Ragnarok12 Posted January 13, 2022 Share Posted January 13, 2022 Hi everyone. I'm setting up a 29 gallon planted tanks with some wood and rocks as hardscape, and I'm trying to plan out my algae clean up crew. I'm going between a school of 6-8 otos or a super red bristlenose for algae control. I have tons of experience with otos, but have never kept a bristlenose. I'm planning for the tank to house 4 croaking gouramis (not sparkling gouramis) and a school of 8-9 golden topminnows (fundulus chrysotis) I caught in Florida, but I might throw a school of larger tetras in there as well. TBD. Does anyone have thoughts on the oto vs BN question? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levi_Aquatics Posted January 13, 2022 Share Posted January 13, 2022 I love Bristlenose but if you are planning on having Amazon swords they will munch on them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colu Posted January 13, 2022 Share Posted January 13, 2022 bristlenose are great I would definitely go with them 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Intuos Posted January 13, 2022 Share Posted January 13, 2022 I love both as cleanup crew. Although I do tend to go with ottos as they don't get as big especially in smaller tanks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B1gJ4k3 Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 For actual cleanup abilities, I've been way more impressed with my bristlenose than I have been with my otos. I put four of them in a new 125 that had some diatoms after I first set it up and within a few days, it was clean. Meanwhile, the 20 that has my otos in it is the dirtiest tank I own. (Insert standard disclaimer about not relying only on fish to clean the tank for you. I stay on top of my water changes, keep my light on a timer, closely monitor my parameters, etc. For as fat as the otos are, I would hope algae wouldn't be such an issue in this tank) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guppysnail Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 I’m a bristlenose girl all the way. I have a longfin lemon blue eye in my 29. Expect lots of water changes with a decent stock of other fish plus a BN. They are very high waste producers and need supplemental feeding. If you are looking for less maintenance for a 29 go oto. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B1gJ4k3 Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 On 1/13/2022 at 3:31 PM, Levi_Aquatics said: I love Bristlenose but if you are planning on having Amazon swords they will munch on them. I have plenty of Amazon swords and have never had a problem with my albinos. Could have just gotten lucky, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Levi_Aquatics Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 @B1gJ4k3 if you feed them enough they usually won’t pick on the plants too much. It also depends pleco to pleco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B1gJ4k3 Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 Judging by how much they go to town on their zucchini, they're pretty well-fed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenman Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 For just algae control, I'd be more inclined to go with ramshorn snails. I love bristlenose plecos as fish, but in terms of eating algae, mine aren't all the interested. I had ongoing algae issues until I added the ramshorn snails. The snails went in, and I haven't had to scrape any algae since. Mind you, the snails do tend to overpopulate the tank, but I have no algae issues with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick_G Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 Otocinclus have such a small bioload I bet you could have both. 😀 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefty o Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 On 1/13/2022 at 6:40 PM, B1gJ4k3 said: I have plenty of Amazon swords and have never had a problem with my albinos. Could have just gotten lucky, I guess. the eat them if they arent getting enough other food. if they get enough food, they tend to not eat plants. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beardedbillygoat1975 Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 A group of otos that big will do an excellent job in any tank - they are better at diatoms and green dust algae IMHO and won't touch hair or black beard. BNs are great for a tank with mostly moss, crypts, vals, anubias, java fern and buce - they won't eat these. They will eat some stems, crown plants like amazon swords. They like green algaes and will eat diatoms. They will not touch hair or black beard. They both require supplementation with regularly doses of fresh blanched or steamed vegetables like cucumber, zucchini, squash, beans like snap peas or green beans and the commercial wafers. These will bring out their color, bristles in the BNs and make them frisky - a group of otos that size you will get breeding - on leaves typically. The BNs breed in caves - boys have bristles and a slender physique and girls are wider and plumper. In the end, i think it is a schooling catfish vs a solitary one. In a 29 g you could have a small colony of BNs maybe 1 male 2 females or just a singleton. They only hang out to breed not to socialize. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HH Morant Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 I like bristlenose plecos. The albinos or reds look good. There are now white bristlenose for sale (the "albinos" are actually yellow) but I don't have any white ones. I have some otos, but it is really hard to enjoy fish that I never see. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbit Posted January 14, 2022 Share Posted January 14, 2022 I have both otos and bristlenose plecos in my 55 gallon. I will say--bristlenose plecos get pretty sizable. I wouldn't add a third in my 55 gallon, so I think in a 29 you should stick with one. Looking at your stocking list, if you go bristlenose, I'd recommend trying to get a regular-colored one (brown). They get big enough that a red one will really stand out in the tank, and that will take the visual focus away from your other fish. But if you don't mind a big orange loaf wiggling around, then go for it! 😄 The bristlenose will keep your wood clean of the brown/green flat algae that all driftwood seems to get. If you want the wood to stay the color it is outside the water, go with the bristlenose. Though if the wood is really thin, the bristlenose may have a hard time latching onto it as an adult. Otos are great for keeping small delicate leaves clean. And as others have said, they tend to go for different kinds of algae than the bristlenose. There are great upsides to both! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok12 Posted January 14, 2022 Author Share Posted January 14, 2022 Thanks for all of the feedback everyone, I've learned so much from this thread. I'm going to give it some more time before I make a decision, but I will likely go with the school of otos and give it some time for all of my plants to get really established before I think about adding the BN. They seem like super cool and rewarding fish based on everyone's comments, but I'm nervous about adding something could potentially damage m plants before they get well established. I'm going to lean heavily on stemmed plants for this setup as well as a sword and a dwarf lily, so it sounds like a BN could be a risk until things really get going. And then who knows, maybe I'll just throw a BN in there too 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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