What Are My Options About Clown Pleco?

[zosiakiwi]

Hi,
About 1 month ago I got a clown pleco. I was looking for something that will eat the small amount of algea I have and will not grow too big. At LFS I got clown pleco. He is perfectly fine, sit all day under the bogwood and during the night eats the bogwood. He is not interested in algea but eats wafels. The problem is with the mess he makes. All gravel an plants are covered in brown dust - I think it is the bogwood he eats. It looks really bad.
I know that I made a mistake when I got him.
What can I do?
Can I try to return him to the LFS?
Will he ever stop eating wood and start eating plants?
Looking for any advice.
Zosia

 

[LisaLQ]

I'm afraid you picked a wood eating plec, that's what they do - eat wood and poo sawdust lol. My 8" royal makes enough poo to necessitate gravel vacs every other day - so I know where you're coming from, I put up with it (and laugh about it) because I'm a plec lover and knew what I was getting into, and love him far too much to give him up over a bit of poo. There are other small plecs who dont eat bogwood as the main part of their diet, but all plecs are big waste producers. You could try filling him up on other food (ie fresh veggies such as courgette, sweet potato, lettuce, peas etc) but TBH, he'll just do courgette/sweet potato/etc poo instead lol. I'm afraid it's part and parcel of plec keeping, especially with the ones (like clowns) who eat more bogwood than others.

If it really bothers you as much as it sounds, it might be worth returning him or rehoming him. If it were me I'd just up the maintenance, with a little plec it cant be so bad, but I'm a bit of a plec fan Otos make a good clean up crew in a well established tank, although they're not generally as hardy - and need to be in groups, so it depends on tank space (although they're only tiny compared to clown plecs - an inch or so in length).

 

[xingumike]

Hi,
About 1 month ago I got a clown pleco. I was looking for something that will eat the small amount of algea I have and will not grow too big. At LFS I got clown pleco. He is perfectly fine, sit all day under the bogwood and during the night eats the bogwood. He is not interested in algea but eats wafels. The problem is with the mess he makes. All gravel an plants are covered in brown dust - I think it is the bogwood he eats. It looks really bad.
I know that I made a mistake when I got him.
What can I do?
Can I try to return him to the LFS?
Will he ever stop eating wood and start eating plants?
Looking for any advice.
Zosia

If it was for algae control you bought him for then i would take him back and see if you can get a britlenose, much more effective algae eaters. He won'y stop eating bogwood unless he stops living, its a staple (and large) part of his diet im afraid. If you dont want the 'sawdust' then stay away from Panaques.

My L104 doesn't bother my plants at all thought tbh.

 

[Rhiannon]

I know BN's eat driftwood, but do they produce lots of sawdust poo like these clown plecs?

 

[KathyM]

Bristlenoses don't eat wood. They eat algae, but won't live off algae alone, and like other plecs make mess, just not anywhere near as much as panaques. A group of otos will clear algae in a smaller tank