Karen B. Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 Greetings! The title says it all. Is it possible/should I get a cleaning crew for my 10 gallons that will have 4-5 pea puffers? It will be planted, with sand as substrate. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JettsPapa Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 Hello, What do you want this cleaning crew to do? If it's algae removal, the best, but certainly not easiest, method is to balance the light, nutrients, and amount of live plants so algae isn't a problem. Now that I have that out of the way, a nerite snail might work. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen B. Posted February 13, 2022 Author Share Posted February 13, 2022 On 2/13/2022 at 2:43 AM, JettsPapa said: Hello, What do you want this cleaning crew to do? If it's algae removal, the best, but certainly not easiest, method is to balance the light, nutrients, and amount of live plants so algae isn't a problem. Now that I have that out of the way, a nerite snail might work. I would like to stay away from snail. Already have tons of nerita and hate their eggs! I was hoping for khuli loaches but I think that would overstock the tank… maybe the dwarf cory? But again, 10 gallons seems small… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JettsPapa Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 I wouldn't put any fish in a 10 gallon tank with pea puffers. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatyourpeas Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 If you can get large Amano shrimp, those could work. My pea puffers don't bother them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jennifer V Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 @Karen B. I agree with @JettsPapa. Peas are super messy and create a lot of ammonia. You'll be at capacity as far as bioload in the tank so better to add a lot of live plants and keep the light down. Peas are also called murder beans for a reason. In a tank that small, there isn't really enough room for them to have their territory and exist happily with other fish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odd Duck Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 I tried Otocinclus in a 20 gallon with 8 peas. Otos were unhappy even though I never actually saw the peas pick on them. Amanos did fine for me with peas but I wouldn’t do any other fish. If you put large enough ramshorns in the tank with them they won’t always kill them but they may pick at them so much they don’t make it. Same with bladder or pond snails. I have colonies of bladder, pond (I think there’s some still in there), and ramshorns snails in with my peas, along with MTS. If you have fine gravel or sand, Malaysian trumpet snails (MTS) can hide during the day when the peas are up and about, then will come out at night and clean for you. They won’t over take things as long as you aren’t over feeding too much. They can hide in coarser gravel, it’s just a bit harder for them Using a feeding dish for the peas helps to limit mess and make it easier to clean up uneaten leftovers. Do large (50-60%) frequent (at least weekly) water changes and keep the lights on a timer with a fairly short photoperiod to help limit algae. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flumpweesel Posted February 14, 2022 Share Posted February 14, 2022 I had a swan mussel in with mine for awhile. Great for additional filtration and strangely fascinating to watch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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