what size tank does a pleco need?????

[Arkie]

hey there, im about to set up my 3 ft tank for my bubby oscars and was wondering if there was a small species of pleco that would be able to live there??? i have 3 brown bristlenoses to possibly go in but im unsure whether or not my oscars will try to eat them when the oscars get bigger. if anyone has any suggestions id be glad of the help. thanx guys

[Dave66]

There are roughly 750 species of pleco in South America. I'd suggest going to planetcatfish.com and looking at the species. One that reaches six or eight inches would be suitable with your Oscars.

Dave

[Arkie]

cool, thanx dave.oh by the way is that a pic of your cat???? i have a lil black cat that looks exactly like that one!!!!

[TowBoater]

You don't need to put an oscar in a 3 ft tank.

[kimmers318]

A pair of oscars should have a large tank, around 100 gallons, probably around 4 foot long. One might be okay in a 3 ft tank, but I personally wouldn't push it. They need room to swim, and they are quite messy with their food which can make a tank go down hill fast.

[freshwaterfishlover]

3 Feet long tank as in 38g Long or 45g High? You could pass for one in a 45g High, but never in a 38g. They realy need a 55G or bigger.

[TowBoater]

Really a 75g is ideal for one.

[Lady Hobbs]

3 Feet long tank as in 38g Long or 45g High? You could pass for one in a 45g High, but never in a 38g. They realy need a 55G or bigger.

Where are you getting this from?

A 45 gallon tank is the same as a 38 gallon but 3 inches higher. Same exact footprint. I never heard of a 38 gallon long or a 45 gallon high.

If you can find either on a chart, I'd love to see it since it's on none of my 3 sizing charts.

[Arkie]

the oscars are only going in there for a couple of mths, and theyre all bubbys, the biggest is under 8 inches at the moment. i dont know how many gallons the tank is, its 3 ft long by 1 1/2 ft high and 1 ft wide. i do plan on getting a 4 or 5 ft tank for them when they get bigger but i thought that the 3 ft would suffice untill then. maybe im way off????

[crackatinny]

Mate obviously it seems you already have the oscars, if so, I would be on the lookout for a 100G at least real soon, I have an Oscar and a Red Devil in my 120G (4FTx2FTx2FT) along with a few other fish, and for 3 Oscars I would try to get a 120G.

As for Plecos suitable for your 3FT, have you condidered getting a couple of bristlenoses instead, I think they grow around 5inch, and they are great for keeping alge under control.

[Arkie]

thanks for the info, im getting a big 4 ft stand in the next couple of weeks (from a friend) so i might go put a 4 ft tank on layby and pick it up at the same time i get my stand. my oscars should be happy with that!!! that just leaves the problem of what to put in my 3 ft tank????????? lol

[crackatinny]

I know it all seems a bit disheartening with finding fish not compatable with tank size, but you will soon see what everyone means.

As an example, my nephew had a veiltail oscar in a 30G 4ft for 2 years, and thought it was ok, the other night he was up here and seen my albino oscar (in avater) in the 4x2x2 (120G) and commented, "seeing that one in there, I don't think mine was happy in its tank", but do you think I could convince him of that before? no way.

If I recall correctly, you are the guy from near Nowra?, Put up a wanted sign in some of the local shops around there, look on ebay and in the trading post, you are in a pretty good location. Try to get the biggest tank you can find and afford. A 4ft tank can still mean a small tank in reality when you are talking of such large fish.


As for your 3ft tank, I would go for something like peacocks, there are so many different colours in them, as well as a couple of the bristlenoses, they have the look of the pleco you wanted, and they are really hard workers, I recently got 2 for my 30G high tank, and they never stop cleaning alge.

[kid_fishboy13]

oscars and plecos...ugh! ive heard stories of plecos chewing through oscars and oscars eating pleco's eyes. but seeing as i have no oscars, i cannot prove either

[RobbieG]

I have a bristlenose too - they are great little fish - they really do look identical except for the bristles

[Arkie]

hey crackatinny, im near nowra but im a chick not a guy lol :ezpi_wink1:

[crackatinny]

Sorry Arkie:11:

[Arkie]

its all good easy mistake to make lol. so i got some bristlenose, 3 brown ones and my bf gave me 5 albino bubbys. they are sooo cute. i put two of the bigger brown ones in with the oscars and the rest in my community tank. ive got to get a bigger tank asap, have had some oscar politicts last night that ended up with me saving bert (my albino one) and putting him in another tank

[ozylad82]

in my limited experience i have found the best way to find suitable tank mates for any species is to type in the name of the species along with the words 'Tank Mates' and you should have no problems finding a number of sites with all the information you need including tank sizes. hope that helps:22: