What To Do With Empty Tank!?!

[carflo647]

i have an empty 12 gallon tank in which i now keep a plecostomus about 5 inches and 2 cherry shrimps.in my other tank which is a 12 gallon. i keep most of my fish:9 neon tetras,1 flame dwarf gourami,1 pregnant chery shrimp,8 cherry shrimps altogether,3 baby guppies,and.....hmmm,i think thats it!
 
 
the tank thats empty is a planted tank.well kind of.       !!!LOL!!!
 
please help im new to the hobby too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Ch4rlie]

 
 
You're in the right place to learn a lot about the hobby, we all were new once as well 

 
What kind of pleco do you have?

 

[carflo647]

i have a common pleco and ive had him for a year now

 

[Fluval-1200]

We all know what's coming........

 

[carflo647]

whats coming?

 

[Ch4rlie]

Oh dear!
 
Gonna try to let you know gently....
 
What Fluval-1200 is being a little cheeky about ( 

) is the fact that Common Pleco do grow big, and I do mean big!
 
They can grow over a foot! 
 
They are also messy fish, basically poops all the time, and tank will need good filtration to be able to deal with the waste that a pleco can produce.
 
12 gallon tank is gonna be far too small for the common pleco am afraid, in fact you may be stunting his growth already perhaps 

 
Really, for a common pleco a tank size of 55 gals / 200 litre would be the absolute, absolute minimum considered IMO, in fact I'd be happier with 100 gallon tank / 400 litres or more am afraid.
 
Here is a little more info on plecos, hope that helps 
 
http/www.planetcatfish.com/common/species.php?species_id=88
 
Sorry about that, but it is better you learn this now rather than later on when you may be having major problems with the pleco.

 

[Chad]

whats coming?

Size
Size, great size.
I agree with Ch4arlie. 12 gallons is not really a big tank so you have to be selective in the fish you keep and how many.
I use a list of criteria when determining stocking. Even though it seems like a long list it actually only takes a moment to run through it in your mind. Though I won't always disqualify a fish for violating a single one of these such as type of food, I do when it comes to temperament, size, and swimming requirements etc. I keep a small planted tank and a large reef tank so there is mention of corals which obviously doesn't apply to a FW tank. But inverts does apply as many people keep shrimp now. I once had a large female gold barb eat one of my cherry shrimp. I thought she was too small to eat the shrimp but I was wrong or she grew. So I'm careful about all these things. Often that means I won't by a fish I really love to look at but the local stores know me well enough to let me stare at theirs for a while.

1.max fish size
2.temperament
3.type of food
4.quantity of food
5.metabolism
6.fish compatibility
7.coral compatibility
8.invert compatibility
9.substrate requirements
10.swimming requirements
11.swimming ability
12.flow requirements
13.sensitivity to changes in parameters
14.sensitivity to water quality issues
15.sleeping habits
16.rock work requirements
17.lighting preference
18.body shape (deep keeled vs shallow)
19.territorial requirements (I can only keep 1 male clown goby in my 210 gallon tank and that fish is tiny).
20.escape and jumping potential
21.temperature requirements (temperate vs tropical also temp range and how temp affects metabolism)
22.growth rate

 

[carflo647]

thanks everyone but.....you see im going to get a 74 gallon aquarium on january 4th.do you think this will be a better idea or should i just selll the pleco now instead?

 

[EllieJellyEllie]

I think if you are getting a 72 gallon,. you need to really over filter it and you should be good. Maybe he can be you "Star" fish of the tank. But I would recomend double filtration at least, just make sure the flow isnt TOO strong.

 

[Chad]

Personally I would take the pleco back. You can then find one of the smaller species of pleco that will work just fine in a 74 gallon tank.

 

[EllieJellyEllie]

Like a bristlenose! They only get about 4 inches long

 

[carflo647]

I was thinking about getting a bristlenose but I think albino plecos are smaller?

 

[Chad]

It still depends on the species of pleco since albinism is a condition that can occur in different species.

 

[Tongue_Flicker]

1-2 feet long albino common plecos are quite commonly sold where i'm at so asking if albinos grow smaller is i think out of the question lol

 

[carflo647]

ok