# clown pleco..any info appreciated



## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

ok, so what do ppl know about clown plecos? i bought one, and want to keep him/her happy. i bought algea wafers, and he protects them like theyre pleco gold! hes very cute and tiny still. any info would be great, like how big will he/she grow? the LFS boy told me 6 inches, but they sometimes dont know what theyre talking about...

also, id like to get some driftwood...BA on kennedy doesnt have any, does anyone know of a LFS that has some right now? and then oh gosh, ill have to know what to do with it...


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## characinfan (Dec 24, 2008)

I'm not a pleco expert, but I do know that you should give it veggies. Plecos like good aeration and water movement. They also eat wood and need driftwood in the tank to do well. I think there's info about how to prep driftwood in other threads, but, basically, if you buy some from a fish place, it will be pre-cleaned to remove fungus. Just soak it for a few days in a bucket of water. It will probably float and leach lots of tannins. It might take months to sink. The tannins make the water brown but won't hurt your fish. Just keep up the water changes and use fresh carbon and you'll be fine.


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## daking (Mar 6, 2008)

Like above, I am not an expert. BUT i have had one, i am looking for more. Mine hasnt grown over 2 inch's (estimate on teh high side). I have had him.. or her.. for about a year. it just hangs out under drift wood or rocks.. oddly enough, it comes out when we have people over, but do you think he would come out when I want to see him? nooooo


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## newbiefishfanatic (Dec 11, 2008)

lol i got mine from big als on kennedy road. they have quite a few if your interested. they are all about 1.5 inches and they are only $3.99 ea. eventually, i want to get some zebra plecs, but i want to make sure i can keep a $3 plec alive before i run out and spend about $500+ on 2. 

is yours aggressive? mine will launch himself at anybody who comes near his algea waffer. very cute, but wow. i didnt think they very supposed to be aggressive towards other fish. maybe if i go get a couple more, he/she will settle down a bit.


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## ameekplec. (May 1, 2008)

Clown plecs are panaques, so they need wood as part of their diet. Use softer woods like wood from fruit trees if you have access to them. Make sure to strip the bark. The malaysian DW is also appreciated, but it takes a bit longer to get softer. The mopani is no good, as it's too hard and doesn't soften easily.

In terms of other things, I'd have lots of flow and really make sure you have lots of filtration.


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## blossom112 (Mar 19, 2008)

english cucumbers are best as they dont foul water as much as the reg ones ,sweet potato ,zuccini carrots etc ..just wash well some say par boil 2 min then cool slice 1 slice for 1 is good weigh it down with a spoon maybe stainless steel.
just remember these are different then the zebras , zebras are meat eaters and not wood eaters (so i have read) .
but the vegie eaters are good to get the experiance you need .
they like highter temps too .
you could also try sinking shrimp pellets see if he/she likes them .
a cave would be good so he has a secrure place to go and feel comphy.
WTG congrats 
I probably have an extra peice of wood i could spare lol got it coming outa my ears lol


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## ameekplec. (May 1, 2008)

Have a read on theis planet catfish page:
http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=734

As an aside, PC is a great storehouse of all catfish knowledge, plecs included. Lots of articles on keeping and breeding plecs and other catfish too. A must read, and their species profiles are fairly good too.

If these are your first plecs, or you're still a newbie with plecs, I'd read over their plec information pages - it explains a lot about plec husbandry.


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## Katalyst (Jul 29, 2007)

http://www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/species.php?species_id=734


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