Pleco Eating All Plants!

[razer121]

my pleco wont stop eating my plants!! he is destroyin them, i mean theres bits of there leaves floating around the tank and some have even been stripped and are turning brown, i have wafers things for him but he still prefers the plants ive hear of stuff call driftwood but also have read that it can cause yellow in the water, anyone know of anything good for a pleco??

 

[three-fingers]

Plecs don't tend to eat plants, big ones often accidentally destroy them by swimming through them though.

I'd suspect the plants are dying off because the conditions, what species of plants do you have and what is the tank size/lighting? Can you take pictures of them?

Bogwood/driftwood is great for plecs, and I know my gibbicep and bristlenoses eat some (covered in rasp marks), but I believe it's more for certain species like panaques that can properly digest it.

Woods can leach out tannins which make the water look a bit like tea and lowers the pH, which is great for some fish, and most at least wont mind.
If you don't want the tannins from the wood you can soak it in a bucket of water for a few weeks or if its a small piece of wood, boil it in water.

The tannins would eventually be gone from the tank through regular water changes anyway.

 

[JenCliBee]

As three finger says, however plecs will eat plants, bristlnose been one of them if there diet isnt sufficient for them OR arnt getting enough food.

 

[razer121]

thanks for the replys, i would have thought my tank is fine lol, what tests can i do to check it all?? and what kit is best, its only the 2 plants in the far left of the tank that the plec seems to be attacking,

one of them is a ELODEA DENSA
the other is a ELODEA CRISPA

there the two which seem to be taking the most beating, after inspecting my tank even closer it doesnt seem to look happy, i noticed whit fluff like stuff on all the plants, the fish all seem very happy though none seem to not be eating or anything, but im going to continue water changing but i think i may up that to once a day instead of 2 twice a week....

heres a picture btw..

not very clear but the best i could get...

 

[star4]

Try feeding some cucumber, lettuce or potato (only very lightly cooked) your pleco may not like the wafers!

 

[three-fingers]

The Elodea crispa is actually Lagarosiphon major and doesn't usually do too well in tropical tanks, it's more of a pond plant, it doesnt even always fare well in coldwater tanks.

The Elodea densa is actually Egeria densa, and this is an easy fast growing plant, however it does require decent light to grow properly, otherwise it rots at the bottom and will only grow floating up beside the lights.

I cant really see that well from the photo, but it looks like you may have planted them in bunches too. They require to be planted stem by stem each a few inches apart otherwise they will just rot at the bottom as the lower part of the plant receives very little light and oxygen.

To the right I can just make out a red leaved plant, that may be a plastic one. If it's not plastic, it's non-aquatic, most likely a Hemigraphis exotica, I cant tell very well from the pic, but regardless its certainly not suited for your tank.

The plant in the front of the pic looks like an Anubias sp., and should be tied to the rocks rather than planted in the sand, they often rot if planted in substrate improperly.

Your water looks very cloudy, which would suggest a bacterial bloom and possibly ammonia spike, have you tested the water recently? Ammonia in the water could be harming the plants and fish.

Also, you never mentioned what type and wattage of lighting the tank has, there's a good chance it's simply not suited for your plants .

Basically, I don't think there is a problem with your fish destroying the plants .

 

[razer121]

i dont know what the plant with leafs is at the front, i bought it from my local fish shop, anyway i didnt know about spreading the plants at the back, would explain why there like that...how would i go about sorting it?? its impossible to move them without there leaves moving all over the joint! the lamp in the tank is from a AR-620T aquarium so i really dont know, its bludy bright though! wot plants would you recommend for the tank?

btw the pinky red plant isnt a plant.....its part of an ornament how long do my fish have if i have this spike thing?? im going to get a water test pack tomoz hopfully anyway, it would seem my crofts is out of them atm, thanks for the replys

one other thing, what can i do to try and prevent this ammonia strike untill i get the tester?

 

[three-fingers]

TBH, I would replace the plants. The rotting leaves will only make the water quality worse. Just bin them and start afresh with a few differnt £1.50 bunches. Make sure you can ID the plants at the store, any of the easy/low-medium light plants from the species list at this site are good:

http/www.tropica.com/default.asp

Water changes, water changes and more water changes . 50% ones daily .

How long your fish would last would depend on how much ammonia there is and how healthy the fish already are .

 

[razer121]

ok, well i pulled all the plants out and have disposed of the ones which were rotten. there is some which were not rotten so ive replanted them in a totally different way mind! lol
i tested the water, these were my results

N03 250
N02 10
GH 16d
KH 6 d
PH 7.2 - 7.6 it was between these two markings
C|2 0.8

now i have no idea what any of that means, is it ok though??

by the way the kit i used was a tetra kit

 

[three-fingers]

OK, it would appear as if you have not cycled the tank, as you have a nitrite reading (which is toxic to fish) and you don't seem to have tested for ammonia - but the rest of your results suggest you would have a high reading of that.

Basically, you are currently doing a fish-in cycle, very dangerous to the fish and could also affect the plants.

Best thing I can do is advise you read this: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=224306

Then go through these: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=277264

Sound knowledge of the nitrogen cycle is virtually essential for keeping aquariums, though it may seem like heavy reading it's pretty interesting.

 

[neo727]

I really do not know why people are saying Plecos don't eat plants. I have been watching mine destroy my plants. CHOMP CHOMP! I am going to try and get him some waffers. I did not know about them.

He has recently started coming up to eat bloodworms too. He floats upside down and sucks the surface of the water.

 

[scatz]

what kind of pleco do you have?
many need vegetables in their diet, if they aren't getting enough, they will turn to the plants.
i would say that driftwood/ bogwood is essential for a tank with any plecos.
check the link below for a great list of veg to try the pleco on
http/www.plecoplanet.com/forum/showthrea...10065#post10065

 

[CTlovesKS]

people say they dont tend to eat plants. I agree with you some of the way but my large common seems to do this... I even see him muching or sucking the plants. It might be the fact that the plant leaves have some algue or un wanted food on them, so the pleco is trying to get it off. and eating,ruining the plants at the same time... This is a thing you have to put up with. From all the plecos i have kepy (Common, BN, Rusty and clown) I have notice they tend to do what they want and when lol... sorry to hear it though

 

[paulbr1]

My plecs used to eat the plants until I started feeding them

Only joking, I feed Hikari Algae wafers, Micro wafers and Cucumber I have a good video I need to upload...

Getting the right plants can be a git - LFS IMO sell anything that looks good - - then dies.

Try as above for plants aquaessentials.co.uk are very good

Paul.

ps. good luck