My New Pleco

[gwugrad03]

Last weekend i purchased my first pleco. He is really cool and i have enjoyed watching him so much over the last week. I have a couple of questions how many algae wafers should i put in the tank a day? the package says 1 or more a day. That seems a little confusing to me. also, i don't think this is a big deal but i have noticed today that he is hanging around at the top of the tank near the heater. Not sure why he is doing this. I have some fake bog wood that has a cave area at the bottom but he doesn't seem to care for it too much. Any other ideas for creating good caves or hiding places for him.
Thanks for your help.

 

[tetraman]

Get rid of him NOW!!! I'm getting rid of mine soon. He will grow 2 FEET long. If you think you can handle that, remember that you will need a 100 gallon tank for him alone, and use a measuring tape to see just how ginormous he will get.

 

[nukeonekitty]

Well what kind of pleco is it before you run off and take it back!? Not all plecos grow 2 feet long.... if it is a common pleco then yes, it will get 1-2 feet! Read through this http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=132656 and http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=4578

 

[Glod]

Heh... panic stations all round it seems. Now you've been warned about the size some plecs grow to I'm sure you'll check into it.

I have 2 Bristlenose plecs in my 80 gallon tank, they only grow to about 8 inches. One of them has pretty much set up home on the heater casing when he's chilling out. As long as he's eating and seems healthy I wouldn't worry about it

They are really fun to watch as they clean the glass of algae and have made an awesome job of the algae I had on the plants in my tank. Great little fish !

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Get rid of him NOW!!! I'm getting rid of mine soon. He will grow 2 FEET long. If you think you can handle that, remember that you will need a 100 gallon tank for him alone, and use a measuring tape to see just how ginormous he will get.

hmmm little bit of an over reaction, do you knwo what sort of plec it is? or what size tank it's in? can you see something I can't in that post

yes if it's a plec that will grow big and you have a small tank it may not be suitable. but that's not nescessarily the case.

 

[dreamsphere]

Last weekend i purchased my first pleco. He is really cool and i have enjoyed watching him so much over the last week. I have a couple of questions how many algae wafers should i put in the tank a day? the package says 1 or more a day. That seems a little confusing to me. also, i don't think this is a big deal but i have noticed today that he is hanging around at the top of the tank near the heater. Not sure why he is doing this. I have some fake bog wood that has a cave area at the bottom but he doesn't seem to care for it too much. Any other ideas for creating good caves or hiding places for him.
Thanks for your help.

Congrats on your new purchase. I feed my plec everyother night. I put about 3-4 algae pellets in otherwise the guppies go mad over them. But just find a suitable routine that works for you. Like has already been said, if he looks happy then I wouldn't go changing things.

Bit's of pipe provide could cave areas.

As for the heater thing I wouldn't worry. My plecs crazy. He seems to love spinning around on a piece of air tubing and likes sitting on the bubbles.

Just keep an eye on things. If he get's bigger you'll have to either find him a new home or upgrade. But they do create a lot of mess.

 

[Kezza]

ive heard plecos will only grow as big as the tank allows, iv kept plecos almost my whole life and havent ever had a tank as big as 100 gallons, y the huuuuuuge panic?

 

[KathyM]

ive heard plecos will only grow as big as the tank allows

Not true. Stunting is not something you want to be advocating on a board where people come to learn responsible fishkeeping. It causes deformities, stress, health problems and ultimately death.

While I agree that there's been an over-reaction on this thread, it is most likely that it's a "common plec" and it's best for people to be aware that these (and gibbies and other large growing plecs) are fast growing and need a very large tank with superb filtration.

 

[gwugrad03]

he is a common plec. i guess that means he will get rather large. my tank is now 55 gal. thanks for all of your help

 

[Fat Boy]

Commons can grow to 1ft + and quickly as people have said but Plecs don't need that much room, even in the wild most plecs don't roam more than a few feet from the place they call home, and I'm sure he'll be fine for a good few months in your 55g ( I take it it's 4ft in lentgh ? ) if not longer.

A couple of bits of advice, 1st add some bogwood to your tank, they like a good munch on real wood , 2nd plecs, especially Commons, are the measiest things EVER so a good filter and regular maintenence is a must and 3rd regarding feeding add a few wafers but a good sign is that after an hour if there's still wafers in the tank you've fed to much, also they like a piece of cucumber every now and then. Best of luck.

 

[DarkEntity]

he is a common plec. i guess that means he will get rather large. my tank is now 55 gal. thanks for all of your help

Common plecs can grow to around 2 feet in length, maybe try to take him back or start looking for a new home lol