Algae removal- snail or shrimp?

[BAT]

Hi Nerms,

I have been getting algae buildup in plant leaves. I have a mystery snail in 20G long. Should I get a shrimp or nerite snail or both to help with cleaning?

[nabokovfan87]

I think shrimp and otos handle the leaves well enough, not perfectly.
I think snails and plecos do really well on the glass and other hard flat surfaces.

Depending what you have in the tank is going to sort of determine which ones you end up with as well as tank size.

To your question.... I'd lean towards both if that works for you.

[411fishkeeping]

Hey BAT,

I have this problem in my 29 gallon, and while shrimp and snails are great, I have had great success by reducing the amount of light I give the tank. I have the light on a regular analog timer, and I have it set to give light 4 hours in the morning and 4 hours in the evening, with a break in the afternoon. I have had this going for a few weeks now and the algae has significantly decreased. In combination with cherry shrimp or olive nerite snails, the algae should quickly dissipate. Good luck!

411fishkeeping

[anitstuk]

Obviously snails are better at cleaning algae compared to shrimp but I like shrimp more. They are more active and I think that they are nicer to look at than snails. I have both in a 2.5 gallon and they are managing the algae well. If you want to get rid of the algae, try Nerite Snails or Amano Shrimp. They are more effective at keeping the annoying algae away. 

[PotatoFish]

Q: Nerite snail, otocinclus, or amano?
A: Yes 😄

To echo what was said above, the critters are great and help, but more focus could be put towards the causes of the algae. You could limit the light by doing things like cutting down how long you leave the light on or by painting the back (and maybe the sides also) black (or using black background).

You could also try my favorite algae solution...build an army of hungry plants to starve out the algae. Floating plants are excellent at pulling stuff from the water and just taking in all the nutrients from the air. And maybe consider tossing in fast-growing plants like water sprite.

[redfish]

I'm in the get both camp.  I have the nerite snail covered.  I plan to get some shrimp once my tank is ready to handle them.

[Melkor]

Cherry shrimp are not great at cleaning algae. Amano shrimp are definitely the better choice to supplement some snails and or otocinclus.

[Patrick_G]

I really like Amano shrimp, Otocinclus and Nerite snails. All three are good algae cleaners but they’re also great creatures in their own right and add a lot of personality to a tank. They also have a small bioload so it's easy to add a few of each to just about any tank.

[Brandon p]

Shrimp and more snails. My mystery snails cruise all over the sides plants. Surf under the biofilm. 

[_Eric_]

Mystery snails are fun and can help cleanup uneaten food.  However, they will not help very much in the algae department- especially on plants. If the algae is on the surface of the leaves and is relatively flat, some otocinclus will take care of it for you.  If it is like long threads and it is green, amano shrimp can help keep it under control but will still need some manual removal from time to time before it is gone.  If it is gray or black, don’t look to an algae eater to solve it.