Starting over with a pleco and a rapheal....

[Pixxie75]

I have a 20 gallon that is cycled and 2 fish a pleco and a rapheal... what can I put in there with them, and should the pleco go back until the tank is older or I move into the 150 gallon tank with more fish so he has more to eat????

[madagascariensis]

If your pleco is a Common pleco then it will certainly outgrow that tank. I'm not too sure with Raphael cats but I think they get large too. I am not too sure what you mean wi having more fish so that the pleco has more to eat. Do you mean that the pleco will eat waste from other fish? No fish eats waste from other fish. A healthy diet for a pleco would consist of fresh vegetables(slices of cucumber, etc) and algae wafers.

[talldutchie]

Pleco need their own food, not other fishes' waste and left overs. There's 1189 species listed that could qualify as a "pleco" ranging from vegetarians to carnivores and from about an inch to well over 3 feet. Perhaps you could be more specific?

[Pixxie75]

He is a common Pleco. Is he the kind that is going to get to be 3 feet. He has wafers and was told he ate alage from around the tank. How do you feed them cucumber slices?

[talldutchie]

Common pleco only get two feet. Blanch the cucumber. Hold in boiling water for a few seconds. Use a fork or a feeding clip to keep it down

[madagascariensis]

Two or three does not matter. Bottom line is that it will eventually grow WAY too large for a twenty gallon tank.

[KevinVA]

They're both too large for it. The Raphael cat has the potential to grow from 6-9". You should move both species, when you're able to.