Fancy plecos for Betta tank mates

[plantedAlex]

planning out a Fluval Flex 15g want to include a Fancy pleco that stays small what are some tried and true options people have tried with success? 

[Keeg]

I haven't tried it myself, but some have tried the goby pleco as they're pretty small and have had good results. Another one is possibly the zebra pleco but they can sometimes get 6 inches so its a risky option but better odds than say a bristle nose. I personally dont think a 15 should be used for plecos. If you want a pleco for algae control with your betta, there are other options like shrimp or snails. 

[Guppysnail]

One thing to consider when putting even the smaller plecos in a tank. They are HUGE waste producers. In a tank that small you will struggle to keep nitrates at an acceptable level and water change needs will be great. My lemon bristlenose are very active and I would agree 15 would be a bit to small for them. Other option for a betta algae control tank mate would be nerite snails. 

Edited December 14, 2021 by Guppysnail

[gardenman]

As someone with six Super Red plecos in my ten-gallon tank, I can say that you could sneak one in a fifteen without much trouble if you've got adequate or better filtration. Is it ideal? Well, ideally every fish would have a river to itself, but that's awkward, at best, to achieve. My six are the still-growing fry from last December's hatch who got put in the ten-gallon tank because I had to put them somewhere. (Don't ask how many are in my twenty, thirty, and fifty-gallon tanks.) In the wild, plecos dig themselves a cave in a riverbank and hang out around it, so it's not like they're swimming miles a day. If you can keep the water quality good, there's no reason you can't have a smaller pleco in a fifteen-gallon tank.

Just be forewarned, the fancier, more expensive a pleco is, the less likely you are to ever see it. They quickly become masters of hiding and will disappear for days at a time and you'll forget you even have one and then he'll swim into sight for a second or two before disappearing again. It's pretty easy to spend $200+ on a tiny zebra pleco only to have it disappear from sight and seldom be seen. "I'm going to build my tank around this rare and exotic pleco!" And then no one ever sees it. 

So, why do you want a pleco? Is it for tank maintenance? If so, they'll make you do more maintenance as they're poop monsters. The smaller, more exotic types tend to be more carnivores than algae eaters, so they're not overly effective at cleaning algae. My ramshorn snails are far better algae eaters than my plecos. Is it to have a showpiece fish alongside your betta? If so, prepare to be disappointed as plecos tend to just disappear into a tank. Albino cory cats would make a good bottom of the tank cleanup crew that you'd actually be able to see on a regular basis. Snails can help with algae control and maintenance, but the wrong kind can fill your tank with snails, and even nerite snails will lay eggs everywhere, which while they don't hatch in freshwater, are an eyesore. I've known a few bettas that have killed snails by pecking at them, so there's some risk at putting a snail in a tank with a betta. (Bettas vary wildly in personality though. Yours could be fine.)

If you want a smaller pleco for the tank, go for it. Just understand the issues you're likely to run into. And be forewarned, there are plecos that are pretty similar in appearance, but priced vastly differently. Some less than ethical dealers will buy the cheaper version and sell them as the more expensive one to naive buyers.