cleaner fish or disk cleaner fish in the Aquarium use: Do cleaner fish even exist? What are cleaner fish supposed to be? We must ask ourselves these questions as the question for us cleaner fishing has been brought up. Again and again one reads questions about the stocking window cleaner Fishing. But does this exist at all or is there a misconception? Even in Specialized trade you hear again and again sentences that you should use cleaner fish from the beginning. But our experience shows something completely different. We explain this below.
What do you imagine colloquially by cleaner fish?
Let's start with the idea of what one might understand by cleaner fish. catfish and also other types of catfish usually have the reputation of being cleaner fish in the aquarium. That's why you hear again and again that you should use this type of fish right from the start (when setting up the aquarium). Basically, there is some truth to that, but beginners imagine something completely different.
From the terminology alone, one can assume that these fish are responsible for cleaning and tidying up the aquarium. They are designed to eliminate a wide variety of waste and ensure a good biological balance. But this only works in part. We must first take a look at the waste in an aquarium.
What are waste and residues in an aquarium
If you look at the bottom area of an aquarium, you will usually see each one there lot of mulm and waste. These can fish droppings, dead plants, leaves, leftover feed and even off fish carcass exist (the latter should of course be avoided). Also Algae may belong to these wastes and residues.
Of course, many of these substances are not necessarily good and should also be removed from the aquarium. However, whether the cleaner fish are the first choice for this has to be questioned carefully.
What do cleaner fish like catfish eat anyway?
If you know what the pollutants and waste are in an aquarium and what expectations you may have with them, then it is time to know what a catfish or other catfish species like to eat.
Certainly a catfish will not eat fish excrement, you can be sure of that. A catfish does not eat dead plant parts and leaves either. Whether he eats food left behind is more likely.
You also have to go back and forth on the subject of algae. Algae eaters are mentioned again and again there, but here too there are extreme differences in terms of the respective type of algae. Not all algae are eaten by catfish, for example.
Nevertheless, such fish make sense, because different algae are gladly taken. That's why you see them very often hanging on the panes of the aquarium, because there they find algae that are eaten.
Antennae catfish can also get close to fish carcasses. However, this should be avoided as much as possible. On the one hand, dead fish should be removed from the water immediately, because they would pollute the water and the associated water values and, on the other hand, they are not food for catfish or other inhabitants of the aquarium.
So there are cleaner fish after all?
To a certain extent one could really speak of cleaner fish with various bottom dwellers in the aquarium, although we would rather refrain here.
They don't clean the aquarium and they don't eat all the "waste". Nevertheless, they are quite useful to eat leftover food from the other residents and also to reduce some algae.
Leftover food in particular can quickly become a problem. Therefore, these should be removed accordingly. These animals are particularly good at this. Be it catfish or others armored catfish. We have written corresponding profiles and guides for each.
But don't expect a silver bullet here. Unfortunately, such animals are always placed in completely dirty tanks and it is expected that they will then clean the tanks. Just because the owners are too lazy or too lazy for it.
care measures like Water change and Co are still the task of the aquarist and not that of the "cleaner fish". There is also each amount of tools that we have already introduced.
