Fish sucking filters...?And Canibal plecostomus?!?

[Bridish05]

Ok I have 2 questions based on things my friends told me earlier when I announced that I had gotten an aquarium:

Question one: I have a ten gallon whisper filter in my 10 gallon aquarium and some friends told me if I have it in there my fish will get sucked up! I had thought about future fry getting sucked up but not my adult fish...it's not the kind of filter with a tube...it has slats in the side...

Question 2: My friend told me not to keep my algae eaters in with my gups because she had an pleco that badgered her fish until they died then ate them....

I don't particularly want my gups to get sucked up and/or eaten by canibal plecos...can you please help?

Thanks!

 

[GeraldTheMouse]

1st, If fish would get sucked up a filter, they wouldn't sell it.

2nd, What kind of algae eaters do you have? I have never heard a story of plecos eating fish....

3rd, Don't listen to those friends, lol.

 

[Bridish05]

Thanks...maybe they were just telling me fish horror stories
Thanks for clearing things up...I was worried

 

[FreddyJ]

I've read that some pleco's will suck on the slime coat of fish that are already deceased. Also, I had a pleco with a nasty attitude and he kept fighting with my one dominant fish, so I had to adopt him out. (I think the pleco couldn't understand why the cichlid kept picking on him but it was because they both wanted this same prime spot of realty in my tank and just didn't "speak the same language".)

 

[Lotus]

Definitely don't get a pleco for a 10g tank, as they get very large (up to 18"). If anyone tells you that fish only grow to the size of the tank, they don't know what they're talking about

 

[Bridish05]

uh oh I have 2 plecos in my 10 gallon already...what should I do with them If they get too big?

 

[Pure]

Take them back now before they do.

I read that your tank is only a couple of days old?? or did I not read that right?

 

[Bridish05]

Yes it's only a couple of days old...i'm very new to this (as could be assumed ) But yeah...I tried to set it up as best as possible
I have 3 female and 2 male gups, 2 plecos, a 10 gal. filter, a heater, some live plant bulbs, some fake plants for while the live ones are growing....a bubbly tube air pump thing...and some marbles...all in a 10 gallon tank...

I got the plecos from wal mart...I dunno if they take fish back....

 

[GeraldTheMouse]

Your tank isn't 'cycled' if you do not know what that is go here or here

 

[Bridish05]

am I supposed to cycle it...?

 

[GeraldTheMouse]

Yes you are, if you don't, I'm not sure if your fish will make it.

 

[Bridish05]

oh...that's unfortunate...thanks for telling me!

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

you should get a test kit, then you can do a fish-in cycle. your fish will have a better chance of surviving, but no guarantees. guppys arent the hardiest out there.

 

[Pure]

Actually Yahoo I find guppies to be quit hardy. Well the common LFS ones anyhow. At one time I even used them to cycle betta tanks.

The thing is, it's a hit or miss if they will be ok. It all depends on the stock your gups come from. The more they are inbred the weaker they are.

As for your plecos..getting them from wally world I can only assume they are commons. PlanetCatfish :: Cat-eLog :: Loricariidae

In that link the size they list is false, they really get up to 24 inches in the wild, and around 18 inches is pretty normal in captivity.

 

[Bridish05]

wow...that's rather scary...I don't think I want giant monster plecos...