My 55 gal algae farm

[irene]

Was growing brown diatom + hair algae like you wouldn't believe.  I moved one puffer to his own 33g and rehomed the other to agnate so I could put some oto cats/snails in there.  In the space of a week, they have cleared the algae completely! 

It appears as though my other nice algae free tanks have nothing to do with any ability I have to grow nice plants or keep good water parameters...it seems I'm completely dependent on my algae eating clean-up crew. 

I'm humbled.

Irene

[Brine]

I have to tear down my puffer tank tomorrow because of all the algae. I wish I could put a clean up crew in there but the puffers eat anything that gets near them... goldfish, guppies, crayfish, convict fry, ghost shrimp...they've lunched on all of them.
That was of course, the plan. Those were feeders but I don't think anything would survive, even something too big to eat would probably get nipped to death.
I think I'll just have to take them out, clean the tank and return them to the tank.

[irene]

Yep, same problem.  Which is why they've been evicted from the 55.  My new plan is to keep the one with only floating hornwort for plant cover and when it gets too gross, I'll take it out and throw it in with my cherry shrimp colony, then put it back once it's been cleaned.  They seem to be able to pick clean any algae covered plants I put in there in a day or two.  Depending on how much other foods I'm feeding them..

Irene

[jackura]

refer to LINK http://ovas.ca/index.php?topic=23949.msg164168#msg164168