/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/132656-30-plecos-under-8-inches/That's great, thanks for the replies guys.found the link:
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I'd say your biggest priority here is matching an algae eater to the temprement of its future tankmates and the water temp/current that your current fish need.
For example, unless you had a riverine setup around 22C, I would rule out almost all Chaetostoma and Garra species for a start, as these sort of fish need a high oxygen saturation to do well long term.
L270 eat a tiny bit of algae apparently
To be fair I dont have an algae problem, now and again I get some small patches on the glass, but other than this im pretty much algae free. I've necer kept a pleco before and fancy having one in my tank so Im thinking either a clown or a couple of pitbull plecs.I'd say your biggest priority here is matching an algae eater to the temprement of its future tankmates and the water temp/current that your current fish need.
For example, unless you had a riverine setup around 22C, I would rule out almost all Chaetostoma and Garra species for a start, as these sort of fish need a high oxygen saturation to do well long term.
chaetostoma species adapt quite well in most conditions, they will withstand temps upto 27 quite easily. The well oxygenated water is pretty much paramount to most species of plec so ideally keeping any plec will require this sort of conditions. Fast water flow is also a trait to most plecs but isn't a great requirement as long as it's reasonable. For breeding purposes then it's a completely different story.
L270 eat a tiny bit of algae apparently
At a juvi stage then yes they will probably eat a bit here or there but dont expect miracles from them because you will be very disappointed lol.
To the OP, the BN is probably your best bet, adapt to pretty much any conditions and are a relatively decent algae eater, once there at adult size they do tend to get lazy but still will graze.
I personally would source the algae problem, it's a far better solution rather than masking it by getting fish to eat it. The problem with plecs are they produce more waste than they consume so combating an algae problem is gonna result in a waste problem, so no real winner tbh.
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Then to be fair a plec will be a nice addition
Unfortunately the clown really wouldn't be the plec to meet your criteria, you will basically never see it lol. It tends to be one of the most elusive plecs about.
Pitbulls are a nice plec, stay small and prefer to be in groups so i would opt for 3 minimum, good algae eaters and even though small will quite often be out in the open.
Any plec will thrive as long as it has a good quality varied diet, as long as this is met you have the recipe for a nice pleasurable species which IMO never disappoints
She wasted no time at all in clearing what small algae I had overnight. It was weird to switch on the light this morning to see it all gone! Whats the best food to feed these, algae wafers?
