SAE or Bristle Nose ?

[Kim Kipper]

My Sail Fin Pleco died a few months back after at the ripe old age of 13 years. 8.5" fish.

Have let the algae develop so new fish has plenty to graze on. Glass is getting green so time to get new. 180 Litre FW.

Quite undecided on which.

- Ottos. Would really like these but am not happy to buy wild caught fish that usually die. Buying 6 to get 3 that live does not seem right. Especially if caught with cyanide and then starved. So, they are out.

- Another pleco. Great fish. Full of character but after 13 years, fancy a change. Also - so much poo !

- Bristle nose. Interesting. Smaller size is appealing. LSF has golden variety which would look great with my black sand but have read that this variery can reach large size ?

- SAE. Seems to be the best all rounder. My concerns are as follows:
a) large fish if always very active. Though I've also read it is very peaceful. Does it really reach 6" ?
b) It is fair to only keep one. Have seen conflicting advice.
c) Can't make out if SAE's remove algae from glass ???

Many thanks in advance.

 

[BrianNY]

There is a dwarf species of BNs which only grows to 4". You can keep only one in an aquarium.

As far as SAEs........ I put 22 of them in a 125g. They do little if nothing for removing the algae on the glass. They are wonderful at tackling BBA.

 

[gheitman]

I would recommend a bristlenose pleco (aka Ancistrus). They don't get very big and are well behaved. Another possibility would be a rubber-lipped pleco. These stay smaller than the bristlenose and you can put one of these in a tank by itself. SAEs are the best at getting rid of BBA but really don't do much for algae on the sides of a tank. Otos are also very good at cleaning the glass and do well in established tanks such as yours but ideally should be kept in groups. I've tried all of these in different tanks at different times and like them all.

 

[Jchillin]

I will third the recommendation for BN's. You cannot get a smaller, harder working pleco than these little guys. They are constantly visible and are always cleaning something or another.

 

[bs6749]

I have 2 BN plecos in my 55 gallon tank and they do a great job at keeping it clean. The only bad part is all of the poo that is produced. I think I have a male a nd a female because only the males get the bristles right? I bought them at the same time (about 2.5 months ago) when they were the same size and now the male is much larger than the female. I have also heard that BN plecos are one of the better plecos to keep in a planted tank as they will not bother the plants other than causing them to uproot from the gravel. Also, these guys will go after other fish eggs if you are trying to breed. I am having this problem right now with my GBR's. I am about ready to get rid of the plecos lol. I guess I should remove the eggs anyhow.....

 

[Lonewolfblue]

I have 3 BN's in my 75G, as well as 6 Otos. They do an excellent job. And when I bought my otos, I had no losses.

 

[Jarred Darque]

I recommend a bristlenose All 4 sides of my 10 gallon wehre impossible to see through, and I couldnt get anything to clear the algae. This guy completely cleared the glass in afew days. Now I supplement his diet with algae wafers mostly, he seems happy. He is semi active, and is often visible during the day, and is not mean to other fish in the least.

 

[bs6749]

I don't know why, but whenever I try to feed my BN plecos algae wafers, they just ignore them. They may go to them and suck on them for about 3 seconds and then they just pass right over them for something else.

 

[BrianNY]

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/profiles/6_10_en.html

Here's an excellent profile on BNs

 

[krap101]

with the 22 SAE's do they school?

 

[toddnbecka]

SAE's are actually much less trouble to other species if kept in a school. Part of their aggressive behavior when only 1 or 2 are kept is lack of social interaction with members of their own species.