Many fish hobbyists have been told that they should keep Algae Eaters to eat the algae that will grow in their fish tank. I keep it simple in my fish tanks by having practically no algae.

How do I keep the algae from growing? By knowing that algae is a plant that needs plant food, or it won't grow. Plant food is also also called plant nutrients.

There are practically no plant nutrients in fresh tap water. I do two partial water changes by removing about 20% of the water from each of my aquariums twice a week and replacing that water with fresh tap water.

Changing water like this keeps the amount of plant nutrients in my aquarium water very low, so the algae can't grow.

I also leave the light off most of the time. Most fish don't like bright lights, and my fish get enough light from the lights in the room or from the sunlight coming in the windows. Click here for more information about getting rid of algae in your aquarium.

If you like algae eating fish and want to keep them, then the number you can keep depends on the particular species. For example, you could easily keep one Bushy Nose Pleco., like the one shown below, in your 30-gallon aquarium. Or you could keep a group of five Siamese Algae Eaters. Click here for more information about Siamese algae Eaters.

But many new fish hobbyists are told that keeping an aquarium can be done almost without any effort, if they get the right combination of accessories and some special fish that will help clean the fish tank. But this is just wishful thinking and not true.

You must do regular maintenance on your aquarium. Click here to read about an aquarium maintenance schedule.

A water temperature between 75 and 80 degrees F. is fine. A few worms will be good for your Oscar, but not too many. Your Oscar should mainly eat pellet food for Cichlids which is available in most stores that sell pet fish. Click here for more information about Oscars, and here for more information about feeding fish.

We don’t foresee any problems shipping to the East Coast, because we have shipped thousands of Betta Fish to the East Coast without problems. Click here for more information about how we ship fish.

We have not been able to locate a small reliable Fish Bowl Heater, which would be safe in a plastic bowl. Keeping a Betta warm in a cold house is an unsolved problem. A night light might add some heat to your fish bowl, but Bettas do not need much light.

We strongly recommend you purchase a good water conditioner, if you plan to use tap water, which probably contains chloramines that will not be removed in a reasonable amount of time by letting the water sit out. Click here for more information about Water Conditioner and preparing water for fish bowls.

The only other name they also go by is Chinese Spotted Perch. They are not aggressive like Cichlids, but they will eat anything that will fit in their mouths. They grow to be 20" long and then even bigger!

Thank you for your complimentary comments. We're glad to read that this web site is helping you.

We do not recommend putting any liquid chemicals in your aquarium to kill the algae. Click here for the complete details about getting rid of the algae that's growing in your aquarium.

Now about Plecostomus Catfish, which are somewhat nocturnal, and when you first put a Plecostomus in your aquarium, it will often hang on the glass or the filter in the darkest area in the back of your aquarium.

Usually after a couple of weeks a Pleco. becomes more comfortable and will come out from hiding and begin to work all day eating the algae off rocks and other ornaments. Click here to see three short videos of a Plecostomus working hard.

Some people find that they need to feed special food called Algae Wafers, which are sold in many stores that sell pet fish, to their Plecostomus and other catfish . But you must be careful and be sure that the Algae Wafers are eaten and do not pollute your aquarium.
 
We hope you have a happy holiday season, Sheila.