I think i have a problem

[wesa]

Guess what, my mom just went out and bought me a common pleco and a big snail today. He's about 3.5" long and has already taken over my rainbow shark's cave. I put in a dif. cave though. It scared the crap out of me when i saw it sucking on a tall cave. But when i turned on the light it went crazy and ducked into the cave. He's pretty cool though.
What size of tank should i get him when he gets too big? Would he be all right in a 55 gallon?
It sucks my mom won't let me take it back.

 

[CatLover]

A 55G would be an absolute minimum for him. My pleco is 13 inches and actually a 75G is the minimum for him.
If your pleco lives a long, healthy life, he will reach 13 inches at least.

 

[wesa]

how fast will it grow? When should i move it

 

[Perky]

The Common should get a 6x6x2 coz they will get to 18 inches and I have seen bigger. They also make a lot of mess so they need a bigger tank so there waste doesn't get too much for thetank to sustain. Otherwise they are easy to care for, give them a varied diet and don't keep them with flat fish like discus

 

[cryosi]

nice large external filter, big tank, and plently of time one of my plecs is now almost 10 years old and still going, up to 25 years i believe same as synodontis species. good luck

 

[wesa]

Why is he so scared of the light? I feed him sinking shrimp pellets but he won't eat them. I'll also get some type of sinking algae food. Any other food suggestions?Should i feed him at night or is he just getting used to the tank? I have the window open next to the tank to let algae grow better.

 

[drobbins27]

Hes scared of the light because plecos are nocturnal. If you want somefood for him, get some Algae discs orput in some zucchini

 

[Doggfather]

cucember an lettuce also work, just weigh them down with a plant magent so they sink.

As stated, don't keep them with flat fish such as disucs beucase they will often try and suck on their sides.

 

[wesa]

I can't move my angel fish right now, so does it damage flat fish when plecos do this?

 

[Cheese Specialist]

I can't move my angel fish right now, so does it damage flat fish when plecos do this?

To be honest, I don't really believe all this about plecs sucking onto the sides of flat fish. I ave 4 angels in with my 2 plecs (not common) and they never really come into contact with each other.

I wouldn't worry about it for now. Just make sure to feed him. Situations where plecs have sucked onto the side of goldfish (when I was a member of a g/f forum) was 9 times out of 10 a result of the plec never being fed because they were seen as simple scavengers.

 

[wesa]

How much does a hang over the back filter usually cost? ($) All i have right now is an undergravel one.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi wesa

This link will take you to an AquaClear 300 model filter which would be a good one for your tank. You can see it and get an idea of the price.

http/www.petdiscounters.com/aquarium/fil.../ha_ac_300.html

You might find a better price locally. It usually pays to shop around.