Whats the smallest varietes of tropical cleaner type fish I can get? I want one that ideally deals with the waste products. Of course I have a biological filter and I do weekly water changes but I would like a helping hand breaking down the waste. The smaller the better really as it’s getting to the full stage in the tank.
No fish that I know of or invertebrate either , will eat waste in the aquarium….there are lots that eat left over food and or algae. Cory cats come to mind and are social and fun to watch…they remind me of a litter of puppies playing together. good luck
no fish will eat fish poopy, and no animals will keep your tank clean, what goes in must come out!
what size is your tank and what do you have stocked?
if you are finding yourself with a lot of left over food, feed less!
if you really really want a scavenger, invest in a small group of ghost shrimp, they don’t really eat algae, but will pick at left overs and don’t add too much to the bioload. ghost shrimp can be seen as dinner by many fish, so getting those depends on what you have already.
There aren’t many options for an animal that will consume fish waste. There are some snails that will however, despite what you may hear. From the family Physidae come the genera Physa. Commonly known as “pond snails”, “tadpole snails” and “pouch snails”. These are the small football shaped snails that are often seen inhabiting tanks at local pet stores (also in local ponds and marshes). They eat mainly fish waste, excess food and algae, but will “nibble” live plants too. Their shell is sinistral (left turned) with the lung opening also on the left. They are hermaphroditic; both male and female at one time but require two individuals to breed. They lay gelatinous egg clutches usually underwater that hatch in one to two weeks at approximately 75 degrees. They are considered pests because of their rapid reproduction and hence population explosions, along with resulting plant damage.
EDIT: As I said before, despite what some people might believe there are definitely some invertebrates and mollusks that will consume fish detritus. The snails I mentioned above being one of them. Detritus is also an important part of freshwater crayfish’s diet throughout all stages of their lives. I should point out that no animal can rely on waste totally and should be offered nutritious food regularly.
Many people see bottom feeders and mistakenly think they are eating poop because they are scavenging at the bottom. No bottom feeder, snails or shrimps will eat waste matter, they’ll only add to it. To control the amount of waste, simply feed less (what goes in comes out) and do gravel vacuums besides water changes. A small group of corydoras & freshwater shrimps can help with some of the uneaten food, snails also do the job but will probably breed like crazy.