and yes it did a phenomenal job on cleanup, but it was aggressive. I walked in numerous times to it going after my gouramis and blue acaras. They never killed anything but they have aggressive tendencies.
I have 3 in my discus tank for 3 years now, they do a good cleanup job and they like hiding in the Pleco tubes. Never had any problem. Didn’t think they’d last long because the tanks at 28° but they’ve grown to 5 inches and seen happy enough.
I'm a cat lover who also keeps aquariums. I've had 20 cats at one time before. After time they pass of course. I'd always bring in more but I for yrs could never get.below 9 cats. I bought a Siamese algie eater about 3 months ago. I'm now down to 4 cats ! Don't figure.
I have fallen in love with the Panda cory. They are so fun to watch. You guys have the best videos!!
Siamese Algae Eaters left pieces of lego on my bedroom floor and tried to poison my mouthwash with antifreeze.
Low key hilarious
Just change the water. Stop abusing animals by making them prisoners for life xD
@@condorX2 They are not prisoners if kept with care just like a pet dog or cat
If you treat them as a decorative pieces it would be torture
Do some research @@condorX2
@@SKSahoo7681 pretty sure its a joke
Amano shrimp are notable for being effective algae cleaners, they deserve a special mention!
but they can only go into community tanks with smaller fish
Otocynclus and Cardinian are the best algae eaters for fresh tanks...
Jordan Yang Yea, but I’d say Shrimp are just as fascinating as large fish!
Jordan Yang I keep yoyo loach with bettas
i_.uzi._i how many? I have one that is fine with my better but he’s only a 1.5 inches. I was thinking of getting another the same size because they’re good with multiple of there kind in the same tank
Great Video....infomative and well done.
10. Hillstream Loaches
9. Otos
8. bristlenose pleco (be careful, other varieties can get big)
7. snails
6. siamese algae eater (4-5" so 55 gallon +)
5. shrimp
4. corydora (use smooth substrate)
3. Kuhli Loach (shy, scavenger)
2. clown loach (can get really big)
1. ..........
Number 1----> The FishKeeper !
Which fish can i keep with arowana
Techy Manish Piraña
thanks bro
lol @ "some big" ya they have one at the Riverbank zoo that is about 24 inches if he's one inch.
Great job explaining this! I'm working in a petshop and there are always people asking " How can I get my tank cleaner??? " You can keep it all clean by doing it yourself. Those tank cleaners are just there to help, not to do all the work for you. But most people don't understand that.
You can't feed creatures each other's poop in perpetuity. And... realize nature needs a big filter to provide a little clean water for fish. You can't do it in a tiny tank, even if it's 100 gallons. There is a balance to be had between "clean" looking and a living habitat.
I've noticed that some of my local aquarium supply stores have sold Chinese algae eaters as Siamese algae eaters. Chinese algae eaters only eat algae as juveniles and develope an appetite for other things as they mature.. As adults they are VERY aggressive toward all their tank mates. I had to rehome several Chinese algae eaters before I figured out I wasn't being sold the right fish.
My Siamese algae eaters are very docile and get along great with everybody else.
Ah this is what I was thinking. My store sold the ones I got under the wrong name. I know I did my research back as as a kid before the internet. I would go after school to the library and read about the fish. That Chinese algae eater looks very similar but is so aggressive.
This totally happened to me!
Chinese algae just need lots of hiding places. I have one and it’s going on 10 years and have had no problems with it. This fish stays to its self and does not brother the other fish.
@@jenniferenter662 In my aquarium he had maximum conditions and attacked the fish. He didn't attack fish when he was little.
i have 7 black khulis in a 55 gal , there's lots of river rock stacked up on one end and wisteria growing wildly through rest of tank . a couple days ago i notice a tiny 3/4 inch baby khuli when i fed the tank .
YAY i bred khuli loaches .....unconsciously
That's awesome. What kind of fish do you have them with?
@@JustinL614 9 cherry barbs 7 black skirt tetras a gold gourami and a bunch of mutt guppies
@Syk of this pc bs i have a well , the water comes out of it at about 6 ph . one day about 18 months ago i added a bunch of gravel to the tank from the wrong bag and it has tiny sea shells in it , so the ph in the tank runs about 7.6. but due to that difference in my tank water and tap water , i drag a garden hose to the tank every evening and change 5 gallons of water. then about twice a month ill do a 50% change .
i keep the tank about 79 degrees and the water from the well is about 62 . the fish all seem to like the colder water flowing in .
i don't know why they bred and didn't see it happen . hope this helps
That's super cool! I've never had mine do that but I just got 6 new ones (old ones were aging out after 7-10 years) and I rescaped my tank a year ago with a couple of little caves so .......🤞
@@woodsmanwhitesmith6928 cold water stimulates the breeding instincts in alot of tropical fish. I could always get my Angelfish to start by doing water change with cool water
I was walking past some Siamese algae eaters in PetSmart and they started growling at me
Is this real or is it a joke?
@@shriihanmukherjee6502 real!!! /j
@@chaosness7684 Phew! 😅 In retrospect that was obvious, but I knew nothing about Siamese Algae eaters so I thought there might be a chance that this is true.
@@shriihanmukherjee6502 don’t worry, i actually dont know much about them either!
🤣🙃🤣
I was recently held at gunpoint and robbed by a group of Siamese algae eaters in the parking lot of my local grocery store!!
😂
Wow
LOL you're silly LOL
Hey! Thats racist!
The work IS what makes it fun. I've spent four days washing sand for a Coldwater stream setup, and I couldn't be happier.
i have a single corydora and honestly the guy giving me my fishes was like "hey get this" and i was reluctant at first but went sure, why not AND NOW HE IS MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITTEE!!!!!! i really wanna get more corys for him i really dont want him to be lonely but he is ADORABLE!!! I LOVE CORYDORAS!!!
All corydoras should be kept in groups
We added 4 baby bristle nose plecos into our 55 gal tank and it was unreal how fast they cleaned the heavy alge in our tank. After a week we had to start adding alge wafers. 😎👍
4 in the same tank? I'm hoping they get along because I had 2 and they *never* got along lol. They would split the tank in half and it would always be a fight when they encountered each other. Which was funny because one was a male and the other a female...
I lost 2 Corys due to cheap sharp gravel. I have a 2 and 1/2 gallon tank for my baby guppies. I bought a bag of cheap gravel and put 2 Cory’s in there. I couldn’t figure out why they died until I watched this video.😢
2:32 that delivery was so jarringly enthusiastic, I felt like I was watching one of those Magic Bullet infomercials for a second.
My brain: you gotta see what fish clean fish tanks
Me: why...
My brain: you just gotta
mooood
Try it having a tank you might like it. I started mine 4 months ago loving it
Although difficult to keep, nothing beats the Farlowella catfish for simple algae removal. FYI not the heartiest, possibly the hardest though.
trueee
fish > cats
i really love look at my 2 aquarium tank after I have clean it thoroughly. Just happy to see the fish, swimming around, like they're thanking me. Best moments
Huge fan of siamese algae eaters, and have owned many in multiple tanks. However I have actually come across a few that were very aggressive towards my other fish! Very uncommon, but I've experienced it myself.
I had two and both were aggressive!
I haven't kept one since the '80s because of the experience of one constantly harassing my goldfish.
Agreed
I had a group of three in my tank and they were aggressive and bullied other fish
I had one and it was also aggressive. I still love them and will be getting some for my new aquarium.
I have experience with Plecos. I got one at about 1.5 inches and was the only algae eater in a 100 gallon tank. This fish grew to over 12 inches long. At that size, they are usually no longer cleaning the tank, just lying around looking like a log. Good news: some people will buy them from you because they are looking for a larger docile fish to add to their tank. They might have a tank of Oscars, and a 12" pleco would be right at home with them. Then you can get another small Pleco and start over.
Some of them grow very big and can get very old. I would avoid any bigger ones but I had good luck with bristle plecos. They don't grow too big but they can be a bit aggressive to other fish near their "home".
Haha like a log!
My pleco poops way more than he cleans, so not the best for keeping a clean tank. You know when you go out one morning and a spiders built webs all over the place? It's like that but with poop. He does clean algae mostly off the plants, but our gouramis are much better at that with way less poop.
L
Plecos certainly aren't docile with eachother.
I have three black khuli loaches in my 20 gallon and I absolutely love watching them. They zoom around the tank when they realize it's feeding time at ridiculously high speeds. I plan on adding three striped ones to the group when I upgrade to a 75 gal. A big plus about these long bois: they might feed on small pest snails. They can't go after full grown ones, but khulis can be a huge help in controlling their numbers. In my case, they completely wiped out the bladder snail population in my tank!
Coooooooool
i had a pleco that was 10 inches long before it died... that guy was a trooper
Only 10 inches? He must have been young.
@@abigailnelson6623 not all pleco grow to the sizes of the common and sailfin the l029 grows to a max of 10 inch L081 and L177 only 6-9 inch
I could like to say, I got two siamese algae eaters and overnight they ate ALL the algae on my glass. My once fluffy glass was SPOTLESS. And now they are cleaning up my algae-covered plants. They are in a 10 gallon tank so I didn't expect it to be all gone after one night. Absolute legends, 10/10 reccomend
10 gallons is a fairly small tank, so I'm actually not surprised they cleaned it so quickly.
Yea good point. They were babies at the time but now live in a much larger community tank @@jeremyfrost2636
After binging about a dozen of your tutorials, I had to take a moment to say that I think you're both so freakin' awesome! I've recently gotten back into the hobby and have been researching online to brush up my skills. I was so happy to find you out there...I love watching your videos! You're both just the perfect amount of corny while presenting so that the viewer remains entertained but doesn't get fatigued...and I super dig it! Apparently, it's not easy...:) It really helps get you to the end of a long video with lots of good info!
Speaking of content, I'd also like to say how much I appreciate the thoughtful approach you both take with the topics and information you're providing! It's easily digestible, well organized, comprehensive and super relevant. You've a great knack for choosing compelling and relevant content, and I've learned so much MORE about the basics than I ever understood before (in record time). Your advice, tips and shortcuts are priceless...sooooo, it likely comes as no surprise that I'd ALSO love to know if you have any thoughts for me!!
I've got a 20 g tall tank (24x12x16) that I cycled using NH3 and nitrifying bacteria products with same-day introduction of the guppies listed below (1st time). My tank has 20lbs of natural ocean sand and is is moderately planted with Amazon Swords, Java Ferns, Java Moss and Anubias Nana with two sizeable cave systems...1 of artificial driftwood and 1 of stacked natural stone. I'm planning to add duck weed for additional cover from the light. I've got a 40 g capacity hang-on filter, heater and LED hood.
I've set it up with an atypical group of tank mates...I know...but I've used this setup twice in the past with great success (20 g and 55 g). I've got 4 Angelfish (P. scalare) at about the size of half-dollars, 1 Dwarf Gourami (2.5"), 1 Pictus Catfish (2.5") and 5 common guppies (2F/3M). My numbers are good (NO3-10, NO2-.01, GH-150, pH-7.2, NH3-0 at 75°F), I perform regular housekeeping and do a 5 g water change weekly or when the NH3 registers above 0. I'm feeding with color-enhancing Tetramin flake, frozen brine shrimp (Angels/Pictus) and FD tubeworms as a periodic treat along with rotating a sinking omnivore tablet and algae tablet for the Pictus.
Can I do this long-term, with maybe only one of the Angelfish (transferring when too large)? I didn't keep the other two tanks longer than about a year and a half (military)...so I'm not sure if I would've encountered issues longer term? I do intend to move at least 3 of the Angelfish to a 55 g that I'm still working on...with nothing more than a cleanup crew and maybe some dither fish. Am I nuts? Is there an Armageddon in my future? Any tips...if your advice isn't to completely rethink my approach??? Can I add a couple of snails for the algae on the glass?
I hope I hear from you, and please keep up the great work!!! #KGTROPICALSRULES #SUPERFAN
Late reply I know but your ammonia should never rise above zero. Water changes are mainly to remove nitrate, you shouldn't be detecting any ammonia or nitrite in a cycled tank.
Obviously if something goes drastically wrong you can get an ammonia spike, in which case a drastic water change and lots of Prime is your best bet.
I love my bristle nose Pleco. His name is Juan and he has a killer moustache
Kinda racist
@@juanochoa5978 how is that racist?
@@juanochoa5978 how's that racist?? He's named after my boss
Yeah
@@juanochoa5978 what exactly about her comment was racist? Lol, try reaching for your offended status again lol.
With shrimp, just take your filter type into consideration! I've found they find themselves stuck in/behind those built-in box filters.
Sponge Filters are a good consideration for this, you can usually find some for most Filter Intake Tube sizes or even just to operate off of an air flow. They do need to be replaced either every 3 months or so last I heard, but it's basically a long term filter insert and safety feature at that point. Also, they will consolidate a lot of the debris on the surface for the algae and other biologic agents to act on, all of which the shrimp can eat. I've even seen some with plants rooted to them. That being said, I haven't been in the hobby for about 2 years now, so don't take my word for it.
I feel like there are some details missing but I know you had to keep the video short. I’d like to add my two cents.
1. Ottos need LOTS of friends and they can be pretty sensitive to poor water. They will hide if you don’t have enough. I’d say at least 5 to start. We had 25 In our 180 gal tank and rarely saw them. Best for planted tanks. Also if an Angel fish tries to eat one it won’t a good end for the AF.
2. Adding zucchini and cucumber is SO much fun because a whole community of fish will eat together. Shrimp, snails, cat fish, loaches etc.
3. Narite snails are perfect for fresh water tanks because they can’t breed in fresh water. They leave white eggs everywhere that never hatch though.
4. I’ve seen reports that the SAF likes to eat the slime coat of large flat fish. I mostly kept angels as our centerpiece fish so we avoided them.
5. Amano shrimp are AWESOME for planted tanks. They also can’t breed in fresh water. We had tons of cherry shrimp even with our large fish we still had several generations because we had lots of diftwood and plants for the babies to hide in.
6. Cories are SO much fun, they swim in a straight line (Cory conga). They LOVE sand substrate and might dig up your moss/grass. They breed pretty easily too.
7. Kuhli loaches are my FAVORITE we had 30 or so and still rarely saw them. They are most active in the dark you can sometimes see them doing group cartwheels after the lights go off. Or they’ll hang from your plants and you’ll think they’re dead 🤣 and they rub against each other when they eat.
8. Clowns supposedly eat snails. I haven’t had luck there but maybe worth a try if you have a snail over population. They’re called clowns for a reason. They’re SO silly and playful.
THEYRE CORYDORABLE. 🥰 Peppered cories are very good cleaners in particular. They're not perfect cleaners, but I had no algae with that specific species.
Don't they snuffle algae and make everything messy?...and don't they poop a lot?
One algae eater I loved to having was my golden dojo loach he was so dope every energetic. He got over 12 inches and schooled around with my koi in my 200 gallon tank. He was the only fish I owned that would swim between my fingers when I went to clean the gravel. I don’t see much people talk about them and I would love to see others with them.
I had one and she ate dead fish when i was asleep and got dropsy and died. She was my baby, and It was very disheartening.
I love having loaches!! Dojos are one of my favorites. The Dojo loaches I had I referred to as my water dogs... they interacted with me at feeding, cleaning etc.
@@andrealueck2101 yea I called mine my puppy. She died at 12 inches :(
John: cory’s are adorable
Neon tetras: hold my water
❤️💙 i LOVE neons!!!!
I have neon tetras to
Le Baguette: mine have names, love, life, peace, and joy! They have slight difference in brightness of color so I can identify each one of mine. But you’re right, not many people give them names or care about them that much! That’s why I have an Instagram for mine, to spread awareness of how beautiful they are and how cute and wonderful they can be as pets, not just additions to the community tank
@@Mercedes_may We even named our Oto's! Now THAT'S fun trying see who's who... I can tell by the shape of the dot on the end of their tails and whether/how their side stripes intersect with it.
Neon tetras always make me think about the Pepsi cola logo
Great, now I'm thirsty. Someone tell Pence to get me a Pepsi right now!
I love Neons too!
We had our Cory's breed once, which was cool. The next day after a water change I woke up to the glass covered in their eggs.
Cory babies are extra adorable. 😁❤
I remembered back in my aunt's house where we lived first, I clearly remembered having Plec fishes (both black and white) in our aquariums.
Now in our new home, our fish tank has algae or fungal looking matter which me and my sister or my dad had to clean (My sis has a fear of dead fishes from her experiences). Watching this video reminded me of the Plecs ^^
I’ve got Siamese algae eaters, they are awesome. I did have to split mine up as one of them has an attitude issue and kept picking on my golden gourami. Since I’ve done that they’ve been good as gold. I also have very well planted tanks and never had to use algae wafers.
My brother has a 120 gallon tank. He has two big beautiful Oscars in there but what I found most fascinating is his plecos. That guy is almost 3feet 6 inches long. I love plecos but will never again get one because putting it in a smaller tank is too cruel. Too many fish "experts" suggested I get a plecos for my 10 gallon tank. This couple is great at giving very good advise for your aquarium and I wish I'd found them when I had my poor plecos, I'd have gotten a bigger tank at the very least or given him to someone with an appropriate tank so he could have lived a HAPPY, normal life span. Good job on the info keep it coming 👍
I love Otocinclus catfish. They're incredible cleaners! And definitely fast and efficient. Also with them being so small they can eat the algae in the harder to reach areas
So happy to see different tank cleaners and not just plecos
30 SECONDS plecos are highly overrated, they are eating algae when young to later on go for food
I only have one pleco I have it bc it's a baby albino common pleco
@@tannergolden3956 what size tank do you have? They get to be 16-24 inches.
Right now I have a bristlenose pleco, some kuhli loaches, ghost shrimp, and an otto (I had three in my other betta tank that crashed, only managed to save the one before I realized what was going on) along with my other community fish.
They have a nice balance to them in that between them all they can pretty much get everywhere that I have difficulty in getting to when I clean like in the more thickly planted areas. The bristlenose likes to stir up the gravel in the more open areas (which helps the others get to trapped food and stuff) and stays lower on the glass sides. The kuhlis get into any tiny space they can slither into like the roots and stems of the many anubis plants and under the driftwood (their favorite place). The otto likes to stay higher on the glass and on the leaves of the plants. The ghost shrimp pretty much go everywhere and eat whatever the others don't. Still doesn't get everything but definitely helps keep things from getting overwhelming.
I did have one algae eater several years ago that would attack and rarely injure my smaller guppies but the other two I had were very chill so I always considered it the oddity and ended up giving the slightly aggressive one to my grandmother who had much larger mollies that would put it in its place if it tried attacking them. She had that one for a pretty long time and it always seemed pretty happy.
I have two golden algae eaters, at first I had them together and they fought like cats and dogs. So I separated them and now they are just joys to watch. One is only four or five inches. While the other is close to eight inches, he grew over an inch in the other tank, both seventy five, a tall and a regular. 😄
I've tried keeping kuhli loaches and Endler's Livebearers, and noticed my Endler's were disappearing after I introduced the kuhli loaches. After observing late at night with only dim red lights on, I discovered the loaches were sometimes eating an Endler that happened to be resting on bare sand as it slept! The kuhli loaches never bothered anything else, but nothing else slept on the sand.
We have had corys and I love them! We had them in a tropical tank for years along with a loach.
Could I keep a Cory or two in a 20 gallon?
@@Kaelan-o4r I wouldn't put more than two in a 20. I highly recommend a larger tank for them though.
A good friend lost his leg to a Siamese Algae Eater and he was the only one to get out of the aquarium alive. It was all over CNN for a week. Perhaps you saw the video.
Wut
@@TF2Scout.. CNN satire.
@@mohamedal-ali975 CNN is a joke.
This is awesome
Well I thought it was funny lol
I'm so happy to see clown loach on this list!!! I've got 11 of them in a 6ft at the moment!!
Setting up their tank upgrade next week, I cant wait. They are amazing and I'm glad your giving the right information on them as they are a beautiful fish but are usually neglected
are they still alive now? how are they doing?
Wow that is amazing! I wish them a long and happy life under your great care
@@i1403s yes they are still alive ^_^ I've added to the shoal now, there are 15 of them, we've given them a tropical pond I'm the conservatory, the larger ones are about 10inchs long and chonky (about 8 yrs old) and then the smaller ones are between 4-6inchs (about 1-2yrs old) ^_^ sorry I took so long to reply :)
Thanks for great info. I've had several of these, and I clicked on this because of the kuhli loach pic. They are one of my favorite fish. So fun to watch them wiggle up and down and around the tank. Beautiful and really unique fish.
I've got 3 six year old siamese algea eaters in my 90 gallon tank. They keep the tank clean, get along with my smaller tetras, and tend to swim with my 5 Dennison Barbs. So cool to see them all swimming from one end if the tank to the other.
I wish more of our LFS customers had your attitude about maintenance. It really is a good feeling to step back after doing your job to see how much better the aquarium looks. The behavior of the fish when they get that fresh, clean water is pretty rewarding, too. Great way to top off this list. ;-)
I searched everywhere for the number 1 of the list called "The fish keeper".... didn't find it anywhere.... Rare species probably....
Slaves are very hard to find...
@@rjtodd3330 over 50 million in africa and middle east
Enter Valhala cursed comments
They’re native in the jungle streams in my country Malaya & Borneo ( Malaysia ).
@@ghrbaa6727 Best response ever
I have a few pleco's and i love them! They dont only keep the tank clean, but they are the cutest an funniest cleaners i've ever seen! I also have a few snails, altough they lay eggs alot they are still pretty cute! Oh and the siamese algae eaters! I love them so so so much!!! They are also very fast ( if they want to be 😂 ) and they are so cool! 😍
Thanks to you guys
I got 6 shrimp and 2 kuhli loaches in my iwagumu/wood addition nano thirty cubic centimeter tank
And the kuhli loaches balanced the shrimp population and feasted on dead shrimp that died from old age
It was a perfect balance and so cool
The kuhli loaches will sometimes get on top of the wood and jus caress into the anubias
So cool thanks guys
I had a 50 Gallon clown loach tank for years. I loved it. My biggest got just over 8 inches. I miss them SOOO much now.
One of my Cory's gets excited when i open the lid and splashes me 😂 and don't get me started how adorable my pygmy Cory is!
I call soo many fish adorable. Fish are just cute!
Goldfish are adorable
I 100% agree about corydoras being cute! I love my corys, there's a small army of them in my community tank. Corys are also pretty entertaining, they always seem to be doing something. In Australia apparently, the best algae eater you can get is the Darwin Algae Eating shrimp. They're native to Darwin and eat mostly algae. They also manage to survive in water that's inhabited by crocodiles, so I imagine they're good at hiding lol.
Goldfish tried to eat a Cory, choked and almost died. I had to do the Heimlich maneuver on my Goldie.
I have an army of albino corydora
albino cory is our 1st choice, we call it 'white mouse' with their white body & red eyes. Cute, look great, peaceful & very hard working !
I have 3 in both my 20 and 36 gallon tanks. Not only cute but work horses. I have the “mud” and “albino” and speckled or “spotted”. Always working which is a thrill to watch and as we know they work much harder with the lights off. Cute and dependable!
I have been having True Siamese Algae Eaters , Clown Loaches, Bronze cories for the last 5 years and man I love them all. Maybe not as much as my rainbows but yeah they are absolutely there.
I had a Siamese algae eater over 55 years ago for my little 5 gallon community tank [we didn't know better back then and it's what I got for my birthday as a kid and it seemed to work well] :-)]. It was a WONDERFUL tank-mate and pet, never the least bit of problem with my Siamese Algae Eater and it stayed alive the years I had the tank before I had to give fish away because Dad was transferred to another province :-)
Just bought a new Nano tank. Gonna start breading Red Cherry shrimps for my other big Aquarium
Great
can i buy some cant find any
anywere
I have a 20 gallon live planted aquarium I couldn’t even see in the tank because it had so much algae on the glass I got trumpet snails and rams horn snails and they cleaned my tank spotless within three weeks💯
Thanks for the content. I really appreciate it. Be safe, be healthy and be happy. Cheers.
Hillstream loaches do best in a tank designed especially for them. In the wild they attach to rocks in fast moving water. I built a system for them using a 30g long with an under gravel filter w/4 draft tubes, 2 small powerheads at one end and sponge filters at the other. Some sturdy live plants a good size piece of driftwood and several flat rocks for them to hang onto. I had about 15 of them in the tank and when did a deep clean i found about 60 of all sizes. Turned out they were spawning inside the driftwood.
Snails are an amazing choice. Particularly nerite snails. I own one nerite snail in my 30 gallon community tank. 3 years after purchase, he still is thriving even with 3 loaches in the same tank. They just don't bother each other and they live fine with no aggression.
Hey do u feed them seperate algae wafers or jist normal fish food
@@irfanhabib9508 I actually don’t feed them at all! I left the back algae and decor/substrate algae and they go to town on that! It’s actually so thick them eating it doesn’t make a dent. I have fed them cucumbers a long time ago but they just feast on mainly the algae.
@@stormcast056 ohh thank you for the reply😊
I love our apple snails! Ya, they aren't the best glass cleaners, but they're so much fun to watch! Their little antenna/feelers can get super long and they are "energy efficient" (ie: they will detach themselves from what they're climbing on and "Mary Poppins" float down to the bottom of the tank). Sometimes they land gracefully and sometimes they just face-plant onto the terrain. 😂
🤣
I love that you described the corydoras as cute. I have a pair of them in my 75 gallon tank. They like to sit together and snuggle. Last week they had babies. We found 2 little ones. Now they are adorable!
I have a bigger bronze Cory together with a smaller Panda in my 37, they get along awesome(was a little worried at first being different species) they always hand around together and do nothing together as well. Couldn’t be happier
Awesome list! Uncommon in the hobby, but I would also add Panda Garra and Congo Garra to the list. They are absolute dwarf power houses scavengers and algae grazzers!
I use Ramshorn Snails and Malaysian Trumpet Snails to clear my glass. I made a channel to show you can make low-maintenance, small planted aquariums out of glass bottles and I keep a few shrimp and snails in a glass drinks dispenser! My two latest videos on my channel shows the aquariums with commentary with one showing three shrimp fighting over an algae wafer!
Look up the definition of "SPAM". Once you figure it out you'll understand why when you copied and pasted this same stupid comment 20 times it didn't show up.
@@unusualaquariumecosystems5805 please stop, you literally comment the same thing (sometimes with small changes) on a TON of different fishkeepers' comment section, and not only is it annoying, its taking advantage of people with a lot of views and manipulating them to promote yourself. Advertising on different people's comment sections without the owner's permission is NOT COOL.
I'll make a comment on the Siamese Algae Eater. We sold these at petsmart and I discovered that they weren't always SIAMESE AEs. Sometimes we were getting the very similar looking, but far more aggressive CHINESE AE. Upon researching the two species, CAEs tend to become aggressive when they reach 3-4 inches, particularly if they are female and are not provided any extra protein to produce their eggs. A friend of mine ended up with a CAE in with her gold gourami and she chewed a straight hole in the gourami's side! SAEs very rarely display aggression toward other fish in your tank and surely don't chew on them unless they're dead. If you suspect your SAE is a CAE because it's being nasty, try giving it a bit of protein boost like bloodworms or a high protein pellet food.
Yup- I was totally sold a CAE unknowingly under the name Siamese Algae Eater. He ended up taking out my oldest fish in his prime, which led me to discover his true identity, and promptly rehome him.
CAEs are great for big cichlid tanks.
When I was a kid we got were accidentally given a Plecos at a fist store when we picked up a couple of small schooling fish. We didn’t know anything about it. It outlived everything, even a cat. And it did turn out to be almost 13 inches. We even got a bigger tank to accommodate it after a time. Good pet.
I had a common pleco I got with my original 30 gallon tank in 2002. Being new to the hobby I had no idea how big they got and this was back when Walmart sold fish so you didn't get any advice. It was maybe 3 inches big. I eventually upgraded and moved it to a 70 gallon tank, then 90, then 225 gallon tank. It lived until 2016 and was over 16 inches long.
I got snails and in no time I ended up wth a tank of snails 😂😂I didn’t even buy them they were on my plants , and thanks for the info on clown loaches.
Get a pea puffer
Clown loaches destroy snails.
Lol, I was wondering about that too when they mentioned snails. I'm like, don't they multiply quickly?
@@Marco-fi6gv Neritina snails only reproduce in salt water.
@@matthiasvandekerkhove3594 thanks 👍
Siamese algae eaters are peaceful, the Chinese ones can be aggressive.
mine always attacks my Oscars. i think its suicidal
Was a joke people..
@@tail66 mine has decided that the best algae must be on the sides of my bright red dwarf gourami.
mine chases my clown loach and boesemani rainbows, so idk, guess it's dependent on personality
Heard they get a bit more peacefull when you give them protein filled food.
But never had one myself so idk exactly if it works.
At first I didn't believe Siamese algae eaters were aggressive, so I decided to bring one home. About a week later I come home after work to an empty tank in an empty house. It wasn't long after that I got a call from a blocked number... "I have your wife. If you want her to live, bring a briefcase full of unmarked hundred dollar bills to the corner of 1st and River Road. Come alone, or tonight she sleeps with the fishes". Too late I realized the mistake I had made. May this be a warning to you all.
I have 3 in my discus tank for 3 years now, they do a good cleanup job and they like hiding in the Pleco tubes. Never had any problem. Didn’t think they’d last long because the tanks at 28° but they’ve grown to 5 inches and seen happy enough.
Hi. The video says Siamese algae eaters are not aggressive. That has been my experience for the most part. One exception, not sure if this guy has a personality... I had just the one Siamese Algae Eater in my tank, and as his size surpassed the corydoras (pepper), and the tank was clean of algae... the SAE became rather aggressive towards them during feeding time. Not just stealing food, but chasing the corydoras around the aquarium. He didn't harm them, but prevented them from eating for quite some time. Thanks for the video, guys.
We have very alkaline water where we live, pH runs 8.0-8.2; yet I've been keeping Black Kuhlis for decades with great success, in planted tanks with sand substrates and natural rock. They live for years, and I had one group of three go over twelve years in a community ten gallon. An accident wiped out that entire tank so I don't know how long they would have lived. I can say they were healthy and lively up until the accident. Over the years I've learned that as long as they have good hiding places and good tank conditions they stay active and exhibit all that great Kuhli behavior. They're probably my favorite of the cleaners.
I would stick Panda garra on that list, they are amazing algae eaters, never stop... they arent at all shy and great fun to watch! and stay small too..... brilliant fish!!
I just bought four these, they are awesome! Very active, and eating algae everywhere.
They jump so make sure you have a lid
They will eat algae,Ancistrus and Pleco wont touch. But..you notice they tend to ignore going over wood?..rocks,walls,plants they clean great...but not much of wood cleaners. Why I have the Albino Ancistrus..she takes over on that.
@@nekoalexx yeah i had one laying on the floor hours after I picked them up. I have a corner matten filter and have found them in the chamber where the jet lit tube leads to.
“The work is what makes it fun!”
That’s something a teacher would say...
😂
Not true at all!
About Siamese Algae Eaters I was told that they are aggressive as well. However, the person who told me that also didn't know the difference between Chinese and Siamese algae eaters. Chinese Algae Eaters can be aggressive but almost always when they are are being bullied but other aggressive fish or when other fish are in their territory.. FYI there is a big difference between the two.. :D
Yeah, I'm confused because the video showed both species and they are definitely not the same temperament.
finally i found the video that i need.. i fell in love with the fish and aquatic landscape.. great video and it easy to understand to just like me as a beginner.. keep it up for doing a video..
I really liked this video and the way you presented all the facts with a slight sense of humor. You brought some important facts to light and I appreciate that. Great job you two! BTW..I love her voice! Like Tinkerbell but with a sweet personality!
I absolutely love this channel. 😊 thank you so much for the awesome content!!!
Love your videos with both of you in them 💞
10 things idea: Top 10 Aquarium Pests
Number 1 = convict cichlid
#1 plecos
@@rrrrrr-ry3cn convicts are nice tho
@@stanr5787 they are super cute, but too dam hardy
1 Arapima
I have 6 khulis in my 110L tank, they are super adventurous and almost never hide. When they hide it's more so that they are exploring inside a tight hidy place. They do great with my African dwarf frogs!! I thought they wouldn't go well together at all, but the frogs have never tried to eat a loach. They nip on them just like they nip each other during feeding, but no one gets hurt and the Khulis are not at all scared of them. They usually hang out in a pile together lol.
i love this channel i've started fishkeeping but im so lucky i have my grandad he did for 20+ years
12:00 A good Alternative for Clown Loaches you could keep in smaller (not Nano) Tanks would be Yo Yo Loaches. They show almost the same behaviour while staying significantly smaller but unlike many other fish on your list they can get cocky on other inhabitants and are also little speed demons giving you (and predatory fish) a hard time catching them. I keep a school of five to clean up after my Exodons (not recommended for a classic community tank) and it works. The Exodons don't even bother trying to go after them.
I had 6 yoyo loaches in my tank, and loved their crazy swimming behavior. Then some bacterie struck and all loaches died, my sadness was quickly replaced when I saw how the other fish of the aquarium suddenly started moving around much more, it seems they were terrified by the yoyo loaches activity, and so my aquarium is a much happier place now. The end.
@@kristelgolsteyn9672 Yeah, I guess it depends on the stocking. I keep them together with Bucktooth Tetras who constantly act like being on Speed themselves so they get along just fine without intimidating one another.
I’ve had the Siamese algae eater that was aggressive but I own one now that is pretty chill. I think it all depends on when you add them to your tank. Add them last so the other fish have “claimed the tank first”
I find fish that were beaten as fry tend to be more aggressive.
I have gotten into a serious habit of not referring to algae eating fish or plecos as “tank cleaners” because a lot of my buddies out there get the idea this one fish is going to keep their tank clean for them, and that’s not how the hobby works. I like to convey to all my friend your fish is an animal and you are the human who has boxed them up, therefore you are the one in charge of maintenance and cleaning. Tank cleaning fish are cool and helpful, but if that algae builds up you have to step up and take care of it yourself. If you’re not willing to put in the work and effort required as for taking care of a fish, or ANY pet in general, please don’t get a fish. 😆
I just flushed 2 live swordtails down the toilet ,not boxed up anymore 🤷♂️
@@deebee1006 DUDE, THAT'S NOT WHAT HE MEANT
Navi _ all you need is a couple snails and you’re good my tank is spotless
I love clown loaches. They have personalities. They also school with tiger barbs happily. They will also play dead so don't freak out if you see yours laying on its side occasionally. I love Corys too and have a fleet of them in my 100 gallon tank.
My cream Siamese Algae Eater actually use to love to hover with the groups of Endlers a few seconds at a time, now he mostly digs burrows around my wood.
Bladder, ramshorn, and Malaysian trumpet snails are often called pest snails in the aquarium hobby because they reproduce very quickly and are difficult to remove once introduced to a fish tank. They can enter your fish tank by hitchhiking on live aquatic plants or even at the bottom of a fish bag from the pet store.
Yeah I remember when I was 5 I talked my mom into getting a ramshorn snail for the big tank my brother had cause I thought it was cool, next thing you know they were everywhere, you'd get rid of em and there would be even more a couple days later lol took a while to get rid of em all
100%
Nice list 👍 Kuhli Loach is my fave!
The reason most people get common plecos is because that’s the only species they know about so they don’t think of any other species to look for💯
If anyone is wondering what fish that is with the small clownloaches (in the picture), it is called a krebenis cichlid. The fish is super pretty but if you get them, I suggest getting two because they may claim the whole tank as theirs and won't let any new fish in later. Mine haven't gone after my catfish or plecos,but my single female cichlid has claimed the whole tank as her territory and killed a new fish I got recently. You feed them cichlid food and blood worms, but I have fed my cichlid a baby fish before (live and dead) and she went crazy and devoured it. Hope this was helpful!
I love you guys, incredibly informative while having fun doing it. I'm subscribing
Genuinely informative that too shared in wonderful way! Thanks dude 🤘🏼
The Chinese algae are the usually aggressive ones, not Siamese. Siamese are the best black beard algae eaters there are.
Four inch Chinese algae eater behaved more like a lamprey. Made mouth shaped holes on the sides of my bluegill sized green severums.
Best tank cleaner is the fishkeeper by far!!
Pheonix_Suns You are right. “ For better or worse, in sickness and health, I do wed thee”..........
I started having tanks when I was about 7 years old. I'm 38 now. I had a lot of different things I had 3 tanks 20 30 55 in my bedroom in high school (I couldn't sleep without pump/running water noise for years after lol). From fancy tail guppy breeding to a VERY impressive red bellied piranha tank and beautiful cichlids even a 55 in my bathroom because it was classy. Honestly now I just want a small 10 or 20 gallon low maintenance live plant tank with some nice color. I also want a setup for an Orchid Mantis and one for a velvet ant and a large wall hanging ant farm... it's a problem. 😕😀