Top 5 fish breeds that act as your aquarium’s janitor

Aquarium enthusiasts have profound love and admiration for aquatic life. Though fishes are
often seen as low maintenance, they also come with their unique challenges. For instance,
keeping the aquarium tank clean can be a difficult task. But no worries, some genius fish breeds
do this task on their own naturally. These Aquatic helpers feed on algae, leftover food and
waste, and thus majorly contribute to enhancing the quality of water and reducing manual labor.
Here are some popular fish breeds:
Siamese algae Eater is a popular choice for controlling algae growth in aquariums.
These are efficient and feed on all kinds of algae, especially black beard algae. They are
peaceful and compatible with most community fishes, and often favored over Chinese
Algae eaters which grow aggressive with their age. SAEs are schooling fish so they work
better in a group of three or more.
Otocinclus catfish, often referred to as “Otos” are small catfish famous for their
algae-eating talents. They act as the best treatment for brown algae, which is a common
problem in most tanks. Otos are social animals, it is advisable that they should be
maintained in little groups for their well-being and productivity.
They are small, armored Catfish, and at a very similar size to the size of the Otos they
eat a load of algae! Peaceful bottom-dwellers that are on the smaller side, they grow to a
size of 4-5 inches and will graze algae from glass, rocks or even decorations making
them suitable for most home tanks.
Corydoras Catfish, often called “Cory cats”, are great at cleaning the substrate because
of their habit of scavenging for leftover fish food. Although they don’t feed on algae, these
habits assist in keeping the tank clean and aids in controlling waste build up. Again,
they are also social butterflies, so they like being in large groups.
As their name suggests, twig fish are thin, elongated in appearance like twigs or
branches and thus, perfectly blend into their surroundings. They are the best
algae-eating fish for the aquarium because they feed on a large part of what they
find. They prefer having a heavily planted habitat for easy hiding and are pretty docile, so
they live well with other fish.

1. Which fish is best for planted aquariums?
   Twig Fish and Otocinclus Catfish are best choices for planted aquariums.
2. How many cleaner fish should I keep?
   Most cleaner fishes such as Otocinclus Catfish, thrive in groups of 4-6.
3. Do cleaner fish replace the need for tank cleaning?
   Cleaner fish does help reducing work, but regular water changes and cleaning is still required.
4. Which fish is best for small aquariums?
   For smaller aquarium tanks, Otocinclus catfish and small Corydoras species are a good choice.