Pleco not doing his job?

[FreemanG12]

I have a pleco that seems perfectly healthy and active, in a 45 gal tank with
African cichlids. He's been there a couple years and the tank overall is quite
stable and healthy.
Here's the problem: The little guy isn't doing his job. The rock structure and
the glass are covered in green algae. He's eager to eat the occasional zucchini
I throw in, but he doesn't seem to go for the plentiful algae.
I do use an anti-algae solution when I do a water change. Could this somehow
taint the algae that does grow and make him avoid it?
Any ideas appreciated.
-- Greg, Atlanta.

[patrick timlin]

FreemanG12 (freem...@aol.com) wrote:

: Here's the problem: The [pleco] isn't doing his job. The rock structure

: and the glass are covered in green algae. He's eager to eat the
: occasional zucchini I throw in, but he doesn't seem to go for the
: plentiful algae.

Not all plecos are great algae eaters. There are a ton of different types
of plecos in the world and even the "common" plecos you see in pet stores
can be a variety of different species. Some are better at algae than
others. You might have bought one who just happens to be one that is not
fond of your algae type.

: I do use an anti-algae solution when I do a water change. Could this

: somehow taint the algae that does grow and make him avoid it?

Stop doing that! IMO, anything designed to kill/destroy something else
(like algae killer and snail killer) can not be good for your fish or
plants (if you have them), ESPECIALLY if added regularly. My advice would
be to just manually remove as much as you can or try a different pleco or
other algae eater. Bristle nose plecos are considered one of the better
green algae eaters.

Patrick Timlin http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/4742/
pti...@geocities.com

[Nugent]

My sailfin pleco does a great job on algae! Keeps my 55 spotless! He
will get big, though, so you'de have to be prepared for an 18" fish
later on...

[Nathanael Henderson]

: Here's the problem: The little guy isn't doing his job. The rock structure and

: the glass are covered in green algae. He's eager to eat the occasional zucchini
: I throw in, but he doesn't seem to go for the plentiful algae.

Hmmm....since you've had him for a few years and still refer to him as
'the little guy' I'm guessing we aren't talking about a common pleco here.
:-) Without knowing what kind it IS, I'll just say that some plecos
really don't go for algae--some are mainly carnivorous, many are
omnivorous but would rather eat other things than algae if available.

: I do use an anti-algae solution when I do a water change. Could this somehow
: taint the algae that does grow and make him avoid it?

Hmm, I suppose that's possible. I really don't believe in
algae-killing chemicals--it's much better for the fish to just scrape off
the algae on the front glass and let the rest grow. (Algae scrubbers are
pretty effective against green algae.) The remaining algae will help
clean the water and you won't be exposing your fish to chemicals
unnecissarily.

Nathan H.

[Mark A. Stone]

FreemanG12 (freem...@aol.com) wrote:
> I have a pleco that seems perfectly healthy and active, in a 45 gal tank with
> African cichlids. He's been there a couple years and the tank overall is quite
> stable and healthy.

> Here's the problem: The little guy isn't doing his job. The rock structure and
> the glass are covered in green algae. He's eager to eat the occasional zucchini
> I throw in, but he doesn't seem to go for the plentiful algae.

> I do use an anti-algae solution when I do a water change. Could this somehow
> taint the algae that does grow and make him avoid it?

> Any ideas appreciated.
> -- Greg, Atlanta.

That's what I think -- maybe the anti-algae solution is mucking up the
flavor, or something. Did he stop eating the algae at about the time you
started using the solution? --Mark

--
The OSCAR Study Page is at: http://rgfn.epcc.edu/users/bh838
Mark A. Stone -- bh...@rgfn.epcc.edu
cichl...@juno.com
The ".Edu" meens i are smart.

[or...@abcnycap.rr.com]

On 10 Mar 1998 13:30:42 GMT, ju...@pconline.com (Nathanael Henderson)
wrote:

>: Here's the problem: The little guy isn't doing his job. The rock structure and

>: the glass are covered in green algae. He's eager to eat the occasional zucchini
>: I throw in, but he doesn't seem to go for the plentiful algae.
>

<snip>

What's causing that much algae to grow? Are you overfeeding? Is the
tank getting too much light? Are your nitrates high? Find the cause,
eliminate it, and you won't need an algae eater.
--

Larry Gamache N2YMJ

To reply, remove the
abc from my address.