I am about to get sand for my fish tank and I dont know if I could put it in tha tank because of tha algea eater.
Would it like kill tha algea eater?
Would it hurt tha health of tha algea eater?
What would happin if tha algea eater eats some sand, while he trying to eat tha algea?
2007-11-03 18:13:37 · 5 answers · asked by saleen_s7_is_mine 1 in Pets ➔ Fish
its a Pleco-Suckermouth catfish
2007-11-03 18:33:08 · update #1
Your algae eater should be fine. I have sand in my tank and I feed sinking algae wafers to my pleco and corydoras catfish, and I've never had a problem with them eating sand. They are scavengers and good at picking out what is food and what is not.
btw, if you are switching to sand you might want to consider getting a couple Malaysian trumpet snails. They are very good at stirring the sand to keep pockets of dangerous gases from forming. They will also eat leftovers and decaying matter, which keeps your sand looking nicer. I will warn you though that they can sometimes reach epidemic proportions. However, if you are careful not to overfeed and your water quality is good they usually stay in check and hide in the sand during the day, and only come out at night.
2007-11-03 18:46:13 · answer #1 · answered by lickitysplit 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You shouldn't have any algae on your sand, and if you do, the "algae eater" (which could be any number of fish from the 2 foot Plecostomus to the 2 inch Otociniclus) won't even attempt to eat it. The sand won't be a problem. you will have to stir your sand every month to release the anaerobic buildup, which should help lessen algae issues by turning over your sand. If the fish does, for some reason, eat some sand, it can simply filter it out its gills and deposit it back to the tank bottom.
Soop Nazi
EDIT: Your Pleco is fine, just make sure it has adequate room. Common Plecos can reach 2 feet, but some, like Bristlenose Plecos only get a few inches.
2007-11-03 18:24:17 · answer #2 · answered by nosoop4u246 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
I would imagine there's sand where ever algae eaters are from. I think it will be okay. I'm sure they know not to suck up the sand. Are you going to have any rock, flower pots, plants, etc. also? Here's more info.:
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile47.html
http://www.elmersaquarium.com/10algaeeater.htm
http://www.aquariacentral.com/fishinfo/fresh/aeater.shtml
2007-11-03 18:19:10 · answer #3 · answered by Bonnie C 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What kind of algae eater did you get? Snails or Placostomas (sp?)
If it is one of those, sand won't hurt them. They are pretty hearty
2007-11-03 18:16:54 · answer #4 · answered by Bobbie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I dont think sand will harm your pleco. If anything, he may suck in some sand by mistake but then spit it out.
2007-11-03 18:45:41 · answer #5 · answered by Betta92 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋