New Common Pleco Is Pooping.... A Lot

[Inchyally]

Just wondering, is this normal? I just got my first Pleco, a common pleco, last night. I just got back from school to find huge poops all over the tank! I feed my fish every other day, so I did today, but nothing special for the pleco, as I wanted it to eat some of the algae. But are Plecos normally this messy? Thanks.

 

[indigoj]

Yep that's kinda what they do. How big is your tank by the way?

It is a common misconception that plecs with 'keep your tank clean and eat all the algae' - most won't, some will eat a bit.

The best algae remover is a scraper and sponge.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Inchyally

Yep, that's what they do. Check out the first picture on this old thread:

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...045&hl=poop

 

[Inchyally]

Yep that's kinda what they do. How big is your tank by the way?

It is a common misconception that plecs with 'keep your tank clean and eat all the algae' - most won't, some will eat a bit.

The best algae remover is a scraper and sponge.

The Pleco did actually clean up a bit of the algae already. I have a plastic rock in my tank that had algae on it, and now it's all gone. The whole tank though? Still quite a bit. Oh, and I have a 20gal, I am getting a 55 in the future and it is only at about 3 inches so far.

And thank you for showing me that Inchworm! Haha...

 

[three-fingers]

Welcome to the world of plecs.

My tank would look extremely messy without loads of plants and an army of MTS to bury/break down that poop!

 

[JenCliBee]

Yep that's kinda what they do. How big is your tank by the way?

It is a common misconception that plecs with 'keep your tank clean and eat all the algae' - most won't, some will eat a bit.

The best algae remover is a scraper and sponge.

The Pleco did actually clean up a bit of the algae already. I have a plastic rock in my tank that had algae on it, and now it's all gone. The whole tank though? Still quite a bit. Oh, and I have a 20gal, I am getting a 55 in the future and it is only at about 3 inches so far.

And thank you for showing me that Inchworm! Haha...

Unfortunatley even a 55g isnt going to be big enough for him long term, the usual advice given would be get rid while still small... most people wont be able to house a 12+ inch plec when you will need to get rid of him.


jen

 

[Inchyally]

Yep that's kinda what they do. How big is your tank by the way?

It is a common misconception that plecs with 'keep your tank clean and eat all the algae' - most won't, some will eat a bit.

The best algae remover is a scraper and sponge.

The Pleco did actually clean up a bit of the algae already. I have a plastic rock in my tank that had algae on it, and now it's all gone. The whole tank though? Still quite a bit. Oh, and I have a 20gal, I am getting a 55 in the future and it is only at about 3 inches so far.

And thank you for showing me that Inchworm! Haha...

Unfortunatley even a 55g isnt going to be big enough for him long term, the usual advice given would be get rid while still small... most people wont be able to house a 12+ inch plec when you will need to get rid of him.


jen

Probably the biggest tank I can afford is a 75gal.... I just said 55 because I know where I can put it, I could get a 75 but I have no idea where I could fit it. The guy at the fish store said it would tank 5 years for it to outgrow a 20 gal... is that true?

 

[JenCliBee]

Yep that's kinda what they do. How big is your tank by the way?

It is a common misconception that plecs with 'keep your tank clean and eat all the algae' - most won't, some will eat a bit.

The best algae remover is a scraper and sponge.

The Pleco did actually clean up a bit of the algae already. I have a plastic rock in my tank that had algae on it, and now it's all gone. The whole tank though? Still quite a bit. Oh, and I have a 20gal, I am getting a 55 in the future and it is only at about 3 inches so far.

And thank you for showing me that Inchworm! Haha...

Unfortunatley even a 55g isnt going to be big enough for him long term, the usual advice given would be get rid while still small... most people wont be able to house a 12+ inch plec when you will need to get rid of him.


jen

Probably the biggest tank I can afford is a 75gal.... I just said 55 because I know where I can put it, I could get a 75 but I have no idea where I could fit it. The guy at the fish store said it would tank 5 years for it to outgrow a 20 gal... is that true?

If fed correctly and housed appropriatly it could reach 10-12 inches in 12 mnths, so no the lfs has given tou wrong advise lol( not a suprise really )

75 g would be fine as long as it is min 4x2 foot, footprint.

 

[shadowhywind]

When I had my common pleco, I had him for 3 and a half years and he was allready about 12 inches long. I got him when he was still only maybe at max an inch. He was tiny when I got him. So yours allready sounds like at least a year'ish bigger then mine.

side note, I would try to get a pair of pitbull pleco's, they stay small and have done wonders in my 20 gal.

 

[Inchyally]

When I had my common pleco, I had him for 3 and a half years and he was allready about 12 inches long. I got him when he was still only maybe at max an inch. He was tiny when I got him. So yours allready sounds like at least a year'ish bigger then mine.

side note, I would try to get a pair of pitbull pleco's, they stay small and have done wonders in my 20 gal.

Yeah, I was looking for a smaller Pleco, preferably a Zebra Pleco, but no stores around here sold those, plus buying them online is really expensive. I DID see something called a Sunshine Pleco at a fish store, looked very nice, but again, too expensive.

 

[bagu]

you could try

a king tiger pleco
a BN pleco

bn plecos are amazing

 

[indigoj]

Just please don't expect a plec to eat algae - research their diet properly, many like quite a meaty diet, some need wood and plenty of veggies.

For a 20g a bristlenose (BN) would be perfect, when you upgrade then you could have a pair of BN.

There are plenty of plecs that stay smaller and will not cost the earth, for something more unusual have a look at whiptails.

 

[kizno1]

if your looking for a smaller plec then read this
http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=132656

 

[pippoodle]

pitbull plecs are great for small tanks and they eat a lot more of my algae than my bristlenoses do
pitbulls get to just over 2 inches i got 4 in my 120 litre tank and they are always swimming around together i see them a lot more now i have 4 than i did when i had 2

 

[Inchyally]

Just please don't expect a plec to eat algae - research their diet properly, many like quite a meaty diet, some need wood and plenty of veggies.

For a 20g a bristlenose (BN) would be perfect, when you upgrade then you could have a pair of BN.

There are plenty of plecs that stay smaller and will not cost the earth, for something more unusual have a look at whiptails.

(Kind of a late reponse.... sorry)

Me Pleco did clear the tank of all algae within a day or two, but I do know that he would starve on a diet of that only.

Yeah, I didn't know Plecos ate meat based foods, I thought they were purely vegetarian fish, I was proved wrong when he started eating my Cory's shrimp pellet. But I have been dropping in algae wafers every 3 days for him. Any other recommended foods?