Do Siamese Algae Eaters Eat Diatoms?

Last Updated on January 29, 2021 by cmoarz

If you have a diatom issue in your tank, and your wondering if you should get Siamese algae eaters to take care of it, The answer is no.

While the Siamese algae eaters will do wonders at cleaning up many types of hair algae and other algae, they don’t particularly care for diatoms. You may on occasion see them nibbling on it, but overall they won’t eat the stuff.

So what species will?

Rather than Siamese algae eaters, The main alternative for diatoms are Chinese algae eaters. These guy’s will aggressively chow down on the brown algae before it even has a chance to establish itself again.

Unfortunatly, along with their amazingly aggressive apptitie is their amazingly aggressive social skills. Chinese algae fish are not a peaceful tank mate and will cause many issue if placed in a tank with incompatible species.

So because of that, the Chinese algae eaters aren’t always going to be the best option for your aquarium.

Your second-best bet is going to be nerite snails. Nerite snails love to snack on diatoms and will eat them up real fast. They will also make sure they don’t come back!

Nerite snails are the go too for keeping diatoms in check for many people. Their peaceful nature and high compatibility with other species make them the ideal vacuum cleaner for many types of algae, including brow hair/diatoms.

In conclusion

Siamese Algae Eaters really aren’t great for eating Diatoms. They get fat and lazy as they get older and become less and less interested in actually eating it, even if they may graze on it when they are younger.

Your better off with the more aggressive Chinese algae eater, or a peaceful and lovable nerite snail.

You may also consider removing all the diatoms from your tank by following our suggestions here. While this article is more geared towards saltwater, it’s tips will also help with fresh water.