Any small plecos out there???

[Guest]

I wish LFS carried a better selections of plecos, if I ran one I wouldn't even carry common plecos, I would have 3-4 of the best looking smaller plecos and 1-2 of the better looking larger plecos.

I bought my common pleco without even knowing how big they could get. he's really cool and i like him a lot, but i don't know what i'll do when he gets to big! sell him back to the LFS i guess. Also, my LFS didn't have any other kinds like i see online! But he does a good job w/the algae. I haven't yet had to scrape any algae

 

[Big C]

After going around all the lfs in the area (6 of them) I found no dwarf bristlenose or rubbermouth, or queen arabesk. I did find some clown plecos at Big Als but they looked so sad, I dind't dare to buy them. I also saw the butterfly plecos, but I it was too LATE... I already had my heart set in a small gold nugget pleco. The guy at the lfs said that it will not get to big for my tank, may be 4"-5". It is adorable! He went straight to my anubia and did a good cleaning job to one of the leaves, before retreating to a small cave. He is not working hard yet, but we'll see after a few days when he gets familiar with his new surroundings.

Thanks for the advise!

 

[madasafish]

Good! You got a pleco! They are my absolute passion. And gold nuggets, though not incredibly rare for Loricariids, are truly some of the most gorgeous FW fish around.

The bad news... Gold Nuggets 1) get larger than that--usually about 7-12 inches, depending on the species (Baryancistrus sp. "L-18, L-81, and L-177 amongst them). 2) Gold nuggets are Baryancistrus sp., which are almost exclusively carnivorous. I.e. You aren't going to see a dent in your algae, though you may find huge rasping marks on any live plants. 3) They require at least some form of meaty food. Algae wafers will do for a staple food, but Hikari sinking wafers, New Life Spectrum Sinking Wafers, frozed bloodworms, etc. are your best friends in terms of his diet.

Sorry to burst your bubble. What I can say for sure is that they are stunning fish.

Check up on more info at: http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/baryanci/153_f.php
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/baryanci/154_f.php
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/loricari/baryanci/155_f.php

Oh, and make sure to keep your water quite clean. Most expensive Loricariids fare VERY poorly if even the slightest bit of ammonia is present.

Good luck!!!

 

[Guest]

IMO, for algea the common plecos are the best. They are just too boring and there are too many cooler ones out there to settle on them.

 

[Big C]

Yup! I got suckered into buying a baryancistrus!!! unfortunately I did it the wrong way, as usually, I trusted the advice from the guy at the lfs, but then decide to check it out, just in case, you know? I went to planetcatfish.com and, sure enough, here it was! This cute little baby will be just too big for my aquarium in not long, and also too big for any aquarium I will ever dream to have in my house... unless I move, just to accommodate a bigger one

He/she is absolutely beautiful! Of course my hubby laughs at my concept of beauty, but you guys understand! I don't want to bring it back to the lfs . How long do they usually take to grow to adult size? How big is the tank they need to be happy? Are FD bloodworms good for them (the paroblem is not too many of those make it to the bottom). I keep the water pretty clean so he should be ok with that.

He seems to be eating some of the algae, but if he doesn't do the job, I may have to get a couple of those butterfly plecos that I didn't like much to begin with. I gotta be careful, because I'll be overstocked soon.

What would you guys do? Other than next time do my research first and follow ONLY your advise instead of the lfs??????

 

[madasafish]

In all fairness, I have gotten *some* good advice from LFSs... There are some really great, dedicated store owners out there, some of whom are also passionate breeders or aquarists themselves. But, by and large, LFS employees are young and inexperienced, and only keep the job for a few months at a time. LFS employee work, it seems, isn't the best way to get rich quick.

You are in some luck. You have a 30 gallon tank, which will be comfortable for that guy until he's 5 or 6 inches. After that point, I'd recommend an upgrade to at least a 55 gallon to keep him happy. Ultimately, if he reaches his full 12 inches, you'll want at least a 125 gallon tank. Now that's not so unmanageable, right?

The gold nugget won't grow super-fast, especially if you keep his/her diet moderate. One of the best ways to get fish to grow fast is to feed them lots and lots of food. You'll want not to do this. Instead, an algae wafer in the tank each night just after the lights have gone out will do (he'll be more inclined to eat in the dark).

Aren't they stunning? I have a couple of pictures of them in my gallery.

 

[Big C]

Thank you madasafish! I already love the little guy and I really don't want to get rid of him.

Now the 55 or may be 70 gal is already in the plans... now for the 125... ummm it will take a loooot of convincing. We'll see...

 

[Big C]

He's DEAD!!!! I'm sooooo sad!

I don't know what happend to him, he was just fine yesterday! The water paramenters are fine and all my other fish ae OK. I'm going to the fish store to see what they say, but I guess I will not get another one like him till I get a larger tank.

 

[severum mama]

So sorry to hear about your loss! My gold nugget is one of my favorite fish, even though I rarely ever see it. Maybe it was sick when you got it, will your LFS give you a refund or a new GN? Like madasafish said, they do grow slowly so if you did get another one you'd have some time before it needed a new tank. I've heard that they can be somewhat delicate when acclimating to a new environment, maybe that was the problem.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Dont feel bad. I bought a GN pleco and put him in a very healthy established tank. Two days later, he was dead. As severum said, I think they are delicate when it comes to acclimating to new environments. Since then I haven't bought another GN pleco.

 

[Fluff]

Wow. Sorry for your loss.

 

[caribou]

I agree with Tony, a good pleco is hard to find. After visiting 5 different stores that labeled everything just "pleco", I bought the smallest one I could. He's already grown about an inch in the month I've had him so I'm probably in for some trouble. I really wanted a Gold Nugget or Bristle Nose but could'nt find one. I do like the pleco I bought though. He comes out a lot under the lights and is pretty active. He has a very tall dorsal which is cool and from my fish books I think he may be a Trinidad Pleco. Any input out there?

 

[Big C]

Hi guys,

I'm bad! I took the poor fishy to the lfs and they showed me a fresh batch of this cuties just ready to go... well I couldn't resit, I love them already! I got another one, just as cute as the first one. They gave me a $15 credit for the deceased, so it cost me only $10 (if I actually do the math it costed me $35!). I hope I can raise this one...

I checked the water and it is perfect
NO2=0
NO3=5
NH3=0
PO4=.25
pH=7.2

All the other fishy dudes are great, so I hope this one is happy in my tank. I dont have a lot of current, but i have one air stone that makes huge bubbles and one air curtain. Will this be enough??

I even budged and bought some of those disgusting frozen blood worms just for him!

He has been hiding behind the air curtain all morning

Any advise on how to do it right this time will be greatly appreciated

 

[Enigmatic]

I'd recommend a bristlenose as well, I have one and despite it's smaller size it does a great job.

 

[Big C]

Thank you Enigmatic. It was in my shopping list but I couldn't find them in the lfs in the area. I'll keep looking.