Common Plecs ( I Think This Is What This Is)

[shelaghfishface]

my son very kindley bought me 3 of these for an early mothers day prezzie,got them home about 6 so not much i could do about it((yes he has now been told not to buy fish))
they are about 3 inches long,maybe 2.5,seem very happy,have really cleaned the tank in the few hours they have been in there, but i know nothing about them
they are in a 98 litre with dwarf gouramis,goldengourmis,and opulaine,water tests are perfect,and the tank was given a 20% water change this afternoon,the temp is currently 28 as i have started to turn it down after treating the tank for whitespot last week,anyway they are here now not much i can do except care for them,they are all in the same tank,should they be?
i do have 3 other tanks that i can split them into if need be,and already have some sinking food,so thats not a prob
as im a beginner at all this fish keeping is there something very very important that i need to do to keep them happy?

thanks for your advice in advance

shelagh xxx

pic of one of them

 

[paul_219]

Common plecos grow up to 18 inch. The tank is to small for them.

 

[mrbudgie]

Common plecos grow up to 18 inch. The tank is to small for them.

they do get big but not for a long time......


but if ya gonna upgrade in a year or so then coolio enjoy them, i have a tank with lots of plecs in,

1 medusa bristlenose
3 normal bristlenose (m/f/f)
1 royal panaque
1 rusty plec
1 Lyre tail (but i cant find its real name)
1 orangespot gibbi
1 whiptail

never getting any problems with them

 

[shelaghfishface]

definatley planning on getting a bigger tank thats not a problem, was more concerned about making sure they were happy just now

 

[stang1]

It does look like a Common Pleco and they can reach 18". You may be best taking them back to the lfs now before you get too attached.
Plecos produce a lot of waste, which means keeping the substrate clean on a regular basis. They also require plenty of hiding places as they can become territorial.
Ask the lfs if they will exchange them and get yourself a Bristlenose Pleco or something that won't grow too big.
Have a look at this topic to get a better idea of smaller Plecos.

30 Plecos under 8 inches.

MrBudgie - Have you got a pic of your Lyretail Pleco?

 

[shelaghfishface]

yes stang, i think thats a good idea,dont want to sound mean, but they look a bit scarey faced at this size,i would be terrified at 18"

this i may pass on this fish altogether

 

[stang1]

yes stang, i think thats a good idea,dont want to sound mean, but they look a bit scarey faced at this size,i would be terrified at 18"

this i may pass on this fish altogether

Lol. Don't give up on having another Pleco just yet!
There are so many types out there and they really are beautiful fish. I wasn't a fan when I first discovered them but now own 19!!! I would love to have more but am running out of space.

 

[three-fingers]

They are every messy fish wich can and will (if fed correctly) quickly reach over a foot long (up to 2 feet depending on the species). People often have plecs and say that rubbish, but thats because these people dont feed them - they just let them 'clean the tank'. Which isnt very fair to do, your stunting a fish's growth through starvation.

I know it's not going to be fun, but the responsible thing to do is return them. Unless you feel like an upgrade, IMO 3 common plecs would require at least a 5' long by 2' wide aquarium....as I've seen aggression between larger common plecs, but not all the time. As I've said, they are very messy so you'd be looking at a massive external filer too.

You should be feeding them algae wafers and fresh things like courgette. They eat alot.



I went away and left this message typed without clicking the post button...lot's of people will have answered you before this anyway .

 

[mrbudgie]

It does look like a Common Pleco and they can reach 18". You may be best taking them back to the lfs now before you get too attached.
Plecos produce a lot of waste, which means keeping the substrate clean on a regular basis. They also require plenty of hiding places as they can become territorial.
Ask the lfs if they will exchange them and get yourself a Bristlenose Pleco or something that won't grow too big.
Have a look at this topic to get a better idea of smaller Plecos.

30 Plecos under 8 inches.

MrBudgie - Have you got a pic of your Lyretail Pleco?

i'll try and get one

i think its a simmilar genus to the royal as its got the same head/body shape and eye placement and the white/transparent part to end of tail except it is almost totally black.

(shop i got it from aint to clever though, they sold me a moon plec for £11, i knew it was leopard frog lol,,,,, moon plec lol)

 

[shelaghfishface]

They are every messy fish wich can and will (if fed correctly) quickly reach over a foot long (up to 2 feet depending on the species). People often have plecs and say that rubbish, but thats because these people dont feed them - they just let them 'clean the tank'. Which isnt very fair to do, your stunting a fish's growth through starvation.

I know it's not going to be fun, but the responsible thing to do is return them. Unless you feel like an upgrade, IMO 3 common plecs would require at least a 5' long by 2' wide aquarium....as I've seen aggression between larger common plecs, but not all the time. As I've said, they are very messy so you'd be looking at a massive external filer too.

You should be feeding them algae wafers and fresh things like courgette. They eat alot.



I went away and left this message typed without clicking the post button...lot's of people will have answered you before this anyway .

yes i am feeding them sinking variety wafers,they are like little vacum cleaners!! and fully intend to get a bigger tank, but that was beacauce i have silver sharks in A 4ft at the moment.
but too be honest,if they grew to 2ft i would be scared, ill just take care of them till i can arrange with lfs i think

 

[xingumike]

Mr budgie, yours sounds like L90, papa plec look it up on PC

 

[raptorrex]

They are every messy fish wich can and will (if fed correctly) quickly reach over a foot long (up to 2 feet depending on the species). People often have plecs and say that rubbish, but thats because these people dont feed them - they just let them 'clean the tank'. Which isnt very fair to do, your stunting a fish's growth through starvation.

I know it's not going to be fun, but the responsible thing to do is return them. Unless you feel like an upgrade, IMO 3 common plecs would require at least a 5' long by 2' wide aquarium....as I've seen aggression between larger common plecs, but not all the time. As I've said, they are very messy so you'd be looking at a massive external filer too.

You should be feeding them algae wafers and fresh things like courgette. They eat alot.



I went away and left this message typed without clicking the post button...lot's of people will have answered you before this anyway .

yes i am feeding them sinking variety wafers,they are like little vacum cleaners!! and fully intend to get a bigger tank, but that was beacauce i have silver sharks in A 4ft at the moment.
but too be honest,if they grew to 2ft i would be scared, ill just take care of them till i can arrange with lfs i think

i couldn't agree more with three-fingers, on all his comments. if you are going to upgrade very soon, the tank for the silver shark, min six foot, may well be big enough to keep this pleco, providing its wide enough, two foot.