What size aquarium?

[Jessie J.]

Hi all. What size aquarium would I need to house a group of about six bristlenose plecos?
Thanks!

 

[Colin_T]

Why do you want 6 bristlenose for?
If you want to breed them get 1 female and a couple of males and put them in a 3ft tank and do lots of gravel cleans.

If you just want a couple of fish to keep algae down then 2 or 3 in a 3ft tank will do the job.

You can have 6 adults in a 3ft tank but there is no point having that many.

 

[Jessie J.]

Well I wanted to have that many so I could have a collection of all the colors and breed them. Thanks again!

 

[Colin_T]

If you mix different colour forms in the same tank, they will breed with each other and you will lose the true colour forms and get babies with mixed colours.

If you want to breed them, keep each colour form in its own tank.

 

[Jessie J.]

I don't really care what colors they are.

 

[Colin_T]

6 adult bristlenose will be fine in a 3 foot tank.

 

[Byron]

Agree. Make sure they have several chunks of real wood; they need to graze wood for their digestive tract, and they will find their "home" in crevices or tunnels in a chunk of wood. Each BN must have its own "home." Males will defend their territory.

 

[Jessie J.]

Okay, I'll keep that in mind. About how many gallons would the tank have to be, and what kind of wood for grazing?

 

[Byron]

Okay, I'll keep that in mind. About how many gallons would the tank have to be, and what kind of wood for grazing?

The length/width is the more important for the fish to establish their territories. Volume however is also important for water quality. Like all vegetarian animals, they must eat more, which means more waste. Plants, especially floating, always help. Regular (weekly) substantial (70%) water changes, and keeping the filter well rinsed. Keep an eye on nitrates which can be a sign of increasing organics.

I use Malaysian Driftwood, available in some fish stores and online. Each piece is different because it is natural. You want "chunks" more than branches, and this wood is often full of tunnels and crevices. My loaches have a blast playing tag through these. Another advantage of this wood is it sinks immediately without waterlogging time. I have had chunks of this for over 20 years. All of my tanks are quite loaded with this wood.

 

[Jessie J.]

Well I was thinking about getting a pair of Albino BN plecs in the next couple weeks; I don't have access to Malaysian driftwood; will maple or crepe Myrtle work? Also how do I breed them?

 

[NickAu]

Also how do I breed them?

Well first thing you need is a male and female in the same tank.

Then a nice dinner with a nice bottle of wine and maybe some Barry White to set the mood.

But seriously, all you need is a male and female and a breeding cave they will do the rest.

Why do you want to breed BN's? there is no money in it.

What are you going to do with 100 to 200 BN fry a month?

 

[Jessie J.]

I simply love little plecos and they'll be wonderful for my other tanks once they start breeding. I can give/sell for a very low price any extras to my LFS as they are a small shop with only one or two locations.

 

[Colin_T]

A tank that is 3 foot long x 12 inches wide x 12 inches high or bigger, will be fine for them.

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To breed them, use ceramic flower pots put on their side and half buried in gravel or lengths of pvc pipe that are about 6-8 inches long and big enough for the fish to get into (about30-40mm diameter).

Feed them a varied diet including algae, plants, sinking pellets, algae wafers, any type of driftwood. If you have lights on the tank you can leave them on for up to 16 hours per day to encourage algae to grow on the glass. You can also put smooth rocks in a bucket of water and have that outside in the sun. When the rocks get covered in algae you put them in the tank and let the fish eat it.
Someone mentioned using a sheet of glass and having that in a bucket of water out in the sun to get algae on. That would also work and you get algae on both sides. Use glass that is 6mm (1/4 inch) thick and have it about 8inches x 4 inches. Make sure the glass edges have been smoothed off so it doesn't cut you or the fish.

Do big water changes (75%) and gravel clean the substrate at least once a week.

Keep the temperature between 20-30C (24-26C is optimum), and wait for the eggs.

The female (I got it right this time Nick) lays eggs inside the cave or pvc pipe and the male looks after them. The babies can be left with the parents to grow up and will feed on algae, biofilm (microscopic organisms) on the glass and wood, and the same food the adults eat. If you have some plant leaves rotting on the bottom of the tank, that is also useful.

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Most petshops buy small bristlenose and we had a few customers that brought them in each month. They made a bit of money doing it but the shops prefer pure strains, (albino, normal, etc). Most hybrids get sold as normals.

 

[Byron]

Well I was thinking about getting a pair of Albino BN plecs in the next couple weeks; I don't have access to Malaysian driftwood; will maple or crepe Myrtle work? Also how do I breed them?

If you buy the wood in a reputable fish store it should be safe to use in the aquarium. I do not know what "crepe Myrtle" looks like, and I have never seen it or maple in fish stores. You need wood with tunnels and crevices, though with lots of it you could build it up to have crevices.