Rubber lip pleco

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ashleynicole

Aquarium Advice Addict
Joined
Sep 12, 2011
Messages
1,787
Location
Florida
What can anyone tell me about their experience with rubber lipped plecos? I got one from pet smart and he is in my 55 gallon. Its tiny now, and absolutely adorable. I have such a soft spot for plecos, I just love them! Of course I looked them up and read about their size, diet, etc but I am looking for any personal input from anyone who has or has had a rubber lip pleco.
 
Great pleco. I have one in my 55 as well. Not real shy which is a quality I like. They do stay pretty small 4-5 in. max. Great cleaner too. Eats anything and everything fed to him. Keeps to himself and doesn't harass any other fish. Do you have any driftwood for him/her?
 
Oh yeah I have a piece of mopani and a piece of Malaysian. I also have two bristlenoses in there. I love plecos.
 
i love them there my favorite pleco i got one for my african cichlids to help with algae control, these plecos eat algae but i found him dead today and will get a new one next week
 
I have a rubberlip in my 20 gallon tank. He is kinda shy but he is usually in the back if the tank. I have a peppermint Pleco in the tank too that never leaves the cave
 
I've seen mine eat algae wafers, shrimp pellets, and zucchini, I usually put the zuch in 2-3 different locations because the bristlenoses love the stuff
 
Of all the plecos I've kept and worked with, the rubber lip is my absolute favorite. He never behaved aggressively and I never had any problems with him.
 
Can anyone compare what experiences they've had with rubber lip vs. Bristlenose? The rubberlip is pretty active but still pretty small, and it seems like they get a little bigger than a bristlenose. Which is a better "Alae eater?". I dont believe in fish for algae control and thats not my reason for having a pleco but In my opinion my bristlenoses get a little lazy as they grow or maybe I just spoil them with zucchini and wafers?

The best algae eating combo I ever had was a combo of true SAE , a common pleco, a bristlenose pleco, and otos. That was over 10 years ago but my tank was always spotless. Of course the common got big fast and the SAE get a decent size so take a big portion of available stock options but were also fun to watch.

Anyway Just wonder how the rubber lip measures up here. I don't have an algae problem but my slower growing plants get dark green algae and of course the occasional soft geeen on the glass that comes off easy with the magfloat.
 
I know most plecos are aggressive but my rubber lip pleco was very peaceful compared to every bn pleco I kept.
 
I never had pleco aggression issues. I mean they will push anyone away to get to an algae wafer but mostly mind their own business. I had a clown once I didn't care for he seemed a bit more pushy.
 
Update... the rubber lip had to go. As cute as he was I discovered he was rasping holes in plant leaves. I thought I had a nutrient deficiency but it was mechanical damage from the rubber lip. These guys have got some major rasping power! And yes I feed algae wafers and veggies like zucchini and cucumber on a regular basis. I usually do zucchini twice a week and algae wafers every night I don't do the veggies.

When I netted him out he fell on the floor and there was a puddle of tank water and I could barely get him up. It was actually like the sound of a suction cup when I finally picked him up! After his rehoming... all of my new leaf growth has no holes. (And there are still two bristlenose plecos in the tank).
 
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