The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

In this video I talk about what are the best choices for your clean up crew in your planted Aquarium. It is very important to have a clean up crew in your planted aquarium or Aquascape because they help to break down organic matter and they also help to eat algae. Adu aquascaping is here to help you decide which members of the clean up crew are best suited for your Aquascape. Thanks for watching! Make sure to subscribe so you can function from day to day. Click the link below. https://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=Daveguitarfish Check out my “Secrets To Amazing Planted Aquariums” Playlist. Click the link below. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLALNVCNiNFNQGqIRYCSio09hWeUonPCfv To see more aquarium aquascaping videos check out my channel! Click the link below. http://www.youtube.com/user/Daveguitarfish The Clean Up Crew: Amano Shrimp- and other shrimp will also work. MTS- Malaysian Trumpet Snail Oto Catfish Nerite/ Zebra snail Red Ramshorn snail SAE- Siamese Algae Eater Hillstream Loach(es) Royalty Free Music by http://audiomicro.com/royalty-free-music Sound Effects by http://audiomicro.com/sound-effects Aquascaping freshwater aquariums can be made easier with a clean up crew! I usually use Amano Shrimp and Ottos. I would say those are the best choices for most aquascapes! Thanks for watching.

The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium sentiment_very_dissatisfied 181

Pets & Animals 10 years ago 395,728 views

In this video I talk about what are the best choices for your clean up crew in your planted Aquarium. It is very important to have a clean up crew in your planted aquarium or Aquascape because they help to break down organic matter and they also help to eat algae. Adu aquascaping is here to help you decide which members of the clean up crew are best suited for your Aquascape. Thanks for watching! Make sure to subscribe so you can function from day to day. Click the link below. https://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=Daveguitarfish Check out my “Secrets To Amazing Planted Aquariums” Playlist. Click the link below. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLALNVCNiNFNQGqIRYCSio09hWeUonPCfv To see more aquarium aquascaping videos check out my channel! Click the link below. http://www.youtube.com/user/Daveguitarfish The Clean Up Crew: Amano Shrimp- and other shrimp will also work. MTS- Malaysian Trumpet Snail Oto Catfish Nerite/ Zebra snail Red Ramshorn snail SAE- Siamese Algae Eater Hillstream Loach(es) Royalty Free Music by http://audiomicro.com/royalty-free-music Sound Effects by http://audiomicro.com/sound-effects Aquascaping freshwater aquariums can be made easier with a clean up crew! I usually use Amano Shrimp and Ottos. I would say those are the best choices for most aquascapes! Thanks for watching.

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Most popular comments
for The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
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JRPy Fish-n-Game
JRPy Fish-n-Game - 7 years ago
Great viid on the over looked clean-up crew. A must have for every tank. Thanks for sharing.
muffemod
muffemod - 7 years ago
Trumpet snails are the best!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
I like them to some degree. They can get out of hand, but really do help to reduce detritus. Thanks for watching.
agsn
agsn - 7 years ago
snails bad idea. it will ruin the glass with slim
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
agsn yeah they can get out of hand from time to time. Great for eating detritus. I usually just get Amano shrimp nowadays
Theresamcintyre
Theresamcintyre - 7 years ago
I have a question. I am planning my 38 gallon plantded tank with a peacock eel. I have no clue what I should be doing for an alge eating guy ...
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Theresamcintyre possibly a bristle nose pleco. More hardy and they do a great job.
Our Sat
Our Sat - 7 years ago
Like n sub
Kindly sub me back
Bibin augustin
Bibin augustin - 7 years ago
I can't seem to get amano shrimp
I could only get cherry shrimp
I also got trumpet snail
I also found a fish with ni septic name
It is kind of a Otto it sucks on my glass


I also found that actually a low tech tank with minimum nutrients and low light
Actually have less alge
Than a high tech
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Bibin augustin yeah low light will make it easier. Cherry shrimp won't eat as much algae as Amanos, but better than nothing. Otto cats work for certain types of algae. Keep up on your weekly maintenance as well. And try and eventually get Amano shrimp
barefoot4life 1985
barefoot4life 1985 - 7 years ago
I don't have a planted tank. I have a ten gal with three mollies and three zebra snails. Do i need any more cleaners than that? Of course other than myself with regular tank cleaning
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
barefoot4life 1985 if you don't have plants you could get a bristle nose pleco. They work really well
Andrew Kim
Andrew Kim - 7 years ago
So it seems to me from your video that getting a small variety of these guys would help. I do want some shrimp but those malaysian snails seem like a good set up too.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Andrew Kim Amano shrimp work really well. Snails can get out of hand at times.

10. comment for The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

Jason Wolfe
Jason Wolfe - 7 years ago
DON'T ADD RAMSHORN SNAILS! BAD ADVICE! I hate you for this information. As much good as they do, they make up in bad. Complete fucking pest as far as I'm concerned. In the right situation they could be good. But not for me, Fucking pain in the arsehole pest cunt snail. They'll breed and get everywhere. In your filters, pumps everywhere. Then they shit everywhere. If you want a tank full of snail shit, then get these! They're awesome for shit! But they do clean up algae good. And have benefits. Just have many problems too. And they eat all the food before shrimps can eat it
Dylan _17144
Dylan _17144 - 7 years ago
I want to get shrimp and then get a betta do I have to take the shrimp out when I get the betta? And then put them all together
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Dylan _17144 no, but they may eat cherry shrimp. You can get Amano shrimp. They are more hardy.
Dillon Johnson
Dillon Johnson - 7 years ago
you should try getting some panda garra"s for your tank they are amazing. take my word on it. very friendly too.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Hey thanks for the recommendation man. That would be nice. This tank hasn't been set up for quite some time though
Amanda Welch
Amanda Welch - 7 years ago
I have Congo tetras, and aside from a bn pleco, i don't have much for a clean up crew. The only other bottom dweller is a rainbow shark, and snails have never lasted very long for me. I would love to try shrimps but like with more clean up crew members suggested, the Congo will shread them. Any suggestions for something a bit tougher?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Amano shrimp are pretty hardy. I think people do keep them together, but if not Oto cats will work and the Bristle nose that you have is also one of the best.
TheArtCollective102
TheArtCollective102 - 7 years ago
All the nerite snails I had didn't get that big. But my apple snail is huge.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Be careful with each one. I love snails, but they can get out of hand. I remember growing up always collecting apples snails and putting them in my aquarium and they would explode!! Thanks for watching.
rob
rob - 7 years ago
What about ghost shrimp? Just started an aquarium and they are .39 cents
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
rob no they won't work for cleaning up algae. They also don't get as large and are not as hardy. More of a feeder shrimp. Amano are a lot larger and more intelligent
Clorox bleach squad
Clorox bleach squad - 7 years ago
I love the way he hold the microphone
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Potato Munchies yeah that's when I had style. Nice avatar! Haha
Finn Clk
Finn Clk - 7 years ago
I had 2 wood shrimp in my 120 litre aquarium and I was redoing the aquascape and moving it to a place where there was no sunlight. I put my tank on the floor to adjust the stand and put it back on and they were gone, nowhere to hide. After a week I imagine they got out and my dogs ate them.....
John Pine
John Pine - 7 years ago
I have a 30 gal planted tank and I have a colony of snails and they are awsome
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
John Pine they can really help out with decomposing organics even further, but sometimes they can get out of hand
Les4251
Les4251 - 7 years ago
You are so boring

20. comment for The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

Yannik Handle
Yannik Handle - 7 years ago
Actually, when an amano leaves the aquarium this means something does not fit their needs, you should check if everything is alright
and speaking of numbers: you should have at least 5-6, better 10+ to make them feel comfortable, which the MOST important part of keeping an animal at home
Yannik Handle
Yannik Handle - 7 years ago
it can be everything, it happened to me when the temperature wasn't right
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Creamshaker it may have been the liquid carbon. That always seemed to bother them
Jim Lahey
Jim Lahey - 7 years ago
I keep like 5 or 6 fat amanos in my 29gal, amazing little dudes, highly recommend
Cichlids 5 Aquatics
Cichlids 5 Aquatics - 7 years ago
Are Amano shrimp ok with angel cichlids and dwarf cichlids
Pyro Maniac
Pyro Maniac - 7 years ago
this video put me to sleep
Blue Atoms
Blue Atoms - 7 years ago
ive had two ghost shrimp commit suicide in the same tank. its a 1 gal. the first shrimp jumped out and the second jumped but i had a cover on the tank so it got too stressed and died. what should i replace the shrimp with its a betta tank. female not very agressive betta
Fish Guy
Fish Guy - 7 years ago
I feel like the best clean up crew is the owners... the fish always produce waste after eating.. Id say add 2 to 3 baby snails amd some ghost shrimp.. ghost shrimp eat poop and some snails eat algae etc
ngc charle
ngc charle - 7 years ago
do i have to change water every 2 weeks if i put those fish in my tank ? and do i need filter if those fish are in my tank ? and if i do not need to change water dose the water will be crystal for years ? and if i need to change water and those fishes are in my tank for how many days i must change the water ? please can you help me
Forever and ever I swear!
Forever and ever I swear! - 7 years ago
I just put in four shrimps n on the same day i dont see them..
Same Trens
Same Trens - 7 years ago
instead of your logo being keep your sleeves wet you should make it "keep yourselves dripping for content"
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
True, I am going to do a video interviewing my friend about his experience so far with his aquascape, so it will be from a beginner's point of view. I am just taking a break from aquariums for a bit.
Nor Zakyah_
Nor Zakyah_ - 7 years ago
How much did he said you know in this vid i Wonder...

30. comment for The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

Bibin augustin
Bibin augustin - 7 years ago
I also have that snail
first I thought it was going to distory the plant
then hearing this
now I see the snail as a helper
Denise Philbeck
Denise Philbeck - 7 years ago
can amano shrimp be in brackish tank
ManicMindTrick
ManicMindTrick - 7 years ago
From my own experience Amano shrimp can totally massacre soft leafed stem plants such as limnophila hippuridoides and lobelia cardinalis but leave other species alone for unknown reasons.
NazanGames
NazanGames - 7 years ago
I have 2 snails and 3 plecos but they don't eat the fish poop. Is it fine if I mix Amano shrimp with these two species?
E. Anderson
E. Anderson - 7 years ago
I think I read somewhere that it's supposed to be one shrimp per each gallon, but boy can that get pricey fast! Best to just get as many as you can afford!
Scott Believer
Scott Believer - 7 years ago
What about SAE ?
Scott Believer
Scott Believer - 7 years ago
How many snails to put in a 29 gallon tank ?
Veggie Betty
Veggie Betty - 7 years ago
I love amanos but my goldfish ends up hoovering them. My tank isn't as planted as yours though. Are there any algae eaters safe to house with my goldfish?
JPs VlogUK
JPs VlogUK - 7 years ago
Great video
Xaverius 1
Xaverius 1 - 7 years ago
Such a helpful video!
نریمان خراسانی
نریمان خراسانی - 7 years ago
in chiniya inja chekar mikonan :D
The Rickiest Rick
The Rickiest Rick - 7 years ago
playco
JarretBrienna Dietzler
JarretBrienna Dietzler - 7 years ago
Ditch the mic
Tech Nova
Tech Nova - 7 years ago
Good video mate (Y)
Melvin McCoy
Melvin McCoy - 7 years ago
what is that called behind u in the tank that is pushing the water around on the top left side.
BirdMan29
BirdMan29 - 7 years ago
What would be the best fish/shrimp to eat the dieing parts of the plants in a 10 gallon? Without destroying the living parts of the plants though?
Scott Believer
Scott Believer - 7 years ago
What if you do not take water out ? I want a tank that I can keep the water in and filter. Beautiful tank .
Ricky Anselmo
Ricky Anselmo - 7 years ago
get a mic stand please
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
hahaha, I just got rid of that old thing altogether!
Carl Shayne Castillo
Carl Shayne Castillo - 7 years ago
Is regular Brown Ramshorn Snail same as the red? will they eat new leaves?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
I don't ever see mine eating new leaves to be honest. But yes they are essentially exactly the same thing from what I can tell. Just that the Reds get a lot bigger .
David Stephen
David Stephen - 7 years ago
Can I put Amano shrimp/cherry shrimp is a 37 gallon with danios, and algae eaters?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
yeah that will be fine. They usually go well with those types of fish.

50. comment for The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

Avi's Fishtanks
Avi's Fishtanks - 7 years ago
Going to be adding these to my 10 gallon planted tank
Michael Piccirillo
Michael Piccirillo - 7 years ago
How do you remove Cyanobacteria off plant leaves? There's small green type of spots on leaves..

I tried brushing it off & a quick hydrogen peroxide dip but many plants still it..
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
you can use antibiotics or just keep manually removing it with your hands. Erythromycin.
david w
david w - 7 years ago
i had a siamese algae eater once, it got territorial and attacked my newt alot until i took it out of the tank
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Yeah I don't really like them these days. I just go for Ottos and Amano shrimp.
Fish Almanac ,
Fish Almanac , - 7 years ago
just asking can i get a shout out ? im totally fine if you do not want to do shoutouts but i'm just asking my channel has been up for almost 2 years and my channel has not been growing properly.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
It may have something to do with your channel name. Have you tried going into customizing your URL and changing the name? Or I think you can change your Google+ name within the Google+ settings and it will update your YouTube name. I would look into that first.
Fish Almanac ,
Fish Almanac , - 7 years ago
lol ya i need a clean up crew my aquarium my aquarium is almost always full with fish debri there are many ghost shrimp in a river near where i live but ghost shrimp do not clean that well so i think i'm gonna get sum snails and a couple of shrimp.
Ahmon Watkins
Ahmon Watkins - 7 years ago
Hey I'm trying to get into having an aquarium and was wondering if I could ask you some questions
Ahmon Watkins
Ahmon Watkins - 7 years ago
ADU Aquascaping ahmon.watkins@gmail.com could you possibly email me so as to have more efficient communication and the ability to send pictures of my tank.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
what is up?
William Butler
William Butler - 7 years ago
Great video! I learned alot! I'm new to the aquascaping world, I'm looking to do my first aquascape in the coming months, just trying to learn as much as I can first! I'll definitely be checking out the channel! Thanks!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Hey thanks for watching man. Yeah do all the research and watching as you can. It is a very rewarding hobby and can be very challenging as well. Welcome to the hobby!!!
HeyYouSlavesGoHangYourOwner
HeyYouSlavesGoHangYourOwner - 7 years ago
Horned nerites only get dime sized.
HeyYouSlavesGoHangYourOwner
HeyYouSlavesGoHangYourOwner - 7 years ago
substrate that becomes too anaerobic also inhibits plant growth so you definitely want mts.
fred schulp
fred schulp - 7 years ago
what clean up crew would you use with clown loaches
fred schulp
fred schulp - 7 years ago
Mine are pretty big now, they ate most of my neons so i don't think ill trust them with shrimp but thanks dude ill have a look at some Oto cats
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Oto Cats may work with them. Once they get larger they could possibly eat Amano shrimp. But Amano shrimp are pretty hardy and not a lot of things seem to bother them other than probably Cichlids.
Twigga Finga24
Twigga Finga24 - 7 years ago
I hope he's leaning on something in the beginning of this is a Ricky bobby moment
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
hahaha, now I see what you mean. Yeah I had quite a few moments in the past, but luckily I retired the mic!
Dakota Woolls
Dakota Woolls - 7 years ago
I would be careful with the red Rams horn snails because either them or a look a like snail breed extremely well in tanks not nearly as bad as the small parasite snails but close
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Dakota Woolls true, snails can be a trade off. Good at decomposing detritus, but then go nuts if you have a lot. I started cleaning more detritus in my tank and filter and noticed my snail population go down. It could be a way to combat their prolific nature. Thanks for watching
Rajiv Chemburkar
Rajiv Chemburkar - 7 years ago
You really need to ditch the mike. Makes you look too important
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Rajiv Chemburkar haha, I got rid of it a long time ago! Too newscast like.
Werner Schmidt
Werner Schmidt - 7 years ago
very helpful thanks!!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Thank you! I am glad this video could help you out, and thanks for watching!!!
Matt Debnam
Matt Debnam - 7 years ago
What shrimps would u recommend with discus ??
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Matt Debnam most shrimp will work. They aren't really that aggressive. Amano shrimp are really the best for eating algae because of their vigorous nature and size.
Matthew Maneri
Matthew Maneri - 7 years ago
I have a zebra nerite in my 15 and a leopard nerite in my 10, and neither are very big. .. but what's not big to me may be big to you. The zebra hasn't gotten anywhere near the mystery snail I had. It's smaller than a quarter, and I've had it for about 3 years now. Love that thing.
I get nervous with the malaysian trumpet snails because of fear of the tank getting overrun with them! At least with the nerite I know I'll never have an outbreak.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
It is true that MTS will take over if they aren't held back manually by removing them first. They work great for oxygenating the substrate and eating detritus, but aren't always necessary or loved by many. It is just a personal choice, but for most setups I would stay away from MTS because, like you mentioned, they can and will take over. The Zebra Nerite seems like a pretty good fit from what people say.
Katherine Garcia
Katherine Garcia - 7 years ago
are ghost shrimp as helpful as the amano shrimp?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
No they aren't as good. Amano shrimp are really good at eating algae.
Mitchell Raman
Mitchell Raman - 7 years ago
20
AccountTake3
AccountTake3 - 7 years ago
How about Platy's for eating algue?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
AccountTake3 yes they will work for some thread algae
Pa. Fish Preacher
Pa. Fish Preacher - 7 years ago
Hey Dave, what kind of fish can you keep with those shrimp?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
any kind of fish really.
Nikolye fothergill
Nikolye fothergill - 7 years ago
i beg to differ on the Amano shirmp I am currently watching one eat my plants grrrrrrrr
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
well your experience is highly unusual and not the norm. Sorry to hear that. I have never seen them eat a plant before.
William Kelso
William Kelso - 7 years ago
I had puzzling loss of fish in spite of fairly good chemicals, nutrients and probiotics. A friend with a gorgeous 55, never losing fish whispered. "Stop changing the water at all unless something strange." I stopped any water changes except adding reverse osmosis as needed. Guess what. No fish loss or die off. And better plants and less filter changes. I wonder if the industry scams us actually knowing the frequent change WILL kill fish and keep us buying filters, chemicals, tests, blah blah? Big pharma does it for profit.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
William Kelso I think just a coincidence because many hobbyists have success with doing many water changes. More plausible is the fact that not much research has been done on the many fish and invertebrate diseases that exist. It is relative to how you run your tank, but water changes and cleaning the filter will increase O2 and decrease detritus. Organic waste will increase the BOD biochemical oxygen demand and use up more O2. You want low BOD, watch my water quality video. Also, another big aspect no one talks about that is essential for fish invertebrate and plant health and metabolism is proper temperature. Temperature is often overlooked and the key factor before even light or nutrients.
William Kelso
William Kelso - 7 years ago
I love everything about the Siamese Algae Eater, except. Every one that got really large started to ram other fish. I have a 10 and 15 column. So I pass them on to a friend with two 55 gallons and reload with a juvenile.
Nelson axb
Nelson axb - 7 years ago
anything that eats the fungus that grows on driftwood?
Mahmut Mollaahmed
Mahmut Mollaahmed - 7 years ago
Good tips!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Thanks!
Kathleen Monsegue
Kathleen Monsegue - 7 years ago
and is it also low maintenance?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Yes, Monte Carlo is low maintenance. The one in the video is dwarf sagittaria, which is also very low maintenance. Brazilian micro sword is also very easy to grow. For a real carpet go with Monte Carlo, for a grass foreground go with the other two mentioned.
Kathleen Monsegue
Kathleen Monsegue - 7 years ago
and what's the name of that carpeting plant that you have in your planted tank?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
A really good one to use is Monte Carlo. That is very easy to carpet.
Kathleen Monsegue
Kathleen Monsegue - 7 years ago
would cherry shrimp do just as good a job as the Amano shrimp?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
no they won't. Amano's are in a class of their own.
Kathleen Monsegue
Kathleen Monsegue - 7 years ago
what if I have a 10 gallon tank...how many Amano shrimp would I need?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
5-10 will work, and you can use anubias, java fern, amazon sword, crypt plants, sagittaria plants for low maintenance.
Nikki B.
Nikki B. - 7 years ago
I'm planning on getting amano shrimp and I have 2 otocinclus... I want some type of cat fish or something that will really sift through my sand... but I only have a 10 gallon (well a 37 too but it is already established)... what do you recommend?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
maybe some type of loach would do better at sifting through the sand, or Cory cats, but with Corys you have to have several in a group to make them happy.
Erika Alexandra Vincent
Erika Alexandra Vincent - 7 years ago
Are Amano Shrimp good for a 30 gallon tank with 6 oto cats, 12 neon tetra, 3 male guppies, and 2 lyretails? or would you recommend other shrimp? I definitely want some sort of shrimp, preferably algae eating.
Erika Alexandra Vincent
Erika Alexandra Vincent - 7 years ago
Thanks. I will definitely add them in.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
yes they will be fine. They are very hardy.
Alexis Aranda
Alexis Aranda - 7 years ago
how many amano shrimp should I add to a 40 gallon
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Really as many as you can afford! haha, depends on bioload really. 20 would be enough.
Monica R
Monica R - 7 years ago
I bought a ghost shrimp my LFS and in my quarantine set up he molted and died the next day..
Monica R
Monica R - 7 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping there's chain stores that I've been avoiding haha, I'll probably end up driving farther out like you said.
I don't think the staff is uneducated, they have helped me out in the past but at the end of the day they're just trying to sell
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Monica R yeah sounds like you definitely need a better supplier. Not a very good place it sounds like. I wish people would just keep up on husbandry and do their job. The staff may be somewhat uneducated. I feel ya. My old LFS had poor water quality. I used to drive anywhere between 30-60 minutes for fish in the past. Maybe there is another place in the area
Monica R
Monica R - 7 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping my LFS only gives refunds for fish that died 24 hours within you taking them home. Another time they gave me a refund weeks later when I didn't ask for it.
I had bought some neons one died the next day but they were closed and another died the day after but I was at school all day and couldn't visit the store. I didn't bother asking them about the quality of the neons until later seeing even their current stock looked heavily bloated, very pale, and sick. They told me it's because they were newly added but I think the just said that to save face. I think they just gave me a refund to keep my business then.
But even week ago I went back to look at new neons and they all still look sick.. not sure where to buy from at the moment since shipping online is pretty expensive
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Monica R dang, that sucks. Did they give you a refund? maybe it had a disease?
JetBlast Joe
JetBlast Joe - 7 years ago
I have a few organisms in my freshwater tank that I am having trouble identifying. They are white, spherical in shape, somewhat wispy. They have a great number of wispy bits that radiate out from a single point. When touched they shrivel, then slowly puff back out again when left alone. What are these?
AniqueTheRobot
AniqueTheRobot - 7 years ago
Good luck :)
JetBlast Joe
JetBlast Joe - 7 years ago
I couldn't find my microscope to examine the thing before it went away. Maybe another one will form so that I can take a look and be sure.
AniqueTheRobot
AniqueTheRobot - 7 years ago
JetBlast Joe hydras?
Blenderhead02
Blenderhead02 - 7 years ago
what is the best clean up crew for a 5 gallon planted tank
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Convantol ? they don't even get very large. Amano shrimp are still a good option.
Convantol
Convantol - 7 years ago
don't put fish in a 5 gallon 'tank' please...? It's not big enough for even half an oto cat
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Amano shrimp and Oto Cats
Bryon Mcgowan
Bryon Mcgowan - 7 years ago
great video on clean up crew can amano shrimp be kept in cooler tanks down to about 69 degrees
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
Thanks for the input! Good to know
Cartman0705
Cartman0705 - 7 years ago
how many shrimp should I have in a 30 gallon
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
just depends on how many you can afford. haha. 10-20 is good, if you are getting Amano shrimp, and depends on how much algae is produced etc...
Rory
Rory - 7 years ago
Invertebrates 1p an harf gallon
ayrxson
ayrxson - 7 years ago
I love MTS! They do a great job mixing up the substrate and they're so cute, too! I'd love to get some oto's but my tank isn't mature enough yet and no one sells amano's where I live (that I know of anyways.)

Great video btw! I found it informative. :) Thanks!
Chris Morphy
Chris Morphy - 7 years ago
can i put gourami with cherry shrimp im a beginner and looking to add shrimp to my tank if possiple if i cant put cherry shrimp what would be the best choice
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
They may eat the tiny shrimp. The best bet would be to use Amano shrimp with Gourami. I know some Gourami will eat shrimp.
sagrath1982
sagrath1982 - 7 years ago
what about clams?
sagrath1982
sagrath1982 - 7 years ago
I haven't tried clams heard they're good, they can filter lots of gallons of water, I'm going to try them, since snails can become a plague , thanks.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 7 years ago
yeah there are some fresh water ones that can filter the water column, but I don't know if they end up taking over or what. Most people hate the snails, so maybe the clams will work in certain setups.
Sam Sam
Sam Sam - 8 years ago
Just get shrimp ppl... they are the best and have a low bioload. Snails poop too much as do fish.
Adrian Ho
Adrian Ho - 7 years ago
Kelly Moore mine is a semi aquatic. Of about less than 15 gallon. My water dragon poops in there. I have about 20 feeder guppies in there with 7 amono shrimp n 3 ghost shrimp. I have some live plants in there as well
Kelly Moore
Kelly Moore - 7 years ago
I have little ottos and one snail in each of my Betta tanks which work great. I have 2 lil plecs in my big tank and loads of shrimps as well. I have more of a poop problem than anything
TheAilaS
TheAilaS - 7 years ago
ngc charle well, if you will not change the water at all just add a little bit of water from time to time the water will get green and dirty and when you do water changes you also remove the nitrate from the water. And every water changes add a conditioner. My fav is Prime. I have a amano shrimp in my betta tank and he doesnt clean my tank too much. But he poops a lot.
ngc charle
ngc charle - 7 years ago
TheAilaS i found that the best way is to use aquaponics aquarium and adding filter and crew fish cleaner in that way i think it is not need to change the water in years only adding water from time to time . by that way i can grow flower plants above aquarium and i can get off the nitrite out of water and the water will be clear always without the need of changing and cleaning the tank . do you think it is good idea ? i am still reading and searching about the aquaponics aquarium
TheAilaS
TheAilaS - 7 years ago
ngc charle yes you need a filter and a heater. And you still need to do water changes.
ngc charle
ngc charle - 7 years ago
Sam Sam do i have to change water every 2 weeks if i put those fish in my tank ? and do i need filter if those fish are in my tank ? and if i do not need to change water dose the water will be crystal for years ? and if i need to change water and those fishes are in my tank for how many days i must change the water ? please can you help me
crazee635
crazee635 - 7 years ago
I have one horned nerite which is half the size of a normal nerite but is a work horse in a 5 gallon and I hardly see any poop...
Sam Sam
Sam Sam - 7 years ago
I don't have an algae or a poop problem in my 5g. I would suggest having one nerite per 5gs.
TheAilaS
TheAilaS - 7 years ago
Sam Sam I just bought 2 nerite snails yesterday and they poop like crazy! I have white sand in my 5 g aquarium and in a few hours I have a lot a lot of poops.
Goshio Arago
Goshio Arago - 7 years ago
But their poop isn't toxic like fish poop, snails consume 100% of protein of the food consumed and making their poop literary clean like soils.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
Sam Sam Yeah, at this point I agree. Shrimp are super cool too..I love watching mine. I would still get some Oto cats.
Salvador Gomez
Salvador Gomez - 8 years ago
My amano shrimp climbed out my tank I didn't notice it,until I did my 70% water change. Very sad I had them for around 6 months. They where very good at cleaning
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
Salvador Gomez yeah they love to climb out or jump out. Sometimes you can throw them back into the tank and they will come back alive! Of course not always.
KinofTheKing
KinofTheKing - 8 years ago
DO you guys think our blue gourami will eat the shrimp if we get some?
Desta James
Desta James - 8 years ago
Freeman Brown I had shrimp before I added my gourami and now I don't have shrimp
T_On3 YaBoi Phimma
T_On3 YaBoi Phimma - 8 years ago
amano shrimp vs ghost shrimp..............................my ghost shrimp eat my plants. do amanos?
Nikolye fothergill
Nikolye fothergill - 7 years ago
amano will eat plants
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
T_On3 YaBoi Phimma no Amano won't eat your plants
PearlMilk TeaClub
PearlMilk TeaClub - 8 years ago
is it possible to have a perfect clean up crew to not have to clean out the freshwater tank?
Wilson Cui
Wilson Cui - 7 years ago
Never, no matter what, you always have to do water changes.
clhatcher1
clhatcher1 - 8 years ago
PearlMilk TeaClub but you would still do water changes
clhatcher1
clhatcher1 - 8 years ago
PearlMilk TeaClub unless you have a bare bottom tank and a bunch of snails
clhatcher1
clhatcher1 - 8 years ago
PearlMilk TeaClub that is never possible
Daisy Servera
Daisy Servera - 8 years ago
Are amano shrimp aggressive at all? I had a few "ghost" shrimp from petsmart which I have been told aren't true ghost shrimp. One of them ended up attacking my betta and ripping his tail then eating it even though there was ample food and then killing a mystery snail when I moved them out of my betta tank. I have not had good experiences so far with shrimp.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
Daisy Servera no they are not aggressive and are very hardy. (Amano Shrimp).
TARDIS cat
TARDIS cat - 8 years ago
hello! thanks for your helpful video! do you know of any videos or a video series for people that are JUST starting out with aquascaping? I really want to start, but I'm finding some of the "beginer" information hard to understand.
TARDIS cat
TARDIS cat - 8 years ago
ADU Aquascaping thanks!!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
TARDIS cat I have some videos on low Tech aquariums. Encyclopedia of Aquarium plants is a great beginner book that I would definitely buy.
Ahmad Oni
Ahmad Oni - 8 years ago
does the hillstream loach requires o2?
Ahmad Oni
Ahmad Oni - 8 years ago
thanks sir!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
yes high O2 and circulation to stay happy
Flo Green
Flo Green - 8 years ago
Does anyone know if snail's can get parasites from fish ?

100. comment for The Clean Up Crew And Best Choices For Your Planted Aquarium

Jim Hansen
Jim Hansen - 8 years ago
Great vids, appreciate everything. Does your clean up crew count positively or negatively toward your overall bio load? Yes, they produce waste, but they eat waste as well...thoughts?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
Very good question. Considering they do exist and the waste is further metabolized. I would say yes they of course add to the bioload, but is their job making the system more efficient, when it comes to plants absorbing readily available nutrients and doing their part in the system? I say because they exist, yes they are optimizing the environment further. What do you think?
Patti Hanson
Patti Hanson - 8 years ago
I am still in the research phase before getting an aquarium. Are snails okay for tanks with a lot of ground cover as opposed to a planted tank with exposed substrate? Thank you for this video. I am creating a list of what to get and several of these are going on it.
Sandra Kirsten
Sandra Kirsten - 8 years ago
Tatsuhiro Satou Actually, nerite snails can't reproduce in freshwater.
If you research specific snail Breeds, you can find one that suits your tank.

Unless you have a 10+ gallon tank, Cory catfish are not suggested because you are at high risk of overstocking your tank
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
snails suck it only takes one to reproduce nevef let them in use shrimp and cory cats
Sandra Kirsten
Sandra Kirsten - 8 years ago
Snails do OK in either, but they would prefer substrate
Claudia Penaranda
Claudia Penaranda - 8 years ago
what would you recommend for a 5g planted aquarium? thanks!!
Jenni __
Jenni __ - 7 years ago
Not really. Specially if you know how to handle tanks that have more fish. You just gotta do water changes so the bio-load is all good
Random Person
Random Person - 7 years ago
Jenni __ that is waaaaay over crowded
Jenni __
Jenni __ - 7 years ago
Sandra Kirsten I keep a male betta, 4 platy, and 1 guppy in my 6 gallon tank. And they're all good
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
+Skull Gamer314 just released i don't like tetras
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
+Skull Gamer314 i had school of 6 but all but one have died and im just not getting more
michael nguyen
michael nguyen - 8 years ago
the same way that people keep 2 to 3 otos in a tank, when otos actually school in high numbers of 15+ yet people still only keep 2 to 3 commonly and they do fine
michael nguyen
michael nguyen - 8 years ago
Like I said you have to work, though recommendations for housing is preferred for everyone
michael nguyen
michael nguyen - 8 years ago
Skull Gamer314 .... I had them in for a year and a half, water perms are balanced i test every week. Their colors are bright, still highly active, stress (not doing well) can be majority seen from the fish's color and how they're behaviors are..
Link From hyrule
Link From hyrule - 8 years ago
Tatsuhiro Satou neon tetras should be in a school or at least 6
Link From hyrule
Link From hyrule - 8 years ago
michael nguyen you don't know if they're fine. You can never know. Danios are really activ and need more than 15 gallons guppies are too
michael nguyen
michael nguyen - 8 years ago
Sandra Kirsten I had 4 guppies and 3 danios in my 5 gal tank, they are fine ... have options as long as you're willing to work to keep things stable for the fish you are keeping, providing what they need
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
Skull Gamer314 also yes yoh can even have something with a betta i have amono shrimp a one black neon tetra with mine
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
Skull Gamer314 i said 3 corys mine school with 3
Link From hyrule
Link From hyrule - 8 years ago
Shrimp or betta that it whoever said three cories lied they need six to school and neons are too sensitive and to active
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
there are plenty of options besides just a betta. you can do almost anything with shrimp even like 20 cherry shrimp, you could do a betta with amono shrimp, you could have 3 cory cats, you could do like 8 neon tetras, you could do like 3 platys, a couple fancy guppys. there are options
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
you can do a betta with amono shrimp or even like 3 corys with shrimp or like 8 neon tetras dont do snails they reproduce way to fast.
Sandra Kirsten
Sandra Kirsten - 8 years ago
You can only keep a Betta fish in the tank, and maybe a snail or two. Nothing else
Jevgen Sailor
Jevgen Sailor - 8 years ago
Hello friends! I sculpted an anatomical model of a crystal red shrimp a while ago. Hope you like it.

h**ps://sketchfab.com/models/ed393558728942c2996fca1067325594
Vlad The Inhaler
Vlad The Inhaler - 7 years ago
Horrible optimisation on that site, my cpu usage went to 90+ percent and the page ran at .2 fps.
Hedgehog Elite
Hedgehog Elite - 7 years ago
hey can you make it available for download? i'd love to print it
Nedd Fish
Nedd Fish - 7 years ago
Jevgen Sailor y QR you are all bad
Kai Drummond
Kai Drummond - 7 years ago
That's amazing :o
Sarpa salpa
Sarpa salpa - 8 years ago
sure mts will eat detritus and oxygenate but where do you think that nutrients go? it might get broken down but would never leave untill you do a water change.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
Not entirely. Plenty of periphyton uses it and the plants! Makes it easier for the periphyton to utilize the organics and easier for plants to create chelates. The snails aren't necessary, but are one of many options to optimization. No one is saying to not reduce the Bio oxygen demand with maintenance and water changes.
The Shrimp Cave TV
The Shrimp Cave TV - 8 years ago
Shrimps are the best looking cleaning crew for me.
all of them
I Dumbo
I Dumbo - 8 years ago
What if you have plastic plants???
John Zimm
John Zimm - 8 years ago
Thank you for all this great information. Have you ever tried dwarf cray fish? Do you suggest them? And do you like, suggest or have any of the other shrimp types?
Desta James
Desta James - 8 years ago
John Zimm dwarf crayfish are pretty destructive
George Spigner
George Spigner - 8 years ago
my MTS don't really dissappear in the day time, I can always see a lot of them. there's a TON of algae everywhere because I went crazy with ferts once....is that why?
James Casswell
James Casswell - 8 years ago
i have an issue in the fact that i can't house snails in my 40 gallon as i have at least 2 assassin snails in it and i kinda like the look of them i also have amano shrimp but i have almost like a green slime on my gravel any suggestions
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
+James Casswell nice ive had jeweled and emerald and i like the emeralds way better for bigger tanks they are less shy and get bigger but i love jeweled for a 5 gallon with just 4 of them and shrimp
James Casswell
James Casswell - 8 years ago
thanks for the suggestions i have 6 bronze cory cats in there atm
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
cory cats
Cole Bowers
Cole Bowers - 8 years ago
+James Casswell they have water conditioners that will help with stuff like that or just move around the gravel.
Kim Wineinger
Kim Wineinger - 8 years ago
Very knowledgeable, informative and well presented video.  My tank is a nano tank and recently started.  I noticed yesterday a smell of the water.  The water test was fine, but I wasn't sure if I needed to be concerned.  You mentioned your tank smelled like a pond.  So should a smell from the tank not be a concern?  What does it indicate?  Thanks!
InfamousKiller11
InfamousKiller11 - 8 years ago
if smell bothers you, you can always add carbon to your filter cartridge and it'll remove the smell. only time you should be concerned about smell is if it's foul like garbage disposal or sewage otherwise should be fairly nice smell like pond or river
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
MTS will overpopulate a tank. One of our tanks was so crowded with them they looked like maggots squirming on a carcass. And nothing eats them.
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
+WOLFE221 no snails are evil otto cats are the way to go
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
+John Terpack my betta and angels do that for me
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
First I have to buy a piranha to control the swordtail population. :-)
WOLFE221
WOLFE221 - 8 years ago
Ive had snail explosions as well. Ive kept red and banded Ramshorn snails that looked cool when there was about a half dozen, but that doesn't last long. The Peruvian Apple snails laid masses of reddish pink eggs on the glass tops. Luckily I had fish that ate the baby snails. Ive had Florida Apple snails breed like crazy in my tank also. I know what you mean. Two yellow apple snails turned into a hundred in no time.

Ive had success with clown loaches but they get pretty darn big and need to be kept with several other clowns. Ive had other loaches as well that would eat the snails but only when I reduced feedings. Yo-Yo loaches did well at keeping the snails in check, but they ended up removing the eyes of my corydoras. They were removed immediately. Nasty lil buggers.


Rabbit snails look like MTS but are more colorful. The MTS also have live birth but reproduce at a much higher rate than rabbit snails and they actually eat algae. I think you would be safe with nerite and rabbit snails. Good choice!
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
We have red Ramshorn snails now. We finally managed to get them under control. I think our loaches finally got hungry. We had Apple snails before... until they bred. The babies are cute, but they grow like an alien and 100 Apple snails fill a tank in a hurry. I'm also looking at Rabbit snails. We do like snails. Maybe I'll find a solution that lets us keep them.
WOLFE221
WOLFE221 - 8 years ago
MTS aren't for everyone. I hated them when I first got em in my tanks. They were introduced with some Water Sprite a friend gave me and they overtook the tank in a big way. I also had the tendency to overcompensate with bigger feedings, and they had overpopulated to the point that the substrate itself looked alive. Like a swarming undulating mass just under the gravel surface. I removed several hundred of them by hand netting and learned to reduce feeding and stick to a filter maintenance schedule.
The most annoying thing is that MTS don't eat algae. They instead prevent algae blooms by eating excess foods and dead plant leaves that cant spark an algae bloom. I think that's why I like them so much now that I've gotten used to them. I'm also a big fan of Ramshorn snails, which is also prone to overpopulate but do a good job at removing algae.
I'm a snail fanatic and have kept everything from baseball sized Peruvian Apple snails to the tiny but bothersome pond snail. Definitely stick with the nerites. They are expensive but do a great job at eating algae... and they wont breed.
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
+WOLFE221 I think we have a couple problems that make snail control difficult. First, we feed irregularly and compensate by overfeeding. Second, the food sinks too fast for many of the fish to get it before it settles. So it collects. I really like snails in a tank. But we're sticking with nerites for the moment since they won't breed.
WOLFE221
WOLFE221 - 8 years ago
Ive never had snail problems to the point that I wanted to bleach a tank. Some people think that snails are unsightly, but I think they add to the look of a planted tank. Like I said before, the MTS are very helpful and only overpopulate when the tank is in need of maintenance or overfed. MTS are great, as they leave live plants alone, aerate the roots and eat plant debris help break down waste. The trick is to keep their population under control.
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
WOLFE221 i had micro snails get in my tank i just removed the fish and bleached them
WOLFE221
WOLFE221 - 8 years ago
The best way Ive found to remove them is to capture them at night when they emerge and climb the sides of the tank. Just run a net under them. They will release and fall into the net. Also, the tiny baby snails float on the surface and can easily be scooped up. Since the MTS can clone themselves, you will never be able to completely rid the tank of them without a total dismantle. Population control is about the best you can do.

***I had a Geophagus Jurapari in my planted tank that would often grind up the MTS and eat them. The Jurapari would eat small livebearers but didn't bother fish that were larger than a couple inches or was fast enough to evade it (like my Head and Tail-light Tetras)
WOLFE221
WOLFE221 - 8 years ago
I know your comment is 7 months old, but I thought Id say that I have MTS as well. Ive had them in my tanks for over 15 years, and learned to use them as a gauge, as they only overpopulate when there is an abundance of uneaten food or the filters are in need of maintenance. They really do help keep my substrate aerated, and like ADU says, they really keep the mulm to a minimum. The one thing that I like about the MTS is their ability to completely consume dead fish. In a planted tank, dead fish are often obscured by the plants. With MTS in the tank, I generally have no need to worry about water quality in the event of a fish death, as the MTS can consume a small fish in a day, long before it has a chance to rot.
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
have you tryed loaches
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
+DON DOT Had some. They died.
DON DOT
DON DOT - 8 years ago
get assassin snails
MR G
MR G - 8 years ago
I have a black lined loach that wipes them out pretty quick
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
+StarWarsPlace I'm sure they would. But puffers don't play well with other fish. At least that's what we've been told.
StarWarsPlace
StarWarsPlace - 8 years ago
+John Terpack Dwarf Puffers eat them
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
+Rogan Rygax
 No.
Simeon Ragsdale
Simeon Ragsdale - 8 years ago
Wont the MTS uproot your plants since they burrow?
Edward Farrell
Edward Farrell - 8 years ago
I have a heavily planted 155 gallon tank, and something is eating my Anubias and Crypt leaves. Would a 5 inch Peckoltia be the culprit? I can never catch anyone in the  act. The leaves are being chewed from the edges out.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+Edward Farrell Well they usually just eat biofilm and algae, right? I don't know what else would do that other than Cichlids or snails. Definitely chew marks and not degradation of the leaves? But there are so many different species of Peckoltia that it could be possible. Is it nocturnal, a lot seem to be.
anewman513
anewman513 - 8 years ago
I have a thin layer of pea gravel (~ 1/2") over to top of my substrate. Will the MTS still be able to burrow down past the gravel and into the substrate?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+anewman513 yes they will. They are great, but can get out of hand. But so can mini ramshorn snails.
Rebecca Smith-Bowen
Rebecca Smith-Bowen - 8 years ago
You didn't say placasamas
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+Rebecca Smith-Bowen in a simple planted tank with hardy plants, yes a bushynose will work great, but in delicate aquascaped setups you don't want them.
holly gangle
holly gangle - 8 years ago
+Rebecca Smith-Bowen they get huge and destroy plants
Rebecca Smith-Bowen
Rebecca Smith-Bowen - 8 years ago
They are good
Trippy Buisness
Trippy Buisness - 8 years ago
is there anything small like snails i can put in with a large male dovii?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+Mary Juana You could probably use Mini Ramshorn snails, they don't get much larger than 3mm across. They eat algae too.
TheHerpCode
TheHerpCode - 8 years ago
What substrate do you use
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+TheHerpCode Currently I use Marfied Controsoil, but now the distribution has been bought out by Brightwell, so if you want to get Marfied you have to buy the Brightwell Volcanic substrate from Dr.Fosters&Smith
John M
John M - 8 years ago
Always love your videos. This one was excellent. I have a 16 gal. heavily planted Nano tank with 7 fish (Tetras & Rasbora's) with 6 Amano's and 4 Assassins (due to a past pest snail problem). I was thinking of getting about 3 more Amano's or would you suggest something else???? Thanks!
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
i love my amonos but i have had to pick them up off the floor and put them back in the tank
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+John M I would. They work circles around most fish. My Oto cats don't even really eat algae anymore. Plus amano shrimp don't take up too much room.
My Name Here
My Name Here - 8 years ago
where's the best place to order manzanita wood? there's some on ebay but it's pretty pricey. any ideas apretiated Thanks man
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+My Name Here Tom Barr sells it through his site thebarrreport.com. Or on forums. He goes by the plantbrain on most forums.
My Name Here
My Name Here - 8 years ago
nice tank and video what kind if wood is that love how it branches upwards I've had bad algae and tea colored water from tannins wondering yur secret what kind if wood etc thanks bro
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+My Name Here It is manzanita wood, it does not release very many tannins into the water.
ThatFishGuy
ThatFishGuy - 8 years ago
I'm starting a planted tank with Indian dwarf Puffers
ThatFishGuy
ThatFishGuy - 8 years ago
Good ideas!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
right on! I love watching them zip around the tank and they are so intelligent. But they only look cute... They would probably love some giant jungle Val plants and some driftwood to zip around in.
ThatFishGuy
ThatFishGuy - 8 years ago
Of course, and thank you
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+That FishGuy That will be a lovely tank. I guess you will be getting some ramshorn snails as well?
TheGreat_JMB
TheGreat_JMB - 8 years ago
I have had a fish tank for a while but am starting to get into it more as a hobby. Gone is the plastic plants and colorful rocks and here come the plants and driftwood. My question is will cherry shrimp do the job of the amano shrimp. I prefer them to the amano in the looks department and can get them cheaper but will they clean the tank?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+glockfan112 brineshrimpdirect.com sells foods high in carotenoids. Pellets and some pastes. They will work with serpeas. Most Amano shrimp are pretty dang hardy and usually don't die.
TheGreat_JMB
TheGreat_JMB - 8 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping How would i find a food high in the carotenoids? And would serpea tetras cohabitate with the shrimp or should i look at neons and other small tetras?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+glockfan112 they will not work like the Amano shrimp. They do look cooler if you feed them food high in carotenoids.
TheXtraordinaryApple
TheXtraordinaryApple - 8 years ago
never mind
TheXtraordinaryApple
TheXtraordinaryApple - 8 years ago
what size tank does he have
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+TheXtraordinaryApple this is a 40 gallon breeder.
Justin Hart
Justin Hart - 8 years ago
if you have any of the Botia type loaches (clowns, yoyos, anglicus, etc) avoid anything that isn't a fish... Otherwise you are just throwing a lot of money away providing a fancy dinner for the loaches.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+Justin Hart That's true, not all of these fish can be housed together. Thanks for watching and for the tip!
lozgod
lozgod - 8 years ago
If you love Amano Shrimp why don't you marry them? j/k. Can't resist the corniest joke that comes to me. Seriously though, those cheap feeder shrimp you find in the stores, will they do the same job? Is there any cons to using them as a clean up crew?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+lozgod They will help with detritus and other debris, but Amano shrimp are known for eating a few different kinds of algae and are very hardy. They don't die very often, if ever.
nkaneti
nkaneti - 8 years ago
I'm pretty new to fish keeping, but don't snails multiply by themselves? isn't that annoying? or is it just certain snails?
Tatsuhiro Satou
Tatsuhiro Satou - 8 years ago
not true they can asexually reproduce
BackyardUrbanFarmer
BackyardUrbanFarmer - 8 years ago
+nkaneti Snails require a partner to make babies. They just have both male and female parts so both snails get pregnant and give birth afterwards.
nkaneti
nkaneti - 8 years ago
+Liah Rodriguez ah okay, thanks for the info
RandomlyInspired
RandomlyInspired - 8 years ago
most likely. I believe snails are hermaphrodites, meaning they can have both parts, thus meaning they can produce on their own. Though I'm not sure if this applies to all snails.
Mason Squires
Mason Squires - 8 years ago
im starting a 75 gallon tank wanting to put smaller predatory fish in it for example spotted african leaf, I'm curious do amano shrimp get big enough to not become a meal or should I avoid amano shrimp?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+Mason Squires it would probably eat the shrimp to be honest.
Richard Ball
Richard Ball - 9 years ago
Will my angle fish not eat the shrimps
Richard Ball
Richard Ball - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping thank you
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Richard Ball If the Amano shrimp at very small they could. But they get pretty large and are hardy. You may just have to buy larger ones, or wait for them to get bigger before introducing them to your tank.
Jason Kinnear
Jason Kinnear - 9 years ago
Can those shrimps breed and increase in population in the tank... if there is very gentle filtration?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Jason Kinnear Amano shrimp need salt water and most haven't been successful in breeding them, but cherry shrimp and others can be bred in fresh water.
Kurt. Lawrence
Kurt. Lawrence - 9 years ago
im so freakin obsessed in my aquarium !!!!!!! it's like i can stare at it for 24/7 and watch my plants grow some branches and sister plants then here comes the algae appearing from no where and piss me!!!! uhhh!!!
Eve Munoz
Eve Munoz - 8 years ago
Lol my husband probably thinks I'm a nutter. Check on my betta, cherry shrimp and gold inca snail multiple times a day (and night if I wake up). He once told me to leave the fish alone! I try to limit my observation to while he's at work- that way I don't seem too obsessed. But I am... haha! Can't help how cute and entertaining they are.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Kurt. Lawrence hahahaha! Yes! You are like me, you are a true FISH FREAK! That is how I am. I am totally obsessed with my tanks and stare at them all day.
Kurt. Lawrence
Kurt. Lawrence - 9 years ago
what's your FB name?? i have a lot of freakin questions!!!!! please please please
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Kurt. Lawrence I can be reached by email, fishfinaticsdob23@gmail.com . I no longer have a FB because it was hacked.
Kurt. Lawrence
Kurt. Lawrence - 9 years ago
can i use A TYPICAL SHRIMP? THE ONE THAT WE USUALLY EAT?
i cant find shrimps in PET STORES UHHHH!!!!!!! OUR POOR COMMUNITY
rhys young
rhys young - 8 years ago
Just ask a petshop if they have shrimp sometimes u have to look harder for them
Defias Bandit
Defias Bandit - 9 years ago
+Kurt. Lawrence Use ebay.
Liam Goss
Liam Goss - 9 years ago
What is a good substrate that isn't super expensive? I need a good one that is preferably brown to compliment my rocks. Also I see a lot of people put tons of stuff under there substrates. Is that useful? If so what are some good ones?
Liam Goss
Liam Goss - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Thanks, that really helps a lot. I commented on your other video about how to achieve a more acidic substrate so if you reply to that it would really help me out! You earned a new subscriber C:
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Liam Goss The cheapest method that will hold and retain nutrients in the substrate is of course using organic potting mix and capping it with gravel or sand, BUT! I do not recommend this method for beginners, and it can be super messy. One classic method is to use Laterite clay and a cap of some kind. Laterite clay traps nutrients chemically in the substrate. What you can do is buy some API Laterite and, root tabs- or make your own tabs using Osmocote Plus and use those as the base layer. Put the root tabs down first. 3 tablespoons of O+ is enough for a 55 gallon tank for example. Then put the Laterite on top of the root tabs, and cap it with Eco Complete, tan sand, brown sand, or gravel. This will trap the nutrients in the substrate as well as boosting bacteria growth. The structure of the Laterite really encourages the growth of bacteria.


The stuff you may be seeing people put under their tanks could be anything from the above mentioned media to ADA additives, which boots bacteria growth, but are not necessary, just jump start the tank is all, to peat moss to help acidify the substrate, to sphagnum moss, which is similar to peat and is used to aerate the substrate and help to hold nutrients. None of these things are really necessary. All you need is Root tabs first, then Laterite, then some kind of cap. Do the math on all of this and compare it to just buying ADA Amazonia off of Amazon. AFA sells ADA Aquasoil on Amazon.com for $48.00 total shipped per 9 liter bag, which is about 20lbs. If it is more expensive than that I would just buy the Aquasoil because it has tons of nutrients, has high humates, which behave similar to the clay and trap nutrients, and it holds its shape, so it isn't messy like normal dirt, and it doesn't need to be capped.


Or one more option is to buy Seachem Flourite, which is Laterite clay, and it comes in black, that way you could just do root tabs with the Flourite and it wouldn't need a cap. I hope this helps.
Joan Smith
Joan Smith - 9 years ago
Don't snail also eat your plants?
Cris Suazo
Cris Suazo - 8 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping they are and most snails are hermaphrodites
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Kurt. Lawrence yeah they can. You will just have to Google it. I am not familiar with the mating behavior or sex of apple snails, and they may be asexual.
Kurt. Lawrence
Kurt. Lawrence - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping or do 3 apple snails can multiply? cause i dont know how to identify their sex
Kurt. Lawrence
Kurt. Lawrence - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping but do apple snails are really effective?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Joan Smith Some snails, such as pond snails will, but MTS and Ramshorn snails won't.
Kathy Lynn Maracle
Kathy Lynn Maracle - 9 years ago
Thank you for such a helpful set of tips. We have added MTS to our aquaria and they do a good job of munching around in the sand.

I am curious about something I saw in my local LFS, and if these could be part of a clean up crew. Shrimp fever (LFS) sells Freshwater Yellow Clams (http://www.shrimpfever.com/shop/livestock-shrimp/freshwater-yellow-clam/) and they are filter feeders. Could these pretty little clams be a useful part of my clean up crew?

I have never had clams in a freshwater aquarium, and was curious if you could share any experience you have with them!
Kathy Lynn Maracle
Kathy Lynn Maracle - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Thank you for the reply! Next time I visit SF I think I will pick up some FW clams to add to our community tank. I may add them to our dwarf puffer tank, as I doubt the puffers can do any harm to them lol :)
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Kathy Lynn Maracle Yes! Those are exactly what a fellow hobbyist has been looking for! I will let him know. You can totally use those in an aquascape, and if they attach to rocks and driftwood that would be even cooler. You could integrate them into your design. I am probably going to buy some. Thanks for the link!
Jason Stroman
Jason Stroman - 9 years ago
I've heard that shrimp and Osmocote Plus do not do well together. I've read it kills them is this true in your experience?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Jason Stroman It can kill fish and shrimp if you use too much too fast. This is from an ammonia spike. When people say it kills the shrimp from the copper in the fertilizer they are wrong, and simply put, don't know what they are talking about. Just use one triple zero capsule for every 5"x5" area in a tank, and only around areas where plants are growing, of course.
Albert bob
Albert bob - 9 years ago
What about daphnia daphnia are filter feeders and make cloudy water clear i use them with realy small fish that cant eat them
Katrina Peterson
Katrina Peterson - 7 years ago
Albert bob 0
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Albert bob That is a good idea. I would also like to see if I could keep a colony of Amphipods alive by feeding them daphnia. I believe they eat similar organisms in the wild? I can get a bunch of Amphipods out of a local creek, and my fish go wild! Well at least my Cichlids used to...
Albert bob
Albert bob - 9 years ago
I meant lick goldfish not daphnia sory for error
Albert bob
Albert bob - 9 years ago
Also if you want to use daphnia to clear cloudy water but you have bigger fish like daphnia you could use a very fine net that traps the daphnia but keeps cloudy water in although harder to find perhaps a breeding net
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Albert bob That would work great. So, it should work fine. That is a good tip, and thanks for watching.
MickMaan
MickMaan - 9 years ago
I have cherry and red crystal shrimp in my tank and they have all made their home on one particular piece of bog wood and are polishing it clean. All they do is constantly pick at it. Why only that one piece, out of three, i have no idea. Maybe because the flow is calmer at that end of the tank.
My substrate is extremely loose and if i get any where near it with my gravel vac i end up sucking up a load of it. I'm hoping to completely cover it with carpeting plants. Would it cause problems if i didn't vac it at all? I'm thinking of getting some snails for the tank and those MTS's sound good if they mix up the substrate for me but don't want to end up with an outbreak. Already had a minor outbreak of pond snails that came with my plants. Got rid of them though.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+MickMaan They will work great for detritus. You don't have to vacuum as much in a planted tank with snails, I do here and there. And it is only light vacuuming of the top layer of substrate. No deep vacuuming. Snails and shrimp will help reduce detritus because they are lower down on the food chain and will further breakdown the organics.
Freshwater fish
Freshwater fish - 9 years ago
I'm new to the YouTube fish world. If you have s minuet check out my channel ! Thanks !
Braiden Saville
Braiden Saville - 9 years ago
Why are u using a microphone
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Braiden Saville Haha! It sounds way better than my camera mic, and I have the gear because of recording guitar etc...
The Fact Rant
The Fact Rant - 9 years ago
Hello, nice Video. Do you know where I can buy Amano shrimp online or any other live shrimp???
The Fact Rant
The Fact Rant - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping ok cool, thanks much!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+The Fact Rant Maybe the shrimpfarm? I buy locally so I don't really know. There are a few different online shrimp stores. Look into the shrimpfarm and type online aquarium shrimp for sale or something into Google.
Patrick Kerr
Patrick Kerr - 9 years ago
I had some Malaysian Trumpet Snails in my tank, they reproduced so quickly so I had to introduce 5 Figure-8 Pufferfish.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Patrick Kerr That is a good method to use. LOL I wish I had some MTS way back when I was trying to keep puffers alive. Good deal.
CrestFallenMoon
CrestFallenMoon - 9 years ago
would angel fish eat shrimp? and would a clown loach kill trumpet snails (I would assume but do they?)
John Terpack
John Terpack - 8 years ago
+CrestFallenMoon We've had four different species of loach... none of them ate MTS.
Ironiic zero
Ironiic zero - 9 years ago
yes and yes. Though if your tank is really heavily planted your shrimp my have a chance
Meme Machine
Meme Machine - 9 years ago
I use pink kissing gourami for algae eater
It worked wonders
When it got too big (about 2.5 inches in size) it started to chase my other fish and actually de root plants
So I took it back to the petstore which offers an exchange for the exact same fish
So I can just keep getting a new baby whenever they get too big
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Babby Babbyson haha, that is actually a good idea. If they exchange like that than why not! Thanks for watching Babby Babbyson.
beavereater36
beavereater36 - 9 years ago
Great vid while sipping on my beer planing my next tank.Now after watching i might give the trumpets a try.The rumor about them has always had me leery.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+beavereater36 They can take over, and usually only come out at night, but if you get a couple Assassin snails it will keep them in line. Another great snail is the mini ramshorn snail. It is more-or-less colorless, and stays very small, about 1.5mm diameter.
Kastin4Dayz
Kastin4Dayz - 9 years ago
wow this is really helpful, subbed
Nick Gieseking
Nick Gieseking - 9 years ago
I have Nerite snails they do good But they do lay eggs and they turn white which looks unsightly on your glass and any rocks or drift wood the eggs will not hatch now if this was brackish water they wood hatch the unhatched eggs will turn white and that makes it a mess ghost shrimp are good to have to they love to get into every thing if you have small fish that won't bother the shrimp then the shrimp will thrive and grow i now have 8 1 1/2 " shrimp they live with six amano shrimp Cherry shrimp black tetras neon tetras 2 corys 1 bristle nose pleco very large plant load jungle val dwarf sage water sprite java fern and 2 other kinds of plants i do not know Black sand substrate no additives plants doing greate
Nick Gieseking
Nick Gieseking - 9 years ago
well i did a redo as far as substrate i did a half black sand with  a iron rich substrate that is good for plants with red in them i would send pics but don't really know  how i did try to send pics as text but the guy wasn't interested in my tank he just wanted to sell hisplants
  
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Nick Gieseking Thanks for the great advice and info on the tank. That is true, the white eggs are unsightly. So many I forgot to mention. I mention more in my recent fish video, I showcase some more algae eating fish. Good to hear the tank is doing well with only a sand substrate. That is the truth. I had a really great tank and only using inert sand while dosing the EI method. Thanks for watching man.
Louise Kazzam
Louise Kazzam - 9 years ago
hi, what would you suggest in a coldwater tank with goldfish?  thanks
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Louise Kazzam Platy fish, guppies
DMAN D
DMAN D - 9 years ago
I have some sae in my tank to keep my java moss under control XD
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+DMAN D Haha, my SAEs are currently eating my java moss. May have to get rid of some.
francis dudero
francis dudero - 9 years ago
Hi, I have red tailed sharks in my planted tank. I wonder what could you comment about its behavior today plants. Will it be like the SAE eating the java moss once it grow?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+francis dudero They can be very aggressive to each other and other species.
francis dudero
francis dudero - 9 years ago
+Antsgotpets AGP I read an article last time saying that these fish has some sort of personality where some sharks are aggressive to their kind(sometimes other fishes) and others are not even aggressive to anything.
Antsgotpets AGP
Antsgotpets AGP - 9 years ago
+francis dudero in my 45 gallon tank I have to much java moss and none of my fish eat it mine is aggressive to my tiger barbs
francis dudero
francis dudero - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping It is quite aggressive to fellow sharks but it didn't see it chase or disturb other types of fish with it in the tank. Thanks=).
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+francis dudero That is a good question. My brother has them in his tank with Java moss and it seems to be doing great. I know they can become somewhat aggressive towards other fish though.
Tan Desmond
Tan Desmond - 9 years ago
Will I have any problems if I have too many cleaning crew in my planted tank?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Tan Desmond You can if your snails get out of hand. It just looks ugly sometimes. And yes if there isn't any algae for some fish to eat they may die, or you can supplement feedings with a Spirulina based flake food for veggie loving fish and animals.
Tan Desmond
Tan Desmond - 9 years ago
Btw love your video, subscribed
Boomba Boomba
Boomba Boomba - 9 years ago
Your aquariams are beautiful
Rot A
Rot A - 9 years ago
superb helpful..!! Keep up the good work...
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Rot A Thanks
Mehmet Tanrıver
Mehmet Tanrıver - 9 years ago
What is your opinion about "garra rufa"? I had heard that it was the best algae eater in the world.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Mehmet Tanrıver Never really see those in the hobby. More in spas and skin treatment. I am sure they work, just don't know if they are that available.
Jharyl Bohulano
Jharyl Bohulano - 9 years ago
Ok thanks again
Jharyl Bohulano
Jharyl Bohulano - 9 years ago
Hi is yoyo loach ok to put in the planted aquarium? Same with golden snail?
DMAN D
DMAN D - 9 years ago
+Jharyl Bohulano I have placed one in my planted tank before when cleaning my betta tank for about half an hour and he ate his way through a leaf on my amazon sword so I would say be careful
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Jharyl Bohulano Yeah they do fine in planted tanks. They do get pretty large though. The snail may eat certain plants, but I am not sure. I have never put them in my tanks.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
For the last time, SAEs can and will eat your Java moss once they mature. They can also get an appetite for other moss types within your aquarium.
TechHeadsL7
TechHeadsL7 - 7 years ago
I've had 2 SAEs, true SAEs, for 4 years now. They don't eat algae very much. They're similar to sharks. They bottom feed that's it.
Logan Hutchinson
Logan Hutchinson - 8 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping when I get a variety of a clean up crew they kill each other so I usually just get a couple of plecs or a group of shrimps or snails
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+Darren LackHort So possibly increase your flow. Should be 10x total tank volume per hour. A method that works great. Get a bunch of surface agitation going. Your light source probably isn't too much light. So don't worry about that. And if using tap water make sure to get the KH low. Most plants can grow in high KH water, but lowering TDS and KH will make most plants grow more quickly. And if using tap water try letting it sit for 24 hours. Some hobbyists claim it is the CO2 from your tap water create an instability in the tank, which then causes the BBA. I have no experience with using the last method.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 8 years ago
+The Shrimp Cave TV You can only balance CO2 once you have optimized O2 and filtration, which increases periphyton activity and lowers the Bio chemical oxygen demand. This then allows for a decrease in surface biofilm growth, which then allows for stable CO2 and O2 exchange rates. Tom Barr knows this, yet doesn't mention it often enough. He may assume most people have adequate filtration and circulation, but can be an issue for many hobbyists. Also proper circulation helps mechanically distribute nutrients and CO2 to plant leaves, which have a biofilm barrier, unlike terrestrial plants. The flow helps get the nutrients and CO2 through the barrier. All of this information should and will be my next video. Too much light over shade loving hardy plants can actually decrease photosynthesis because they produce more chlorophyll at lower light levels. So lower light in low techs with hardy plants is usually the better option. Good questions and thanks for watching.
Vash The Stampede
Vash The Stampede - 8 years ago
it's a low tech tank. I dose excel. I just swap out my sae's once they mature and throw in juveniles.....there's so much moss in my tank i don't even feel it matters anymore haha.
The Shrimp Cave TV
The Shrimp Cave TV - 8 years ago
Balance between light and co2!
Vash The Stampede
Vash The Stampede - 8 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping So in light of that what other fish could you suggest that deals with black beard algae?
KrispyAquascape
KrispyAquascape - 9 years ago
For sure the SAE's ripped through mosses! You would be amazed Dave at how many people I've come across that defends the opinion of SAE's never eating moss. When I can't come to a conclusion with the SAE fan boys, all I can do is realize the reality of it all. I've seen them eat my Java and my Fissidens before. Delicate thin mosses are nothing but a snack until you drop in some food.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+KrispyAquascape Dude that is the truth! Guess what! My biggest SAE just started eating my Java moss last week! And I can't please their appetites with more food because I don't like overfeeding in planted tanks. I can't believe SAEs have fanboys, haha.
Steppe Runner Trio
Steppe Runner Trio - 9 years ago
Beautiful tank! I have 3 otos and my brown algae us so much better! Great info this REALLY helped!
Sinibotia
Sinibotia - 9 years ago
I just want to say this was a great video but recommending hillstream loaches is not good. They are highly specialized for high oxygen, high flow, low temperature and will not do well in most aquariums. It appears your tank has a very large powerhead which is probably why yours is doing well.

Aside from that I really enjoyed this, thanks!
Sinibotia
Sinibotia - 9 years ago
Yeah, they're absolutely incredible little fish in a biotope tank, I've done it before. It's one of the most underrated setups in the entire hobby.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Team Delibird Yeah that is probably true, I have had one hillstream loach last 3 years and that is my record. Probably shouldn't be sold to most hobbyists, only someone trying to replicate a biotope tank.
ANDREW SAID
ANDREW SAID - 9 years ago
Do amano shrimps eat fish eggs?
ANDREW SAID
ANDREW SAID - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Yes Bolivian rams. At the moment I have six BRs so to try and form a pair. And with them are 2 amanos.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+ANDREW SAID hmmm,IDK. I know my fish constantly try to eat my shrimps eggs off of their underside. We better look into it. Trying to breed?
Aqua Novice
Aqua Novice - 9 years ago
I have a couple dojo leaches and them SOB's have uprooted just about every plant in my tank. Definitely going to look into those hillstream ones instead
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Aqua Novice They do work well, but just make sure to have strong current, or they will not survive. You can also try ramshorn snails to help out.
judy hobday
judy hobday - 9 years ago
If I had an over abundance of snails populate my inside aquariums could I transplant some into my koi pond outside? It is not heated but is aerated with a large pump and filters. Thanks for the information. Very handy..
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+judy hobday Malaysian trumpet snails will usually live anywhere. They can be found living in the Great Salt lake, which is 5 times saltier than the ocean. I am sure they can handle the cold. They grow all over Utah.
DirtyManWhore616
DirtyManWhore616 - 9 years ago
I know inverts are usually sensitive to copper so if I use root tabs is that a bad idea to try getting some MTS?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+DirtyManWhore616 They will be fine, I have had them thriving while using tons of synthetic ferts in my substrate.
debzz416
debzz416 - 9 years ago
Are mono shrimp fresh water shrimp???
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+debzz416 Yes, they are freshwater and very good at eating algae!! Thanks for watching. Amano shrimp named after Takashi Amano.
ApocalypticStorms
ApocalypticStorms - 9 years ago
Ramshorn snails are the best! Yes they breed alot BUT unlike common pond snails which are small or malaysian trumpet snails which dig ramshorn snails get big they cant really hide so they are easy to pick up and release elsewhere so keeping them in check is easy and my MTS come out during the day too.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+ApocalypticStorms I agree, they are probably the best snails to have in your tank. MTS are super, but I too get mad at how many come out and they can ruin your carpeting plants from digging. Right now I have a Ramshorn colony growing in my 40 breeder and they have already helped out a lot with detritus. Thanks for watching.
Quantum Aquatic
Quantum Aquatic - 9 years ago
Hey have u ever tried using tubifex worms ? My aquatic science teacher had these worms in his salt water subtrate that pretty much cleanup the subrtrate so I got the idea of using tubifex worms in my subtrate as they are found in sewers etc eating waste and stuff. I had put two scoops of them into my tank amd washed them before doing so and its been about a month and they seem to be doing just fine
Jacob Perez
Jacob Perez - 9 years ago
+derek brian Do your fish eat them to control the population and what not? Seems like maybe the snails are the better choice and they probably look better. Plus they eat Algae. I have 50/50 seachem sand and gravel right now... Might not be good enough for the worms
Quantum Aquatic
Quantum Aquatic - 9 years ago
+Jacob Perez Trust me it works. However, it also depend@ on your substrate. If you have thick regular gravel with no sand or smaller finer substrate mixed in, dont expect your tubifex worms to live. I am currently using carib sea eco complete and they live just fine. They eat the leftover food on the bottom and they actually ear fishwaste too and break it down to even finer matter for the plants to use. One thing you must watch out though, make sure if u buy them they are TUBIFEX worms and not blackworms. Tubifex are more redlike and as skinny as a fish line. Blackworms look the same but have a more cylinder shape to their body like am earthworm and have a redpurpleblack tinge to them. Trust me I put two tablespoons of blackworms in my tank thinking they were tubifex but they died I think because i dont see them in my tank and its only been 4 days. You also know when tubifex worms are lacking oxygen when they pop their heads out in the daytime. They shouldn't they should always be in the substrate and only pop their heads out at night when the lights are turned off
Jacob Perez
Jacob Perez - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Dave did you look into this or try it? Any positive results? I had this idea a while back but some guys said they wouldn't be worth the trouble or waste they produce. I figure they would be good for the fish as well since they are natural, reproducing, live food, and somewhat beneficial. In theory it could be an entire ecosystem completed.... But Idk. Thoughts before i go for it?
Quantum Aquatic
Quantum Aquatic - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping just gravel vaccumed my aquarium as we speak and as I was doing so I was barely getting any debris in the gravel even to no debris coming up if I stuck it into the subtrate, these worms are actually eating all the waste ! If u do experiment with them too don't just drop them into the tank sprinkle them around. I do have a yoyoloach in my tank though and the worms do breed but I have not noticed it just yet but I'm sure any fish can keep their numbers down haha. Night time they stick their heads out of the substrate I Dont know why, I know they don't like to be in the light though so they stay under the substrate most of the time but I do see them peek their heads out of the substrate looking for food or fishwaste to grab and pull underground. I really believe they do work !
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+derek brian That is a great idea! I am sure they will do wonders for your tank. MTS do the same kind of work and it is true that the waste they produce is easier for the plants and microbe to assimilate, they are lower on the food chain so it makes sense and it is more efficient this way. Great idea!
I will have to look into it. I may rather use those over MTS, unless they too can get out of hand.
keep us posted... Thanks for watching.
rexlinkfish
rexlinkfish - 9 years ago
Oh I love MTS.. I had them in my original 20 gallon multifaciatus tank and algae wasn't much of a problem.. Somehow all of mine died... Don't know how it happened... But in my 55 the tank is completely filthy without them... Kind of a bummer.. I need to get some more...
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+rexlinkfish They work wonders. I had probably my healthiest tank ever when I had MTS.
parula321
parula321 - 9 years ago
Nerite Snails are amazing at cleaning algae! They absolutely mow the stuff down!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+parula321 They are great, each one of these guys is what you will need. I may be getting a nerite and some SAEs. Thanks for the support 
Turbogeek 21
Turbogeek 21 - 9 years ago
Awesome video! :)
Turbogeek 21
Turbogeek 21 - 9 years ago
No problem :)
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+turbowaffle19 Thanks for the support
Carlos Ibarra
Carlos Ibarra - 9 years ago
i had about 8 nirite snails in my 60gl planted tank and they laid so many eggs all over my drift wood.  it was so bad that I had to through it out.  I dont suggest nirite snales.
FishHead Sweets
FishHead Sweets - 9 years ago
I just bought some Ramshorn Snails I plan to breed them for my new Dwarf Puffers!! I was thinking on buying some Tubifex but I heard it's better to give them snails to help their teeth get trimmed!!

Anyway i just watched a horrible video on a guy trimming the Dwarf Puffers teeth by cutting it with scissors!! I mean he has to anesthetize them each rtime he does it!! No way I'm gonna do that to a fish!
FishHead Sweets
FishHead Sweets - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping thanks for the advice maybe next month i will upgrade to a bigger tank but i don't think i can house some DPF anytime soon, my Cory Pandas are spawning and I need the aquarium space for the little ones that will soon hatch!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
I Know the puffers like places to hide, so maybe some jungle Val? That would be cool to see them swimming through. Especially if they picked a snail off of the plant! And driftwood shaped like a cave is probably a good option.
FishHead Sweets
FishHead Sweets - 9 years ago
yes thank you the snails are on quarantine now, do you have any plants that you can recommend that snails and DPF would be ebst with! I have Amazon Swords now but need to add more
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Sweet4 Tweeks Wow! That is a horrible technique. Yeah you definitely need some Ramshorns. That is the way to do it. Puffers are so amazing. I wish I had some. Definitely and all time favorite, they are just so intelligent and funny. Thanks for watching.
New Horizons Beats
New Horizons Beats - 9 years ago
Are siamese algae eaters nice to other fish? Will they be ok with my cory catfish and nertite snails
Desert Shrimp Depot
Desert Shrimp Depot - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping SAE's are only someshat aggressive come feeding time as they keep the cherry shrimp at bay until they'v eaten their fill - however the Amano shrimp gets in there and wrestles with the SAEs.  I find the SAE's also get lazy on the hair algae when there is other food to eat which they take from shrimp and other fish.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Goldfinder 9 They will be fine at least in my experience. Not a very aggressive fish. Just like to eat moss once they bet bigger.
Chaos2611
Chaos2611 - 9 years ago
My bala sharks will eat these snails and shrimp lol
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Chaos2611 LOL,  I hear ya, you are making me want to set up a Carnivorous African Cichlid tank with Calvus and Kendalli!
Chaos2611
Chaos2611 - 9 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping These clean up crew members look awesome but eventually they will be dinner. So i rather not lol Thanks for the info though.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+Chaos2611 lol, that is true. Maybe you could start a snail tank and breed some for your shark. Thanks for watching.
EthansTerrarium
EthansTerrarium - 9 years ago
Thanks man, I love your videos!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 9 years ago
+EthansTerrarium Thanks, I appreciate the support. I should have a video up sometime tomorrow. I have just been so busy lately, peace.
Jwhiser1302
Jwhiser1302 - 10 years ago
Totally agree with your list here, love MTS and snails in general! If you ever have some of that fissidens moss available I'd love to make you an offer for a little chunk or so. My email is jwhiser13@yahoo.com. Great videos man, also, loving that Jupiter stone!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Jwhiser1302 I will soon man. I had to chop the fissidens back, it got some algae, it is a really slow grower. It may be best to separate a portion and let i grow out in lower light. The Jupiter Stone is a pretty impressive stone. It still hasn't caught on. Only for people who want an orange/red looking rock in their scape. It is mostly pure crystalized quartzite. Thanks for watching man.
Alissa Springfield
Alissa Springfield - 10 years ago
I have a 29 gallon tank and I want to get a Malaysian trumpet snail but I don't want to end up with too many. I need something that can control them with out messing up my plants. I also want to get one nerite snail and a few shrimp.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Alissa Springfield You could get some Assassin snails if they get out of hand. Really they usually do multiply quite a bit, but stay in the substrate. If you see a lot of them in the day then you have a problem. They never really bothered me, but that is just me. When I would do maintenance I would pick out any I saw during the day. Thanks for watching.
Chainsaw Reptiles
Chainsaw Reptiles - 10 years ago
Any Ideas For Puffer Fish Clean Up Crews? But Great Advise I Few Of These Iv Never Had Luck With But I Will Try The Other That I Havent Ever Really Tried!!! Will Pick Up A Few Amano Shrimp!!! But My Betta Always Eat Cherry Shrimps Which Are Really Expensive 4 For £16 Over Here... Thanks Alot Man Subbed All My Tanks Are Planted Btw!!!  






-Chainsaw Reptiles ~Tom 
Chainsaw Reptiles
Chainsaw Reptiles - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping  Yeah I Have A  Cory That Is 12yrs Old XD 
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Chainsaw Reptiles They get around 4-5" max. You can always try and get a hillstream loach. Most LFS can order one for you. But I guess you already got the cory cat.
Chainsaw Reptiles
Chainsaw Reptiles - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping  Thanks Man Would A Bushy Work In My 50ltr Tank? Not Sure What That Is In Gallons </3  I Know They Get Quite Big 
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Chainsaw Reptiles Yeah they are pretty expensive here. I really don't have much luck with Otos, but everyone seems to love them. bushynose plecos work great unless you have a delicate scape. I am pretty sure my Hillstream loach out works my Otos. They seem to do a good job. Great for the planted tank. I don't see puffers harming hillstream loaches, big Amano shrimp may be able to handle it, unless it is a large puffer. Bushynose pleco would and should always work.
A T
A T - 10 years ago
Malaysain trumpet snails reproduce like crazy
ApocalypticStorms
ApocalypticStorms - 10 years ago
Ramshorn snails are beautiful so are malaysian trumpet snails
Bibin augustin
Bibin augustin - 7 years ago
ApocalypticStorms
Malaysian trumpet snail are good some have a light rose shell it's great
And breeds like crazy
ApocalypticStorms
ApocalypticStorms - 10 years ago
Typically animals that breed fast dont live long look at platies they breed constantly and under great living circumstances they live at best 3 years and fathead minnows they can live 3 years if they dont breed but if they do spawn they live only 15 months
Cuda FX
Cuda FX - 10 years ago
both are prolific breeders, that is something to be aware of. i have MTS and a random sort of very small button ramshorn snails. the latter dont seem to be very long lived, i keep finding empty shells in my little invertibrate tank, even though i dont have any snail eaters in there, that i am aware of. (no planarians there)
ApocalypticStorms
ApocalypticStorms - 10 years ago
I breed ramshorn snails (with zero effort of course) and i even have maybe 400 of them in my backyard pond
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+ApocalypticStorms I agree, people try to hate on snails, but usually they aren't a big problem. They can be though. I still love MTS and may get some for my current 40 breeder scape. Thanks for watching.
Six Beers In
Six Beers In - 10 years ago
nice vid man. Me and my show partner both started aquariums (him first actually) and been looking up info like crazy. Love that red snail, and actually want a nerite. My mystery snail is awesome for cleaning as well. 

I ended up with MTsnails after some purchased plants and learned to love them. Honestly they are pretty cool looking and barely seen. Plus they do keep that gravel and tank clean at night while your sleeping. I call them my shoemaker elves.

Now I also ended up with pond snails which are annoying but I have been "slightly" pulling them because I plan on possibly one pea puffer and they might make good snacks for it keeping it away from my pleasure snails..... 

I will say one thing for pond snails.... THEY ARE FAST! They are like little under water Roombas! Just flying around and eating algae off my walls and drift wood. Honestly they barely come out during the day to. 

at the moment my 30 gallon has
2 zebra danios
1 molly
1 platy
2 SMALL angels we just got
1 baby albino bristlenose
1 mystery snail and a few shrimps (ghost and cherries in there somewhere still I hope)

Snails are honsetly probably the best tank cleaners and much faster than people think. I watched my ones snail pick a driftwood branch CLEAN yesterday in no time. 
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Six Beers In Right on. Yeah, snails are good and people try and act like they aren't worth it. I have had great success using snails. They will do a better job than other clean up crew members that is for sure.
Glad you are having a blast in the hobby. Keep reading! LOL And thanks for watching.
007gametester
007gametester - 10 years ago
If u don't have the moss fused against something, Amano shrimp can be a HUGE issue... And flosses and threads don't seem to work... They leave some of my mosses alone, but the ones they like, they are long gone now... :D They also don't mix well with smaller slow fish. They attacked and killed some of my  cherry shrimp, Bumblebee goby in front of my eyes. And I feed them well with a mixed ADA AP2, TETRA orange tropical granules, NewLife Spectrum Community and half a cube of Hikari Bloodworms a day. I use a salt grinder to feed and grind dried food to a varied size. It works awesome!!! And I can control food amount a lot, with a healthy mix. Try it! You won't regret it. I have 300+plants (I started with) in a 53G custom sized tank... So size is not an issue when it comes to the temper of the Amanos.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+007gametester Haha, that is awesome you named him or her...LOL Sounds like a killer beast that loves to eat meat! I agree, shrimp are awesome and you can become attached to them. Just like fish or even more because they are so interesting. May just have to flip a coin and see what you get. Thanks for watching.
007gametester
007gametester - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Yeah. It grappled on my BB goby and bit it continuously. :( Did the same with my Cherry shrimp with more success. Luclkily those breed fast. Gobys are harder to catch :(. Her name is Phillip (weird, I didn't know 4 years ago that is was a female XD). The others were friendly, but they follow her. DAMN IT! And I don't want to get rid of her. Now things seemed to calm down, and I have only 2 BB Gobys left, but they seem to be doing fine (in terms of not being eaten). It is what it is. I have had Amanos for close to 10 years now. This issue started only 4-5 months ago, when I switched aquariums. It might have been the stress...? Anyway, it is still weird. I think another thing that pissed off Phillip was, that my Cherries were breeding like hell, and I had at one time over 100 in my tank XD, and they were going for all the top and peek logs, which Phillip didn't like... I don't have any other clue. Now my only choice would be to get rid of my Amanos, but I had Phillip for OVER 4 years, Isabelle for 3 years Twixie for 3 years... (I had more before I moved, but I wanted to ship them :) ) I wanted to get more, but now I am not sure. I know that if I would get rid of my old ones, it "most likely" would be ok, but  I am not that kind of person, and I love them... Right now, things seem to be ok, so I don't know. I will wait for now, and see. 
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+007gametester What the hell is going on!? LOL you must have killer Amano shrimp. I can't believe they are so aggressive and never thought they would kill other fish. I am more open to that than them eating your moss. I don't know, but I guess your Amano shrimp have a weird appetite. 
007gametester
007gametester - 10 years ago
Even worse, the aggression started with one Amano, and the others picked it up in less than half an afternoon :S. But that issue is not the same as my moss vs Amano problem XD
Mike Kollin
Mike Kollin - 10 years ago
He got caught in the pump and died... not very hardy... :) hahahaha.... 
jdssurf
jdssurf - 9 years ago
I know huh. I cut my arm off placing it in an airplane propeller. Guess I'm just weak boned lol. Good video bud.
Shiv M
Shiv M - 10 years ago
Hi, does the aquarium have to be planed for the armono shrimp or the cone snail to survive? I have a 28 UK litres tank which is getting algae and needs a clean up crew. I have rocks and silicon plants in there, with neon tetras, harlequins and a peaceful beta fish. Any help would be appreciated :)
Chainsaw Reptiles
Chainsaw Reptiles - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping  Haha IKr Really Sucks :( Can You Do A Video On Clean Up Crews For Puffers Fresh Water Puffers All My Tanks <My Puffer Tanks Are Getting Really Dirty!! 
Chainsaw Reptiles
Chainsaw Reptiles - 10 years ago
+Shiv M  If You Live In The UK Try Maidenhead Aquatics Or Hate I See Pets At Home But Try Avoid Pets At Home At All Costs 
Shiv M
Shiv M - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping thanks for the advice guys. I am struggling to find Armando shrimp where I live and have thought if getting a Malaysian Trumpet Snail, do you think a single MTS make a difference to my tank -which now has strong brown algae?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Man that sucks, but good point. I once had Geo Tapajos with some H. rasboras and they didn't touch one. So I tried 20 Rummy-nose and they ate all of them. 
Chainsaw Reptiles
Chainsaw Reptiles - 10 years ago
+Shiv M  Just Make Sure Not To Use Cherryshrimp For The Betta.... I PAid £16 For 4 And My Betta Ate All of Them And I Just Made A Order For 200 Of Them And I Had To Sell Them Once They Arrived 
Shiv M
Shiv M - 10 years ago
Thanks for the reply, advice much appreciated, can't wait to be rid of the algae and have a clean tank again
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Shiv M No, your tank will be great for amano shrimp. Just keep a scheduled routine with maintenance. That will help with subduing algae. As well you can up your husbandry to two times a week, clean the tank, filter, detritus and do water changes two times a week until the algae is gone. Or you can overdose Flourish Excel to help kill the algae. Or both.
EmoGii
EmoGii - 10 years ago
I was wondering is someone could answer a question I've been wondering, I'm currently in the process of setting up a 25 gallon planted tank, I have all the necessary equipment to maintain a healthy planted tank (so I think) I have medium to high lighting, co2 and liquid fertilisers, and I'm considering using root tabs as my substrate is simply pure sand, although I've never had any issues growing plants in sand alone in the past so I may skip the root tabs, anyway my question is this, my filter has a ventury valve connected to the return nozzle, and obviously that expels bobbles into the tank oxygenating the water, which is good for the fish I add, but would those bobbles have any affect on the co2 I will be defusing? I mean could the bobbles weaken the co2 and make it less affective to the plants?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+MrGman0909 For sure, no problem. Yeah just stick with those plants. It will work out great. Those are the fun kind of tanks that keep the hobby delightful. Thanks for watching and supporting my channel, peace!
EmoGii
EmoGii - 10 years ago
thanks for all the help though means a lot that you'd take the time to respond to me, also I think Ill stick to the plants at my lfs as the ph there is almost identical to my home ph its off by like 0.1 so the plants will settle in quicker. cheers anyway.
EmoGii
EmoGii - 10 years ago
wow thanks a lot man, really appreciate it, I've actually started to scape the tank alittle already, I have a nice piece of driftwood towards the left side of the tank with one large amount of java fern on it and one smaller amount, and I've planted most of the background with corkscrew vallis and regular jungle vallis, I just need a focal point for the right side of the tank and some plants to fill in the midground.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
What kind of crypts, parva? That is a good foreground. You could use dark green and light green plants to help break up the midground. Dwarf sag. and compact hygrophila would go great as well. And then a big Amazon sword as a focal point. You could try some hygrophila pinnatifida as well. It is a great plant and easy to care for. It is hard to get the plant to morph from emersed to submersed, but after that it grows like a weed. I could send you some when you're ready.
EmoGii
EmoGii - 10 years ago
wow thank you that helped a lot, and yeah the tap water where I live generally is at around 7.2-7.4 it may probably lower once I get some driftwood rockin in the tank but for the most part the plants I want to keep prefer harder water anyway (so I've heard) I plan on keeping crypts, vallis, and java fern, easy three plants to maintain and I've had them before without any ferts or co2 and somehow they grew ridiculously well, so im hoping this time they grow better. once I've added the plants I'm gonna leave the tank for about 2 months all the while caring for the plants before I start adding fish, I want the plants to really start growing and filling in the tank. cheers again, I was also wondering what other plants you think would go well, I'm planning on having the java fern on driftwood, the crypts for the forground and the vallis for the background, I have a rough idea of what I want but I feel like it wont quite create the affect I'm after, any tips would help a lot thanks.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+MrGman0909 It won't weaken the CO2, but it can aid in expelling some into the air. The two are independent from one another. That's why you can have high O2 with ridiculously high CO2 and the fish can still breath because of available O2. I just have a strong surface current 24/7 and then increase my CO2 from there. I have one wavemaker for the surface current and the other for aiding in CO2 distribution. And of course for circulation.  

Yeah you don't need the root tabs. I love low tech sand tanks. Especially if the water is super hard and alkaline. Makes for a very stable tank with barely any algae if at all. Sounds like a good plan! Funny thing is I was actually thinking about setting one up. I used to have one that was a breeze to maintain.
RadMax8
RadMax8 - 10 years ago
Whoa, selling the Ecoxotic? What happened? I have mine on a 29 gal and I love it.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Yeah, you need two for such a deep tank. Especially if the front of your scape is going to be a light demanding carpeting plant.
RadMax8
RadMax8 - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Since you've got a 40 breeder, is it just the width of the tank that was killing you? I'm probably going to be setting up a 75 gal in the next year, so I'd like to get an idea of what kind of lighting is going to work well.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+RadMax8 I agree it is a nice fixture. I just need more light on this tank. My UG and HC were doing awesome under my RayIIs, but I had two and only one E-series. My HC and UG haven't fully recovered and are just now starting to bounce back after a few months! Ecoxotic said they would send another E-series, but never did. I have nothing against them, but my plants don't wait and I needed to act fast so I put my T5HOs over the scape and now the tank is pearling like mad and coming back around. 
sxmxxl
sxmxxl - 10 years ago
Hey Dave, great video. Just wanna ask-- I keep a school of about 20 cherry barbs along with my 10 columbian tetras and 1 black+altum angel, and I've noticed that the barbs dive down to the bottom of the tank once feeding time is over (or near over) and start pecking at the substrate. Is this considered a 'cleanup crew' thing? I'm not sure what they're eating (if they're actually eating anything) but I presumed it was leftover food that escaped the feeding frenzy at the top.

Other than that, I've got my 5 oto cats to help with the algae but in recent weeks they've grown a bit shy and have stopped coming to higher parts of the tank glass to do their algae scraper thing. (I suspect the angel has been pecking at them when they do come up) What would you recommend to help with this? I've also considered Hillstream loaches but they're sooooo hard to find here.

Appreciate your help, buddy!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+sxmxxl Yeah man, the fish are just eating food that has fallen to the substrate. It makes sense the Angel would be aggressive towards the Otos. They are Cichlids after all. You could get some baby bristle-nose/bushy-nose plecos. Once they mature they get too destructive IMO for the planted tank, but as sub-adults they do a great job. Trouble is you would have to get rid of them later on. Do you have a heavily planted tank and delicate plants? If not, the bushy-nose doesn't get that big and may work for your tank. You can also get different kinds of loaches to help with detritus. You may be able to find a hillstream loach on the plantedtank.net forum.
Johanan Micaiah
Johanan Micaiah - 10 years ago
I actually like the look of snails, more than the fish or shrimp imo :)
Johanan Micaiah
Johanan Micaiah - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping Lol i would actually like to have that much shrimp lol
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Johanan Micaiah I agree, a tank with a million cherry shrimp can look pretty bad, worse than MTS coming out at night and seeing a few during the day.
Johanan Micaiah
Johanan Micaiah - 10 years ago
R u sure it was just your siamese algae eaters that developed a taste for java moss? Cos no one else every mentioned that
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Johanan Micaiah When I was new to the planted hobby I kept having issues with my moss. So I asked around TPTF and other forum members said it was most likely the SAEs. They said to get rid of them and see what happens. I am sure you can search Google and find some literature on the subject. Thanks for watching.
Johanan Micaiah
Johanan Micaiah - 10 years ago
Isn't anaerobic conditions good cos they remove nitrate?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Johanan Micaiah Yes, it does. In the planted hobby that isn't as much of a concern with the plants utilizing all available nutrients, like ammonium. A build up of nitrates in the planted tank signals an imbalance of available nutrients. Lava rubble at the base of very deep substrates helps to prevent possible anaerobic conditions. Within the lava rubble there is bound to be some anaerobic pockets.
merkin22
merkin22 - 10 years ago
Thanks for the info, but a 9 minute video that could have been 3 minutes long...
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Well most subscribers enjoy the educational aspect in my videos. Takes some time to explain.
The Glitch
The Glitch - 10 years ago
Ramshorns and MTS are absolute pains once they start breeding though, at least nerites cant breed in fresh water.  I love my ottos though, great lil characters. :)
Johanan Micaiah
Johanan Micaiah - 10 years ago
Why?? If they breed that just means there are more snails to clean your tank
The Glitch
The Glitch - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping I still put them in every tank, but they can be a pain when they start coming up for food during the evening, makes the tank look like some kind of spikey horror movie.   But they do the job and that's the main thing.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
MTS don't bother me. Only come out at night. If I see them in the day I get rid of those ones. I may be getting some to put in my current scape.
Agr414
Agr414 - 10 years ago
Great video, it's not often that people post videos on freshwater clean up crews. I personally like MTS and mystery/apple snails, but with the mystery/apple snails I never worry about them getting too big because my kuhli loach makes quick work of them once they're about a 1/4 inch.
SleightofHand
SleightofHand - 10 years ago
You seem to be talking more about algae eating fish/inverts.... Amanos, SAEs, oto cats etc... In my opinion cory cats + kuhli loaches make the best combination when it comes to cleaning up leftover food. Most shrimp will live peacfeully with them and break down all that detritus etc that you were talking about. Hope I didnt offend you or anything. I also speak from personal experience and probably some biased opinions so don't hate haha, I run MTS, cory cats, kuhli and RCS as clean up crews in my planted tank and would recommend it to anyone. if you wanted to deal with algae then your sucker fish, otos and SAEs as well as Amano shrimps come in handy.
SleightofHand
SleightofHand - 10 years ago
Ahh i see what you mean now
Yeah I agree MTS are awesome for all of those things and shouldnt be overlooked!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
I agree, they are great at eating leftover food, but that isn't detritus, mulm, parasites, bacteria, oxygenation of substrate etc... Which MTS do all of that. They are overlooked far too often.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
When I say clean up, along with most people, it includes algae along with detritus, bacteria, parasites, DOC, fish waste, etc... I have owned both Kuhlis and cory cats and would definitely argue a colony of MTS works better at reducing detritus. Plus they regulate the substrate and the water column \substrate interface, which the other cleaners do not do. Amano shrimp do more than eat algae and MTS mainly, if not only, eat detritus not algae. The fact that the fish are higher on the food chain makes it almost impossible to be as efficient, this is coming from my experience.
Glen Hawkins
Glen Hawkins - 10 years ago
For some reason I cant respond to your comments on my videos. But I did write a response to my 15 Gallon Tall Planted Tank 160 Day Transformation. But had to write it as a separate comment. 
F Faulkner
F Faulkner - 10 years ago
amono shrimps are NOT small at all omg those guys are huge compared with other shrimps.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
That's true, but they are small compared to most plecos, SAEs and other cleaners. Some people may want smaller species than those cleaners. I like that they are bigger than some shrimp. They are hardy and work around the clock. Thanks for watching.
FishyMats
FishyMats - 10 years ago
Be so careful with ramshorn snails, they can easily take over a tank, but it can be a great excuse to get a puffer!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
They can, but I used to have good experiences with them. Haha, that is true. An all puffer tank is what we all need.
Fish Tank Girl
Fish Tank Girl - 10 years ago
Great information. Thanks for sharing!
Dennis Wong
Dennis Wong - 10 years ago
This is good stuff... MTS are effective, but I really dislike them ha. Have you tried the bristle-nose pleco? Really good for GDA
Johanan Micaiah
Johanan Micaiah - 10 years ago
How are they annoying? They don't do anything bad?!
Dennis Wong
Dennis Wong - 10 years ago
Lol at your bushy nose experiences. I kept small ones at 2 inches and they kept the rocks clean. Can imagine the adult sized ones running amok though
Dennis Wong
Dennis Wong - 10 years ago
Oh my, poor LEDs haa. But I agree with your conclusions. Most Leds don't live up to the hype; even the BMLs at the top of the price range still don't have perfect color rendering (although the PAR out put is impressive, but then pay enough and any light source will give enough PAR) and I'm still supplementing with CFLs for visual color. Many of the other fixtures simply have lousy PAR levels; you can stack a few fixtures because they're slim but then the cost is hard to justify. And of course CRI issues. Seen many experienced aquarists go back to T5s.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Dennis Wong As well I just took down my E-series and plan on selling it along with all my other LED fixtures. Haha. I put up my 3x54 watt T5HO retro fit kit. Just made a DIY hanging kit and the lights are 22" above the lowest point and already within a day the pearling is like nothing I have ever seen, or I just forgot how good pearling can be. Every single square mm of plant leaves and stems are covered in bubbles and the tank is shooting up more bubbles than I have seen in a long time. Basically how it used to be when I used this retro fit fixture on my old scapes. I know BML fixtures are good, but I am going to wait 2-3 years before I get back into LEDs. These bulbs can grow plants. I used to have pogostemon stellatus and ludwigia glandulosa and nesaea gold all growing to full potential. They all looked like the plant profiles on Tropica's website. LEDs haven't treated me well and that being said are still expensive as hell compared to my retro fit kit. Anyhow I am feeling a lot better about my scape and so are the plants! And of course the CRI alone is enough to justify the energy consumption! LOL
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Dennis Wong They can be annoying. haha. Yeah, I mentioned it in the video. I just call them bushy nose pleco. I have had millions of those. Used to be way into Tanganyika Cichlids and breeding. Had one in every tank.  Although every time I put them in my planted tanks they destroyed certain parts of the tank. Once they reach maturity I wouldn't recommend them in delicate planted tanks. Mine were usually huge relative to the species. 
Ivan Dias
Ivan Dias - 10 years ago
What substrate is better for a planted fish tank, White sand or Seachem flourite black sand..? at the moment I have white gravel and want to upgrade my substrate to either white sand or seachem flourite black sand... and will this complete substrate change effect my biological cycle and existing plants..?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Ivan Dias Yeah it can mess up your balance. You will most likely have an algae bloom and maybe even an ammonia spike depending on your pH. Definitely the Seachem sand considering it adds nutrients to the tank. Although doesn't it have high carbonates? I am pretty sure it is geared more towards hard water low tech tanks. Are you going to be running CO2 and high lighting? Or do you do low tech with tap water? And what are your water parameters, GH, KH, pH??
Slim Tim
Slim Tim - 10 years ago
Awesome list and info, Fired Up!!!
njw1383
njw1383 - 10 years ago
Great information. I love your new intro. very professional
LISA AQUARIA
LISA AQUARIA - 10 years ago
I <3 MTS. That's right I said it. They've been a great addition to my tanks. Thanks for representing these awesome little dudes. You forgot to mention how cute they are haha!
Luis Q.
Luis Q. - 10 years ago
Good choices Dave only ones missing in my tank are the snails and SAE.
Quick question I have been looking at getting a power head like the one you have but a little worried it might be to much for my 24x24x12 Mr aqua tank I have seen there is two versions of the nano pump but not sure on witch to get I was hoping you could shine in on that thanks Dave awesome video btw thanks for sharing.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Luis Q. You'll probably want the 225GPH nano pump. It would work great for your size tank. Thanks for watching man.
Dee From Brooklyn
Dee From Brooklyn - 10 years ago
Love the video. Keep Em coming
Tony Gonzalez
Tony Gonzalez - 10 years ago
I have almost every species besides the hillstream loach. Amano shrimp will all ways be my favorite. They are also fun to watch and very active for me. I had no idea SAE eats java moss. Glad I got tons of it anyway lol.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Tony Gonzalez You need some hillstream loaches!!! They are super awesome to watch and really attractive and bad ass! haha. Thanks for watching .
FamilyMann 79
FamilyMann 79 - 10 years ago
Hey Dave. Great video! Looks like the plaques were delivered. Whatcha think?
FamilyMann 79
FamilyMann 79 - 10 years ago
Sweet! I also sent a few videos and some pics to your email.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Thanks man, yeah they came and they are bad ass! I love 'em. Plan on framing and hanging above my tank. Thanks again man. I will have to show them off in my next video. I will ship your rocks on Monday!
Kevin PhaM
Kevin PhaM - 10 years ago
Whats the substrate in this video? 
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Aquasoil mixed with Eco. Ratio is 1:1. With added DIY Osmocote Plus root tabs in the substrate.
Hmoob Thor
Hmoob Thor - 10 years ago
amano shrimp-- the boss and the bully

also I have a amano shrimp in one tank and I couldn't  find it...look everywhere..must be dried up somewhere in the room
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+Hmoob Thor haha, look around man. You may find one. Mine always climb out looking for food. lol
NoiseBeta
NoiseBeta - 10 years ago
Very interesting video, as usual. It would be awesome if you made a video addressing aquascaping narrow tanks, like what hardscaping materials are best, or which aquascaping style is the most effective.  
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
I have a design \ hardscape video in the works. Best type, color, how it will compliment the plants etc... I do talk a lot about scaping narrow tanks in my, how to create balance and depth in your aquascapes, video.
Erik Wappa
Erik Wappa - 10 years ago
He Dave an excellent video of your crew.
always have loved the snails can not live without them anymore.
Thanks for the info!
 
J Spalding
J Spalding - 10 years ago
Always great info from you. Thanks for sharing.
Ruben
Ruben - 10 years ago
Another great video. Thanks for sharing. 
Brian's Fish Tanks
Brian's Fish Tanks - 10 years ago
Great video Dave.  All great suggestions for clean up crew
jeremiemcd
jeremiemcd - 10 years ago
Great information,got to love the trumpet snail, I found in my scapes only to introduce the trumpet snail in the lator stages of the setup, some times they dig to much, makeing it harder for shallow rooted plants to stay rooted, great video=)
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+jeremiemcd It can be more of a risk with HC and others, but I had MTS in my setup and my HC was able to carpet without any issue. I didn't mind MTS because they only came out at night.
Lunmee
Lunmee - 10 years ago
Zebra nerite snail is cool but beware of hundreds of white eggs all over your tank.
I had one for about a year and had to get rid of it.
Oh and also it climbed out of the tank a few times.
Great video...thanks!
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+googlesux I know! I am pissed I forgot to mention that. That is their main Con. I will add an annotation. Thanks for the reminder and for watching.
Glen Hawkins
Glen Hawkins - 10 years ago
Great choices for the clean up and crew and I use everyone of them. Between all my planted tank I have tons of amano shrimp nerite and mts snails. Great Video.
shizdank
shizdank - 10 years ago
great tips! just dropped in some amanos in my plated tank over the weekend and man did the put in some work.
Gloday81
Gloday81 - 10 years ago
Nice vidoe thanks for the information
JCRocky5
JCRocky5 - 10 years ago
What's the name of the wave maker you have?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
It is a Hydor Koralia 425GPH.
Dee From Brooklyn
Dee From Brooklyn - 10 years ago
Nice Dave. I just lost my gold algae eater after several years and man did that bearded algae grow in quick. Lol. Good tips.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Oh man, that is sad. You can become attached to a favorite fish. I just lost my hill stream loach! It always sucks. Thanks for watching man.
thepokekid01
thepokekid01 - 10 years ago
The thing I worry about with snails is them reproducing like crazy and crowding the tank. Do the Trumpet Snails reproduce in the same manner? I would assume they all can reproduce A-sexually.

I also always hear people commenting about Amano shrimp as good little cleaners, but what about other (small) Shrimp? Is it basically the same thing? I've never tried to raise shrimp, but I imagine they all have the ability to jump? (My other concern is that they need to constantly breed as they are otherwise likely to die in a year)
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
+thepokekid01 Then what's the hold up. Buy some already. Haha They are hardy, large and do a better job than other shrimp, including the other breeds in my tank. They are work horses. Why else would Amano use them.
thepokekid01
thepokekid01 - 10 years ago
That's good to know, thank you. It seems relatively difficult to find those types of details on Shrimp care. I also figured Amano shrimp were named after ADA, lol.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Yeah all snails can take over a tank. I kept my MTS in check and they helped out a lot. They are not necessary, but improve substrate hygiene. Plus they come out at night not in the day. Yes, other shrimp will help eat algae and clean the tank. I am not sure that all eat the same kind of algae. Amano shrimp have a reputation because of "Amano" and because they do an exceptional job. I would imagine they all have the ability to jump and sometimes you catch them climbing out of the tank. I always have open top aquariums. That isn't an issue, without breeding they can live a lot longer than a year in my experience. At least with Amano shrimp and Ninja Bee shrimp.
Sean Williams
Sean Williams - 10 years ago
Good stuff Dave! Ottos are my go to fish, Ive found that with using reconstituted RO-DI water like I do and giving a good 2 hour session of drip acclimation before releasing them into the tank, Ive had a high success rate with Ottos. In my 20 long I think I have 8,  I had originally got 9 but one jumped out. Other than that my clean up crew is just a ever growing number of Fire Red Shrimp. I like these shrimp because they are still cheap, dont get as large as Red Cherry Shrimp, have incredible color and still reproduce easily. Its the only shrimp Ive ever had success with. I like Amano Shrimp, but they are too big for my tank, they would ruin the sense of scale I have going on. Good video! 
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
I use RO/DI and usually acclimate. I think almost all of mine died way of impeller. And others jumped the tank. That is a good recommendation. For smaller tanks it would be a good choice. Thanks for the input man.
NickMach007
NickMach007 - 10 years ago
Haven't watched the whole vid yet, but your whimsical comment about bathing with snails cannot go unnoticed. And I too can say this absolutely works, or my name isn't NickMach007.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
They leave a trail of parasites that then take over and regulate the health of your body. LOL
Rico Suave
Rico Suave - 10 years ago
Where do u get your inverts from?
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
I get all of  my inverts and fish from my LFS. Animal Ark.
Rico Suave
Rico Suave - 10 years ago
You need to be on mtv with that Mic
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Haha, it is how I function. 
TheRick2325
TheRick2325 - 10 years ago
Great informative video Dave.
TheRick2325
TheRick2325 - 10 years ago
+ADU Aquascaping as soon as you can if possible.
ADU Aquascaping
ADU Aquascaping - 10 years ago
Thanks man. Is there a time frame on those videos?

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