Stupid Clown Pleco

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Scott1980

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
Jun 16, 2003
Messages
114
Location
Maryland, USA
Ok, so I bought this Clown Pleco to eat the algae in my tank and it does nothing. I have plenty of algae to on all four sides. It's now been a week and it still just hides all day. There's nothing agressive in the tank it could be scared of, except a Dwarf Frog with a bad attitude that nips at fish when they swim by, :p but that's it.

:morning:
 
How big is he? I've got a similar problem with a small rubber nose pleco ;p But he's tiny, I honestly think the tanks algae issues is well above his capabilities. ;p
 
He's probably full, plus he's nocturnal.

Go in there with a flashlight about a half hour after you turn the lights off and he'll be busy eating.

I have about twenty billion plecos in my 70 and they still prefer the algae that rows on the rocks rather than the stuff that grows on the glass. :)
 
I didn't know they were nocturnal. That is interesting about them wanting rock over glass, because that's where he stays, between the lave rock. I've looked in there when the lights off for a while and he moves to a different position under the rock but that's it. 20 Billion Pleco's!!!, they must be really having a good time in that tank :hugs: lol

:morning:
 
I *never* see my Pleco out in the tank while the light is on. He only ever comes out at night, and when I put the lights on in the morning he hides again.

Are you feeding the fish algae wafers? I have a small Pleco as well and it gets lazy for about two days after I put a wafer in the tank. Once he starts eating algae, he sticks to the driftwood and rocks mostly, and only after eating all of that will it move on to the glass. Keep checking during the night for a few days and the fish should move around as it searches for food. I use a flashlight with a cloth over it so I do not spook the fish with a bright beam.
 
Scott, he's watching for you to come in the room... hehe :D

Out of my 20 billion plecos, the very large ones rarely come out as far as I can see either. I have a blue bushynose that is very wise and bristly, and insists on being upside down in it's cave all day. It has not come out during the day for years.

And yes they must be having a good time in there, there are baby plecos all over the place.

I think they're taking cues from the ever-breeding guppies.. :wink:
 
Hmmm... I'm afraid I'm finding the same to be true of my little Queen Arabesque Pleco. She certainly can't cope with my whole 55! I do occasionally wake up in the middle of the night and see (in the moonlight, well, really "streetlight" I guess--I live in NYC) her zooming around the walls of the tank. I think my plec can't manage all the algae in the tank usually. But since I've recently lightened the bioload (heater killed yet another fish even with a heater guard on it!), the algae isn't forming at all.

I'm more a fan of otos recently. Some say the otos only eat algae from plant leaves, but I've seen this not to be true. My guys ate both algae on my plant leaves and the rust algae that was forming in an uncleanable place in my tank (back wall near filter and rock). I do think that, since they are often timid, they need a little extra hiding space, though.
 
What fish are you losing to your heather, Madasa? I don't think I've ever lost a fish due to my heater. My upside down catfish snuggles right next to it all day long.
 
*Sati*

I lost 2 dwarf gouramis to the heater. And I think I see that one of Kuhli loaches has a very small burn...

Others have said that their heater never posed such a problem... Consequently, I've just switched to a safer(?) Tronic Heater (200W). Hopefully it won't be the same problematic piece of electronic junk the other one was...

I've found that, with heaters, cutting corners on price isn't worth it. Go for a good model that gives you heat settings on the heater, and which has a reputable name (e.g. Tronic, Ebo-Jager). The cruddy one in my 10 has a nob at the top without any numbers on it! The instructions say to turn the nob several times until the light turns on, then to measure the temp of the water after an hour and change the temp on the heater accordingly! Wha? That's a terrible, terrible system!
 
I don't know about your clown pleco, but mine is an algae eating champ!

I was developing an algae problem in my unplanted 12 gallon tank and I just don't think otos are all that exciting (sorry, oto fans!) so I bought a tiny little 1" clown pleco for that tank. He's just a baby, but within 3 days there wasn't a spot of algae ANYWHERE in that tank! I mean, the big fake log in the middle of the tank was covered in fairly thick algae and he ate it all.

If he keeps eating like this, he will be too big for the tank in a month and I'll have to move him to the 29 gallon. But for now, he's keeping the 12 gallon spic 'n span. :D
 
Lucky you, Mme.X!

I think otos are an acquired taste. I didn't like them until I saw just how cute the babies are (saw a 1/2 inch baby today at petco that I *almost* bought...) and really until I gained a respect for their incredible cleaning power! A functional fish doesn't *have* to be a beautiful one.

Nonetheless, I still really like these guys.
 
Hey Madasfish, I've got the exact heater your talking about, I don't know what brand it is or anything, but my friend gave me the 10 gallon, heater and hood. The light flickers on and off and it's really annoying and it can't keep the water temp constant at all, but I've never had it hurt my fish or anything.

As for my Clown Pleco, I just hope he starts eating sometime soon, my glass is looking scary. He's justa baby also, barely and inch.


:morning:
 
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