I need a tank cleaning fish?

A pictus catfish will get about 6-8 inches.

I am assuming your tank is on the smaller size given your fish.

Plecos are out of the question unless your tank is at least 30 gallons, in which case you can consider a clown or bristlenose. No common plecos unless your tank is 80 gallons or larger.

Otos would be a good choice. They are not aggressive. They keep to themselves and hide a lot. I keep them in all of my tanks (also community) and have no problems with them. However they mostly eat diatom algae. You should investigate why you are getting algae, rather than just getting another fish to deal with it. Limit light to 8-10 hours per day, and only feed your fish what will be eaten right away. Change 30% of your water once per week.

You will still need to vacuum your gravel and such to get the waste from the bottom of the tank. There is not a fish, shrimp, or snail that will eat fish poop. You still have to manually remove it from your tank weekly.

You need a little Elbow Grease fish – you can find one on each of your arms. The benefit of these fish is that when they are not cleaning they do not need to be in the tank and so don’t take up space or add to your bio load.

Seriously, trying to find a single fish that doesn’t all of your work for you isn’t the way forward here. Ensure your tank is not overstocked, keep up with the water changes, don’t overfeed, adjust the light levels to boost your plants rather than the algae, syphon your substrate regularly and then clean the rest by hand. It should take you about 10mins a week actual cleaning.

No fish is gonna clean your entire tank. Otos are likely to clean the entire tank of diatom/brown algae thoug.

Aggressive otos? did you see it being aggressive, cause they are not usually aggressive at all. They are omnivores, unlike most “cleaner fish” The require a steady supply of real algae. I have heard that some have starved after running out of algae in the tank because they never adapted to foods like algae wafers. Many people grow extra algae for them in another tank or a glass bowl on a window ledge.

They can be very sensitive fish, many are wild coaght and have trouble adjusting to tank life. they need to be in a school of 5 or more. you need to feed them algae wafers and spiraluna flakes and algae flakes if and when the tank algae runs out.

they don’t eat every kind of algae, so you have to be carefull to notice when the kind they do eat runs out.

It is never a good idea to add fish just to clean the tank. anyfish you add just makes more mess, wich is fertilizer for more algae, many times it is a type of algae that the fish will not eat. They should have a 20 gallon or larger, as they really need a stable environment.

For smaller fishes you can keep bristlenose catfish, Corydoras fish they are peaceful…..

Bristlenose Catfish are one of the most sort-after tropical fish asked for in an aquarium shop. Sometimes called Bristlenose Pleco, or Bushynose Pleco, these fish are in demand for their ease of care, resourcefulness and hardiness.

This wonderful bottom-dwelling fish is peaceful and unique, but above all, they vacuum up algae from the tank!! Bristlenoses rarely stop feeding and will go about grazing on glass, ornaments, plants – even the heater!!

Apart from cleaning the tank for you, this fish also will happily eat any dead fish, however this practice should not be encouraged.

Bristlenoses generally inhabit the lower strata of the tank, often hiding in a cave by day, only coming out at feeding time. Bristlenoses are more active in the evening and may be shy when first introduced into a new aquarium.

They are compatible with most Tropical Fish as well as African Cichlids and generally are very hardy, often living up to 12 years if well cared for. They can live in a PH of 6.0 – 7.8 and prefer a temperature of 26 C.

Bristlenoses are generally fed sinking algae wafers in the aquarium, however their diet should also include vegetable matter like cucumber, squash or shelled peas that have been boiled and softened.

Bristlenoses require many hiding places and prefer a well planted tank. They especially like caves, nooks and crannies to hide. Bristlenoses should be offered a piece of driftwood to chew on – juvenile Bristlenoses especially need driftwood to chew on for their proper development.

Male Bristlenoses can be identified by their “whiskas” around the mouth area; Females do not have whiskas. They will breed when they are 6cm-7cm in length.

even they get around 4 inches its peaceful to smaller fish….

There are no fish or invertebrates that will clean your tank spotless. At the most they may keep a small algae problem in check. The only way to keep your tank functionally clean is through good ol fashioned elbow grease.

Well I have a farlowella catfish in my 10 gallon right now, and he does wonders with cleaning the tank of algae. But my first choice would be shrimp.

I have a friend who keeps a couple of shrimp in their tank to help with the cleaning. I have no idea if they pair well with the fish you have but I hope that helps:)

I would still recommend the Otos (Otocinclus) because they are rather pretty and small like you wanted. Actually I’ve read that they aren’t aggressive at all, and they’re actually good at cleaning up extra food that the other fish don’t eat. Hope I helped!

Tank size so i can give some good unique options

Janitor fish does the job.