Otto vs Bristlenose

I have a 3 x 2 x 2 planted discus tank at 82F and currently have 2 male and 1 female bristlenose. They are fully mature and have bred a handful of time in the tank. I assume they do a good job of keeping the glass clean and scavenging what the discus miss but they keep uprooting the shallow rooted foreground carpet plant I am trying to establish.

How do people feel about Otto's? How many would I need to replace the 3 Bristlenoses? Do they do as good a job cleaning algae. Looking for someone who has owned both.

sorry, no experience on my part, but I would like to see a FTS of your 3x2x2 :D

I have and have kept BN and common Otos (Otocinclus macrospilus) for years, but in my Southamerican community tank, not discus. You need probably a dozen otos to do the job of one BN. Otos can be tricky, often they are starved beyond redemption by the time they reach tbe retailer - make sure they look reasonably plump and ideally should go in a mature tank with plenty of algae for them to eat, at least untill they start eating blanched zucchini/courgettes and other veggies. They are also next to impossible to breed so 99.9% are wild caught so possible carriers of pathogens (particularly flagellates).

Otos can acquire a taste for discus slime and can get pretty persistent about it and they can harrasses the discus.

Ive witnessed it happen in a 180 gal tank...good luck catching the buggers in planted tank that big!

I wouldnt recommend them.

al

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Originally Posted by brewmaster15

Otos can acquire a taste for discus slime and can get pretty persistent about it and they can harrasses the discus

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Especially at night when the ottos are busy and the discus are sleeping. Can cause discus to become startled and crash into the side of the tank...