Freshwater 'Clean-up' Crew Essentials
Clean-up crew essentials for all your aquarium needs.
When we have an algae outbreak in our aquariums, it is very tempting to turn to chemicals to help rid the unwanted algae in our tanks. There are however, a number of aquarium inhabitants that you can keep in a range of community aquariums that will help prevent and overcome any algae issues. These are called your 'clean-up' crew.
The clean-up crew is useful for a variety of different things within the aquarium such as; Keeping the glass clean, keeping the plants, hardscape and ornaments clean as well as helping to maintain the substrate in your aquarium.
Therefore a variety of species can be used to help keep these different aspects of the aquarium in check. You can not rely on one species to do all the work for you which is why it is called a clean-up crew, suggesting there is a collection of different species.
One of the main things to remember with your clean up crew is that they are not miracle workers and you must do your part as well. If your aquarium is overstocked, no properly filtered or you do not keep up with a regular maintenance and water change schedule then your clean-up crew will not be able to function properly.
Another thing to keep in mind is feeding your clean-up crew. Although they are feeding on waste and algae in the aquarium, some of the larger members of the clean-up crewe will require additional food sources. Weather this is algae wafers for plecos, sinking pellets for corydoras or natural leaves for your shrimp.
Below is a list of some of the species I have used in my aquarium in the past that have worked well, all for different reasons. This list is in no particular order and I recommend you do your research into each species before adding it to your system.
Nearite Snail
Nerite Snails are one of the most popular freshwater aquarium snails these days and are almost always available at local fish stores and chain stores. Nerite Snails have a reputation for being outstanding tank cleaners and one of the most proficient algae eating snails around. The Nearite snail is known to be very peaceful in temperament and will move around the aquarium cleaning the hardscape, plants and glass with ease. Nearite snails can range in price from £1.50 to £2.50 depending on the shop and availability you buy them from.
There are a few varieties of Nearite snail available in todays aquarium hobby. The most common snail I have seen is the Zebra Nearite snail however there are other varieties available such as the Tiger Nearite and the Black Racer Nearite. In my personal experience these snails do not breed rapidly like pest snails so are easy to control and will not take over your tank.
Otocinclus Catfish
An Otocinclus Catfish is an amazing little scavenger for freshwater aquariums. It is often said that Otocinclus Catfish care is relatively easy however, while care should be easy and straight foreword, keeping Oto Catfish can be tricky because they are a delicate freshwater aquarium fish. Otocinclus are also a very peaceful fish and will happily school together munching on algae and not bothering other fish. These fish range in price from £2.50 up to £5.00 or more for the rarer variety.
Oto Catfish should be added to a heavily planted, well established tank to give them the best chance of survival. Oto Catfish will feed mainly on soft filmy and soft green types of algae on the "firm' surfaces in the aquarium.
Amano Shrimp
Known as the algae eating machines of the invertebrate world, these shrimp are named after the late, great Takashi Amano. A fully grown amino shrimp can reach up to two inches in length and will generally be translucent or grey in colour. Amano shrimp do well in large or small groups and are not a shy creature, always on the look out for food exploring open spaces, plants and caves. Amano shrimp can live up to three years and will happily and readily reproduce in an established, well maintained aquarium.
Amano shrimp although not he prettiest, can sometimes be pricey. I have seen them for £3.00 a piece in aquatic stores before. You can get colourful red cherry shrimp for 99p in some shops so this £3.00 price tag fora clear shrimp may put some people off. There is a reason for this though, they are AMAZING algae eaters which is sometimes why they are sometimes more expensive.
Bristlenose Pleco
The bristlenose pleco, Ancistrus temminckii and related species, is a wonderful fish to have that comes from South America. One of the main reasons this fish is so popular is due to its size. They can be housed in some small aquariums as well as large aquariums. There are some Plecos that are sold in fish stores that can grow up to a foot or more in length which is why the bristlenose is gaining popularity. These guys do well with most types of algae and can be seen on the glass, hardscape and plants.
This fish can be found for anywhere from £4.50 to £6.00 in aquarium shops. They can also be found in an albino variation as well as a super red variety which again is a very cool addition to any community aquarium. Plecos require drift wood in the aquarium as part of their staple food source, you will often see them 'chilling out' on the wood in your aquarium where they are actually eating it.
Corydoras Catfish
Cory Catfish, also called Cory Cats, Cory Fish and Corydoras Catfish, are very popular freshwater fish in pet stores. Cory Catfish are hardy fish for their size and are staples in freshwater community tanks.When buying Cory Catfish, look for fish that appear healthy, alert, active and moving and also make sure the Cory has complete barbels on each side of its mouth. Corydoras Catfish are active and curious bottom dwellers, methodically scavenging the tank bottom looking some food to eat.
There are many varieties of Corydoras Catfish that can all range in price from the common Bronze Cory at £1.50, to a mid range Panda Cory for £4.50 up to a Sterbai Cory that can go for as much as £10 a piece. Although the Corydoras does not directly eat algae, they are an extremely important part of the clean up crew as they eat waste on the substrate. This can help prevent ammonia spikes from detritus build up and also rotting old food that has sunk to the bottom of the aquarium.
Like we mentioned at the start of this post, al of these species do different jobs and can be useful in a lot of different ways. some can be more suitable for nano aquariums, some better for larger aquariums. We would recommend doing your own in depth research on all of the species above before you consider adding them to your aquarium as they might not be suitable with your other tank inhabitants.
If you have any other recommendations for amazing freshwater clean up crew members then just leave a comment below.
Thanks for reading and make sure to get a clean up crew for you aquarium!!
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