Plecos + cichlids?

[loachy dance]

I have been thinking of converting a 55 g with resonably hard water to a cochlid tank. It has other things n it currently, but when it converts only the 2 bristle noses will be in there.
So here is the thing, i want colorful cichlids that wont harm the plecs, but i keep getting diiferent reports n which ones are safe. Please dont suggest angels, my waters to hard, thanx.

 

[DragonFish71]

Well, do you like dwarf type cichlids?

kribinsis

laetacaras

apistos

rams (bolivan or germans)

jewels

When you get into the larger species, that's when the aggression is harder to judge. My Jack Dempsey is a wuss. He's scared of anything that looks like a minnow. Whereas someone else's JD would tear into anything that looks like food.

 

[loachy dance]

Il look up the 2nd one. I think rams still often fall into that soft water category. Yes i like kribs, still thinking though.

 

[loachy dance]

Ive heard of people having probs between yellow labs and plecos, but would rusty cichlids be this rough?

 

[swifty]

Bristlenose are generally fine with most cichlids up to 6". I'll agree that it's hit or miss with bigger ones. Maybe if the larger cichlid grew up with a pleco they'd be more tolerant.

My firemouth, con, and JD are fine with my pleco. She is in fact the tank boss. She's just under 4". Granted, the JD is still small (near 4") but my year and a half FM (also near 4") has always reacted to her that way. The con and jd will have their occasional stand-offs, then the FM swims in and they both scatter, then the bristlenose comes and all 3 of them swim off. Really a sight to see.

On the other hand, when I had a GT that was about 7", the bristlenose were a no-go. He ate up a 1 inch baby (really stupid looking back, although there was 1 hiding spot I was sure he couldn't get into) and killed the 4" one.